Online events: the complete guide on how to organize one

Holding online events is a great idea for those who want to innovate and seek solutions in the midst of this pandemic that we are experiencing. 

The transmission of events online is increasingly being requested by people from various parts of the world. And, it is necessary to be attentive to changes in the scenario of events.

There are many advantages to producing an event entirely online. But first of all, you need to be prepared! 

However, not all people are prepared to hold an online event, nor do they know where to start or what type of event can be done online.

So today, we’re going to give you a complete walkthrough of how to organize online events and everything you need to know to get started now!

What are online events?

An event is any occasion with specific purposes and is organized by people who specialize in a particular theme. 

And that also applies to online events, the only difference being the location that will host the event. How so? In other words, the difference from location is: in-person to virtual. 

These are events that take place in the digital environment and can be broadcast online on social networks or on a platform specialized in broadcasting online events. 

There is a very expressive audience that can consume this type of event.

Advantages of holding online events

Reach a bigger audience

Because it is an event completely online, it can reach very large proportions on the internet. After all, anyone, from anywhere in the world, can participate in your event. 

Depending on the channel you use to broadcast your event, the number of people can increase considerably spontaneously.

And, with good promotion and using the right digital channels, you can reach a very expressive audience.

For example, when you use Youtube to broadcast your online event, attendees can share your live on other channels and, as a result, attract more people to your online event.

And that is very good! Especially if you want to work more on your image or your brand, for example, because you will be gaining visibility at no cost.

Low investment cost

Being an online event, you can minimize costs in a very expressive way. 

Some types of costs that you can minimize: renting space, hiring large sound and lighting equipment, among several other factors. 

So, when compared to the types of in-person events, organizing an online event, whatever it is: course, seminar, lecture, webinar… it comes out much cheaper!

Because, theoretically, you only need a laptop with a built-in camera and microphone. After all, for online events the basics already work! Of course, depending on the type of your online event and the size of it. 

Noting that the digital environment offers a lot of tools available free of charge for the transmission of images on the web, among them the most known are: Facebook, Youtube, and even Instagram, to make your first videos and lives.

Practicality and flexibility 

Organizing an online event brings practicality to both the organizer and the audience that will watch the online broadcast of the content. 

That’s because, the attendee can follow the event online from the comfort of their home or even the organizer can choose to record their event little by little, on the day and time that are most to their liking. 

Taking into account that the type of online event will be recorded and not live, of course. Later on you will understand the difference between the two.

Regarding the audience that will attend your online event, they also have the option to follow the content of any electronic device connected to the internet, for example, using only a mobile phone and headphones.

Nice, isn’t it? Practicality is everything these days!

That is, you do not need to pay for travel and accommodation. And, this is a very relevant differential, after all, time is gold. 

You can also, by choosing to create your event with the help of a platform like Even3, manage the registrations and sales of your event, limit the number of participants per activity and issue certificates.

Everything is much easier and more organized! Tem dúvidas sobre como organizar o seu evento online? Nossos consultores podem te ajudar.

Strengthens your business’ branding

Ever heard of branding? No?! So let’s explain a little what it is and why organizing an online event can strengthen your branding or your brand.

Branding is the management of a brand with the aim of making it more known, desired, and positive in the minds of its customers. Branding, or brand management, involves actions related to the purpose, values, identity and positioning of the brand, according to Rock Content.

In other words, branding is the whole set of your brand: visual aspects, the ‘voice’ of the brand. This is what we call identity!

Branding is important to consolidate the name of your event or brand in the public mind. 

This way, you become a reference in your segment and gain more visibility and credibility. Getting more people interested in you and your online events!

In a capitalist and highly competitive world, branding is the golden key to standing out from competitors!

How to plan an online event

It is important that you keep in mind that organizing an online event is different from doing an in-person event.

But still, some stages are very similar, such as: topic, speaker, date and time, among others.

During the organization, think about and list all the equipment that will be used throughout your presentation. For this, you can count on a free and complete spreadsheet to follow all the stages of your event:

Choosing a suitable location to record your event or broadcast it live is also a must. But, of course, do not forget about the main thing: the virtual place that will be broadcast.

For this reason we will show you, in a complete step-by-step, how to organize an online event from scratch, covering the main steps! Shall we?

Think of a theme

Yes, it is very important to define a topic for your online event. What subject are you going to cover? What is your audience interested in learning? Is it a relevant and current topic?

These are some questions you should ask yourself before defining the topic that will be the focus of your event. After all, everything revolves around it. 

In case you don’t know where to start, an alternative is to ask your audience directly on social networks with polls or even with a form published in strategic channels. 

You can, for example, make a small form on Google Forms and send it to your contact base by email, if you have one. 

Many organizers don’t know it yet, but the topic can define the success of your online event. After all, it is what attracts attendees to your event. 

So, think carefully before setting the topic!

Set a date and time

Now that you know the topic, it’s time to set a date and time. 

It is very important to define these details beforehand so that you can better promote your online event in the digital environment. Whether on social networks, websites, or even in ads on strategic channels. 

When choosing the date and time, it is essential to think about the audience of your event. Are they people who have a lot of commitments? What is the age range? Students? Or are they already graduates and work during business hours? 

All these questions will be your guide! 

#Even3Tip 

Your audience deserves attention! Always think about them before deciding topic, date and time. These details are crucial for your event to happen and be a success! After all, it makes no sense to choose a day and time when your audience cannot attend, right?

Typically, online events are held on weekends or on weekdays after business hours. Taking into account that the standard business hours are from 09am to 6pm. 

Therefore, if your event is on a business day, it is recommended that it happens after 6:30pm. And, if it is on the weekend, we suggest that it happens during the mornings or afternoons. 

Also keep an eye out for festive dates and holidays. See if it makes sense for your event to take place in the middle of a holiday, for example. 

Even if your event is online and does not require the physical presence of the attendee, they need to set aside some time to watch the broadcast of your online event.

Separate essential equipment

To hold a quality online event, you need to think beyond the content that will be discussed. You need to think about audio-visual recording equipment! 

Having good equipment to record your online broadcast is essential to make the audio, image resolution, and internet connection work properly so that nothing goes wrong.

But, you may be wondering if you need to be an expert on the subject or need to invest a lot to acquire good equipment. And, the answer to all of this is: no!

You don’t have to be a professional or expert in the field, nor do you have to spend too much to have the essential equipment. Simple ones already work! 

In addition, you need to think about the type of your event and its size. How many people do you expect to watch your online streaming? Does your event have more than one speaker? Are there simultaneous activities or only one?

These questions are essential, not only for the choice of equipment but also for the choice of an online event transmission platform. 

That is, the type of your event will define the equipment you need to have! But beforehand, some essential and basic equipment to record or broadcast a live online event are: camera, microphone and computer. 

Or, if you prefer so, you can do it using only a mobile phone, 4G connection, and headphones. Very simple and practical, isn’t it?  

Free vs paid online event

Have you ever stopped to think about whether your online event will be free or paid? This is a very important key issue for the next steps.

That’s because this decision will directly impact the way you should organize your online event.

With a paid online event you need to think about how to carry out the registration of attendees and even manage sales. 

And, for that, it is necessary to use a platform that allows the management of these two steps. After all, a paid event needs to be well thought out and planned. 

If you have no clue about a platform, here’s a tip: Even3!

It is essential to use a platform for your paid online event to be even more complete! With Even3, you can manage the entire sales cycle and attendee registrations, as well as have a website, distribute certificates and more! 

And you can also broadcast your online event integrated with an online streaming tool. In a little while, we will talk a little about the main online streaming tools.

But, if your online event is free, you can also choose to use an event management platform. However, the type of organization changes a little, since you do not have to worry about registration sales.

Promoting free online events is an excellent way to generate leads for your business and increase sales considerably.

This is because, by holding a free event you can attract many more attendees than in paid events, being able to hold the name, email, and contact number of people who show interest in participating in your online event.

This way, you will already have the essential data to generate relationships in strategic channels such as email marketing. And, from that, being able to sell a product or service of your business to that contact base that you acquired just by promoting a free online event. Nice, isn’t it?

Streaming for online events: live or recorded?

Yes! When organizing an online event, you have the option to choose between a live broadcast or recording your video and then making it available to your audience. Apart from the option of video conferencing, which brings together attendees and speakers in a virtual classroom. 

In fact, many webinars, one of the most well-known types of online events, are usually recorded. 

This is because, the presenter manages to deliver a more dense and complete content, without forgetting any detail of the presentation or the topics that will be spoken. 

In addition, of course, it is even more practical, since the video is already completed and can be made available to the public on the day and time you want, allowing more flexibility to the organizer.

But, there are also many advantages to broadcasting your online event right away, in other words, live! By choosing this model, you will pass on more confidence to your audience.

That’s right! After all, to approach a certain subject live, you need to have a lot of knowledge and expertise in the subject, thus increasing your credibility. 

In addition, you can be even closer to your audience, interact in real time, change the speech as the event progresses.

After all, questions can arise and from this, more intense and interesting debates can come to light, making your event even more dynamic and realistic! As if it were a in-person event. Nice, isn’t it?

So think long and hard before deciding whether your online event will be a video conference, recorded or live streaming. 

Keeping in mind that the profile of your target audience needs to always be in evidence in any decision making, and also, the type and size of your event needs to be taken into account.

Tools for online event streaming

This is the key to making your online event happen! After all, how are you going to broadcast your video without a specific tool for this?

Now, let’s talk about the main tools that are most used by online events!

Youtube Live

YouTube Live is nothing more than a Google tool that allows you to carry out live events and broadcast them in real time to subscribers of a particular channel on this social network. 

One of the biggest advantages of doing an online event through Youtube is that your content becomes available to the public later. That is, those who arrived late or missed the day of your event have a chance to attend it at another time.

In addition, the audience can interact with the presenter of the event in real time. You can take a moment during your webinar to ask questions and chat with viewers. 

And, in the end, you can analyze all the metrics and statistics that Youtube provides, to later use in your marketing strategies and dissemination of your next event.

Zoom Meetings

There is also Zoom Meetings, very suitable for medium and large online events and for those looking for a more robust platform. 

In it, it is possible to hold a video conference with up to 500 attendees and 10 thousand viewers in paid mode, since its free version is more limited. 

Unlike Youtube Live, for example, Zoom allows attendees to be separated into groups during the video conference.

It also offers a real-time chat, allowing the mediator/speaker to interact with the attendees. And also share educational materials from your computer and allow access for another person to interact with the presentation. 

However, in the free mode there are limitations on two points: number of attendees and duration of the online event, limiting it to 40 minutes.

Duration of the online event

It is necessary to determine a duration time for your online event!

The ideal is not to make an event too short and not so long, as attendees can start to leave your online streaming. And you don’t want that, correct?

Typically, online events have an average duration of 30 minutes to 1 hour. If it’s live, of course. But if your event is recorded the situation changes somewhat.

If your event is in the format of a course, it is possible to make video lessons available gradually. How so?

You can, for example, make multiple recordings and address a certain topic in each video and make it available to attendees on a website. 

These videos can average a duration of 10min to 30min, they cannot be that long because they will work as a sequence. Ideally, each video should only address a certain subject.

And then one video complements the other with its content. That way, the audience will watch without worrying about the delay or unforeseen events. 

Think about it!

In case your online event is a webinar, for example, you can broadcast online both online and recorded and train all the presentation that you have prepared and have in mind to stimulate a duration time.

Remember: do not prolong too much a subject that has already been covered in full, try to be objective, direct, explain as many things as you can and solve as many questions as possible.

Post event: what to do?

Now that you know how to organize an online event and you are more than prepared, the time has come to know what to do after your online streaming is over.

The first step is to advertise on your digital channels! 

Post on your social networks what happened throughout your online event, how was the experience, how many people attended, share all the details with your audience.

After all, those who did not come on the day can develop an interest in participating next time. And, by sharing the details on your social networks, you will be automatically increasing the visibility and relevance of your online event!

But keep calm…

There is one very important thing that you cannot forget to do at the end of your online event: ask your attendees for their opinion. That’s right!

Performing a satisfaction survey is essential at this moment. After all, receiving feedback from those who attended your online event, especially being the first time you organize one, can be the key to ensuring the success of the next editions.

How to advertise an online event

Having in mind that it is an event in the virtual environment, the form of promotion is much more effective and low cost!

After all, in the digital environment, everyone is connected at the same time and present in several channels, such as social networks, email, websites and others. And you can use that to your advantage!

Your event needs to have a digital presence to be remembered. And, for this to happen, it will be necessary to apply Digital Marketing strategies.

Social networks

Always share content on social media to engage your audience and attract even more attendees to your online events. But what way can you do it? It’s simple! 

Provide your audience with useful and relevant content, such as the next topic that will be covered at a future event or even topics that have already been talked about at old events.

Publish short snippets of videos with a subject that has already been said at an online event, or even comments from attendees who have been there and had a positive experience.

With this type of strategy, you can not only generate value for your audience, but also, you can become a reference in your area of operation. 

That is, with social networks, your message can reach your audience faster and reach thousands of people, thus increasing the visibility of your online event.

In addition to sharing content, social networks should above all be used as a relationship bridge with your audience. Interact! Ask questions and always keep in close contact with people.

Email marketing 

Another way to promote your online event is with email marketing! 

With it, it is possible to generate a relationship with the public directly and establish an exclusive communication. 

You can create a contact list as you produce online events. For example, ask for a contact name and email so people can join your online broadcast.

As you do this, your contact list will increase and you will be able to send email marketing with upcoming events, topics, send the satisfaction survey form, among many things.

Online ads 

In addition, you can bet on online ads! 

Despite the fact that social networks are free, advertising in digital media is paid. You can, for example, create ads on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Youtube and Google. 

In the online environment, it is possible to segment ads according to gender, age, location, consumption habits and behavior, among a series of other factors. 

This way, you can reach exactly the right audience to attend your online event.

Now, you are more than prepared to organize an online event, choose the tools and ideal platform to broadcast your online event. In addition, of course, to attracting an audience with a good promotion.

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