7 Tips for Hosting a Successful Live Event

In this age of online connections, live events continue to be an essential part of branding and business building. Hosting a live event gives your brand and business the opportunity to stand out from your competitors. In this way, you can have a deeper and more significant brand-building effect on your consumers that is more effective than indirect, media-focused marketing efforts.

However, with so many innovative events around the world, companies and event professionals must increase their efforts to ensure that the event they organize is attractive to their target audience and meets their objectives.

The live events industry is booming, so much so that the US Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the events industry will grow 44% between 2010 and 2020, outpacing most growth predictions for other industries. Still, the stakes are still high when hosting a live event. They are very expensive to put up and require a great deal of planning, even if they only last for a weekend.

These are the tried and tested best practices for hosting a successful live event.

Audio

Audio is the number one component when it comes to hosting a successful live event. No matter the size or type of event, leading event companies know that you should always strive for great audio; otherwise, you will lose the interest and attention of your audience.

Most of the time, microphones will be part of the setup, so plan to test each and every one of them early enough so that your audio engineers have time to work out any issues that may arise, paying particular attention to interference from wireless frequency.

Also, get in the habit of using fresh wireless microphone batteries for each event. If you’re using a webcast audio source, make sure it’s clean and audible.

If your event is going to include remote presenters, schedule a test round with each of them, as most won’t be using a high-tech setup and instead will use a basic headset microphone or even a phone connection.

Video

In recent years, live video has proven to be the dominant form of marketing and, when used correctly at events, increases audience engagement. Live video at events offers brands and businesses the opportunity to take advantage of this engaging tool, bringing you and your customers together.

Just like in a TED Talk video, plan on having multiple camera angles to create a cinematic experience. Capturing raw moments and different perspectives helps everyone feel closer to the action.

The power of video is elevated by the fact that you can stream your events to audiences around the world, expanding your live audience and improving the results of the event you’re hosting. Footage of speakers, panels, or performers can later be turned into content (such as webinars) to promote your next event.

visuals

In addition to the power of audio, images add an extra component to the story you’re telling. The level and complexity of the images will vary depending on your brand aesthetic and the nature of the event; however, in all cases, some kind of visual material should be used.

Moving backgrounds are a great way to add an extra dimension, as subtle movement slightly enhances everything that’s happening on stage. For a more extreme viewing experience, LED lighting rentals are the way to go.

Another idea is to incorporate your brand or business logo into the look of the event. In general, you want the space that your event occupies to become an immersive environment.

processing fees

When selling tickets to your event, you may encounter credit card or ticket processing fees. Depending on the company, these can range from 2.5-3.5% and may have an additional flat fee per ticket.

Be sure to include these additional charges in the price, rather than adding them to the bottom. Psychologically, customers would rather see a slightly higher ticket price than have a load of additional fees added at the end.

coming

Selecting a location and venue for your event is a question that can take a lot of brainstorming. First, consider the niche your event is in and what features (if any) your venue should have for that niche.

Once you’ve selected a location, don’t just focus on the positives, but also consider its limitations. Ask about power capabilities, whether certain things will set off smoke alarms, the weight capacity of the roof, etc. – go over all the little things that could turn into big problems.

In the days and weeks leading up to the event, make sure your core team members get to know the venue. When everyone is running around trying to put everything in its place, knowing the fastest routes from A to B will feel like a blessing.

Wherever you decide to host your event, make sure there are plenty of charging stations. You want everyone to tweet your event #hashtag all day!

technicians

When dealing with product and service providers, the most important tip of all is to engage the right attitude. You want to make sure the people you’re going to be working with are the cream of the crop.

Organizing and hosting these events can get a bit messy and intensely stressful, which can only get worse if the people in charge of audio, lighting, staging, and set-up haven’t been listening and can’t remember what to do. A good, energetic and motivated attitude goes a long way.

Don’t forget to make sure you reward your crew with good food! It’s amazing how much more motivated people can be when the reward for hard work is a tasty snack or meal.

feedback

Once your live event is over, be sure to ask attendees for post-conference feedback. This is the key to ensuring that the next event runs smoothly and is more impressive than the last. If you don’t ask, you may never know that the chairs were uncomfortable, that there were too many overlapping panels, or that the coffee machine was never full.

Pro Tip: Since you’ll probably need to sleep for three days after the event is over, prepare your post-event emails and surveys before it even starts. Check that all links work and leave room for any images you can add from the event before you hit submit.

By hosting a successful and engaging live event, potential customers can begin to develop a relationship with you, increasing the chances of buying from you in the future.