September 2020 BLOG: You Should Be Doing Virtual Events
If you are not doing virtual events, it is time to start.
There are more pros than cons why virtual events should be in your “catalogue of products”. I have discussions with artists all the time regarding expending their talent offerings. I am not a person who would not recommend to anyone to “stay in their lane”. I am a person who recommends to everyone to get into the passing lane and expand their product offerings.
During Covid-19, I was inundated with calls from artists. Many were people that I have said through the years to expand their product line. And I have to say only a handful did. The artists that did expand are weathering the Covid-19 entertainment shut down far better than those who did not.
This is where virtual events come into play. By offering your show in the virtual environment you can sell your act to a unique clientele. Not everyone wants to participate in a virtual event. Yet, there are those who do want to participate in a virtual event. And those people are just as great an audience than an in person live audience.
Virtual events are not like a live in person event. Without out going into the differences (I talk all about that on other parts of this website) the simplest thing is to know that the best virtual events look like a television broadcast.
Yes, you can take your smartphone and point it at yourself and broadcast. I will be the first to tell you that this will not make you look good!
That is not the topic of this blog. We’re talking about DOING virtual events. There are a few things that an artist needs to think about when deciding how to do a virtual event.
First the artist has to think of how their act can be made o “fit” into the virtual environment. I do not recommend that the artist do the same in person live act for the virtual audience. The virtual act should be different from the live act. This way the artist can say to the client that the virtual act is different and charge a fee accordingly.
Once you have figured out what the virtual act will consist of, the next item is to figure out how the audience will be engaged with the act. Engagement through the television screen is not the same as an in person event.
If you think engagement is jut the audience watching the act on a screen, you will fail miserably with your virtual act. Today’s 21st century audience is tech savvy. They want to participate with the show. The audience participation can be as simple as the audience member texting a friend or posting to social media about the event.
Chat rooms, trivia, polling, direct messaging, virtual face to face are great ways to use technology for audience engagement. This is something that I will go into more detail in other blogs.
The platform that you would broadcast the virtual event on is just as important as the act. As the artist has crafted their act perfectly, choosing the wrong broadcast platform can make all that hard work go down the drain.
It is not easy to perform a virtual event. As you can see there is a lot of behind the scenes tasks that are part of producing a quality virtual event. Do your homework. Do your research and you will find the best formula hat will make your virtual vent performance a success.
Though the up coming blogs I will go into depth into producing quality virtual events for the artist who wants to expand the products they offer. In the meantime, there is already a ton of great information on the Virtual Events Biz website.
August 2020 BLOG: What Is A Virtual Event?
Virtual events have so much to offer to a business and to the customer. Todays world of business has been divided up into niche markets. Each of us has so many interests. This is what makes us interesting people. When you think about it, our interests can be called niche. Our personality is influenced by these niches. We have so many interests, each of which is generally small. Therefore, the interest is a niche.
The niche has made it possible for each of us to search out our interests no matter how big or small that interest is. In fact, if we can not find our niche online we can then create that niche online and others can find us. This is the beginning of a niche market.
Every business is a niche business. Coca-Cola is a beverage maker in a niche market. They only sell beverages. Beverages are a niche market. At one time they only sold one flavor of beverage in one outlet. The in-store soda fountain. This was a niche distribution market.
Coca-Cola has grown into worldwide company. However, they still sell to a niche market. Its just that it is a very big market, since we all consume beverages.
My point? Your business is in a niche market. And you are responsible for knowing that market. With this knowledge you can better service your market and create more sales.
Virtual events allow you to do just that. Through virtual events you can create unique face to face customer experiences. These are unique only to your company!
Here is an example:
Let’s say you are a guitar maker. The best guitars are made of wood. Well, the wood you buy is just as good as the wood the other guy buys. You use the same machines to create your guitars as the other guy uses. Same electronics, same strings, and other items. Why is your guitar better? Why should I buy your guitar?
Utilizing a virtual event, you have the opportunity to speak and interact with a group of customers. You are able to explain everything about your guitar. Here is the best part. You can actually demonstrate to the customer why your guitar is better. Here is something else! You can have people who bought your guitar as part of your virtual event who will actively sell your product. You will sell product because you have a captive audience who participates within an interactive experience. The time they take to be part of the virtual experience is an investment into your company. And what I think is the best part is the fact that while the audience is partaking in your virtual event the customer cannot talk to a competitor!
Think of a virtual event as an intimate experience. A virtual event designed properly can generate future sales. Virtual events get your customers invested into your company.