Executing Virtual the Right Way: Tips for Maximum Impact
Confession: before I started hosting virtual wine tastings, I had never been on Zoom, Teams, or Meet. The ability to host events in person went away overnight. We all ‘figured it out’ together. Luckily, because our product was good, and we knew how to create a space online that felt human, we got wildly busy. I honestly didn’t think too much about it back then. People were simply looking to be entertained. I knew about the wine we sent, and I would log on and talk. That was literally it. It is wild in retrospect because the way I approach virtual engagements today is so profoundly different.
Here is my list of things to consider when pulling off a virtual event for maximum impact:
Pre-Event Planning- Do your homework
In restaurants, we read through the guest list every night at our pre-shift meeting before service. We talk about who is joining us that night- birthdays, anniversaries, favorite drinks, and where their oldest child is going to college. We understand our guests intimately in an effort to create memorable moments. We do the same for our virtual events. Understanding your audience, and what the goal of the virtual event is, is paramount. It gives you the upper hand when crafting a run-of-show with maximum impact and allows you to create personalized ‘wow’ moments.
Warm Welcome- If the goal is engagement, be engaging
The way you set the tone in the first few minutes can have a profound impact on the outcome of the event. Something as small as having slides up when people come in the room has an impact on attendee's behavior, in turn, having a major effect on overall engagement. Slides say ‘this is a webinar’ and webinars mean this is informational which means I am here to listen and learn, not engage. If the goal is engagement, be engaging. Lean in, welcome people in with a smile, call them by name, and tell them you’re happy they came.
Strong Middle- Meaningless decks kill the mood…also, be awkward
Nothing kills the mood quite like slides, but we all know they are a necessary evil. (ask me how I feel.) When designing your deck, remove anything you don’t absolutely need to convey your message. If it feels like clip art circa 1995, get rid of it. If you can keep it to 2-3 slides max, that’s a win. When you’re done presenting, get the slides down as quickly as possible. Do not try to have a conversation with your attendees with slides up. They won’t answer you because they can’t see you. Ask questions of the audience and leave space for engagement. Silence is awkward, so be awkward. This allows others to speak.
Lasting Goodbye- be respectful by ending on time
Having a clear conclusion to your event is important to have maximum impact. Going over, even by a minute, gives people the opportunity to drop without a proper goodbye. The owner of one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco literally chases guests down the sidewalk to say goodbye and shake their hands. The goodbye is the last thing the guest remembers. Telling them thank you for their time, their business, and their attention, plus what to expect next, is as important as the welcome. We offer to stay on longer for those looking to continue the conversation, but permitting attendees to go at the top of the hour is respectful.
Follow Up - Maximize your impact with a precise strategy
An event can be meaningless without a precise follow-up strategy. If the event goal is conversion, knowing where each attendee is in the pipeline and what is needed to push them over the finish line is paramount. We create a follow-up video that the sales team can send as step one- a reminder of the event and what is in the kit. We also take notes on your attendees and share them with your team. In restaurants, we call it ‘connecting the dots,’ when you use information gathered to create ‘wow’ moments. It can be as simple as a guest on a virtual event sharing that they like almond milk lattes and your sales rep door-dashing them one the next morning as a ‘thank you’ for joining. Remembering here that it doesn’t have to be expensive to be impactful.
At the end of the day, we spend so much time connecting online, if we can not only make that time fun and enjoyable, but more importantly, relationship-building, it’s a win. Bringing the human element to the obligatory, while maximizing impact, is quite simply what we do.