Virtual Events vs In-Person Events: Pros and Cons
For business owners, events and meetings are some of the most effective communication and marketing tools. When hosting an event, you have the chance to promote your products, talk about your company culture, educate your attendees and elevate your brand. However, many businesses can also benefit from joining an event or becoming a sponsor, and surprisingly, event marketing is one of the most effective marketing strategies in today’s world.
But, we’re still in the middle of the pandemic, and in-person meetings have been replaced with virtual events. So, let’s talk about the pros and cons of both sides and determine which opportunity is better for your business.
The simplicity of virtual events
For starters, let’s begin by asking how many internet-connected devices you have in your household? If you think about it, the answer is probably more than one. With that being said, if you decide to host a virtual event, in most cases, you’ll be able to attract a wider audience because people won’t have to invest energy and resources to attend your event.
One of the main perks of attending a virtual event is that you can join the conversation from the comfort of your home. Therefore, people trying to balance a busy schedule are more likely to attend your virtual event. Furthermore, not only can you host a virtual event from anywhere in the world, but you can also speak to a global audience.
Merchandise
In-person events allow businesses to promote their products and offer a unique customer experience to the attendees. When attending an in-person event, all attendees have a chance to get customized merchandise and gifts to take home. Although you can treat your online audience with coupons and free eBooks, it’s safe to say that non-material gifts are not as effective as a free sample of your best-selling product.
In addition, if you’re hosting an event to promote new products, in-person events can help you show your customers why the product in question is worth the investment. However, custom merchandise can be offered even if you’re hosting a virtual event, but delivering your product to attendees will cost you more compared to giving free samples to people who showed up and participated in your in-person event.
Renting entire event spaces
Unfortunately, many small business owners don’t have enough money to host an in-person event. Renting entire event spaces can cost you from $100 to $1000 an hour, and many businesses prefer investing their resources in development of a more effective marketing strategy.
On the other hand, hosting a virtual event is a lot cheaper. Businesses don’t have to spend thousands of dollars anymore to elevate their brand and become more visible, which is one of the main reasons why virtual events are gaining more popularity. In addition, hosting an in-person event is much more than renting a space and showing up. As mentioned earlier, businesses might have to spend thousands of dollars to deliver their message. Since virtual events are becoming more popular, some business owners would rather invest in this cost-effective marketing opportunity.
Build better business connections
Truth be told, talking and trying to grab your attendees’ attention is far more effective in person. In addition, in-person events allow people to reconnect and easily build better business connections. Bumping into someone new and asking them what they think about the presentation is by far one of the easiest ways to meet your audience and even talk to your competitors.
Although it’s possible to build better business connections while hosting an online event, in-person connections will help you remember people better or create a good first impression. However, it’s worth noting that interface networking helps you save time and money while enabling your attendees to connect and exchange opinions.
Build an effective marketing strategy
Let’s say you’re a business owner who wants to embrace some advanced marketing strategies that will help your business flourish. In that case, you’ll have to find a way to reach a new audience through a variety of channels. Luckily for you, virtual events can help you reach new marketing goals and grow your business rapidly.For example, when online attendees want to enter the discussion or view your content, in most cases, they have to provide an email address.
But, why is this important? Well, for starters, once you collect email addresses, you can use them to implement your new email marketing strategy. In addition, it’s a lot easier to collect data from online attendees. Therefore, if you’re trying to conduct effective customer analysis, you can ask your attendees to fill out a questionnaire that will help you understand your customers better.
Collecting consumer data is an essential part of your marketing strategy. Although it’s possible to analyse in-person attendees, hosting your event online gives you more opportunities to learn about your audience and collect data on viewing habits.
Long-term content availability
In most cases, business owners who prefer to host in-person events usually don’t want to record and place the entire event online. But, of course, there are a few exceptions, and even if you decide to record your performance, you have to keep in mind that the background noise will affect the quality of your video.
However, most virtual events are pre-recorded and uploaded online for people who were unable to make the talk at a specific moment. Due to long-term content availability, attendees don’t have to worry about rushing from one exhibition to another or missing the essential parts of your speech.
In addition, we all know that everyone’s attention can drift at times, which is why it’s advisable to give virtual events a chance. That way, people will be able to view your performance as many times as they’d like and learn about your products or service in a way that suits them the most. So, be sure to find a team that offers effective solutions for hosting digital meetings and record your event in advance.
Creating a unique experience
We’ve spent a lot of time indoors during the pandemic. Although we still have to be cautious and avoid large social events and gatherings, hosting an in-person event is a great way to inspire your attendees to have fun and spend some time outside their comfort zone. You won’t be able to host an event for a wider audience, but in reality, your attendees will be more than willing to come and experience something new for a change.
Would you rather sit on the couch and watch another video or get ready and go on an adventure? We assure you that most people want to change their daily routine and gather with their peers. But does that mean that in-person events are your best chance to inspire your attendees to buy your products? Not necessarily, but in times like these, if you have the resources and extra money in your pocket, it’s worth considering hosting an in-person event for your local audience.
Conclusion
Hosting an event is one of the most exciting ways to grow your audience. Hosting both in-person and virtual events can be very beneficial for your business, and it’s up to you to decide which option is best.
If you’re ready to spend your resources on a small gathering, hosting an in-person event is a great way to establish brand awareness. However, if you want to reach a wider audience, build better business connections and conduct an effective marketing analysis for a low price, it would be best to host an online event.