As you begin to think about your in-person events for 2021 you should consider capturing your education content.
With vaccinations ramping up across the country we are beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel with the pandemic. As a result, associations are starting to look ahead to a time when in-person seminars and conferences will return as a form of member engagement.
In the last year many organizations have connected with new learners as a result of delivering online education options. Those that previously may have not been able to attend in-person events due to budget limitations or other factors, now have virtual ways to interact with an association’s offerings. In fact, according to our Industry Study: Associations Trends 2020, when asked why they are interacting more with their professional membership organization now than before the pandemic, 72% of respondents cited more online resources as one of the reasons. Maintaining a relationship with this audience and continuing to offer flexibility in how learners can consume content will be key for many associations in the coming year.
By streaming and recording your on-site content you are not only able to expand your reach and engage more members, but you are also able to get more use out of your original programming and generate additional non-dues revenue for your organization.
Here are some best practices to remember as you begin to plan your content capture:
Understand your streaming and capture costs
There are obvious costs that go into recording your conference sessions such as the fees for the production team’s labor and the platform for live streaming your sessions. However, there can be additional costs from your AV vendor or venue that you will want to factor into your budget as well. There will need to be a hard-wired internet connection in every room from which you are webcasting and depending on the venue, this can be expensive. Also, some cities or venues have labor regulations that require you to hire a local laborer to shadow the event capture team, so ensure you understand what cost that might add as well.
Determine event capture methods
Once you understand the costs for streaming from a conference room, you can determine how many sessions you are able to webcast. Remember, even if you can’t afford to stream all your concurrent sessions you can still record the additional content to make available for on-demand after your event. With Freestone event capture services, you can opt for video capture or audio/slide capture. Video is one session to one technician, but for audio with synced slides one technician can capture three concurrent sessions.
Choose the right presentations to turn into content
Your programming should be reflective of learner interests so make sure to use your data to determine what may be best to stream to a virtual audience. Past registrations or learner surveys can help you to identify historically popular topics or highly rated speakers. You also want to make sure you are including any hot topics as a part of the live stream.
Meet with your vendors
Get together with your event capture team and AV team prior to the event to ensure all requirements and responsibilities are understood by all parties. Make sure to get your event capture team a schedule in a timely manner so they can confirm setup and room configuration. If possible, keep the team in the same rooms throughout the conference for consistency.
Prepare your speakers
Make sure your speakers know they are going to be recorded in advance of the event so everyone is on the same page during the conference. It may be best to have them sign a speaker agreement to ensure they understand they will be mic’d and recorded during their presentation.
Having a knowledgeable and professional event capture team to consult with you prior to the event can ensure a seamless experience. For more information on event capture services and other considerations for hybrid events watch the on-demand webinar 4 Hybrid Learning Tactics to Boost Member Engagement.