The traditional top-down approach, which is the way corporate events usually take place, where all the attention is focused on the stage, is being questioned more and more frequently. Events are becoming more interactive and inclusive. What is behind this evolution ? Here’s why you need to make your event more interactive:
1. Know your audience better
By giving the floor to your guests, you will get to know what preoccupies them, what themes you should address or develop. You can offer content based on their specific expectations!
How?
A few days prior to the beginning of the meeting, organize a quick vote using ConnexMe. For example, ask participants what their priorities are, ask about their recommendations to improve sales or the company’s operations. During the event, use this feedback to support your message. Your ideas will be more impactful and you’ll be showing your audience that you are listening.
2. Develop the sense of belonging to a community
Use solutions such as the ConnexMe app to create a true community based around your event.
How?
Before the event, make up groups by mixing different departments, countries or companies. On the big day, ask your guests to find the other members of their group. To do so, send them hints like for example “he has been working for 5 years in the IT British division”, or “she’s one of the speakers for the financing session”. Don’t hesitate to add a more personal note if you have appropriate information, such as ” he’s a Star Wars fan”. This will make the encounters more relaxed and make it easier to create bonds between colleagues. How do you get such information? By asking your collaborators for some information using the enrollment form for the event. At the end of the day, reward the group that found each other the fastest, with a prize or some other distinction.
The goal here is to get collaborators to interact with each other and to seek one another out, in a fun and independent way. Knowing that they will have to interact with different people before identifying their group peers, they will undoubtedly meet a high number of other participants.
3. Make your messages truly meaningful
The way the human memory works, it is more efficient at remembering information that has been the object of some thought, rather than just “forced in” from the top down. Making participants reflect on a certain thematic will really give you the assurance that they will retain your messages.
How?
Ask participants a question on certain data or key numbers that they have to remember.
Example:
127 500 is the number of…
– sales for our latest product in Q1
– products sold last year
– coffees made in our offices last month
Now, share the results of the vote. Guests will remember key data more easily if they have to think about it.
4. Respond to comments and questions easily
For most events, there is a Q & A session. Be sure and optimize this moment (it’s usually quite short) by identifying the most relevant questions.
How?
Participants can ask their questions and they can comment when they wish, using ConnexMe. Others can “like” the comments that seem most appropriate to them. All you need to do is to select the comments preferred by the audience, display them on the main screen and reply to them.
5. Motivate and give off positive energy
Corporate events are often well organized to bring teams together and foster a sense of belonging. In bringing an interactive side to your event, you will achieve your goals more efficiently!
How?
Select positive comments and “push” them to the speaker, so that he/she can share them with the group and give off positive energy. If there are many comments, just display them directly on the presentation screen or on a “comment wall“.
6. Have participants efficiently collaborate
Most often, events have two main parts: conferences and workshops. The workshops, in smaller groups, are organized to allow participants to share bonds. For this to work optimally, they need to be interactive.
How?
Bring guests together by table and suggest that they find a solution to one of the issues to be discussed. You can pick a different theme or a common theme for everyone. With the ConnexMe app, each group can send its suggestions to the others. Then, suggest to all participants that they vote on the three proposals that they deem to be the most relevant. You can bounce back on these during the conferences, to show your audience that you are listening and that their opinion matters.
7. Measure success and build upon it to improve the next edition
All event planners are looking to improve their event with each further edition. For this, you need to efficiently gather participant feedback.
How?
At the end of every session, organize an evaluation and collect participant feedback. Access results in real time.
Do you wish to know how our tips apply to your event? Our teams are standing by to help!
