If you are organizing a conference or event, you know that there’s more to it than just booking a venue and arranging some snacks. In events, content is king. Informative sessions, engaging talks, enriching Q&A sessions – that’s why your attendees are coming. No one is coming to your conference for the free coffee and merchandise! The keynote speeches and panel discussions is what is drawing them in. This is why crafting compelling and educational event content is one of the most important parts of planning a conference.
But let’s be honest: even if you try to come up with the perfect program and offer the event in a virtual or hybrid format, some attendees will still not be able to make it. In fact, keeping your content locked up in one conference just doesn’t cut it anymore! Did you know that 68% of people say they would rewatch content from events they already attended? If the information delivered at your event is good, why not try to reach as many people as possible?
Maximizing Your Event Content Reach
Here’s when on-demand content comes into play. You can record your sessions and then use this virtual content after the event to generate even more leads and engagement. Your content will reach larger crowds and nurture your brand!
With the appearance of streaming services, customers are becoming more and more accustomed to on-demand content. Think of on-demand content as the Netflix of your conference! People love to access content on their own terms. Plus, the lack of geographical and time barriers helps you reach a larger audience.
As for integration strategies, make sure to choose a platform that allows streaming and online repositories. This way, your audience can tune into your content from Tokyo or Sydney, at any time! Also, make sure that the material is presented in clear and engaging ways. No one wants to sit through a poor-quality video lecture!
Benefits of on-demand content
On-demand content sounds like a great option for your attendees, but what about your organization? Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of offering your event content at any time, from anywhere:
Expanded Reach:
Life happens; attendees cancel last-minute and miss sessions. You hopefully design a compelling and extensive event program which usually means having multiple sessions running at the same time in different rooms. Unfortunately, your attendees cannot be in two places at the same time, and it can be pretty frustrating when they want to attend multiple sessions that are taking place at the same time. Not a big deal! Record all sessions, keynote speeches, panel discussions, etc., and grant your audience access after the event.
Repurposing Content:
Speaking of ways to reach more people, video might not be the preferred format for everyone, especially when we are talking about longer content. Not a problem! The advantage of having this content recorded is the freedom to repurpose it in many different ways. Expand and answer your audience’s questions on a blog post or through social media. Maybe cut long videos and turn them into short snippets. Or summarize the key points of each session in an infographic. There are endless possibilities! The more ways in which you repurpose your event content, the more people you will be able to engage.
Establish Yourself as A Leader:
When you start delivering valuable on-demand content consistently, people start seeing you as an authority in your industry. Use this content to highlight your knowledge and educate your audience. And of course, don’t forget to include a call to action after every video to redirect viewers to your website!
Host a Webinar:
Some people may have missed your meeting this time, but sharing the highlights and topics covered in an entertaining webinar might be the perfect way to turn them into attendees for your next event. Include some clips from the actual conference so viewers can also get an idea of the atmosphere onsite. Once you have outlined the content for your webinar, share it with your network on social media and through a newsletter. And don’t forget to offer this webinar on-demand as well!
Write About It:
What better way to demonstrate what your organization does than showing it? You probably already use your website to highlight your knowledge and services, so adding actual proof of your event’s success to your blog will bring you more credibility and differentiate you from competitors. Redirect readers to the on-demand content if they want to learn more about the topic.
Use Short Clips:
Recordings of sessions work perfectly for those attendees who could not make it to their desired sessions. However, most of your target audience might only be interested in a few of the topics discussed, which may be the reason why they didn’t attend your event in the first place. But that doesn’t mean that your content is not relevant to them! Cut your recordings into short videos and offer them in a library, filtering by topic and category. Let’s be real, most people don’t have time to sit through an hour of lectures, but they will probably watch short videos about their topic of interest during the day, while commuting or doing house chores.
Crafting Content and Providing Access
Before offering your content on-demand, make sure that your platform is working correctly, and address any issues that may pop up. Designate a team – or work together with your software provider – to solve any problems that your viewers experience with the on-demand videos. The core of on-demand content lies in providing seamless access to quality materials, even for the least tech-savvy viewers.
- Preparing High-Quality Materials: Interruptions, lags, or audio issues can happen during your live event. Not a big deal! As an organizer, you probably have a plan on how to deal with these unexpected challenges. But no one wants to watch poor-quality content on-demand. Documentaries and movies don’t include weird cuts and scenes with poor audio, right? You should take time to review your event’s recordings to ensure you are offering high-resolution video with good audio. Remember, quality is not an option; it is expected.
- Ensuring Seamless Access: Not everyone has the knowledge – or time – to navigate complex websites and technology. Your on-demand content should be easily accessible and user-friendly for all your attendees, ready in just a few clicks! Actually, enhancing attendee experience with the right event technology can boost attendance by 20%.
Monetizing and Promoting Your On-Demand Content
Monetizing your on-demand content can be a great way to get some extra revenue. Are you thinking of charging a fixed amount to access on-demand content after the event? Only non-registrants will have to pay to access the content? Whatever your strategy, ensure you communicate it clearly to stakeholders and to your audience. Choosing the right monetary strategy can help increase your event’s ROI even after it has ended, but you need to be clear with your intentions so people know what to expect.
There is also the task of promoting this content. Yes, you can easily communicate that the event content will be available after the conference to your attendees – but how do you reach a larger audience?
Share On-Demand Content As a Follow-Up:
Connecting with your attendees post-event is a great way to gather feedback. Plus, recipients appreciate when you take the time to review their event experience. Use these post-events email as an excuse to share the on-demand content. Write something like “You might have missed some of the interesting sessions we hosted during the event. But no problem! You can now watch every session at your own pace by clicking here.” And there it is, your audience feels seen and valued, and you probably get extra views for your content.
Repurpose Content On Your Blog:
Talks and presentations have a fixed duration, which prevents a lot of topics from being discussed in depth. Audience questions and panel discussions often pose new points of view that you can use to write on your website. Use your blog to share insights and elaborate on the topics covered during your event. This is the perfect chance to expand more on the content presented – and don’t forget the call-to-action at the end linking to the on-demand content!
Turn Clips into Infographics:
Infographics are a great way to display concepts and ideas, and they can also be shared easily on websites and social media. So why not turn your event topics into engaging infographics? Summarize the main ideas in a few bullet points, and direct individuals to the on-demand content on your website if they want to learn more.
Leverage Social Media:
Making use of your social media profiles and event hashtags is the best way for your audience to find your content! We spend most of our time with a phone in our hands, and most people have at least one social media platform downloaded there. Take advantage of these channels not only to promote your event content but also all the repurposed content you create after it. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different channels and formats! What’s important is analyzing what works best for your target audience and replicate it for future conferences.
Measuring Engagement and More
Creating and sharing on-demand content is not enough, in fact, almost anyone can record and edit a video. Aside from getting views and expanding the reach of your event, there is a lot you can learn from your audience by offering content on-demand.
Look at engagement metrics such as clicks and views. Did your attendees click more on the content emailed than when you shared it on social media? Did short clips have better or worse engagement than full-session recordings? Which channel brought more people to the content?
Ask yourself these types of questions and analyze them; the more the better! Determining which channels, times, and formats your target audience prefers will help you make better-informed decisions in the future. The more people you are able to convince to watch your content, the more money and leads you will gain, enhancing event’s ROI. Also, take a look at which topics and formats are the most popular among your audience. This information will help you plan more tailored – and overall better – events, which will attract more attendees in the future.
We have actually dabbled in on-demand content ourselves! Apart from supporting clients with offering their content on-demand on their platforms, we also apply these best practices to our own webinars. A few months ago, CTI hosted a webinar together with one of our partners, Video Solutions, discussing the trend of integration in event software. While we had many attendees joining us live, we also saw an increase in visitors since sharing the on-demand video by email, on our social media platforms, and having it on our website.
Of course, you can access the on-demand webinar by clicking here.
To Wrap Up…
So you see, putting a little extra effort into providing quality on-demand content after your event can prove beneficial for your organization.
At CTI, we believe that offering on-demand content is essential to provide your audience with a one-of-a-kind experience for webinars, virtual, and hybrid events. We are committed to helping event planners run their events smoothly. Don’t wait any longer to leverage the power of on-demand content; visit our website to discover our meeting solutions.
