Virtual events have become increasingly popular this year. In fact, at the height of the Coronavirus pandemic, virtual experiences/events were vital for keeping us going, with many businesses forced to shut and people told not to gather in groups. From business meetings and job fairs to museum tours and even weddings, there was no limit to the events we streamed in 2020. Thankfully, companies like We & Goliath were there for those businesses who had never tried to organize a virtual event before, making sure everything went seamlessly.
These events proved to be very effective in the absence of face to face interactions and also had some other benefits too. For example, these can be very cost-effective and mean more people may be able to attend. It also means these events can be recorded and viewed again at a later date by those who couldn’t be there the first time around. So although things have begun returning to some sort of normal, it’s looking like virtual events could be here to stay.
But these events didn’t just happen overnight, they took careful consideration and planning to make them a success and if you’re planning a virtual tourism experience/event right now, then look no further! Below, we’ve put together a guide, offering step by step advice on how you can set up a virtual event or experience of your own. Read on to find out more.
What is a virtual tourism experience/event?
A virtual experience/event can be any event that would usually have taken place in person but is instead streamed and shared online. So rather than people having to attend physically, they can attend by logging on to their laptop or smart device and watching through there. These can range from big to small events, they can be live-streamed or they can be pre-recorded and enjoyed over and over again. In terms of tourism, this might be a tour of a museum, art gallery or tourist hotspot. It could also be a performance or even a live camera feed of an animal sanctuary. Here’s how to go about organizing your own event or experience like this.
Decide what kind of experience you want to give your guests
Firstly, you need to decide on the type of event or experience you want to run and what kind of experience you want your guests to have. In order to do this, you should ask yourself the following questions, is it going to be a free or paid-for event? And do you want to live stream, do an on-demand service or offer both options? This will help you to begin building the basic groundwork for your event and give you a good place to get started.
Consider whether you want guests to pre-register
Next up you need to consider whether you’re going to need guests to register before the day. This is often required with normal events to ensure that the venue won’t become too crowded but this doesn’t apply to virtual experiences/events. That being said, registration can be a good indicator of how many people will be participating and can be a great way to collect data and information about your virtual guests. So decide whether you need them to register for the event beforehand in order to access the link. This could also sway which platform you choose to use, but more on that coming up.
Choose the perfect date and time
Of course, you need to choose when you want to host your event. If you’re running an on-demand service such as pre-recorded videos of a tourist hotspot, this may not be as important but if you’re planning on live-streaming then getting the date and time right is important. Consider your guests and when they’re most likely to be available to attend. For example, if you’re planning on streaming a show, you might want to save this for the evening or weekend when people aren’t at work.
Decide which program is going to be most beneficial for you
Another important step is choosing the right platform on which to host your event. There are so many options available to you right now this can be one of the trickier parts of organizing your experience or event, but of course, the live-streaming and on-demand options will narrow this down for you. Platforms like Zoom and Google Hangouts can be useful for live-streaming and these can also be budget-friendly.
You also have the option to use different social media channels to run your event. Facebook and Instagram TV both have features that allow you to live-stream an event and also record it so it can be played back at later date. YouTube also offers this option, you could then post the video to your channel if you have one.
This is by no means an exhaustive list but these are some of the more commonly known and popular platforms. Do your research and you’ll be able to determine which platform is going to be most beneficial for what you want to do.
Make sure you’ve got the right tech – and prepare for issues
Once you’ve chosen your platform you need to make sure you’ve got all the right tech in place such as laptops, smart devices, cameras, speakers, etc. You should also have a backup plan in place should you face technical difficulties. Having a technician on-site to assist can be very useful so this is also something you should consider arranging. Nothing will ruin a virtual event or experience like the technology failing on you, so always be prepared!
Put together a marketing strategy
The final step towards planning your event or experience is putting together a good marketing strategy to make sure that everyone knows about it. Make sure to advertise the event or experience on your chosen platforms and use this to encourage registrations if that’s what you’re doing. The last thing you want to do is let all your hard work go to waste by forgetting to actually tell anyone that you’re offering this service. So spend some time carefully crafting a marketing strategy that includes using adverts, social media and other strong content.
