Tips for Delivering Engaging Virtual and Hybrid Banking Conference Experiences

By Michele Dobnikar, President of GlobalMeet

Conferences in the banking industry provide great networking opportunities, thought leadership, and new business generation. Banking conferences today look a lot different than they did just five years ago. Technology is transforming these events, allowing them to reach audiences at scale and become more accessible than ever before. With the help of event platform technology, virtual and hybrid events are now the new standard.

As banking conference planners increasingly take advantage of advanced technology to deliver both virtual and hybrid events, their primary challenge is how to create a standout event that engages participants no matter where they are.

Here are five tried and true strategies that will help event planners overcome this challenge and deliver seamless and engaging virtual and hybrid conferences:

1. Facilitate sustained interaction

To keep both on-site and virtual event attendees engaged, include time throughout the program for interaction. Virtual event platforms like GlobalMeet, provide opportunities for participants to interact through audience chat, polling and surveys and participate in interactive breakout sessions.

To create a steady stream of interaction, digital event platforms allow virtual and in-person attendees to submit questions to an on-site moderator. They also allow an on screen virtual moderator to identify virtual attendees by name and have them ask their question themselves. This can increase interaction from virtual attendees and boost their engagement in the conference.

2. Provide networking opportunities

Many people attend banking events for the opportunity to network. Technology can help conference organizers facilitate networking through breakout sessions in smaller virtual meeting rooms, virtual meet-ups and virtual ice breakers. In-event apps allow in-person and virtual attendees to network and make appointments with exhibitors and other attendees.

Today, AI-matchmaker technology can even help attendees find and connect with other attendees who share similar interests and/or professional backgrounds. Using advanced algorithms, AI can quickly analyze vast amounts of attendee profile data to strategically match attendees, enabling networking opportunities that facilitate meaningful connections and enhance the overall event experience.

3. Develop engaging content

Content is foundational to keeping both in-person and virtual conference participants interested and engaged. To keep content engaging and make it more visually appealing for all attendees, incorporate video clips, images, and dynamic graphics.

Engagement is also enhanced by accessible, inclusive conference experiences. Event organizers can use automated captions and on-screen interpreters to ensure content can be delivered to everyone in the audience.

4. Use data to improve future event engagement

With hybrid and virtual events, conference organizers have access to a wealth of event data. Digital event platforms with integrated analytical data and reporting features are great tools to help event organizers understand what worked and what didn’t. Organizers can use these features to analyze audience preferences, behaviors, and engagement patterns. The comprehensive analytics functionality embedded in digital event platforms provides a snapshot of the entire event lifecycle which can tell conference organizers what worked well, what can be improved and what should be repeated. All of this data can be used to optimize the time, date, and format of future events to drive better interest and engagement.

5. Select the right technology partner

Robust, user-friendly digital event platform solution providers can help make conference participation easy and engaging for all participants regardless of location. It is important for banking conference organizers to select an event management technology built for the enterprise that can be deployed seamlessly and securely. Some of the key features banking event planners should look for in digital event technology include:

• Enterprise level security
• High-definition audio and video
• Robust reporting and analytics
• Highly customizable brand experience
• Hands-on support
• Accessibility options

Using the strategies outlined above, event organizers can create an event experience that ensures both in-person and virtual participants are engaged from conference start to finish.