Team ExplaraConferences have been live broadcasting more and more of their content to build awareness and create a buzz. It can facilitate you to increase the number of people who will experience your conference. Through broadcasting, your conference can take place concurrently on the internet, efficiently bringing people from all around the world to your assembly.
Conference attendees and your remote viewers are different cuts of the same meat: both are backers of your business but prefer different ways of engaging with you. Attendees can experience sights, sounds and tastes of the event. Below are some key hacks to keep your remote audience locked into your conference.
Be equipped to deliver top-notch audio video quality
Good quality audio and video are very crucial for a remote audience to remain glued to the event. Delay in audio glitches in video or hiccups in synchronization of both are a sure shot way to instantly turn off your remote audience. Check if the internet at the venue actually delivers high-speed, and has the bandwidth to support stable streaming. Do test runs beforehand.
Create a live conference page
Creating a live conference page will set the stage for your conference being responsive to remote viewer needs. Let the audience register on that page and let them know what to expect from the session. Include presenters’ biographies, the event’s itinerary and relevant document downloads. This will set the context for the conference. Guarantee that it has built-in social media widgets. It will help you capture site visitor interest, market live before the conference is aired. It also has the potential to turn future event attendees into leads.
Make videos in the heat of the moment
When you still have time to start the conference or during breaks, feed your live stream audience with a good dose of quality videos which will keep them hooked to their seats. Videos which capture behind the scene moments, a look at the stalls and the advertising brands, personal experiences of the attendees, candid interviews with the speakers, etc. Such videos will let them see the personal side of your business and keeps them emotionally invested.
Acknowledge their presence
Let the live audience know that they are accompanied by fellow attendees – those who can’t attend in person because of health, distance or other circumstances. It is very important to create a sense of community. Though it is natural to pay attention to people who are attending the conference, ignoring remote audience can leave them feeling cut off. Face the camera every now and then, say hello to them, and talk to them casually occasionally.
Involve them in Q & A
When hosting a live stream, it’s important to keep your viewers engaged with you — and you can do this by asking them questions. You may ask them to vote in a poll, or pose an exclusive question for them. One can also involve remote audience members by hosting a live Q&A session where they can put questions to presenters. Answer them in real-time. Introduce them to your attendees with their name before you start answering their question.
Hold exclusive contests
When you have planned games or group activities for your attendees, do not let the webcast viewers feel that they are watching some reality show. Plan an activity for them too. Something like the best caption for a topic will win a prize, or the best review of the product will get a reward, etc. This will make them feel that they are part of the action.
Get Social
With social integrations leverage the audience to stay plugged in and interact throughout the live experience. Make it fun to be connected while your support team takes questions, comments from social media and replies to them in real-time. Also, include their tweets about the event in the live stream screen in your conference. On Facebook, the remote audience can comment and engage with your content easily.
Request feedback
Ask people from your live stream audience about their experience. Do they have any suggestions on how to make the live stream more engaging? If possible, try to include them in your current session or promise them that you would positively try to inculcate them in your coming session at least.
The remote audience can never fully experience being there physically. But making small attempts to connect with your live stream audience can make a huge difference in aiding them to stay engaged.
As American comedian Jerry Seinfeld said:
“This whole idea of an attention span is, I think, a misnomer. People have an infinite attention span if you are entertaining them.”
If you can strategize your conference to educate and entertain your remote audience, you have succeeded in engaging them, thus enriching your conference.
Team Explara
Explara Guest Author
Santosh Panda
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