Beyond the Pivot: Let the Virtual Love Fest Begin

Sure, I had the pity party. First I threw one for myself, and then I attended those of many of my clients. We collectively lamented those lost live events, those save-the-dates that were in the mail, those venue and vendor contracts soon to be rescheduled only to be cancelled a month later. The menus, the hosts, the speakers, and those shimmering ball gowns in the closet all would have to wait … but for how long?

Then there was Zoom — over and over and over again. Nothing like staring at hostage videos featuring your clients and colleagues all day. You know who you are: getting your Zoom on for the first, second or hundredth time, backlit by the window directly behind you, staring straight down at the camera on your laptop, nostrils flaring, with a laundry hamper in the background. That was the inspiration for what would be the first of many best practice cheat sheets I would create for my clients. It started with, “If you have a stack of books lying around your house and can move away from that window behind you, we can get take a big step in the right direction.” And we did.

 So many steps … right into a brave new world.

By May I had three virtual events under my belt. By August I had eight. Not much of a sample size compared to the nearly 2,000 live events I have produced in my 20+ years, but it was an interesting start. All told, I would like to have those events back as I have learned so much in the days, weeks and now months that have passed.

The biggest lessons I learned are WE CAN ALL DO THIS, and it is going to open up a world of opportunities that were out of reach for most of us in a live format.

Why?

Virtual events require good content, good content that can and should be sponsorable. This sponsored content should also be recorded, and thus has a much longer shelf life than any live event you or I have ever produced. That makes it more valuable to your sponsors, to your marketing department and to your development team. As for your audience, well, the world is now your oyster, literally. I mean figuratively, or do I mean virtually? OK, everyone who is passionate about your mission anywhere around the globe is now a potential audience member and donor. Sound good?

It gets better.

It gets better because we are all going to have to get better. Better at telling our story, better at leading with our mission, and much better at getting to the point ... because we have 45 minutes or less (of event time) to get the job done. 

Are you ready? Are you not ready?

Let’s talk.