Greg Ogne: The Future of Hybrid Events

A Take on Hybrid Events

Following in the footsteps of the pandemic’s many buzz words from “social distancing” to “new normal,” the event industry has clung to another term, “hybrid events.” Just as we did in the Summer of 2020, we are all figuring out how to execute in this format, sharing best practices and learning as we go.

Hybrid events are still generally bespoke, but we are in a critical period of development for this format because before we know it, these hybrid events will simply be known as “events.” In the coming months, as many groups are making their first steps back into live events (and, of course, wanting to cater to their virtual audience), we will be training our clients on the value and costs of a hybrid while working with our vendors to support both audiences.

While attending the NAB Show, I approached many vendors and colleagues and asked, “what does hybrid mean to you and how are you achieving that in the future” and nearly every response catered specifically to either a live audience or a virtual audience, which is truly ironic. As we step into hybrid, we have so often been forced to decide between live-first or virtual-first, dictated either by time, budget, or resources. I believe we have a great opportunity to blur the line between these two options. I heard it said at BizBash that simply streaming a live event is not a virtual event; it is just a live stream. Similarly, if too much focus is put on the broadcast, the live audience simply becomes a prop for the camera.

This is a great opportunity for us to reestablish live events with an inherent opportunity to support a virtual audience. If you’re still reading, hoping for some brilliant ideas or new technologies to achieve this goal, I’m afraid I don’t have an easy answer. Instead, I empower everyone to keep this opportunity in mind as you design your events, educate your clients, and develop your products.