In a remote world, brands must
find unique ways to break barriers and maximize audience engagement and
participation to stay ahead this year.
Mark Curtis Feb. 3, 2021
The following
is a guest post from Mark Curtis, Accenture Interactive's head of innovation
and thought leadership. Opinions are the authors' own.
The interaction between design,
content and audience engagement is rapidly evolving following a year where
remote experiences dominated how brands, businesses and people connected. The
screen became both our window to the world and our stage for workplace video
calls, Zoom social events, online-only live concerts and virtual summits.
The novelty of virtual
experiences quickly wore off as screen fatigue, coupled with stay-at-home
orders and a crippling virus, challenged us to remain engaged. As the tension
between health and our reliance on digital continues to grow, there needs to be
a renewed balance between immersion and meaningful engagement.
Interactive
experiences are essential
The desire for more interactions
across digital platforms has led to emerging technologies from major brands.
For example, Facebook launched Watch Together last year to let users
view videos remotely in Messenger with friends. The consumer craving to make
digital content more interactive with peers led to a plethora of joint video
consumption app features with streaming platforms like Disney+, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and Twitch introducing their own offerings in
2020.
This trend is making the jump
from entertainment to business. Mmhmm, a virtual presentation product created
to make virtual meetings more fun, recently raised $31 million before launch.
Whether for work or play, there is growing consumer demand for immersive
digital experiences, which are integral to successful events.
Despite our continued reliance on
virtual experiences, brands and businesses have a major opportunity to keep
audiences engaged by blending live performances, built-in social environments
and audience participation across platforms.
There is no simple solution to
audience engagement, but there is plenty of room for innovation. Many will
benefit from an evolving strategy to recreate interest seen only at live
events.
Personalization
is king
Similar to in-person
participation, virtual event attendees should not be offered a
one-size-fits-all strategy. We must remember the world collectively experienced displacement last
year, leaving us feeling disconnected from familiar comforts both big and
small. As such, finding new ways to translate and re-create offline emotions
and comforts in online environments is key to hyper-personalizing time spent in
front of a screen.
There were some excellent leaders
in this space early on. Salesforce knew it had to shift to virtual to embrace connectivity
ahead of its annual World Tour event in early March 2020. The
company gave participants a choice for their level of engagement with
interactive elements during the experience and video recordings available
afterward. Their diversity of choice allowed audience members to choose what
content was most relevant to them, making this a standout global summit with 80,000
livestream viewers and 1.2 million video views across social channels.
Looking ahead, diversity of
choice and personalization will continue to distinguish lackluster gatherings
from inventive, engaging and standout virtual connections that maximize impact.
Going green
like never before
The positive environmental impact
of virtual events can't be denied. Despite the challenges in eliminating
virtual fatigue, brands have an opportunity to contribute to safeguarding our
planet like never before. Adopting the use of software that helps to reduce the
growing carbon footprint is integral to sustainability efforts.
At a macro level, virtual events
allow for a greater number of global participants while decreasing the
environmental impression of mass gatherings. They also eliminate the carbon
impact of air travel, ground transportation and onsite accommodations, which
pose potential long-term harm to the environment.
A 1,000-person conference over
two days can produce more CO2 emissions than over 200 average American homes
per year, according to recent research. Findings also
showcase that by switching to a virtual event, a two-day conference of this
size could achieve total CO2 emissions of 8,424 kgs as opposed to 1,791,320
kgs, drastically lowering impacts to the planet. With metrics such as these,
brands must also consider the positive environmental elements of their events
this year.
Once it is safe for us to gather
in large groups again, finding a balance between catering to face-to-face
contact and continuing to promote sustainability will be the next goal.
What's next
Last year, many organizations
struggled to make the necessary pivot to digital events that kept viewers
engaged. Following a year of fatigue and screen exhaustion, organizations in
2021 have an opportunity to reinvent their approach to virtual events as they
look to deliver experiences away from the physical spaces where customers and
brands previously interacted.
By integrating customization and
interactive technologies to event-planning efforts, organizers can keep
audiences active and engaged while highlighting the overwhelmingly positive
environmental impact of their virtual affairs.
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