Marketing 2022: How Hybrid Events are Emerging

As with life in general, we are tiptoeing ever so carefully back into the business world as we once knew it. There is some face-to-face connection as the pandemic slowly abates, but masks and social distancing are still everyday realities.

Certainly there is light at the end of the tunnel, but in the meantime we continue to adapt to the evolving reality. That is certainly the case in marketing, where the wave of the immediate future is hybrid events. Whether internal events such as kickoffs or team meetings or external events like conferences and trade shows , these events feature both in-person and virtual audiences.

As noted by Inc. in July 2021 , such events capitalize on the desire by many to get out and be around people, while at the same time catering to those who remain more cautious. Julius Solaris , Vice President of Marketing Strategy/Events for the event technology firm Hopin, said in 2020 that hybrid events come down to “integrating the two experiences so that they are robust in their own right but connected such that one improves the other. Hybrid event design is about creating something that is greater than the sum of its parts.”

He said that during a virtual event sponsored by Croke Park, the Dublin-based sporting venue, testimony to the reach of the technology in this day and age. At the same time, successfully staging a hybrid event is not only a matter of having the right technology, but also the right approach -- of making sure that both audiences gain equal benefit from the proceedings.

That’s a matter of having a strong master of ceremonies, capable of appealing to those in both realms, though it has also been suggested that having a liaison for the virtual attendees is helpful in ensuring that their needs and expectations are met.

But what really matters is providing engaging content. This is now true everywhere. Content is king, right? That means not only live-streaming the event but recording it for on-demand purposes. It could mean employing bells and whistles like virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality , as all three are on the rise. According to Statista , the combined market for those three technologies is projected to reach $30.7 billion in 2021, and nearly $300 billion by 2024. That’s phenomenal growth in three years!

Engagement is the goal, no matter whether the audience is present or participating virtually. Paul Murphy, managing director of the Irish audiovisual company AVCOM, said in a video posted on Croke Park’s website that while engagement and networking have been described as considerable challenges for online events, that view has been altered during the pandemic:

“People are used to online networking. You just have to choose the right virtual event platform that facilitates this function for your event. … The secret is not the tools, but how you use them.”

Besides the obvious benefits to those who participate in the conference in real time, the correct approach enables organizers to extend their reach. Those aforementioned on-demand options, provided on a website that details the conference -- that in fact had drawn attendees in to begin with -- can enable those who cannot attend, in person or otherwise, to consume the content in their own space, and on their own time.

This is the new normal, the new reality. And while the desire for face-to-face interactions is stronger than ever, the hybrid model now offers a compelling option for the future as well.

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