Essential Communication Tools for Virtual Events

With so many employees working remotely today, using appropriate remote team communication tools has become essential. Without being able to interact face-to-face, remote employees rely on these tools to communicate and collaborate.

Usability, security, scalability, and cost are just some of the factors that come into play when choosing virtual event communication tools. Using the right virtual team communication tools drives interaction and immersion at any virtual event. Here are some tips to help you host and manage virtual events, including the online communication tools you need to use.

Image Source: Freepik

A virtual event app

Creating a mobile event app can help make your event more engaging and interactive. The app should reflect the branding and clearly offer its benefits. An app allows for professional networking and measures attendee engagement.

Offering subject matter content can build knowledge about the event. Conducting attendee surveys prior to, during, and after an event provides useful insights to help with planning future events. An app can also boost revenue through in-app sponsors and ads.

Keeping team members on board is important in any software development environment, such as when creating apps. Pull requests (PR) allow developers to explain their work to the rest of the team. When they create a pull request, they set the stage for collaboration.

With a PR team, developers can monitor code quality. Bad PR requests often have no context and little to no documentation. By following best practices, developers can create good PRs to ensure potentially that unsafe or poor codes don’t make it into production. Team members can comment on changes, make relevant suggestions, and suggest improvements before merging new code into the virtual event app.

A virtual event website

A website hosts all relevant details for an event, such as the date and start time. You should choose a title and a corresponding hashtag, and clearly describe what attendees will get out of the event. Including photos of previous events of the same nature is also helpful.

You can use quotes from previous attendees, too. Your call-to-action must stand out and it should be easy to register and pay for the event.

Event planning software

Effective communication only happens with proper event planning. Event software enables you to keep track of what you need to do before, during, and after an online event. For example, you will need to set up and test the digital equipment to ensure it is functioning properly before the event. You should also check that the Wi-Fi is working optimally.

Backdrops may need to be set up for speakers and tools for leaders of seminars, such as a whiteboard or digital screen. The software ensures that you prioritize tasks and maintain constant communication with all key decision-makers.

Web conferencing software

Virtual attendees should be able to interact with each other rather than just viewing a stream.

Zoom is a web conferencing software that facilitates interactive online events, such as conventions, webinars, and meetings. It is available for most devices and the interface is easy to navigate. Zoom also has a developer platform for integrating features like screen sharing, voice, and video into business apps.

FreeConference is another easy-to-use virtual communication tool that allows attendees to join a meeting by clicking a link. It is a useful resource for small teams and is suitable for conferences and video calls.

Here are other virtual team communication tools that support dynamic screen sharing and back-and-forth conversations:

• Microsoft Teams offers chat, messaging, and audio calling. It lets you schedule meetings and works well alongside other Microsoft tools.
• ClickMeeting is a browser-based platform for hosting webinars and training sessions.
• EzTalks allows you to host webinars, town hall meetings, training, and one-on-one calls.
• Google Meet is a popular communication tool for teams that already use Gmail and other Google apps.

These tools for online communication often integrate with event management tools that make creating, managing, and executing virtual training webinars and other events quick and easy.

Image Source: Freepik

Virtual office-based events and live chat tools

Live chat makes online communication more engaging and interactive.

Gather Town is a browser-based video chat platform that tries to humanize online interaction. Users can build their own customized spaces, share documents, and play games with team members. It suits small- to medium-sized teams that want to connect in a virtual space.

Kumo Space is different from traditional video conferencing platforms as it emphasizes spatial audio environments. It offers more immersive virtual interactions and users can construct their own environments. It gives large distributed teams a platform for hosting virtual-office-based events. Many teams can converse in the same room which eliminates the need for break-out rooms. The experience is similar to being in a physical office environment.

Event marketing software

With the use of event marketing software, you can get the word out about your virtual event in the form of emails, paid advertising, and social media posts. It will also help you to:

• Send reminders to invitees who haven’t responded.
• Send reminders about the date.
• Track open rates for emails.
• Run A/B tests for social posts and ads.
• Track social engagement.

Virtual event examples

Some examples of virtual communication in 2023 included online networking events, job fairs, and workshops. Colleges even started holding virtual open days.

Virtual conferences are increasing as businesses realize just how successful they can be. Organizers can reach wider audiences and invite speakers from around the world.

Virtual tradeshows and exhibitions also became popular in 2023. Organizers can engage with prospects globally and use live webinars and live chat to educate them about their offerings.

Virtual job fairs help organizations find candidates. They make use of job boards, audio/video chat tools, and video assessment tools.

Ways to make virtual events more interactive and immersive

Companies are finding ways to make online events more interactive and immersive.

Game-like elements such as quizzes and scavenger hunts are being incorporated. These allow attendees to earn rewards for participating.

Live polling and QA sessions enable attendees to interact directly with panelists or speakers.

Micro-events are likely to become a trend in 2024. This means holding shorter, more niche events more often with a small, carefully chosen audience.

Augmented reality and virtual reality are starting to make an impact on events, too. More organizers are dipping their toes into using these technologies to build spaces.

The benefits of virtual events for businesses today cannot be underestimated. They support sustainability, offer more personalization, opportunities to network, and generate more data insights.

Conclusion

Virtual events depend on technology so you need to use appropriate online communication tools. Doing so means that your virtual events can surpass events that take place in a more traditional physical setting. Using the right tools can enhance productivity, increase job satisfaction, and improve your company culture.

About the author:

Sandra loves to write about the latest in the technology world while covering Apple devices in particular. Other areas she loves are coding, artificial intelligence, and SaaS. Her deep knowledge and passion for writing make her a highly loved blogger among her audience.

This was originally posted on SpeakerHub Skillcamp.