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Just last month, the marketing head of a utilities company told us over a relaxed business lunch how she so deeply wished she had some superpowers - like being present at more than one place at the same tme. She wasn’t an exception by any standards, because almost every other person you run into wants some kind of superpower - the power to work faster, the power to learn things swiftly, the power to be more efficient … the list is endless. 

While there was no magical meteorite or radioactive spider in sight, we realized that we had something that came pretty close: virtual event platforms. 

There are some uncanny similarities between online event platforms and superheroes. The range of features that these advanced platforms bring to your events can easily match some of the superpowers of those women and men in their flowing capes. Here are the 5 similarities you can’t miss!

1. Teleportation AKA zero latency streaming

Teleportation is the power to move from one place to another, magically. More importantly, it doesn’t matter what you are moving, so with teleportation, the efforts to move a pin are no different from moving a 16-wheel truck. 

In the context of virtual and hybrid event platforms, teleportation holds a key application. It is about teleporting information and data. All the audio and visual data that presenters and attendees share are ‘teleported’ to any corner of the world with minimal relay lags. For instance, Zuddl has zero latency streaming, which means your real-time streaming  and back-and-forth communication is truly real-time.

Like Blink, the Marvel superheroine, who can teleport herself and others at will, your ability to what you can achieve with the superpower is only limited by your imagination.

It’s also about bringing your presenters and attendees on the same platform, even though they may be a couple thousand miles from each other in reality. That unmatched immersive experience makes everyone feel they are fully a part of the event.

2. Shapeshifting AKA customization

Bruce Lee once famously said, “Be water, my friend… Be formless, shapeless, like water. You put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle…” Which is what an event platform is - it takes the form of what you want it to be.

You can use the platform to host a company offsite with the same ease (and platform) as you can host a career fair. You can conduct a virtual conference, an all-hands meet, a trade show, a product demo, and so on with the same platform. All it takes is a little bit of creativity. 

3. Size changing AKA scalability

Lots of marketing and promotional activities have a great ROI, but the moment the size of your target audience grows, the costs go through the roof. Alternatively, some other channels become prohibitively expensive when you want to scale down. Wouldn’t it be just great to have something that’d be both extremely affordable and effective, whether you go from 10 to 1,000 or the other way round?

The DC comics created Bumblebee  - a superhero that could grow tiny at will and accomplish a mission. A sophisticated virtual event platform can do the same, only it’s real and easily accessible. 

Imagine you have a meeting with your distributed team of nineteen people spread across nine countries and three continents. A platform like Zuddl would be just fine for this purpose. Or imagine you’re planning an annual conference, where you expect an in-person attendance of 100 and a virtual attendance of another 500. No problem, virtual event platforms like Zuddl can help you scale up or down with equal ease.

The amazing scalability of modern day virtual platforms makes them just the right fit for events of all sizes. In hybrid events, where you aren’t sure of the number of virtual attendees, it’s really comforting to know that your event platform has your back. That last minute tweet by a celebrity marketer might suddenly shoot up your signups, but you don’t have to worry because you know the platform will deliver the same extraordinary experience no matter how big your audience grows.

4. Invisibility AKA working perfectly behind the scenes

Remember how Spiderman appears from nowhere, quickly goes about saving the day, and then swings away afterwards? All done in a blink of an eye. That’s what your platform for virtual events does today. Just think about how the platform can make the virtual attendees and presenters feel they are in the same room, at the same place. That’s possible because although the platform is the medium, it connects people from different locations so seamlessly you don’t notice its presence. 

The real strength of a technology is how much it can get done behind the scenes, out of sight,  without getting in the way. If you need to go back to the platform admin with requests for every feature, it’s just not efficient. 

Powerful platforms deliver, yet stay invisible. A sophisticated platform for virtual events is one that is so user-friendly and intuitive that it appears like it is a native platform.

5. Immortality AKA on-demand events

Superman is indestructible. And this is one his most enduring charms.

The platform for events offers immortality in the sense that once you’ve conducted an event, their recordings are available forever. There doesn’t have to be any mandatory expiry date.

So it’s quite simple. You have organized an event that was hugely successful. And you want more prospects, more suppliers, more partners and more team members to benefit from it. So what do you do ? After the event has ended, you transform it into an on-demand webinar, for instance. If someone wants to watch that event and its presentations, all they need to do is to simply sign up. And the recording will be available for a long, long time.

This is a brilliant way of getting more juice out of every event you organize, every dollar you spend. This immortality also helps your brand build a leadership position, because visitors to your website will notice that you’ve shared numerous on-demand videos and are letting people benefit from it.

To sum up …The platform holds the key

‘Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.’ Arthur C Clarke’s observation may not have been made in the context of virtual event platforms, yet it fits in pretty well. The amazing capabilities of the modern, sophisticated event platforms easily match the superpowers of our fantasy heroes.

To be sure, your virtual event is only as good as the functionalities the event your chosen platform offers. Which means that the outcome is pretty much decided the moment you choose the platform - a great platform virtually ensures that the event is going to be a huge success.

As the trusted virtual event platform for enterprises, Zuddl uses industry-leading technology in order to ensure your events offer seamless experiences to attendees. To understand if Zuddl is a good fit for your next event, drop us a line. We’d love to show you around!

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

We’re thrilled to announce that the reviews are in and *drum roll* Zuddl has landed 6 new badges AND we’ve been recognized in the Leader category in G2’s quarterly reports! This achievement has been much celebrated by our team, building on the momentum from previous G2 reports. We want to thank all of our customers for leaving us such positive feedback!

Highlights from the G2 report:

1. Ranked as Leader Summer 2022

Truly a thrilling accomplishment for us! This badge is testament to our dedication to help our fantastic clients host record-breaking virtual and hybrid events. 

What reviewers have to say about us:

2. Ranked as ‘Leader Mid-Market’

Our achievement this quarter is a level up from High Performers last season.

Mid-market quadrant leaders are recognized based on high ratings by G2 users as well as high satisfaction ratings and market presence scores. This determines where a product is placed in a quadrant - Leaders, High Performers, Contenders, and Niche.

3. Awarded ‘Easiest To Do Business With Enterprise’

This is definitely a badge we are proud to receive as achieving the ‘Easiest To Do Business With’ award is not at all easy to attain! The award is only earned after G2 asks customers a variety of business relationship-related questions focused on satisfaction, convenience, and trust, and factors in user satisfaction ratings. It is also based on the reviewer’s willingness to recommend the product to a friend.

Zuddl scored a 9.4 ease of score rating in the virtual event platforms category - far above the average score for this sector which is only a 9.1. This score illustrates our outstanding dedication to going above and beyond for our customers' success.

What reviewers have to say about us:

4. Awarded ‘High Performer Enterprise’

Zuddl has previously received the ‘High Performer’ badge, and we’re thrilled to receive it again as it shows how time and time again, we enable our customers to drive value and success for all their stakeholders - their attendees, their partners and their investors.

5. Awarded ‘High Performer Small-Business’

Zuddl has previously received the ‘High Performer’ badge,  and we’re thrilled to receive it again as it shows how time and time again, we enable our customers to drive value and success for all their stakeholders - their attendees, their partners and their investors.

6. Awarded 'Best Support Small-Business'

G2’s Support awards are calculated based on ratings from verified consumers on the quality of support and ease of doing business with Zuddl. Overall, we have a high rating of 9.7 from our reviewers which puts us far ahead from the average support rating which is only a 9.3.

Here's what reviewers said about Zuddl:

More about G2 and the summer 2022 reports

G2 is the world's largest tech marketplace where businesses can discover, review, and manage the technology. Every quarter, the company awards badges to businesses that excel in performance, ease of use, setup, customer support just to name a few based on 1M+ user reviews.

Check out more of our reviews on G2, and, if you are a customer, we would be grateful if you left us one!

Get a demo

We’re interested in helping businesses host memorable and ROI-driven virtual and hybrid events. If you want: If you want:

✓ 100% customizability - ie. the ability to design and create events exactly how you want them

✓ Complete support - immediate assistance and quick resolutions within minutes, not hours

✓ Extreme confidence in your numbers - no guesswork about ROI and value

✓ That human touch - infuse that feeling of actually being there 

then book a demo right here.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

In 2014, the LEGO Group launched LEGO® Ideas.

The goal was to create a platform where passionate fans and creators could share ideas for LEGO products, give feedback and vote, with the most convincing ideas turned into official LEGO® kits. And as a result, it is why today we have the brilliant Vincent Van Gogh: Starry Night, the intimidating Earth Globe, and the iconic Beatles’ Yellow Submarine. These are direct results of co-creation.

What is co-creation and why is it worth reading about

Prahalad and Ramaswamy in their journal article ‘Co‐creating unique value with customers’, define co-creation as “the joint creation of value by the company and the customer; allowing the customer to co-construct the service experience to suit their context.” In simpler terms, it is when a company and a group of its customers, jointly produce something that is mutually valuable.  

The value, it’s important to note,  is in the experience. And as J. Pine and Gilmore put it in their piece ‘Welcome to the Experience Economy,  “An experience occurs when a company intentionally uses services as the stage, and goods as props, to engage individual customers in a way that creates a memorable event.”

Why is co-creation especially important at virtual events?

In today’s digital-first world, with attention-spans shrinking and Zoom fatigue so prevalent that it has its own page on Wikipedia, consumers need more than traditional audience engagement strategies in return for their attention, time, and energy. That’s where co-creation can make a difference at your virtual events.

Because co-creation involves the participation of stakeholders, they switch from being mere consumers to active contributors. It’s a shift in perspective, but an important one. Attendees are no longer passive bystanders at virtual Stages, listening to speakers present at sessions, and simply watching on.

They now become partners and constituents with the power to co-create content with their community.

This is why Twitch, the American video live streaming service, is incredibly popular - with 30 million daily active users and 2.5 million people watching Twitch streams. Co-creating entertainment is at the heart of its success. “For unfamiliar audiences, Twitch is certainly a platform that is heavy on interaction and different types of input, and that is part of its formula and beauty for dedicated users”,  writes Dr. Nicolle Lamerichs in a paper titled ‘Material Culture on Twitch’. “Each stream is perhaps best read as a community or experience, rather than a content or story. It is in the interaction that Twitch becomes interesting, and in the ways in which audiences actively tune in and out of different streams.

This is the approach to engagement that virtual event organizers now need to adopt.

Three ways to improve co-creation at virtual events

1. Tools to empower co-creation

[Consumers] want to engage, interact and influence brands, seeking to ‘exercise their influence in every part of the business system’ (Prahalad & Ramaswamy, 2004). Extrapolating this to virtual events means that every single attendee has influence,  so event organizers need to be proactively looking for ways to help them express themselves. To this end, engagement tools in-built on a virtual event platform like the following are invaluable.

• A Chat function on your virtual event platform for instance enables multiple individuals to have a dialogue. Attendees can let speakers, each other and you as an organizer know what they really think about the content being shared. It also helps to create the effect of a shared experience regardless of how the attendee is joining the event, and in turn, a sense of community. For the individuals involved, the value of contributing to the group chat can be psychological, driving feelings of appreciation, and higher self-esteem.

• A Raise Hands feature (like Zuddl has) that lets an attendee join speakers on the virtual stage to ask them questions directly ‘face-to-face’ and join in conversations in  a way that makes the entire experience more immersive.

• A Q&A tool emboldens attendees to ask questions as part of a group in a way that they might have felt uncomfortable doing so at a traditional in-person event.

• Polls in particular actively promote an interactive viewing experience. They maintain that human connection by preserving the in-the-moment experience.

1. Speakers, for instance, can use a Poll during a session to gauge opinions of attendees, and use the results to steer the direction of the remainder of the session so as to truly drive value and insights for attendees. 
2. Organizers can leverage Polls as the beginning point of a back-and-forth exchange to collect feedback and market research from attendees and use the input and insights to improve your features, brand or business.

2.  “What’s in it for them?” is the question you need to answer

Getting hundreds of attendees to do more than drop by your virtual event platform can be daunting. Not surprisingly, incentivization is one motivation. For virtual event organizers, gamification is the best way to achieve this. Simply put, just like with any point-based game or video game, gamification is the application of elements like the completion of tasks, earning badges, points, rankings, and the setting up of leaderboards with prizes for the toppers to visually encourage participants to achieve goals.

What this means is that you, as the organizer, can use gamification in virtual events to nudge attendees towards meaningful interactions that produces high-quality content and which can boost engagement among a wider audience. It’s a simple and fun way to drive value for all stakeholders - attendees, sponsors, partners, and your organization too. For instance, if the purpose of your event is to highlight a new product at a virtual conference or summit, you can incentivize actions to get feedback from attendees or suggestions on features to help improve it.

Keep in mind though that compensation is not necessarily the only motivator. McKinsey’s research on ten co-creation projects found that most participants  (28%) were  driven by curiosity and a desire to learn, followed by those who were driven by entertainment and social play (26 %), and a third motivated by building skills (26 %). Therefore, using gamification based on these motivations might result in a more valuable experience for attendees and in the long run, for your business.

3. Zero latency is mission critical

There is absolutely no room for live streaming lags or delays at your virtual event. Even a 30 second lag can make the difference between your attendees feeling like they’re watching a great looking Youtube video that gets stuck buffering, or  the intimacy and sense of community created by a speaker/presenter reacting to questions, suggestions and comments by attendees in real time.

The  immediacy provided by a zero lag platform is integral to generating more authentic interactions between co-creators.

To sum up…

Embracing co-creation isn’t easy, but the potential rewards can be significant. If virtual event organizers are able to provide modern consumers with the specialized viewing experience that they’re looking for, it can help build a culture of innovation and collaboration, strong relationships with invested constituents which in turn can result in business benefits down the road. Just ask LEGO.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Just as virtual events became the standard for events over the last two years, now, hybrid events are becoming the new normal. 

With in-person events on the rise again (according to a Northstar Meetings Group survey, 96% of planners will do an in-person event this year), but the benefits of virtual events too strong to simply throw by the wayside, event organizers are bringing the strengths of the two together in the format of a hybrid event. The result? The energy that comes from face-to-face interactions, as well as increased reach, better engagement and improved analytics from virtual event platforms.

However, organizing a hybrid event in this new normal is anything but normal. It  requires new planning and extra precautions to keep attendees as safe as possible. This is mission critical in making sure your hybrid event is a success. To help, we’ve listed out everything you’ll need to keep an eye on when planning your next event:

1. Pick a venue that can accommodate COVID-19 protocol

It can be difficult to zero in on a venue for your hybrid event because there’s a lot to consider. From technical support to attendee capacity, here’s a list of things to keep in mind when assessing potential venues. Safety is one of the most important.

Keep in mind that the venue will have to conform to the safety regulations of their respective local and national governments, so look for venues that already have well-documented and clear safety policies and protocols in place. 

Bonus: Venues that have received Covid-19 Safe Accreditation are optimal choices. You can keep an eye out for: 

• Global Biorisk Advisory Council’s (GBAC) STAR accreditation. This program evaluates 20 elements  of a venue’s operating protocols and risk-assessment strategies, from disinfection practices to emergency preparedness. 

• The AIM Secure Accreditation. It is an industry-wide mark of excellence focussing on offices, venues and service providers.

When your attendees see that the venue is committed to keeping them safe, your on-site attendance will improve.

2. Make checking-in as safe as possible

Prevention is better than the cure, so being as cautious as possible is the best way to go. Here are a couple of measures you can take to drive better safety even before the event is in full-swing:

• Require a negative COVID test or proof of vaccination for entry: By doing so, you’ll decrease the possibility of anyone catching the virus at the event, and it will also make attendees feel more confident and comfortable about attending in-person.

• Staggering arrival times: A simple way to avoid congestion at the entryway is by allowing groups of attendees to arrive at certain times. Attendees can choose their time ahead of time on your registration form, ticket booking site or event landing page. Consider allowing cohorts of people - such as those from the same workplace - to book arrivals together. 

• Allow mobile check-ins: Invest in technologies that allow digital scanning or can process virtual tickets to enable entry into the event. Making the process as contact-less as possible will make check-in more safer but more efficient too.

• Streamline traffic: Set up dedicated entrances and exits at the venue - more than one will be a benefit as it will help to diffuse any traffic jams so to speak. Use floor markers to keep people at a safe distance while they wait to check in, enter rooms, etc. 

3. Communicate health and safety protocols clearly

Make sure attendees know what health and safety protocols are set in place, before and during the event. 

• Before the event: Keep attendees in the loop by emailing them about what they can expect at the venue such as the requirement for a negative COVID-test or the use of a mobile app for check-ins. Keep in mind that people are going to be anxious about their safety, so being as clear and comforting as possible will go a long way.

• During the event: Put up lots of signage in your hybrid event venue to communicate expectations and rules for attendee behaviour. For instance, at CES 2022, attendees were given the choice of three coloured stickers to indicate how much touch they were comfortable with.

 Signs that tell attendees to wear masks or where they can find hand sanitizer are some examples. The point is to make attendees feel comfortable and secure. 

4. Keep lots of PPE and sanitation handy

Setting up dedicated areas stocked with hand sanitizer and protective masks are a small but powerful signal that keeping your attendees safe is top of mind.(Bonus: they give you a custom branding opportunity for your business or that of your sponsors.)  Highlight these areas with signage.

5. Touchless, yet matchless, COVID cuisine

There are plenty of ways to offer attendees safe but delicious food at your hybrid event. Here are some options to consider:

• Seated meals, with tables and guests appropriately distanced are a good option for small events. 

• Pre-packaged gourmet meals that can be easily consumed by attendees at the in-person venue, and which can be delivered to the houses of virtual attendees. 

Ask attendees to choose from a menu ahead of time to personalize the experience. This also makes for a more eco-friendly event.  Steven Enselein, senior vice president of events for Hyatt, gives the example of a hybrid event recently held at Hyatt Regency O’Hare, “The same breakfast, lunch and snack arrived via contactless delivery right at the doorstep of each virtual attendee’s house. Inside was a menu and plating instructions so they could follow along with the group on-site,” says Enselein. “We are always thinking about outside-of-the-box ways to make remote attendees feel cared for and part of events.”

To sum up…

Hybrid event safety is one of the most important considerations for event organizers now and going forward. Keep these tips in mind when planning your event, and you’ll be able to create an experience that makes your attendees feel safe, comfortable, and supported.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Much to our delight, Zuddl has been awarded three new badges: Users Love Us, High Performer Spring 2022, and High Performer Asia Pacific Spring 2022, in the most recent quarterly report by G2, the business software comparison website trusted by thousands across the world.

You can check out our G2 profile here.

What is G2 and how does it work?

G2 is the world’s largest tech marketplace where consumers and businesses can discover, review, and manage the technology solutions they need. This is largely due to the 60 million people who visit G2.com every year to read and write authentic reviews about more than 100,000 software products and services. 

Reviews: All users undergo a moderation and approval process, so only unfiltered and unbiased reviews are published on the site. Additionally, G2 prioritizes more recent reviews to reflect up-to-date user experiences about a piece of software. For instance, you can see the most recent review we’ve received from a customer right on the top of the list. 

Ratings: Besides reviews, businesses are also given an overall rating on a scale of 1-5 from users. This information as well as data aggregated from online sources and social networks are taken into account to calculate Customer Satisfaction and Market Presence scores that are then published by G2 every quarter. These are also used to determine which badges are awarded.

What do the awards we received mean?

1. Users Love Us

From the very start we've zealously focused on user experience, so we were thrilled to receive this badge, which is only earned by getting a consistently high customer satisfaction rating. We needed to collect 20 reviews with an average rating of 4.0 stars or above, and we were able to do so and more! Thanks to our supportive and happy customers, at the date of publication, we have an outstanding aggregate 4.8 star rating from 76 reviews. 

2. High Performer Spring 2022

This ​​badge is awarded to organizations with high customer satisfaction and market presence scores in their respective categories. Our users make it crystal clear that Zuddl is still their preferred choice over other options in the virtual and hybrid events platform category on G2. 

3. High Performer Asia Pacific Spring 2022

Zuddl is in the High Performer quadrant in the Asia Pacific Regional Grid® Report because we are rated highly by G2 users and have substantial Satisfaction and Market Presence scores compared to the rest of the products in the category.

Thank you to our customers

We’re thrilled to have gained positive recognition from real, verified users for our platform and our service, and couldn’t have done it without the incredible support of our customers. Thank you to all of you that have taken the time to submit a review!

Your feedback matters too!

If you use our product and haven't yet shared your opinion, why not help those in their quest for finding a highly-rated user-friendly and customizable virtual and hybrid events platform? Leave a review on our G2 review page.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Earlier this month, Zuddl concluded the second edition of its annual company offsite event, Bonfire, and this time around, the team was much bigger, and so were the festivities!

For a remote workforce like ours, the annual offsite is a rare chance for each of us to get to know the people we’ve otherwise only interacted with virtually.

A four-day event, Bonfire 2022 had all the ingredients of a power-packed event, starting from leadership and strategy sessions to cultural activities, sports and a whole lot of surprises! Now, for someone like me who has been at Zuddl for about six months now, meeting my remote team (and the extended Zuddl family) in person was a very unique experience. 

Initially, I didn’t know how it would be; there was this slight anxiety, or curiosity rather, as to whether our smooth virtual relationship with each other would translate seamlessly when we all shared the same physical space and picked up on each other’s non-verbal cues. To my surprise, we seemed to hit it off as if we’ve known each other for years.

Once the event concluded,I thought about how that happened. What have we been doing right to see this beautiful outcome? And, what has been the company’s role in helping us achieve this.

Here's why I feel Bonfire 2022 was proof of a company that has managed to establish a healthy culture in this remote reality!

A sense of belonging

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The first sign that you organically fit into a community is the fact that you don’t have to make a visible effort to fit in. This seemed to be the general vibe at Bonfire; a genuine ‘coming together’ of people rather than a forced one.

A self-driven team

Whatever session or activity that was handled by a particular team was done with a very authentic flair; there wasn’t an instance where it felt someone was compelled to take up a chunk of responsibility. That speaks volumes of how Zuddl, as a company, has built an environment that doesn’t introduce a sense of distance between different working elements of the company, or the classic ‘hierarchy’ if you will. 

‍Palpable trust

Let’s admit it, we’ve all been to many professional events or gatherings because we were told to be present - almost like the company in question was ‘taking attendance’. In this aspect, Bonfire 2022 was a breath of fresh air because at no point did anyone ever compel any of us to be present for a session or event; they trusted that we would show up on our own. It’s this element of trust that automatically builds a sense of ownership in an employee. I’ve always felt that when there’s a sense of freedom in the environment, it actually induces employees to respect and uphold the liberty harbored.

‍A joyful environment

Just like every place has a mood, every community does too. The one thing that struck me overall was that there was a shared experience of happiness when awards were announced and a collective sense of celebration when party time set in. Now, I may be more introverted than the normal individual, but I think even the most extroverted butterfly would agree that there are some crowds you click with, and some you don’t. 

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Thankfully for us, we just clicked - and that’s what made Bonfire 2022 a memorable one!

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

At Zuddl, we send more than 10 different types of notifications to our users. For instance, when one attendee sends a 1:1 meeting invitation to another and when a meeting invite is accepted, when someone asks a question or an attendee answers one, for votes, etc. All of these notifications are sent instantly as the user takes action.

Single vs multiple notification delivery

At Zuddl, we send two types of service notifications:

• Real-time notifications
• Email notifications

Pusher lets you create web apps with real-time functionality such as sharing live results, messaging, and pushing content to end-users and back. We use one of Pusher’s messaging solutions; Channels, to communicate between our servers, apps, and devices which thereby helps us send real-time notifications to attendees in a single event. Pusher’s ‘Channels’ is also used for real-time charts, real-time user lists, real-time maps, multiplayer gaming, and also to notify many other types of UI updates. Whenever anything happens in our systems, it helps us keep our web pages, apps, and devices updated.

Every notification contains a payload. The notification payload is created at the backend which contains the title, description, and other required information.

Users also receive emails for every notification received on the app such as event reminders, thank you emails, and post-event emails amongst others. For email notifications, we use SendGrid, a cloud-based SMTP provider that allows you to send emails without having to maintain email servers. SendGrid manages all technical requirements, from scaling the infrastructure to ISP(Internet service provider) outreach, reputation monitoring to whitelist services, and real-time analytics.

The first notification system we developed was great but was not scalable. It also had other issues, for example, wrong notifications being sent or notification misfires, delays, and complicated logic on the UI side. In the case of single notification delivery types such as Pusher and email, the existing implementation worked. But when multiple notifications delivery types(Email, Pusher and Firebase Console Messaging) were required at runtime, we had to put on our thinking hats to handle such use cases.

How we used design pattern for notification delivery

To get the right service or delivery at run time we use a factory design pattern. But before I go about explaining the factory design pattern, it is essential to to understand how design patterns are used.

A software design pattern is a basic, repeatable solution to a commonly occurring problem within a given context in software design. It cannot be used off the shelf as a finished piece of code design but needs to be customized and transformed into a source code for a particular use case. It is supposed to be used as a template for how to solve a known problem factoring in several scenarios.

Factory method pattern is one type of design pattern also known as a creational pattern that uses factory methods to deal with the problem. In this way, we can create objects without having to specify the exact class of the object that will be created or the subclasses that are responsible for creating the instance of the class.

To resolve the multiple notifications delivery types that are required at runtime for any event, we created a factory class.

The above class is responsible to fetch a service type based on delivery type.

We have also created a NotifyAdapter class to check common validations like duplicate notification, input request validation, and many others.

Our other services(Email and Pusher) only call the NotifyAdapter class and internally we fetch service type based on DeliveryType using factory pattern.

Take away

Factory Method is a widely used, creational design pattern that can be used in many situations where multiple concrete implementations of an interface exist. The pattern removes complex logical code that is hard to maintain and replaces it with a design that is reusable and extensible.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

While a virtual career fair brings top talent to your doorstep and initiates the first candidate-employer interaction, there are thousands of other employers vying to do the same. 

So, how do you make yourself stand out? 

Here are 5 ways employers can stand out in virtual career fairs and attract the best candidates.  

 1. Create a virtual expo booth: 

Typically, there are two types of virtual career fair avenues: 

• One is a simple webpage with a chat window where attendees can interact with recruiters at a chosen time. 
• The other is a virtual platform where you can build an elaborate design that mimics an in-person career fair with exhibition halls, expo booths, and a resource center.  

Obviously, choosing a more robust design with extensive features and an immersive booth design is a great way to build your employer brand and bring about excitement among your attendees.   

 Talk about a sure-shot first step in drawing candidates in! 

2. Perfect your employer brand ‍

Nowadays, job seekers want to know whether their job is going to be impactful. Much like how employers evaluate a potential candidate’s background and experience, candidates heavily focus on evaluating an employer’s brand before applying for a job.  

Therefore, a key tactic to make yourself stand out in virtual career fairs is to outline how every talent can add value to your organization.  

Being crisp and clear about your long-term business goals and mission is surely a good thing. This gives attendees an idea of what would be expected of them and how they would be able to contribute to the company’s mission.  

3. Conduct a session for your sponsors

Socializing and networking are something job seekers look forward to when they attend your virtual event. An effective way to boost attendee engagement is to consider conducting a live streaming sponsor session that allows them to present to your audience in real time.

Your sponsor could choose career and company-focused topics, providing insight into what it's like working for a company like yours. Also, they can answer any queries that people may have about the benefits, work culture, and other best practices for their first interview.  

4. Make your virtual booth interactive ‍

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Gamification is one of the best ways to stand out in a virtual career fair and make your mark. Passive activities such as watching a video (yawn) are simply not as effective as incorporating interactive elements such as virtual games.

Set up virtual trade show games, with the likely opportunity for attendees to win a prize. This would keep people immersed plus buy more time for your booth reps to interact with potential candidates and build rapport.   

5. Employ immersive design options ‍

A virtual job fair is much more than running a plain old webinar. Setting up an immersive 3D virtual booth can go a long way in standing out to candidates. It creates a memorable experience for them as it is inherently more immersive in nature.

Think about it, 3D booths are something that virtual job seekers hardly ever see from other employers, and this allows you to really cash in on impact and recall.

Of course, the possibilities are endless when you have a good virtual event hosting platform that will help make all the right features pop out with intuitive and engaging virtual experiences. 

Career fair coming up? Hit it out of the park by running it on Zuddl - talk to us.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Hybrid events are poised to be the future of MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences & exhibitions) events as well as internal events (company offsites, sales kickoffs, new hires onboarding sessions etc.) for organizations. So the need for organizers to know how to set up a seamless and engaging hybrid event is more critical than ever. 

It can be intimidating, we know. So, to make this process more straightforward, and to ease your trepidation, we’ve put together a simple guide on how you can go about hosting your first hybrid event.

1. Pick your hybrid event venue(s) carefully

Choosing the venue(s) for your event is a little trickier than it seems. Not only do you need to keep the basics in mind - attendee capacity, technology capabilities - but you also have to factor in safety and health protocols and guidelines. And if you want your event to be as eco-friendly as possible, there is an additional set of factors to consider. Click here to read more.

Nevertheless, here are the basics you need to look for in a hybrid venue:

• Robust internet connectivity
• Space for attendees and any equipment needed (stage, lighting etc.)
• Provides in-house support
• Lets you hold dry runs 
• Has safety measures in place

Click here to read a further breakdown of these basics.

2. Choose the right virtual and hybrid event platform

This is the big one. Finding a virtual and hybrid event platform that can help you execute a seamless event experience for all your attendees, regardless of whether they are attending in-person or virtually is mission critical. 

The platform you pick will have to serve as the connective tissue between attendees and speakers,  attendees in different locations and venues in different locations as well. So here’s what is essential:

• Zero lag: A platform that lets you present your stream to your attendees in the lowest latency environment and eliminate the typical RTMP delay.

• User-friendliness: No matter how much a platform boasts of its capabilities, it won’t make a difference to you as an organizer or as an attendee if the platform is not easy to use. Look for platforms that allow you to build in days instead of weeks, and that require no knowledge of coding for the creation of the virtual venue.

• Customizability: Customization enables effective branding, marketing, and audience engagement - all critical to the success of an event, and in generating ROI for an organizer. Needless to say, organizing a virtual trade show is going to require different elements than a virtual sales kickoff, so the more flexibility a platform has in accommodating your needs and specifications, the better.

• Live engagement tools: Build a sense of community in your event with engagement tools such as Chat, Q&A, Polls, Emoji & Raise Hands that enable attendees to participate irrespective of where they are. For instance, for events hosted on Zuddl, virtual attendees use the in-platform tools to take part, while in-person attendees  use our mobile app. This way all interactions are facilitated and captured via a single platform. 

• Networking capabilities: A platform that lets virtual, and in-person attendees and speakers connect in virtual booths and also network in real-time via the mobile app.

• Analytics: Your platform should let you capture a breadth and depth of real-time data from both in-person and virtual attendees at your events — including daily attendance, audience engagement and more. 

While these are the essentials required, click here to read other important questions to remember when evaluating platforms for your event. 

3. Set up your virtual venue

As mentioned, based on how user-friendly the hybrid event platform you pick is, setting up the virtual venue can take from hours to weeks, so factor this into your planning timetable.

When setting up your virtual venue, keep in mind that you’re trying to create an experience that is exciting enough to rival a Netflix show or a sale on Amazon. Therefore, curating a variety of spaces and activities, such as the following,  is key to retaining attendee attendance, attention and engagement. 

• Lobby: Event lobbies can help people remember you vs the 5 other events they may be joining that week. Using our platform tools, you can create a warm, welcoming, exciting area that sets the tone for your brand, event, and customer experience.

• Stages: Stages usually play centerstage at any event. This is where virtual attendees can view live keynotes, panel discussions, roundtables that are occuring at the in-person venue(s). Stages should have engagement tools that attendees and speakers can use to share opinions and join in the conversation. The layouts should also be customizable, so that you can add your company branding to the backdrop or that of your sponsors to drive visibility and awareness for them. Protip: Zuddl offers event organizers a Backstage feature that enables easy management and coordination of speakers and content. With this capability, you can control the rotation of speakers, pre recorded content and transition videos and images, and stay on top of timing. 

• Virtual breakout rooms: Rooms in which attendees can meet and talk in smaller groups help drive more in-depth conversations and create a ‘shared experience’ for in-person and virtual attendees. You can use Rooms for a variety of purposes, from team brainstorms and workshops to just casual social rooms where attendees can socialize and talk about sessions happening on the stage.

• Networking zones: Networking, which matches attendees for 1:1 video-chat meetings is a great way to help bridge any distance between in-person and virtual attendees. Click here to read more about whether Quick Networking and Smart Networking would be a better fit for your event.

• Expo area: Setting up a virtual expo zone enables your sponsors and partners to create virtual expo booths to showcase their products and services. It's a great way to drive value for them, and for attendees as well.

• Fun zones: There’s plenty of opportunity to make your event an exciting one for attendees to spend time at. You can turn one of your Expo Booths into a photobooth for instance to make your event just that little bit more fun, interactive and memorable for your attendees, or set up virtual games. 

4. Brand everything

A large part of creating a hybrid experience that feels unified and shared is branding, because consistent branding throughout the event, at both the in-person venue and your virtual one, ties both experiences together.

With this in mind, you should completely brand the in-person venue with your company decor and signage, and use similar videos, colors and graphics for your virtual venue as well. This helps in creating a shared and connected experience. 

“Creating a polished and branded meeting venue was very important for us from the beginning,” says Lindsay Meyers, Senior Director, Office of Special Events of the University of Maryland (UMD) when discussing how the UMD team set up their first hybrid board meeting.  “Being able to curate every aspect of the experience was critical. We wanted to design everything in a way that trustees would immediately feel they had come to the right place, and also capture the energy, professionalism, and pride of previous Foundation board meetings.” Click here to read more about the event.

5. Stay on top of event communications

While this specific piece of advice is part and parcel of all event planning, it is especially important in the context of hybrid events. You can assume that most of your attendees do not know quite what to expect from a hybrid event, so all your communications to registered attendees should help them understand what to expect. 

Keep in mind that you’ll need to tailor instructions for virtual and in-person attendees.

For in-person attendees for example, you will need to specify guidelines about the in-person venue - where it is, if there are any COVID negative proofs they need to bring, any instructions about checking if, safety protocols in place, etc.  An event schedule, highlighting rooms, activities, and networking opportunities is key, as is explaining how they will be able to connect with virtual event attendees at the event.

For virtual attendees, you will need to share instructions on how to access the event, an event schedule, as well as how they will be able to connect with in-person attendees at the event. Keep in mind that your attendees will be tuning in from all over the world, so share event timings in an accessible way - ie. in PST/ EST. 

6.  Create an engagement strategy that brings in-person and virtual attendees together

More than ever before, we’re yearning for human connection. Build your hybrid event engagement strategy around this tenet, and look for ways to connect in-person and virtual attendees in ways that make them feel part of the same shared experience. Here are some suggestions:

• Pre-event/Pre-session chat: Connecting attendees with even one other person ahead of time can make them feel more excited, comfortable and confident in attending the event and meeting others, and can even embolden them to participate more during the event.

• Birds of a feather sessions: These sessions, which can be hosted in virtual breakout rooms, can serve as relaxed town hall-like space where like-minded virtual and in-person attendees can chat about their interests, leading to potential collaboration. You can choose to invite a speaker to the session to facilitate group discussions, or you can make it more informal and simply encourage attendees to have unconstrained conversations about set topics. 

• Speed networking: This type of networking works in a similar fashion to speed dating but with the advantage of AI-matchmaking. It helps attendees connect with others at the event based on similar interests. For this activity, you will need a virtual event platform like Zuddl that has this capability. Click here to read more. 

• Stage interactions - Plan in live sessions that shake things up, get everyone energized and create a greater sense of connection. At these sessions, you’ll need to play the role of a thoughtful moderator - using Polls to remind all attendees that their opinions matter in real-time, and encourage everyone to ask questions using Gamification - via the mobile app or using the event platform.  These simple actions can go a long way in making each of your attendees feel ‘seen’ and valued, and will encourage them to keep participating.

• Virtual watch parties - One of the advantages of virtual Breakout Rooms is that attendees within a Room can together watch what’s happening live on a Stage. In this manner, it functions as a Watch Party of sorts. It’s a great way to intertwine virtual and in-person attendees in real-time. 

7.  Use analytics to uncover relevant insights, faster

One of the greatest benefits of hosting a hybrid event is that it gives you access to accurate real-time data that you would not otherwise get from a traditional in-person event. This means that with an event platform like Zuddl, you can pinpoint which speakers, sessions and content drive the most interest and participation from attendees, and which are not performing well. 

You can then leverage these insights to make immediate changes (for instance, replacing  poorly performing marketing collateral at an Expo Booth), create valuable follow-up assets (for instance, a downloadable how-to guide related to a session topic), and refine subsequent events (for instance, working again with speakers whose sessions got the most engagement).

To sum up…

We know that organizing a hybrid event can seem intimidating. There seems like a hundred moving parts to keep track of, and not enough time in a day. With this guide, you can go about organizing your event in a calm and purposeful way. Each recommendation will help you build an event experience that is fun, impactful, and memorable.

Over to you

So you just went through the most comprehensive guide for setting up a hybrid event.  From finding the right technology to planning strategies for engagement,  there’s a lot you need to do before the event can be termed a grand success.

Which is why you want to have peace of mind when it comes to the virtual event platform. Choosing a platform that’s extremely user-friendly for both attendee and organizer as well as 100% customizable is one of the smartest decisions you could take. 

We’d be happy to show you how we can help. Why not get in touch with us today?

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Thanks to the pivot to remote working over the past two years, recruiters now have the freedom to hire the best candidates they can find regardless of where they are. In other words, the entire world is now the new talent pool. “With a typical office you have a 50 mile radius before potential hires need to relocate,” comments  Jenny Bloom, CFO of Zapier (a company with 500+ people in 38 countries). ”With remote work, there are no boundaries.”

However, this ease of access to talent hasn’t necessarily translated into an easier recruitment process.

The same lifting of geographical boundaries that allows recruiters to have more choice in hiring talent, has also meant that candidates have more choice than ever before in finding a new role. This means that recruiters have to go the extra distance (pun intended) to promote their company amongst candidates, make their employer brand stand out, and influence candidates' decisions about who to work for.

That’s where virtual hiring events come into play.

What’s a virtual hiring event?

Virtual hiring events, or virtual career fairs, are a way for recruiters and HR professionals to easily and efficiently connect directly with potential candidates from all around the world. Through the capabilities and features of the virtual event platform used for the occasion, organizers can showcase company branding and quickly and easily find the talent you need. Here’s how:

1. Show off the best and unique aspects of your company

Via a virtual event platform, you can showcase your EVP to potential candidates in a variety of ways - of which, the virtual Expo Booth is one of the best. 

Organizers can use booth widgets to highlight company USPs and get candidates excited about working at the company:

• Upload videos that showcase company culture, introduce prospective teammates, or give candidates a glimpse into what a day in the life at work would be like
• Share media - blogs, photos, infographics - to give candidates insight into the organization's vision
• Staff the booth with a company representative to answer questions
• Use  a ‘register interest’ button to build a pipeline of passive candidates for future roles

To make recruitment even more personalized, organizers can invite teams or departments to set up their own virtual booths to give candidates a deeper understanding of day-to-day operations. 

You can also leverage virtual Stages to show candidates exactly why they should want to join the company! You can play pre-recorded videos speaking to your mission and goals throughout the event. If possible, you can arrange for a keynote from the CEO to kickoff the open house and arrange for leadership in the company to hold sessions throughout the day to give your event a truly personal touch.

2. Speak with candidates 1:1

Recruiting is all about building relationships but HR professionals often do not have the time to get to know a candidate at a level that is deeper than their resume - simply because of time constraints. Using a virtual event platform like Zuddl can help address this issue. 

Leveraging platform capabilities, organizers can set up virtual rooms and meetings - to have simple introductory chats that make candidates feel welcome early in the process, hold more intensive interviews, and host group conversations that bring to light a candidate's teamwork, communication and management skills. 

• Smart networking: Organizers throwing an open house can use Smart Networking to connect recruiters with the right candidates for 1:1 meetings.

• Virtual breakout rooms: Recruiters can host small group discussions or collaborative assignments within Rooms to help candidates put their best foot forward.

3. Make the entire experience fun, exciting and inclusive!

The application process can be downright boring and/or a nerve-wracking experience, so making your virtual event an experience that attendees will remember for all the right reasons is just one way to make your company stand out from the competition. To do so, organizers need to blend their creativity with the capabilities of the virtual event platform. Here are some ways:

• Bedazzle the virtual venue: Thrill potential candidates from the get-go by playing a welcome video when they join the event, and create a branded immersive virtual venue that candidates will have fun exploring. For instance, you can create a professional looking company lobby that helps candidates navigate through the venue, networking zones and breakout rooms as well as add some fun elements like virtual photobooths and gaming zones.

• Gamify the event: Introduce a fun spirit of competition into the proceedings by rewarding points for activities completed during the event and giving prizes to those who top the leaderboard! Try to come up with activities that are educational and memorable such as a virtual scavenger hunt (with items like take a picture at the virtual photo booth or connect with 2 team leads), or a trivia sheet (where candidates must talk to senior employees to learn the answers). Winners can receive exclusive company swag. 

• Use live-captioning and translation integrations: Make candidates from different geographies feel comfortable and supported at your event by making your content and communications easily understandable for all. 

4. Leverage data for effective follow-ups

One of the biggest advantages of hosting a virtual event as compared to its in-person counterpart is the difference in data collection.  In using a virtual event platform for your event, you’ll be able to obtain engagement and lead data that’ll help you:

• Keep the conversation going with qualified candidates
• Stay in touch with passive candidates for future pipelines
• Refine subsequent events

‍To sum up…

Virtual hiring events give recruiters an incredible opportunity to source and build relationships with talent from all around the world. However, this opportunity can be squandered if event organizers and HR professionals are unable to get all aspects of the event right.

The first step is for organizers to understand how to leverage the capabilities of the virtual event platform chosen for the event to its utmost potential, and second, to ensure that all aspects of the event are as human and customized as possible. Keeping the candidate experience at the forefront - making sure every interaction makes them feel comfortable, supported, and good about joining your company - will distinguish your event and organization from the competition.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Have you ever sat through an overly long workshop event and counted down the minutes until it was over? We’ve all been there. With virtual events here to stay, adapting to the changing landscape and learning how to throw a successful online event is of utmost importance.

When it comes to training virtually, a different set of challenges and possibilities exist in this space. Read this article to learn how to make your workshops work for your company!

Be prepared

Being prepared might seem like a no-brainer. However, running a successful workshop takes a lot of planning. A sense of organization and keen focus are key to pulling off an engaging workshop. You’ll need plenty of creative preparation before diving into the day-of agenda. 

Some items to keep in mind that can help promote a smooth, impactful experience:

• Plan for breakout groups in between sessions
• Send out any set-up and navigation instructions prior to starting
• Create and list out your main discussion points
• Know how to get a hold of technical support if needed 

Choose the right platform

You’ve prepared your pre-workshop checklist, your speakers have been lined up, and you’re ready to host an impactful day of learning. Having the right tools to enable your agenda will make all the difference in making sure attendees feel engaged. 

For virtual events, you’ll want to utilize a platform that enhances the learning experience for all involved. This could mean choosing a platform that allows for in-session chat capabilities to enable participants to ask questions easily and collaborate with each other effortlessly.  Perhaps you’re hosting a large event and need to accommodate numerous attendees. Start off on the right foot by choosing a platform that allows you to do so.

The right platform will look different depending on the event in question. Choosing a platform like Zuddl that brings attendees together seamlessly is a good place to start.  

Get people involved

It can be difficult to sit for hours on end listening to a speaker, regardless of how invested you are in the topic. To that end, having an interactive component during training can be helpful. This could be a group discussion during break times, or it might be something as simple as a group question and answer session at the end of a section.

The more enjoyable an event is, the more memorable the information becomes, thus helping to solidify the information presented. A few ideas on ways to get attendees involved:

• Rooms for networking sessions
• Audience surveys or quizzes
• Interactive games
• Collaborative brainstorm sessions

Additional tips

Eager to offer even more to your virtual attendees? A few additional options might look like:

• Offering virtual swag or “a gift bag” much like an in-person event
• Hire a virtual event entertainer
• Create a theme around your event
• Limit the time the actual event runs 
• Provide food for your virtual attendees

Checking your list…

Remember, a successful training workshop is one that keeps people engaged and learning. By following these few tips, your next event is sure to be an impactful one.

Psst… there are a variety of tools and features on Zuddl to help you provide a valuable online training experience. Feel free to book a demo with us and go over them in real-time!

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Virtual events came to the world’s rescue during the pandemic. They served as a safe way for companies to continue to engage with their internal and external stakeholders remotely. Later, when in-person events came back into the picture, companies still found it valuable to retain a virtual element as part of their event, as the latter proved to be a scalable, cost effective and measurable way of running events. The insights that planners were getting from virtual event platforms changed the way they strategized events; and this created the perfect situation for hybrid events.

Virtual elements are here to stay

What can we learn from these developments? It’s simple; virtual events or elements are here to stay. Their relevance has gone beyond the pandemic. Companies have acknowledged the unique benefits of going virtual or hybrid. Now, since we’ve already highlighted the boons of virtual events above, one must wonder what are the more challenging aspects of going virtual? For one, of course, it’s the need to upskill and understand event technology; this is where a robust virtual event platform plays a huge part. However, there’s one more crucial aspect to any event that organizers cannot compromise on - the security of an event.

Event security needs have evolved

Different ways of running events bring their own challenges. You can see why a virtual event is a desirable cyberthreat target; cyber criminals stand the chance of tapping into important attendee data and company information if the event is not robust enough to keep them at bay. In the past two years, there have also been instances of cyber criminals posing as attendees and joining a virtual event. Once they succeeded s, they were capable of doing anything from sharing risky links and inappropriate content with attendees to heckling the speakers at the event.

We’re sure that all this information is scary enough for planners to make sure they prioritize event security and not take it for granted. Thankfully, securing your event doesn’t have to be difficult. 

Here’s an easy checklist of best practices for you:

1. Choose a virtual event platform that is certified and highly secure so that there are no chances of software vulnerabilities within the platform.
2. Ensure that the event platform you choose has periodic audits in place to ensure the confidentiality and security of event data.
3. When picking the event platform, another thing you should look for is how much control it gives you as an organizer; you should be able to restrict and limit the content shared during your event.
4. While inviting guests to your event, generate unique URLs for each attendee and unique access codes too.
5. Inform your attendees that all communications related to the event will only come from your official trusted email address and information from any other source must be ignored.
6. Inform attendees whenever you plan to record a session; it always makes them feel at ease when you get their consent.

‍How attendees can make sure they attend secure virtual events

If you’re an attendee, you can add another layer of safety to your event experience by ensuring the security of your personal information by:

1. Verifying the source of all the emails and communications you received about the event
2. Using a reliable browser that is aptly patched to handle security vulnerabilities
3. Creating a password that you don’t use anywhere else (if the event requires you to create one)

To sum up… 

As we see the world embracing virtual elements in every walk of life from education to large-scale events, it is our responsibility to be aware of the risks of going virtual in order to reap the many many benefits that virtual events bring us.

Want to make your next virtual event secure? You can't go wrong with Zuddl - book a demo today.

Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Necessity is the mother of invention.  

Over the past two years, event organizers have had to quickly adapt to the changing times, and embrace two years' worth of digital transformation in about two months. This has meant figuring out how to use broadcasting software, and streaming platforms like GMeet, Zoom, Skype and more to host conferences, summits, sales kickoffs and more literally overnight. 

This had led to many great boundary-pushing virtual experiences being held, such as Tomorrowland Around the World which had eight stages for performances by artists, chat rooms, games, and interactive meetings, and was attended by more than one million people. Another example is  Salesforce Live: Australia and New Zealand that had keynotes, interviews with industry leaders and partner product launches, which was held for over more than a month.

As a result, organizers are now fully aware and appreciative of the benefits that only virtual platforms can afford such as increased reach, improved engagement and better analytics. 

But that is not to say that it's been all smooth sailing. In many cases, organizers find themselves compromising on event vision or messing up on event execution because of the platform they are using. 

Here are the top 5 grievances that if solved would make life so much better for organizers.

1. Not being able to prefigure sessions

When you create a live session at your virtual or hybrid event, you pull together speakers and content, make choices, react to changes, and generate a professional livestream in real time.  

The classical way to achieve this is to familiarize your speakers with the platform, create transition videos, prepare content to share during the session etc, and then pull it all together on the day of the event, praying that nothing goes wrong. 

But today’s event organizers need a better option than relying on crossed fingers. 

2. Getting it done yesterday

So much to do, so little time. With each event - regardless of size - consisting of 100 and more moving parts, event organizers are always pushed to the maxim, especially since B2B companies typically spend only 5-8 weeks planning events. 

Organizing virtual events can add to this stress because organizers - besides confirming the line-up of speakers, overseeing registration and email follow ups, and promoting the event on social media - have to set up the entire virtual venue on their virtual event platform of choice. For organizers unfamiliar with this type of technology, it can take weeks to set up their event - time that they just don’t have.

An ideal solution? A platform that enables virtual events to be set up in minutes instead of days or months, so organizers can concentrate on finessing  rather than implementation. 

3. Customizing your event without coding

Coding is ubiquitous; it is used everywhere, from the website you are on right now to the app you use to order your groceries every week, and is central to many essential services and online solutions offered today. This is why many event platforms too require some knowledge of coding - to make the virtual venue look a certain way for instance, or to create online forms for attendees to fill during the event.

However, coding is not as ubiquitous as literacy - as yet. Many people just do not know how to code - as yet. So to make coding a requirement of building and customizing a virtual event is just another source of frustration for event organizers. 

In a perfect world, a platform would not require event organizers to become amateur coders in a span of a month in order to create a virtual event exactly the way they envision it. 

4. Making the event look professional and high-quality when you have a small budget

All event organizers want their hybrid and virtual events to have professional production quality but unfortunately often end up with PowerPoint visuals. 

This is because it usually takes a team of studio professionals or requires the hiring of expensive tools to produce an experience that is polished, cohesive, and sleek - think branded backgrounds and sharp graphics, different stage layouts to present speakers - similar to TV news segments.

So if event organizers were ever granted three wishes by a genie, we’re sure one of them would be spent wishing intro reality a way to create a high-quality professional livestream  without having to break the bank ie. a solution that democratizes production like a pro, just like how Canva made beautiful design accessible to everyone.

5.  Dealing with a 30 second lag 

It is a truth grossly unacknowledged that lags or delays are part-and-parcel of most streaming platforms  used to host virtual and hybrid events. 30 second delays between speakers and attendees is simply considered the norm - when they really shouldn’t be. These delays mean that your virtual attendees will only be able to consume and react to content later than in-person attendees…

… which can make them feel like second-class citizens, and which contributes to a negative event experience.

One of the most critical needs for an event organizer is a zero-latency live streaming platform that seamlessly connects remote and in-person audiences in real-time.

So what’s the solution?

Event professionals like you will be pleased to hear that there’s no need to rely on prayer, wishes, crossed fingers or anything of the like anymore. 

Zuddl’s new solution ‘The Zuddl Studio’ is here to address all your virtual and hybrid event woes and fulfill all your event needs. From ZERO LAG to NO CODING REQUIRED, it’s guaranteed to be your new favourite go-to for virtual and hybrid meetings, conferences, sales kickoffs etc. 

The best part? It’s fully compatible with all manner of streaming platforms, from Microsoft Teams to Zoom and Hopin to Hubilo. 

Curious? Sign up for the beta launch of the Zuddl Studio before spots run out.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

The virtual realm has not only been a savior to companies since the pandemic but also become a beneficial addition to their event strategy. Virtual and hybrid events are all the rage today because they possess the ability to make any event inclusive, scalable, accessible, convenient and insightful.

However, as with anything else, hosting a virtual event comes with its own set of challenges and limitations, especially if you’re running it on widely popular but basic streaming platforms.

Here are 6 challenges you’re likely to face or have faced as an event organizer while running a virtual event:

1. Engagement 

Your virtual attendees are typically individuals who have been working and attending meetings virtually for a long time now, so it’s no surprise that the phrase ‘Zoom fatigue’ is being mentioned more and more these days; they’re tired of attending meetings online, and this is why engagement is one of the biggest challenges faced by virtual event organizers today.

Going virtual is not just about knowing how to run an event virtually, but more about knowing how to make the event engaging and interactive. When companies run events on basic virtual platforms, the scope for engagement is very limited.

In order to overcome this, event organizers must prioritize features such as Chat, Polls,Q&A and live networking if they want event attendees, exhibitors and sponsors to all have a fulfilling experience.

2. Technical know-how

There is a common tendency for event planners to assume that a virtual event is no different from another Zoom or Microsoft Teams meeting, and who can blame them. With these basic tools, they may be able to run day-to-day activities just fine, but that’s about it.

To overcome this obstacle, organizers need to not just upskill themselves but also have access to the right technology as well as the right tech support in order to produce studio-quality events without breaking the bank. 

3. Lack of control over proceedings

As an event organizer who’s working with basic technology, you’re left with no option but to make the best of what you have. What this implies is that you’re restricted by limitations of your tool when it comes to managing your speakers, sessions, attendees and of course, the overall event experience. 

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Additional reading: Here's a sneak peek of event trends in 2023 as per our latest report.

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The only thing that can make a difference here is a virtual platform or tool that allows you to take charge of the event behind the scenes - that way you can control the event rather than the other way around!

4. Lack of scope for branding

One of the most limiting things about a virtual event that’s run on a basic virtual platform is that every event pretty much looks the same. You can never really make your brand’s presence felt since the scope of customization is quite low. 

This can be a deal-breaker especially if you’re expecting a good return on investment from your virtual event. Branding at a virtual event can only be enhanced when you have a powerful virtual studio on your side.

5.  To go live or to pre-record

This is the question that would boggle Shakespeare’s mind if he was around today.  As an event organizer, it’s important to understand how your attendees like to consume their content. While live streaming  offers a real-time experience, pre-recorded content offers flexibility and an on-demand edge to your event that is sure to appeal to today’s Netflix-watching audience.

This is why many organizers are going in for a blended approach these days. However, you need to have the right technology to make this possible.

6. Latency, latency, latency

Last but not the least, most streaming platforms are vulnerable to latency. This one problem is powerful enough to derail a virtual attendee’s entire event experience. With engagement already a challenge on its own, latency can just pile up to the problem and make an attendee feel totally lost and disconnected.

Banking on technology that can give you near-zero latency streaming capabilities is the safest way to dodge this bullet.

So, what’s the solution?

No matter how much event organizers upskill themselves, they will always be limited by the technology available to them.

If your business has  already invested in an event platform or streaming tool  like Hopin, Hubilo, Teams or  Zoom, can you still find a way to upgrade your event production and attendee experience  without breaking the bank?

The answer is yes!

Zuddl Studio is built for the modern day event organizers. Seamlessly manage the backstage speaker transition to and from the stage, add lower thirds animation - all this while retaining complete control of your brand. 

Zuddl Studio will work seamlessly with your existing event stack, and change your event game forever.

Psst... join our waitlist to get special privileges and early-bird giveaways!

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Know your customers. 

Know your attendees. 

Know thy audience. 

It’s basically the first commandment of good marketing. 

In fact, where there is a marketing team, a blog about the importance of understanding your target audience is sure to be a stone’s throw away (case in point: there are over 38,70,00,000 results on Google about this topic).

But when it comes to understanding the make-up of attendees at virtual or hybrid events, it’s a little more complicated.  

But before you keep reading, let’s pause for a moment. Why exactly is it important to know your audience?

Why it’s important to know your virtual event audience

Today’s virtual event attendees come in all shapes and sizes, and of different ages and countries. They have different pain points, challenges, goals, and desires. And critically, some are digital natives whilst others are digital immigrants. That’s why you can’t treat all of them in the same way.

Going the traditional route with stereotype-based alliterative-named personas might not help because you’ll need to go way beyond basic demographics. Virtual attendees have a complex mix of needs that they’re looking to satisfy at your event, and online and digital behaviours that they expect will be accommodated. More than ever, the name of the game is different strokes for different folks.

But the reality is that while they’re all unique individuals, it’s simply not possible to cater to your attendees at an individual level. Instead, you identify several types of attendees based on their behavioral patterns, and then plan in spaces and content that really resonates with them.

So, what are the different types of attendees you can expect at your virtual event? 

We’ve done the work for you. Keep an eye out for these formidable virtual attendee types’ (we were inspired by Dean Peter’s ‘Dangerous Animals of Product Management’ and make sure you have a strategy in place for each of them.

The different types of attendees you’ll find at your virtual event 

OWL (Obsessed With Learning)

Like their figurative namesake, OWLS are knowledge seekers who value information. They’re at your event to update their professional knowledge and upgrade their skills. They want to delve deep into topics of interest with knowledgeable experts, learn about industry best practices and pick up new tips and tricks that they can put into practice right away.

‍How to cater to OWLs:

Leverage the capabilities of your virtual event platform to help attendees gain as much knowledge as they hoped. A fantastic line-up is the first step but there’s plenty more you can do:

• Give attendees the ability to “talk” during sessions! Chat, Polls, Emoji Reactions, and ‘Raise Hand’ have democratized participation. Both introvert and extrovert OWLs can ask questions and chat in real-time with speakers to learn more about topics.

• Nurture more focused conversations. Set up virtual Rooms for some good ole’ fashioned group discussions, brainstorms, or workshops so that OWLs can ask other attendees about their insights or solutions and further cement their understanding of the topic.

• Accommodate busy lives and different learning styles. Your OWLs may have a range of learning styles so share content in different formats so everyone can engage with them. For instance, besides sessions and group discussions, set up Expo Booths with videos and downloadable material like guides and checklists so that attendees can absorb content as per their preferences. Also, make video recordings of the sessions available for attendees to watch whenever their schedule allows it. 

MACAW (Most Active Conversationalists At Work)

MACAWs are excited about and effective at building relationships and making connections. You’ll generally find them around or actively participating in group discussions, easily and impressively making conversation with people they’ve met only a few minutes earlier. So the MACAWs at your event want plenty of opportunities to meet and connect with attendees who can help further their business and career.  They have a specific aenda and will actively search for the right people at your event.

How to cater to MACAWs:

Give your attendees an easy way to connect with other attendees (right from their couches!) by organizing plenty of interaction opportunities.  And even better if you find a way to help MACAWs meet the right people who can help them reach their goals: Here’s how you can do this:

• Create different ways for attendees to connect with each other. From small discussion groups to ice breaker networking sessions, plan in small activities during the event that’ll give MACAWs a foundation for easy conversation.

• Make networking more effective. Leverage AI-powered matchmaking to maximize the chance of MACAWs being paired with relevant professionals who share similar interests and complementary goals, for conversations that ultimately lead to business leads or employment opportunities.

DOVE (Distracted Online Very Easily)

Distractions abound for the DOVE. As there’s so much to do at home and work,  they’re often found glancing quickly in every direction at tasks that require their attention. You’ll spot them with plenty of tabs open on their screens, switching easily from answering their email to purchasing something on Amazon to working on a office task to replying to a message on their phone. This means that keeping a DOVE’s attention on your event will be challenging. 

How to cater to DOVEs:

Use the features of your virtual event platform to the utmost to grab and retain a DOVE’s  attention and improve ‘virtual event stickiness’:

• Customize your virtual event venue with plenty of bells and whistles. Create a stunning branded virtual venue with different zones that DOVEs can explore and enjoy. From a lobby to breakout Rooms, Stages to Photobooths and even a gaming section, there are plenty of ways to make your venue so beguiling that the <name of bird> won’t want to leave the platform. (Click here for more ideas and real-life examples of how to customize your virtual event)

• Use gamification to make participation fun! Gamification is a fun and powerful way to nudge <name of birds> towards taking part in more activities at your event by rewarding their actions. For instance, for each poll answered or each question asked, DOVEs can win points or prizes, which will then encourage them to keep participating. Hopefully, over time, you can use gamification to turn these actions into habits, resulting in sustainable engagement.

PEACOCK (Prefers Exclusive And Customized On-brand Content + Keepsakes)

The PEACOCK is a brand fanatic. They’re passionate about all things involving your brand and are the biggest supporters of your business. They’re proud of being a customer and enjoy the status or prestige that comes with it. So when attending your event, they’re expected to be “wowed” by the brand experience you provide. And they’re also looking to be rewarded for their loyalty.  

How to cater to PEACOCKs:  

Create a unique event experience that is rewarding, share-worthy, and memorable. Here’s how you can do that:

• Customize your virtual venue to be completely on-brand. Completely brand the Stages, networking areas, breakout rooms and Expo Zones  with your designs and colours to amplify your brand and reinforce your messaging. And play your attendees an amazing Welcome Video that looks and feels like a movie trailer to get PEACOCKs excited from the get-go.

• Give them something to crow about. Share exciting and exclusive news first with PEACOCKs at your virtual event or give them access to high-profile brand ambassadors (imagine setting up a virtual cooking workshop with Nigella Lawson or a virtual meet-and-greet with Rafael Nadal!)or let them be the first to purchase a product from your Expo Booth with one-time-only discounts.  

• Make them feel appreciated. Gamify activities or actions at the event to let PEACOCKs win brand merchandise or experiences that reinforce brand loyalty.  Giveaway little extras like virtual swag to make them feel special and valued.

Key takeaways

Your virtual event will be full of all kinds of people, each with their own reasons for attending. Some may not fall into any of the four categories mentioned above, while others may fall into more than one. Nevertheless, being aware of these possible types of attendees, knowing what each type wants and how to create a fantastic experience for them will make your event more welcoming, valuable and memorable for everyone.  More than ever, it’s different strokes for different folks. 

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

2022 is expected to become the eighth hottest year on record according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) - which really shouldn’t surprise anyone anymore. 

Humanity has been continually chipping away at the climate catastrophe for decades now, spurred on by record-breaking levels of atmospheric CO2 generated by the burning of fossil fuels and the destruction of natural ecosystems. And while there have been small steps towards tackling the climate crisis - the Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement, COP26 for instance - we can all agree that there’s a lot more that can be done. 

While most of this effort does need to come from governments around the world, businesses, NGOs and citizens can do their part as well - that includes the humble event organizer too. It may seem like a challenge to host an event that is sustainable while not compromising its quality. Right off the bat, you’re probably thinking you need to limit the number of attendees or even cut down the length of your event.  But there’s no need to do any of that. Instead, just follow these effective tips to host a more climate-conscious event post-pandemic.

‍1. Add a virtual component to reduce your event’s carbon footprint

If there’s one action you can take to make your event more sustainable, it’s adding a virtual component to your event. In fact, research by Cornell University shows that the carbon footprint of in-person conferences might be reduced by an incredible 94% if held entirely online instead. Here’s how:

• ‍No flights necessary: The EPA found that 29% of greenhouse gasses emitted in 2019 came from the burning of fossil fuels by cars, trains, ships, and planes. So the first and perhaps the most obvious outcome from hosting a virtual event or making virtual attendance to your event possible is the huge reduction in resource consumption in travel to the venue. As your attendees and speakers no longer need to take a flight, train or cab to your event, this drastically reduces the total carbon emissions created by your event. The University of Michigan found this to be the case when they compared their May 2020 AirMiners virtual conference to previous iterations, noting that their online conference “produced 66 times less greenhouse gas emissions than an in-person gathering in San Francisco would have.”

• ‍A reduction in accommodation and catering costs: Did you know that the famous music festival, Coachella, generates 107 tons of solid waste each day. To put that in perspective, that’s the weight of a space shuttle when it goes into orbit. And to make things worse, only 20% of the waste created at the event is recycled.Virtual attendance lets organizers cut down on or completely eschew accommodation and food for attendees, which means fewer or no electricity, heating, food and beverage emissions which can rack up depending on the length of an event. To illustrate, let’s assume that one attendee will use 6 single-use plates and cups over a 2 day period, and drink 2 bottles of water per day. Multiply this by 2000 attendees. This results in 12000 plates and cups and 8000 plastic bottles that will be thrown away. And this is just what would result from one conference in a million happening every year.‍

• ‍Going digital means less paper waste: By encouraging attendees to use a mobile app at an  event to check in, navigate the event schedule, interact with speakers and connect with other attendees - both those at a venue and those tuning in virtually - you can avoid a lot of paper waste. There’ll be no need to print out paper tickets, or put up a lot of signage.

2. Host small-scale hybrid events

If you’re intent on having some part of your event be in-person, consider hosting a hybrid event setup for a limited number of attendees. This means that instead of one large gathering, you can hold smaller regional events connected via technology. Remember that long distance travel is one of the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Giving attendees the option to travel shorter distances helps to therefore offset this.

Vlad C. Coroamă and Friedemann Mattern, in this article, give the example of the 2009 World Resources Forum to illustrate this. Conference organizers successfully reduced intercontinental travel by hosting the event at connected hubs in Davos, Switzerland, and Nagoya, Japan. Attendees were able to make short trips within their own continent.

3. Offer carbon offsetting options for attendees

Carbon offsetting is a way for individuals and companies to compensate for their emissions by funding an equivalent carbon dioxide saving elsewhere; for instance, investing in the installation of wind turbines or in the planting of moringa trees (they absorb C02 at a 20x higher rate than any other tree). It’s important to keep in mind that carbon offsets are not a carte blanche to act as environmentally unsustainable as you’d like. Instead, it’s a way to help mitigate the harm you are causing when there’s no other way around it. 

So if you are hosting a hybrid event that involves your attendees flying in, you could give attendees the option to invest in an environmental project to cut down their footprint, and offer to match any donation they made as part of your initiative to go greener. For example, the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting Davos 2020 decided to financially support the Jacundá project which helps protect 95,000 hectares of native Amazonian forest to offset the emissions caused by their event.

4. Choose eco-friendlier options for venue logistics

When planning the logistics for your hybrid event venue, go as green as you can. Here are a couple of simple ways:

-  Choose green hotels (look for sustainability accreditation) for  attendee accommodation

-  Use reusable or biodegradable cutlery at the event instead of plastic utensils

-  Set up water drinking stations as an alternative to bottled water

-  Encourage attendees to recycle their waste by setting up recycling bins at the venue

-  Offer sustainable food options for consumption

But what about the emissions generated from virtual events?

In most cases, virtual events generate a smaller footprint than in-person events. 

Global CO2 Initiative researchers at the U-M College of Engineering found that 60% of emissions generated from a virtual event comes from network data transfers ie. uploading and downloading data such as video calls, and streaming. 

So to make your virtual event more sustainable, organizers can look for virtual event platforms or tools that do not require attendees to have their webcams on during event sessions (this can reduce the environmental footprint in that meeting by 96%), and which enable text-based communication. 

And this is where Zuddl can help.

• Stages: Speakers take centerstage with their videos on so that they can talk directly to hundreds of virtual attendees. Attendees do not have their video on and can interact with speakers via our easy engagement tools. 

• Live engagement tools: Text-based functionalities such as Chat, Q&A, Emojis & Polls let attendees ask questions to speakers, comment on the event proceedings, respond to Polls and interact with other attendees. You can effortlessly get your event buzzing with participation without making video mandatory.

‍To sum up…‍

With the climate clock counting ominously down, every little action we can take now can help. For event organizers, that means actively looking for ways to be more sustainable. Pivoting to virtual events is the first step. 

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

You may not be surprised to hear this, but it still bears repeating: hybrid events are here to stay.

With the value of online events having been firmly established over the past year, but with people excited to be able to meet in-person again now,  organizers are going to find themselves hosting more and more in-person events with a virtual component aka. a hybrid event. To put a number on it - 51% of event marketers are convinced that this kind of conference will stay even after the pandemic subsides - simply because they are "pandemic proof.”

What this means is that event  organizers who half-heartedly trifled with the hybrid event format last year, no longer have the luxury to be complacent anymore in getting a hybrid event right. 

And there’s a lot to get right. 

There’s more to curating a hybrid event than just planning your in-person event and then inviting virtual attendees to tune in. At its essence, a hybrid event is all about bringing attendees together, regardless of their location, to enjoy a shared experience.  Easy to read but not so easy to pull off, especially when you’re not aware of basic errors that could derail your entire event.

To help you out, here are 5 mistakes to eschew when you set out to plan your hybrid event. 

1. Choosing an RTMP-streaming dependent hybrid event platform 

Real Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP) is the de facto method for virtual and hybrid event platforms to stream audio, video, and data over the Internet, meaning that event organizers don’t think twice when the event platform partner of their choice uses RTMP streaming. But this is the biggest mistake organizers and planners can make. 

First, RTMP doesn’t allow for two-way communication which means that your virtual attendees will not be able to speak with your in-person speakers or attendees, which means you’re essentially blocking them from fully participating at the event. 

Second, using RTMP causes a 30 second latency issue which means that virtual attendees will continually feel out of the loop and one step behind in-person attendees. So if you did decide to use RTMP streaming, your speakers and attendees at the venue would have to continually wait for 30 seconds for the virtual audience to react.

Just imagine this scenario at your event:

‍- Scientist X, speaking at the venue: We’re excited to announce this life-saving new medicine!

- Attendees at the venue:  Cheers and applauds wildly

- Meanwhile, virtual attendees: *crickets*

                                                      10 seconds later… Hello? Scientist X? What’s going on?

                                                      20 seconds later…Hello? Hello?

                                                      30 seconds later…Oh

There should never be a latency issue at your hybrid event. Period. 

The need for organizers now, instead of defaulting to RTMP, is to look for a streaming platform that is zero latency-  like Zuddl.

2. Using a hybrid event platform that makes you compromise on branding

A large part of creating a hybrid experience that feels unified and shared is branding, because consistent branding throughout the event, at both the physical venue and your virtual one, ties both experiences together. However, this can be difficult if your hybrid event platform partner doesn’t have the capability to let you brand the hybrid event your way.

Branding, after all, is much more than slapping a logo and your brand colours on the welcome or login page. It’s about being able to create a look and feel that resonates with your brand, and this can be achieved through creative use of image, video and interactivity. 

So when picking your hybrid event platform, look for the branding ability it gives you. Take for example, this schedule page created by the University of Maryland (UMD) for their hybrid Board of Trustees meeting. Not only does it make clever use of UMD branding, but it also showcases the critical role the Foundation plays, and therefore subtly highlights the importance of the event as well.

“Creating a polished and branded meeting venue was very important for us from the beginning,” says Lindsay Meyers, Senior Director, Office of Special Events. “Being able to curate every aspect of the experience was critical. We wanted to design everything in a way that trustees would immediately feel they had come to the right place, and also capture the energy, professionalism, and pride of previous Foundation board meetings.”

Click here to read more about this hybrid event.

3. Having an ‘if they like it, they will pay attention’ mindset towards engagement

We’re betting right now that you have at least another three tabs open, and that you’re reading this piece half distracted by an email you need to read,  a conversation on Slack you need to reply to,  or a Netflix show you have on pause. No judgement - we get it. But like you, your attendees too have a world of distraction at the fingertips, which means that you have to actively work towards keeping their attention at your event. 

Curating great content is, of course, essential but it’s engagement that will differentiate your event sessions from a slick documentary on Youtube. Therefore giving your audience a variety of ways to get involved with your event - from Chat and Q&A to Polls - and using  Gamification to encourage them to keep on  participating is critical to keeping them invested. And this is also a way for all your attendees to feel like they’re at the same event.

4. Downplaying the importance of curating experiences for two audiences

You don’t have to create the same experience for your in-person attendees and your virtual ones.  “It’s really about what you can create even if they are different experiences that’ll make that experience worth it for separate audiences,” says Vedha Sayyaparaju, Co-Founder & CTO at Zuddl. 

For example, you wouldn’t ask virtual attendees to sit and watch live sessions for 4-5 hours like in-person audiences are used to doing. Instead you could consider offering live sessions many times so that virtual attendees can join at a time of their convenience but still build off the energy of a live session with an in-person audience. 

And for instance, if in-person attendees were treated to a live and hands-on demonstration of a product, you might offer virtual attendees exclusive opportunities to meet with experts in an online group for discussion. 

Then, you can bring both audiences together by using virtual Rooms that can be joined by in-person attendees via a mobile app and virtual attendees via the platform, for group discussions.

5. Not using analytics to make quick improvements

The biggest benefit of a hybrid event is the ability to learn more about attendee actions at your event in real-time. You’ll be able to see which topics are getting the most interest. You can use polls to capture feedback from attendees.  And you’ll be able to tell what collateral is working and what isn’t. This is all very valuable information that you would not be able to source from a traditional in-person event. 

With this information, you can identify small points of difference to amplify and exploit. For example, if you realize that marketing collateral at your virtual expo booths are failing to drive any engagement or generate any leads, you have the ability to change it immediately and monitor the performance. Or you can action immediate offers and follow-up emails to attendees with higher lead scores.

To sum up…

Hybrid events offer event marketers and organizers an unprecedented opportunity to create a formidable engagement and lead generation vehicle by leveraging the best of both in-person and online event mediums. To get started, keep a watch on the 5 hybrid event pitfalls mentioned in this piece, and take immediate actions to thwart them before they become irreversible. 

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.

Stress. 

Burnout.

Isolation. 

Anxiety.

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This vocabulary has been seeping into our lives over the past two years. 

The new and multifold challenges brought about as a consequence of the pivot to remote work and lifestyles - of balancing work and childcare, working longer hours, or feeling socially isolated to name a few - have been brutal. 

People are unable to focus and are unproductive, they’re lonely or are utterly exhausted. Employed workers are 3 times as likely to report mental health problems now than before. 

Fast forward to today and most lockdowns have been lifted, businesses are reopening and people are returning to offices; a new era of a hybrid mode of life is being ushered in.  People are bouncing back, but as the world confronts new waves of COVID-19 variants, ongoing political disruption and uncertainty, the struggle will continue to be real.

That’s why HR teams cannot afford to be complacent when it comes to creating a supportive employee mental health environment for hybrid workforces or remote teams. It’s easy to slip into an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ approach but you risk a brain drain if you do, especially considering most companies are beefing up their approach to wellness.

So how can you keep your remote team from becoming too fried, frayed, and frazzled? 

Let’s dive in.

1. Organize a mental health awareness online training session  

Whilst this may seem quite basic, it is probably the most important activity you can carry out.

Being able to talk about mental health is a must.

Employees who experience unanticipated mental health consequences may be unable to describe their challenges and can be uncomfortable discussing them with colleagues. They may not know when to ask for help. And as with a remote team, when video-on calls are rare and most communication happens over Slack, it’s entirely possible for a team member to appear well, but struggle with these issues internally. Team members may not be aware that a person needs help.

Hosting a virtual training session that’s led by a mental health professional will:

1. Reduce stigma
2. Help employees better understand a) risk factors and triggers of mental health issues b) how to recognize signs and symptoms
3. Provide insight into different assistance and accommodation measures
4. Leave team members better equipped to know how to offer support to each other

Protip: If you’re using a virtual event platform to host the session, gamify the event to make the event a lively conversation-filled one. Set points for questions asked, Polls answered, and any other activity you can think of, and then reward those on top of the leaderboard. This is a simple but effective way to gently encourage and embolden your team members to speak up and clear their doubts. 

2. Host well-being Mondays

Or any other day that ends with a y during the work week, actually.

On each wellness day, plan activities or workshops that give employees a chance to take a break from work, and which helps boost their morale and workplace attitude. 

There’s no end to the different kinds of virtual activities you can plan; a blend of stress-relieving activities, energy boosters, and positive self-motivation would give employees something new to look forward to each week. And if there’s an overwhelmingly positive response to any activity in particular, you can offer it weekly. Here are some quick examples:

• Morning yoga flow to settle into better posture
• Mid-day meditation to refocus and get back to a calm mental space
• An evening Zumba break to lift team spirits 

 The more your employees feel looked after, the happier and more engaged they will be.

3. Launch team fitness challenges

We all know we should probably exercise more even though we don’t want to hear it. But just to illustrate, 50% of remote and hybrid workers have reported an increase in lower back pain, 48% in shoulder pain, and 52% in eye strain as a result of a more sedentary lifestyle.

So a fun and smart way to get your team to stop being a bed/desk potato and to get up and move around more is to launch a team fitness challenge. Simply set some fitness goals that the team can work towards together within a specific timeframe, and introduce a lighthearted sense of competition through gamification. 

Using a virtual event platform, you can set and award points for different goals from step challenges to squat challenges and reward those with the most points on the leaderboard! Remember that the goal is not to turn your team into fitness freaks. It’s all about building mindfulness about living a healthy lifestyle and building camaraderie along the way.

Protip: Physical fitness challenges might not be everyone’s cup of tea, so plan for different kinds of micro-challenges that remote employees can work towards. This can be anything from getting 7 hours of sleep each night to doing kind things for team members or even drinking enough water.

4. Use virtual booths as gratitude hubs

Just so we’re on the same page - a virtual booth that you set up on a virtual event platform looks exactly like it would at an in-person event. 

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You can customize the booth as per your needs and requirements, with company branding and signage.  And you can equip the virtual booth as per your use case. For example:

Information booth

So for instance, you could create a central on-demand hub for employee mental health awareness information, you could upload any relevant documents to the booth, such as company policies to the latest health advice. You can upload a video of your mental health awareness online training session. And you can upload videos of team members taking part in the activities you’re holding as well as a leaderboard tracking the progress of employees engaged in team or company-wide challenges. 

What’s great about this is that all the employees in your organization will have easy access to important information and constant motivation to prioritize their mental health any time they need it.

Gratitude booth

We’re all a little needier than we’d ever state. In fact, a Deloitte study found that a whopping 85% of workers want to hear a simple thank you in their day-to-day interactions.  At the most basic level, being appreciated makes us feel valued; it’s validating and energizing.

Using a virtual booth to share gratitude and appreciation is perfect for teams of all sizes, but could also work great in a conference setting or company offsite. Then all you need to do is ask employees or teammates to write down notes of appreciation to each other, and upload them to the virtual booth. There’s something very uplifting and binding about being able to look at a collection of thank you notes written between your team. 

To sum up…

As you can see, there are a variety of activities you can incorporate into a virtual mental wellbeing program for your remote team. Whichever you choose, empathy is key.

When employees have the ability to openly talk about their challenges and struggles in a safe work environment and management puts in the time and effort to make sure that everyone feels taken care of and valued, it builds trust and keeps them healthy and engaged. And this will result in a healthier and happier organization.

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Zuddl is a unified platform for events and webinars that helps event marketers plan and execute events that drive growth. The platform has clients across the globe, such as the United Nations, Kellogg’s, Microsoft, HSBC, VMware, Google, StackCommerce and Cipla amongst others. In January 2022, Zuddl announced that it closed $13.35 mn in Series A funding.