Contributed by Tim Maleeny, Chief Strategy Officer, Havas New York
As rising vaccination numbers merge with the number of people already exposed to Covid, our year-long crawl toward herd immunity is accelerating and people are ready to start mingling again. According to Travel & Leisure, over 38% of Americans say they would give up sex if they could travel again, right now. Zoom fatigue has only gotten worse, and colleagues who never met are ready to see each other in 3D. So in many respects, the return to travel that’s already happening this spring suggests business travel, and live events, will return to normal in September.
But what can last year’s lessons tell us about the future of live events, conferences and B2B forums that went virtual during the past year?
The need to restage major gatherings like CES or SXSW virtually had an unexpected consequence—CFOs everywhere are reevaluating the costs associated with staging, attending and participating in those events. Before last year, nobody would’ve said you could hire someone by zoom, handle critical client meetings, or stage a major conference virtually, but that has become commonplace now, and in many cases more cost-effective. Is this trip worth it and essential or can we achieve the same goal virtually? Those are the questions that will be asked first, long after people return to office.
One benefit to conferences and live events last year is that going virtual actually expanded their audiences in many cases. People from faraway places who couldn’t afford the time or expense to visit an industry conference could easily attend the live streaming or watch the recorded session at their convenience. People who were always too busy or too junior to travel to that conference they always wanted to attend suddenly found themselves there virtually via their laptop, as up to speed on the latest product launch or industry gossip as anyone who took the time to tune in.
This is critical because not everyone will be as comfortable traveling as some of their colleagues, and venues might face a scenario in which Covid makes a comeback and they have to cancel or make optional a live even on short notice or give attendees the option of going virtual.
What you’re going to see is more live events and conferences adopting a hybrid model, with in-person panelists and exhibitors interacting with attendees but also with the virtual audience following events on live streaming. Just as live events before the pandemic often incorporated audience questions via DM or text, you’ll see more screens and more interactive technology at future live events, so the process of collaborating and the general exchange of ideas will become more seamless than it’s been. That feeling of FOMO over not being there will be tempered by access to the major talks and content online.
Live events will have to offer better experiences and more reasons to attend physically and not virtually if they want to maintain their relevance. Sure, a big reason people attend industry events is networking, but the truly great events always had an experiential component that you only got if you were there. Sometimes it’s the tangible, an ability to demo new products or have spontaneous, unstructured conversations outside a formal meeting, the kind of talks that lead to new ideas, new partnerships and new businesses. Sometimes it’s simply entertainment, sights or cultural experiences you couldn’t get at home that make the work side of the trip more enriching. Regardless, a live event will have to offer some bonus experience for those who travel, simply to justify the time and the cost, now that live streaming is here to stay.
The physical and mental benefits of getting out of the office or away from home have been lost but still appeal to many travelers. The daily distractions of life, your commute and co-workers make it very challenging for many professionals to just take a breath and think, let alone get ahead. Conferences and events, at their best, were always meant to be places where you cleared away the office cobwebs and gained a fresh perspective on your industry, your job or how to do things better. Live events need to amplify the proven benefits of changing your location. Venues and the physical space in which they take place will become more customized and themed around specific experiences and events.
What about brand experiences?
As the lockdowns start to end, people are already giddy about getting outside and interacting with other humans again. Initially this will occur in fits and starts, with some parts of the country already operating as if the pandemic had never happened, while others remain partially closed with restrictions on assembly still in place. By the end of the summer, we should start seeing more and more brand activations in major cities.
Just as live events will resume on a hybrid model, with live streaming available for those who can’t or would rather not attend in person, brand activations will be carefully curated about safety and health protocols. Events and activations won’t be as hands-off as people imagined a few months ago, but expect to see more outside than inside, and fewer people crowding into a venue or experience at any given time. Like the limits on how many people can be inside a bar at any given time, per the fire marshal, you’ll see some redesigned experiences tailored for smaller groups. More touchless technology that is interactive without requiring contact has already been adopted in many aspects of daily life, and you’ll see that applied more to kiosks, as well as increased use of mobile-enabled interaction. But those are largely interim measures as society moves through this.
Despite months of doomsayers that things will “never” return to the way they were, now that vaccinations are on the rise, there are already signs that the vast majority of people will fall back on established behaviors sooner than anyone could have predicted.
