Is Hybrid The Only Option?

Who wrote the post-COVID rule that said if your event wasn’t fully in-person or fully online, it had to be hybrid? Are these the only options? Of course not. It’s the common, everybody’s-doing-it option. My mother would say, “If everybody decided to jump off a bridge, would you do it too?” No way. I’m too original for that. So is our organization’s “online” event.

There’s nothing wrong with a hybrid event. A hybrid, for those who don’t know, is a combination of an in-person event with an online convenience of the same event at the same time. It is generally streamed in real-time, in part or in whole, to those not at the in-person location. It adds a whole other level of complexity and expense to an already complicated event planning matrix. It has, however, become the accepted, expected normal for all events going forward.

Now, I’m one to “rub the cat backwards.” I like change. I’m a change-instigator. I try NOT to do what is expected as often as possible. Picture if you will…an alternative event style where your staff can plan for an in-person event as you’re used to. Bring their A-game. Engage quality speakers. Encourage as many people to meet face-to-face as possible just like the good old days. Return for the attendees the DNA of what your organization stands for, why you have the event, and the value of the “accidental” meetings that happen during lunch, in the elevators, or while standing in line.

Then, instead of adding an online component at the exact same time as the in-person event, what if you delayed it slightly. Stay with me here. What if you had time to edit the content you just recorded at the in-person event and did a live-hosted, studio broadcast online event shortly thereafter? Right? The staff has time to recover and refuel…

How is this not a fully online event? It’s being live-hosted with live-broadcast components but using pre-recorded speaker content. How is this not a hybrid event? It’s not being done at the same time as the in-person event.

I am all about sharing information. That is the whole premise of this blog. However, in this case, this blog would be 14 pages long.
If you would like more details on how to pull this off, please email me.

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