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How This Virtual Conference Showcased 'New Normal' Approaches to Event Production

Toronto-based meetings and event space company StartWell hosted The Hybrid Event Conference to encourage dialogue on the current state of the industry—embracing change and, more importantly, how to do it. Here's how it went down.

StartWell's The Hybrid Event Conference took place on Sept. 10 and featured a series of guest speakers. Pictured here, Orlando Carreira used his own company, HappyHour Academy, as a hybrid case study example.
StartWell's The Hybrid Event Conference took place on Sept. 10 and featured a series of guest speakers. Pictured here, Orlando Carreira used his own company, HappyHour Academy, as a hybrid case study example.
Screenshot: Courtesy of StartWell

Many event professionals may still find themselves singing "Baby Come Back" or daydreaming of triple-digit capacities (we know we are!), but the pandemic continues to prompt planners to innovate in order to offer that live-event feel attendees are craving.

Take Toronto-based StartWell, for example—an event and meeting space company that took its first foray into the digital event world last week with the production of The Hybrid Event Conference. While acting as an example in itself, the goal of the event was to motivate professionals to continue to create experiences, even if they can't be live. 

"It was only when the pandemic started forcing planners to consider new ways of connecting attendees with presenters that we saw an appetite for information about hybrid approaches to event production," said StartWell CEO and founder Qasim Virjee. "We aimed to make the event itself a hybrid experience. We wanted people to understand that there are lots of ways they can use software and hardware to connect people, and in exploring those options on their own, they will discover their own voice as an event producer."StartWell looked to Hopin to host its hybrid conference online. The platform provided an organized layout for attendees and offered interactive features such as chat rooms and polls.StartWell looked to Hopin to host its hybrid conference online. The platform provided an organized layout for attendees and offered interactive features such as chat rooms and polls.Screenshot: Isabel Lane

The three-hour event streamed live on Sept. 10 via Hopin and also offered 30 in-person tickets. It was divided into four main segments—"State of the Industry & New Ways Forward," "WTF is Hybrid?," "The Future of Events," and "Participatory Audiences"—in addition to opening and closing remarks and a networking break. Virtual attendees were engaged via interactive features like an agenda, a chat room, and a poll section—all organized through the digital platform. (Just like most of 2020, though, The Hybrid Event Conference experienced a few technical difficulties livestreaming through the Hopin "stage," which led some attendees to view the event live directly on YouTube's platform.)

"With online audiences' attention spans spread thin at home, with more distractions than if they were in-room at a venue, we need to give them experiences they don't usually have to make the whole experience more valuable and fun," Virjee said. 

The conference included a series of case studies and guest speakers to demonstrate the possibilities of new audience experiences for event pros to bring back to their own events. For instance, speaker Nikolas Badminton discussed new engagement opportunities, citing the 2020 Tour de France, while HappyHour Academy CEO Orlando Carreira shared his own hybrid event experience with producing virtual cocktail workshops. 

If you didn't catch it live, you can still view the event and take notes for your own virtual or hybrid experiences here. 

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