Four Zoom secrets for your next virtual event

When we rang in 2020 many companies were using Zoom for occasional telework, the long distance interview, or in an effort to bring together offices spread across the country or world. Once quarantine was in full swing in mid March, Zoom had become the platform of choice for conversations- work, social, or family based. For its many offerings, from break out rooms to screen share, Zoom had a wealth of capabilities, but few technical experts.

We know virtual events aren’t going anywhere. The effects of COVID-19 are surely an ongoing concern, but many teams were already looking for better ways to gather remote audiences, both to save on budget and protect our environment. With this in mind, we’ve been  excited to explore virtual gatherings. Through events like the one we did in August with our pro-bono client, ECHT, we’ve learned a number of tips and tricks for creating engagement on Zoom. We hope they will help in your journey to create meaningful experiences online.

What’s in a name?

One of Zoom’s great features is the ability to easily change the name listed under your video. We have been to events where folks were asked to list their Instagram handle to create a touchpoint for after the event, or to share an emotion (Excited Meg, Silly Nicole, Nervous Erin) to set the tone. While these engagement tactics work in smaller scenarios, they can become overwhelmingly complicated in larger groups. From confusing the Zoom host, to having participants who aren’t tech savvy, it’s important to think about the potential impact of asking attendees to rename themselves.

If you have considered all the possibilities and adding to attendee names sounds like the perfect way to generate engagement, great! To do so, simply hover over your own video, click the three dots that will drop down a menu where you will select Rename. Fun fact: if you are the host you can rename others as well!

Consider Communications

From attendee to attendee, host to attendee, host to performer, and behind the scenes, communication is essential to a virtual event’s success. 

Chat is one of the greatest tools to create connection during a virtual event, but what happens when there are so many active chatters that the message gets lost? Before your event, consider what information is most important for guests to receive, and if chat is the best way to disseminate this information. Is the event mission the most important? Are there logistics that attendees really need to pay attention to? We find using the chat feature is only effective when it’s used for mission critical elements.

We used Slack for all the behind the scenes chatter, which is a great option to communicate quickly and efficiently, and allows teams to effectively collaborate.

The Power of Hosts

Some gatherings in Zoom are designed to allow attendees to “raise hand” to speak. This function sends a request to the host, who then can allow them to come off mute. At events with experienced performers, we’ve made everyone a co-host allowing them to un-mute themselves. While this doesn’t work for the absent minded who might forget to re-mute after their segments, it can be a helpful tool. The more co-hosts you have, the more shared responsibility will exist!

Be Prepared

Even for virtual events it’s important to have sound checks and dress rehearsals to make sure each performer's audio is up to snuff. 

Quality control on content is as important as ever with virtual events, and making sure you take the time to run through all elements means you’ll find that the pesky text in a video is cut off before the show begins!

Not only should you be prepared, you should prepare your attendees as well! Even if you have been using Zoom for years, or every single day the last six months, remember that your attendees might not. Over communicating best practices, like how to use chat, reactions, video share, or full screen mode are pivotal in creating the best viewing experience for attendees. 

We hope these tips will help as you plan your next virtual gathering on Zoom. If you’d like additional support, feel free to reach out, we'd love to chat!