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Remote events, virtual… rethink event planning

Remote events are at the heart of the reflection. Last March, we experienced the first lockdown and its impacts were quickly felt. Event activity is particularly affected by the situation. Event cancellations have simply exploded. Thus, according to a survey by the Professional Convention Management Association, 87% of professionals have had to resort to these cancellations. This affected all events scheduled until June. Hope is short by following. Indeed, the second lockdown once again marked a halt to events.

Thus, for the sector it is time to think about how to adapt to maintain a minimum of activity and keep its head above water. Professionals therefore plan to spend their event in 100% virtual. However, for this, it also requires a certain budget that not everyone can assume financially. For some of them, especially cultural places welcoming the public, it will still be necessary to wait until December 15 to be able to consider events.

In Bordeaux it is possible to explore exhibitions online. The exhibition “Relive Sempé en liberté” is an example. Scheduled at the Musée Mer Marine, it takes place in the form of a virtual tour until December 14, 2020. The Museum of Decorative Arts and Design also offers a virtual tour of the exhibition “Playground – The design of sneakers”. A virtual tour that traces the evolution of a gigantic industry. It presents the sneaker, or more commonly the sneaker in all its cultural dimensions and in its various evolutions.

On the social level, solidarity events must continue. During this difficult period, it seemed unthinkable to cancel the solidarity Christmas market in the city of Bordeaux. Thus, for the first time, the city launches its first market 2.0. In the form of a Christmas marketplace, the platform welcomes the structures of the Social and Solidarity Economy and committed traders.

Rethinking events remotely

It is therefore necessary to rethink the organization of events to move to remote event formats. This seems to be the solution to maintain an event activity while respecting the rules of de-containment and barrier gestures. While with the announcement of the containment, the cancellations of events had fallen massively, other solutions are now to be considered. Indeed, an event does not necessarily involve bringing together many people in one place. In fact, based on the definition, an event is a “fact of significant importance to an individual or a human community.” It is also a “fact that attracts attention by its exceptional character” (CNRTL). Thus, an event does not depend on its physical size, but on its noticingability.

To be outstanding, your event must already be part of its time. In the current moment, it is therefore more important than ever to get around the difficulties and to provide solutions. Innovation is also a quality for branding. To live an event remotely or dare to organize a virtual event, is to present a modern, reactive company.

With months of restrictions coming up, it will be imperative to reinvent methods of event communication. In this context, remote events or virtual events are at the heart of the reflections.

online events
With the COVID-19 crisis, remote events or virtual events are increasingly being considered

Remote and online events, under-appreciated issues and benefits

Contrary to popular belief, a virtual event is not just a fallback solution. In reality, it is a real and interesting possibility, just like a physical event. Thus, the stakes and benefits of an online or remote event are valid at all times, and not just in times of confinement or restriction.

First, an online format gives your event a wider echo. It allows you to give voice to your event beyond its strict physical framework. It breaks the barrier of space and time. Space first because the event no longer depends on a single address and the number of places that the place can hold. Time then because it does not involve participants to dedicate several hours of their day, or to waste time in transport. So it’s also a way to lift the brakes and invite more people to join. A remote event also increases the sense of inclusion by allowing you to live it without actually being there.

With an online event, your event communication can also be done at a discounted cost. No rental of places,no caterer, no reception staff… it is therefore necessarily less expensive than a traditional event. The main constraint, however, remains to have an excellent internet connection and the necessary computer equipment.

Also, a remote event is an opportunity to strengthen interactivity. While a physical event often takes the form of speakers who are talking about a topic or small groups of people exchanging with each other, the online event opens up dialogue between participants and with stakeholders.

Variety of remote event formats: the key to adaptation and organization

Of course, it is not easy to translate a physical event into a digital event. Moreover, not all physical events offer the possibility to be adapted online. However, there are wide possibilities to adapt format and timing to digital constraints.

The first question is what type of event you want to organize. Seminar, conference, festival, trade show, professional meetings, or even sporting meetings… At each event its expectations and therefore its constraints. However, the organizers compete with ingenuity to manage to organize a memorable remote event. This is evidenced by the improvised live concerts between artists during the confinement, or the concerts of Travis Scott on the video game Fortnite

Various technologies are available to organize its online event. Whether it’s echoing a physical event organized in a small committee, or proposing a 100% virtual event, the possibilities are many. If only on Youtube,different video formats exist to adapt to the event strategy chosen: post-release video, live broadcast, programming… Other social networks such as Facebook or Instagram can also be perfect platforms to broadcast certain events.

Moreover, it is not a question of stupidly reproducing a physical event via video. Digital tools should be used to increase the impact of the event. Quiz, challenge, interactivity… digital trends all have a place in the strategy to be implemented.

Bordeaux events, digital special editions for summer 2020

Due to lack of visibility and taken by surprise by the Covid-19, many events on Bordeaux were postponed or cancelled as well. This is the case, for example, of the Bordeaux International Fair, which will finally take place in November. While not everyone would benefit from being transposed into an online edition, some may consider it.

So far, not many of them have taken the turn but a few events have seized the opportunity to organize a 100% online edition. Thus, the Rallye de Pépites offers its “I play at home” version which will take place on May 9th.

In the same vein, some museums and exhibition halls in Bordeaux have gone into virtual mode. The City of Wine, for example, offers virtual tours to keep its doors open to visitors on their sofas.

At the moment, the agenda for events for May and June seems very empty. Perhaps some surprising initiatives will come to light. The music festival, for example, should be the time to discover beautiful ideas…

Beyond the massive preventive cancellations, event organizers have no choice but to realize that restrictions cannot be lifted for many months. In this sense, it is important to seize opportunities to create original events in more atypical formats. It is also an opportunity to take advantage of the low density of events to stand out from the crowd.

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