I think we will all agree that 2020 has not been a good year for most. The event sector, like so many others, has been badly affected and has had to reinvent itself. The presence has been the least, giving way to hybrid or completely virtual formats depending on the nature of the act itself.
Within virtual events, we have at least two different versions: live and recorded.
Last October I had the privilege to participate as speaker at the Foro Mundial de Protocolo, Comunicación e Imagen. This event took place in a digital platform such as Zoom, where the conferences were hosted live. In my point of view, the role of the host changes completely in this kind of event and is an extra challenge for the organization. It seems “strange” to see how everyone is welcomed into the same space. Once the guest 300 has entered and is greeted…
On the other hand, in November I attended to Nodos del Conocimiento 2020 Congress. This event was different, since it was done in deferred. This means that everyone has participated in a video without having to be synchronous in the same space. The experience, in my opinion, has been positive as it gives you the freedom to see the interventions at your own pace. Even after the dates of the congress. If the goal is to share knowledge I consider it the smartest way to do it. After all, we all have our routines and a format like this offers a lot of freedom and adaptability.
Of course, the organization did not want to forget the human factor, so it gave a series of guidelines to be able to make videos. I leave you the most important ones below, and the link in case you are interested to know them more in depth (https://nodos.org/presentacion-virtual/):
1) In any case, it is compulsory that at least there is a narration on the part of the speakers, video will not be allowed that only contain written text, the “human presence” of at least one of the signatories will be necessary.
2) If your presentation is based only on the slide show with a background narration, it would be highly recommended (not mandatory) to add a presentation or farewell where you are seen before the camera, in order to promote human (even visual) contact between participants.
In my opinion, the important thing about all this is that the organization gave guidelines on how to act. Although it may seem logical, many people do not take into account having the camera running, the lighting, the background you see, etc. I consider that, regardless of whether you are assistant or speaker, you should start setting rules for virtual events.
What do you think? What has been your experience in virtual events?
