Matching your virtual platform to your audience and your event needs.

Whilst the market is now flooded with various virtual platform providers it is key to choose the platform based on both you and your audiences need. We have listed below some key areas for you to consider when choosing your platform.

Pinpoint your event experience 

What type of experience do you want your attendees to have? Is your event going to be informative and educational? If so, you probably will be looking for a solution that can handle larger audiences and won’t need as many additional features. Or do you envision an engaging and interactive experience for your attendees? If that is the case, you’d more likely be looking for a platform that has robust engagement tools.

Determine Your Event Goals

What are you looking to get from your virtual event platform? Maybe you want to have a central place to manage your entire event. Perhaps time savings is a priority. Or is having a great customer experience most important to you? Whatever your event goals are, they will be a helpful guide for in your search for a virtual event platform.

Identify Your Must-Have Features

If your goal is to foster networking among your attendees, you’ll want to look at platforms that are purpose-built for interaction and use tools like polling or Q&A to engage the audience.

We have listed below some popular features that we found across a variety of platforms

  • Registration and ticketing
  • Event Website
  • Event App
  • Event Promotion
  • Sponsor/Speaker Management
  • Agenda Builder
  • Networking and engagement
  • Data analytics
  • Virtual Production Services
  • Virtual exhibition stands and interactivity

Write down Your Nice-To-Have Features

In addition to the features you need to have a successful event, you’ll also want to have a list of ones that would be great to have, but won’t make or break your decision. This helps because if you’re comparing 2 platforms and they both meet your basic requirements, having that secondary list of nice-to-have features will help you decide between them.

User Friendly

Just like you want your customer experience to be seamless, the platform itself should be easy to use and navigate on the back-end. In addition to you and your team, speakers, sponsors, and other partners might also be using the platform and you’ll want to make sure it’s a positive experience for them.

Equally important is the front-end design. Pick a platform that’s as easy for your attendees to use as it is for you. When it comes to virtual events, user experience is a key element of your audience’s overall event experience.

Customization

Your event is an extension of your brand, and most likely, you want to find a platform that gives you room to customize the look, feel, and user experience. If your attendees land on your registration page or event portal and they don’t immediately recognize your brand, that can result in confusion and potentially attendance drop off.

We have used a variety of different platforms over the past year and a half and have a wealth of knowledge within this area of virtual conferencing. If you would like to speak to us about a virtual event, please contact Suzy Sclater, suzysclater@ems-ltd.org