According to a recent survey, 68% of attendees prefer hybrid or virtual events, while only 32% prefer in-person meetings.
These numbers have significant implications for marketers, who must adapt to rapidly evolving virtual event trends.
One way to match audience expectations is using a virtual event checklist to guide the organization process.
This article explores essential components of an event checklist before, during, and after an event.
TL;DR – Virtual Event Checklist
Need a quick summary of the different types of virtual event checklists? Here’s a brief rundown:
- Event Planning Checklist: Provides a roadmap for implementing the proposed event.
- Day-of-Event Checklist: Outlines guidelines for hosting the event and focuses on running it from start to finish.
- Post-Event Checklist: Identifies essential strategies for maximizing event outcomes, such as following up on generated leads.
Keep reading for a detailed guide on how to use each checklist to boost your event’s success.
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Why Do You Need a Virtual Event Checklist?
A virtual event checklist is critical to an event’s success, and here’s why:
Effective Organization
A checklist provides a structured approach to planning an event.
It helps you track all necessary aspects, such as choosing a streaming platform, setting up a registration website, rolling out a marketing campaign, and hosting the event.
Consistency Across Events
Using an event checklist helps avoid complacency, especially after organizing multiple events.
It ensures planners focus on every detail regardless of its perceived contribution to an event’s overall success.
Resource Utilization
An event checklist provides a framework for allocating and tracking resources. For example, it outlines the roles and responsibilities of each team member based on their strengths.
Also, it simplifies redirecting idle resources to strained functions to speed up the planning process.
Enhanced Collaboration
Event checklists provide a shared reference point for the planning team and clearly outline the expected input from all members.
This fosters communication and collaboration in the team, leading to a more cohesive approach to planning and hosting an event.
Effective Time Management
Using an event checklist helps prioritize the most important tasks. It also helps assign realistic timelines for each milestone, avoiding last-minute rushes.
Pro Tip: Ensure all tasks are completed on time to allow pre-event tests and rehearsals.
Risk Mitigation
A comprehensive event checklist includes contingency plans for anticipated challenges. For example, you could procure extra microphones, webcams, and lighting as backups in case of equipment malfunction.
This helps reduce the impact of unforeseen events on the audience experience.
Virtual Event Planning Checklist
A planning checklist helps ensure all crucial details are addressed in time for the virtual event. It also serves as a roadmap to help the organizing team execute a successful event.
Below are the main elements of a virtual event planning checklist:
- Event Goals: Establish clear event objectives and desired outcomes, like lead generation or enhancing brand awareness. The goals should also include KPIs to track performance.
- Audience Demographics: Create audience profiles and establish strategies for attracting and engaging the group.
- Event Budget: Identify the required human and capital resources and outline how to allocate them to pending tasks.
- Virtual Event Platform: Compare various platforms’ accessibility, scalability, and interactive features and pick the best-fit option for your event.
- Structured Agenda: Create a detailed program for the event, including session topics, time slots, and breaks.
- Speaker Preparation: Book the guest speakers and share preparation guidelines.
- Event Marketing: Identify effective promotion channels, including social media and email marketing. Ensure the marketing strategies align with your brand.
- Event Registration: Design dynamic landing pages where interested guests can find event details and confirm attendance.
- Rehearsals: Dry-run the event to identify possible mishaps and develop contingencies.
Day-of-Event Checklist for Virtual Events
Have a focused checklist to ensure everything runs smoothly on the event day. Here are essential components to include in the checklist:
- Final Checks: Test the virtual event set-up one last time to confirm everything runs smoothly.
- Brief the Speakers: Confirm that guest speakers are present and know their time slots. Also, ensure moderators are ready to facilitate the event.
- Team Briefing: Ensure team members know their responsibilities during the event.
- Support Team: Keep the support team on standby to address tech issues.
- Audience Interactions: Track audience engagement throughout the event by monitoring KPIs like social media impressions.
- Feedback Surveys: Be ready to collect audience feedback immediately after the event.
Post-Event Activities and Follow-Up Steps
Post-event activities are essential to establish relationships with your audience and collect feedback for performance review.
Below are essential items to include in a post-event checklist:
- Follow-Up Emails: Send thank-you emails and messages to event stakeholders, including guests, speakers, and sponsors.
- Feedback Surveys: Send feedback survey links and request attendees to share their event experience.
- Event Highlights: Create short reels highlighting critical moments from the event and share them on your website and social media profiles.
- Follow-Up on Leads: Implement targeted campaigns to convert potential leads into clients.
- Analyze the Feedback: Leverage third-party tools to analyze the submitted feedback and assess the event’s success.
- Post-Event Report: Compile actionable insights from the feedback analysis and internal debriefs.
- Distribute the Event Recording: Use Hello Audio to easily repurpose the content with private podcasts and lock the content behind a paywall to generate revenue.
Check our instant demo to learn how to use private podcasts to distribute your event recording to an exclusive audience!
Common Mistakes to Avoid in Virtual Event Planning
Avoid these common mishaps when planning your virtual event:
Unclear Goals
Planning a virtual event without defined goals and objectives often results in an underwhelming audience experience. It also hinders effective performance tracking, as there are no KPIs to monitor.
Start the planning process by defining the event objectives, such as generating leads or brand awareness.
Picking the Wrong Platform
Choosing a platform that doesn’t fit your event harms the audience experience. Consider factors like the expected capacity and interactive features.
Also, account for the event format. For example, use a platform like Hello Audio when planning an audio-only event. Check out how Angie swapped webinars for private podcasts and sold out her launch in three days.
Ignoring Accessibility Features
Overlooking your event’s accessibility locks out potential attendees with disabilities.
It could also taint your brand’s image for not being inclusive to marginalized groups.
Provide accessibility features like video captions and screen reader compatibility to cater to people with sensory impairments.
Ignoring Pre-Event Tests
Skipping pre-event checks reduces your preparedness for unforeseen challenges. This exposes your event to the risk of total failure should technical issues occur mid-session.
Allocate adequate time for rehearsals and pre-event tests to help you set up contingency plans for possible challenges.
Overlooking Post-Event Feedback
Not collecting feedback takes away the opportunity to assess audience satisfaction and identify areas for improvement.
You also miss out on networking opportunities with the audience, which is essential for building an online community for your brand.
Poor Audience Engagement
Overloading your event’s agenda could overwhelm and disorient your guests.
Additionally, disregarding interactive elements like live polls and breakout rooms could cause the audience to disengage.
Curate the event’s content to prioritize quality agenda items and incorporate gamification features to maximize audience engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Let’s answer the frequently asked questions about virtual event checklists:
How Do I Handle Time Zone Differences for a Global Audience?
Here are practical tips for managing time zone differences when targeting a global audience:
- Consider your audience’s time zones and identify when most people will likely be available.
- Use a specific time zone to communicate all event times.
- Communicate session changes promptly to allow the audience to adjust their schedules accordingly.
What Are Some Tips for Keeping Attendees Engaged Throughout the Event?
Below are proven strategies for keeping your audience engaged throughout the event:
- Ensure smooth transitions between sessions or speakers.
- Provide interactive tools and gamification features.
- Provide networking and relationship-building opportunities.
- Leverage AI to personalize the event experience for your audience.
- Provide accessibility features for guests with sensory impairments.
How Do I Track Attendance and Engagement in a Virtual Event?
Most virtual event platforms provide attendance reports, including guests’ names and contact information. Alternatively, you can integrate third-party attendance tracking tools.
Below are effective ways to track audience engagement:
- Monitor the number of guests who participated in live polls and trivia sessions.
- Check social media activity and impressions during the virtual event.
- Use third-party tools to measure engagement heatmap.
What Are the Key Metrics to Measure Virtual Event Success?
Here are key performance metrics when evaluating event success:
- Number of registrations on the event’s website
- Social media engagement on the event-designated hashtag(s)
- Post-event audience satisfaction scores
- Revenue generated from ticket sales and merchandise
- Audience engagement with interactive tools and gamification features
Conclusion
The secret to organizing a successful virtual event is having a checklist to help you track and address all the essential aspects.
Still, some event organizers only focus on preparations until the event day.
However, what happens after the event is equally important. For example, you must engage the audience to build a community. Also, you could monetize the content to generate revenue and cover some of the event planning expenses.
Hello Audio is the best platform for content monetization and community building. Convert your event recordings into private podcasts within minutes and distribute them through podcast platforms like Spotify and Apple to reach a wider audience.
