As the world acclimates to a ‘new normal,’ there are some changes brought on by the pandemic that are here to stay. One of them is the way we meet and collaborate. Employees have become accustomed to the flexibility of remote work, and they’re not willing to give that up. This is why hybrid meetings are the future and are only going to become more popular heading into 2022 and beyond. Keep reading to learn more about hybrid meetings and team building options.
What is a Hybrid Meeting?
Hybrid meetings are events or meetings that feature at least one group of in-person attendees who are connected virtually to attendees who choose to participate remotely. Hybrid events have been growing in popularity in recent years, but the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated their growth, popularity, and need.
What makes hybrid meetings and events so unique is that they are built around engagement that is powered by the innovative use of technology and the delivery of a consistent experience for every attendee. This is not the same thing as merely sharing videos on-demand after the event, prioritizing the live audience, or having remote attendees ‘call in’ without any chance to engage in the event.
Benefits of Hybrid Meetings
The most significant benefits of hybrid meetings include:
Increased Reach and Attendance
A hybrid approach lets your event reach more people. Say someone wants to attend your event, but they live on the other side of the world. With in-person events, there are a lot of logistics and planning that has to go into being able to attend. With hybrid events, attendees don’t have to worry about scheduling conflicts or booking transportation and other accommodations in order to be present at your event. This allows you to maximize the reach of your event. What’s more, there’s virtually no limit to the number of virtual attendees you can have at your hybrid event, while in-person venues can only accommodate a certain number of people.
Increased Audience Attendance
Hybrid event technology allows virtual attendees to engage with the presenters and other participants just as much as they would if they were attending in person. Virtual attendees can engage via chat and comment features, submit live questions, and participate in video conferences and discussions.
Improved Return on Investment
The greater reach and scalability that hybrid events bring attract more attendees and sponsors, which in turn greatly boosts turnover. The increased flexibility of hybrid events also lowers financial risk because it’s easier to scale down in-person activities while scaling up your digital presence in order to reach a higher number of remote attendees.
Easier Access to Data and Insights
Hybrid events allow you to harness the power of the latest technology and collect valuable data and insights from both in-person and remote attendees. For example, both in-person and remote participants can leave feedback through polls and surveys.
Enhanced Flexibility
In the wake of unprecedented disruption, many organizers are still wary about a total return to in-person events. If the events have to be canceled due to unforeseen circumstances, the costs are enormous. Hybrid events give organizers some peace of mind knowing they have a virtual platform to fall back on in case disaster strikes.
How to Get Started with Hybrid Events
Are you ready to start taking advantage of the benefits of hybrid events? From team building activities to happy hours and dynamic conferences, here are a few of our favorite and most popular hybrid events:
- Charity bike build
- STEM backpacks for kids
- Charity game show
- Survey Says
- Music for Alzheimer’s
- Operation Military Care
For more ideas, inspiration, and information on hosting hybrid events, click here.
Contact Team Building Nation Today!
Are you ready to start encouraging more collaboration and stronger relationships between your team while increasing your event reach and flexibility? Contact Team Building Nation Today. We are a leading provider of corporate team building activities. With more than 20 years of experience, we are responsible for creating and designing some of the most popular programs in the industry today. Our expertise and keen sense of group dynamics gives us the innate ability to connect and deliver engaging and impactful programs for your team during a team-building or fun employee session. We look forward to helping you harness the power of hybrid events!
