When I produce a virtual event on behalf of my clients, I give them a Host Guideline Checklist. In it, I provide tips on how to host their virtual event successfully, especially if they’re doing it for the first time.
The biggest success tip is that you can’t facilitate the sessions as a host and manage customer support issues at the same time. It’s just not possible.
As the host, you need to focus on the speakers and present a genial and pleasant demeanor to attendees. Your positive attitude will be adversely affected if an email comes from an attendee complaining that they can’t find the call-in details or that they can’t access the recordings.
That’s why the role of Virtual Event Host and Virtual Event Customer Service needs to be separated. The host can’t respond to customer issues right away and if he or she can’t, this will most likely increase refund requests from attendees or put a speaker into a panicky state if he or she is missing connection details.
This happened to me recently. I was to speak at a virtual event, but I couldn’t find the details on how to connect to the sessions. I frantically looked at every email correspondence I received from the virtual event organizers to see if I simply missed it.
With only 30-minutes left to go before I took the “virtual stage”, I sent an email to the speaker co-ordinator. Then to the event director. Then, I went on Twitter and saw that both had tweeted something out an hour earlier, so I sent them both a reply.
Nothing. All I could hear were crickets chirping.
With 10-minutes left before I hit the stage, I was able to dig up a phone number for the speaker co-ordinator. Thankfully, she answered the phone and said she was so engrossed in one of the panel discussions that she hadn’t checked email or Twitter in about an hour.
Eek!
So, here are my tips on how you can become a better virtual event host:
- Hire a Virtual Event Producer. This person will be the point of contact for both speakers and attendees on the day that the virtual event starts until it ends. Set up a dedicated email that the Virtual Event Producer can check periodically and make sure both speakers and attendees know. Your virtual assistant can fill this role, but remember, he or she has other clients and cannot be as responsive. A Virtual Event Producer is dedicated only to your event and will troubleshoot issues within seconds, not hours.
- Email Access Info to Speakers the Day Before They Speak. Even if you already sent it once or twice before, assume that they lost or misplaced the information. Just make that assumption. Then, the day before they speak, send an email with the access details again. As a speaker, I appreciate seeing this email in my inbox because it saves me from panicking. From an virtual event organization standpoint, you’ll rest easy knowing that the speaker will definitely show up.
- Create an Easy to Access Help Page. Wherever you’re sending attendees and speakers to grab the access details and to download the recordings, you must ensure that there’s a help page or button that’s easy to see and access. You can put a big red help button on the top of every page or if you’re using WordPress, you can add a page with a contact form, phone number or a link to your helpdesk. Call the page simply Help.
- Send a Letter in the Mail with Connection Details. Otherwise known as a Welcome Letter, I put together a 2 or 3 page document detailing what attendees and speakers can expect. I also include the access details in the Welcome Letter so just in case the speaker and/or attendee isn’t getting my emails, they can find the info on the letter.
Four simple things you can do as a host of a virtual event so you create peace around you. Do you have any other tips you’d like to share?
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