How to Create Virtual Events People Actually Attend | Blue Melnick & Bari Baumgardner

Send us Fan MailA virtual event is not simply a webinar with more speakers.If attendees are expected to sit passively in front of a screen for several days, disengagement is almost inevitable.In this episode, Peter Boolkah speaks with Blue Melnick and Bari Baumgardner of SAGE Event Management about designing virtual events that people attend, participate in and remain engaged with until the end.Blue and Bari explain how the events industry changed during the pandemic and why virtual experiences became a permanent addition rather than a temporary substitute for physical events.They discuss audience interaction, breakout rooms, gamification, physical attendee packs, presenter studios and the preparation required before an event begins. They also explain why hybrid events are frequently more difficult than expected: instead of running one combined event, the organiser is effectively serving two audiences with very different needs.You’ll discover:Why a virtual event should not be treated like a webinarHow online events can create global reachWhy every attendee can receive a front-row experienceHow breakout rooms can include people who might be overlooked in personWhy attendee engagement begins before the eventHow physical event packs can improve commitmentWhy removing recordings can encourage live participationHow gamification and direct interaction keep people involvedWhy the host’s experience affects the audience’s experienceHow to build a useful virtual-event studio without spending millionsWhy hybrid events are effectively two events running concurrentlyHow virtual events reduce the financial risk of testing a new ideaWhy every founder is now a content creator in some formThis conversation was recorded in early 2022 and contains references to the pandemic, specific event dates and technology available at the time. The underlying principles of audience preparation, interaction, production and experience design remain relevant.Attendance, retention and revenue figures discussed during the episode are results reported by the guests from events they produced. They should not be interpreted as guaranteed results for other businesses.CONNECT WITH BLUE, BARI AND SAGESAGE Event Management: https://www.poweredbysage.comThe Virtual Event on Virtual Events: https://tve.sagehub.com/Blue Melnick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bmelnick/CONNECT WITH PETER BOOLKAHWebsite: https://www.boolkah.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boolkahInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/pboolkah/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BoolkahX: https://twitter.com/boolkahABOUT PETER BOOLKAHPeter Boolkah is a business coach, author and speaker who has spent more than 20 years helping business owners build stronger, more valuable businesses that do not depend on them for everything.He is the creator of The Hamster Wheel Trap® and author of Your Business Sucks: Build a Business That Works Without Destroying Your Life.Peter works with founders and leadership teams on the issues that ultimately determine whether a business creates freedom or becomes another job: leadership, founder dependency, people, profit, execution, scaling, exit readiness and enterprise value.His approach is direct, practical and built around one simple question:Do you own the business, or does the business own you?Learn more at https://www.boolkah.com