It’s natural for virtual conference first-timers to succumb to a variety of thoughts and fears. How does someone navigate the virtual landscape? What is the unspoken etiquette of online networking? Can a virtual experience truly replicate the dynamism of an in-person event?
For all the confused beginners, this blog will walk through tips for successfully attending a virtual conference.
But first things first, let’s answer the most important question before we begin:
What Are You Hoping to Gain from Attending this Virtual Event?
Attending a virtual conference is an investment of both time and resources, so it’s essential to know what’s in it for you. Here are some of the reasons you should be attending a virtual conference:
- Learning Opportunities: Attending a virtual event offers a diverse array of sessions, workshops and networking opportunities where industry experts share their knowledge with you. By participating, you gain insights into the latest trends, innovations, and best practices within your field, contributing to your professional development.
- Networking: Virtual conferences serve as a centralized hub, bringing together professionals from diverse backgrounds. Networking during online conferences allows you to connect with like-minded individuals, potential collaborators, and mentors leading to future collaborations, partnerships, and a broader professional network.
- Industry Insights: By attending virtual conferences, you stay informed about the latest trends, emerging technologies, and key insights that can influence your future strategy.
- Professional Development: Many virtual conferences offer sessions specifically designed to enhance professional skills, leadership qualities, and career growth. Participating in these sessions provides valuable tools to propel your career forward.
- Brand Exposure: Engaging with sponsor sessions, participating in virtual booths, and actively networking can elevate your brand’s visibility within your industry during virtual conferences. It can help you potentially attract new clients, partners, and customers.
Tips for Attending a Virtual Conference
Here are some basic tips for attending virtual conferences. These will help you optimize your experience and extract maximum value out of the event. Let’s learn how to attend virtual meetings to make the most out of them:
1. Put it in Your Calendar
When you sign up for a virtual event well in advance, you may forget all about it when the day comes. Therefore, you should add it to your calendar when you attend virtual meeting, complete with reminders. Most virtual events will also send you email or text updates, so you won’t have to worry about letting them slip your mind.
For example, once you sign up for an event, add it to your Google Calendar to avoid schedule clashes in the future.
2. Plan Out Your Activities
Once you have your goals, it’s time to plan what you will be doing during the day of the virtual conference. This will help you figure out which aspects are the best for you when attending a virtual conference. Create a comprehensive schedule, keeping the event’s agenda as a reference.
Just make sure you create a plan that helps you achieve your goals. This can include which webinars you want to attend, which booths are best for you, and what extra activities you should participate in. List down any questions you want to ask from specific speakers or booth representatives. This is especially useful if you need to attend a meeting virtually parallel with other commitments. It promotes focus, commitment, and streamlined learning.
3. Come Prepared With Questions At Sessions
Conduct thorough research and thoughtful preparation to make the most of attending a digital event. You should familiarize yourself with the conference agenda ahead of time and identify sessions that align with your interests. For this, keep your professional goals and area of interest in mind and pen down any questions you have regarding the topic.
Try to ask specific questions that go beyond the surface. Relevant and timely questions not only showcase your engagement but also contribute to the overall discussion. This way you can demonstrate your awareness of the industry landscape and address issues that resonate with the conference theme.
4. Test Your Devices
To ensure a glitch-free experience, take your time to thoroughly test your tech setup and the app or platform hosting the conference before joining. Here are some tips for attending virtual meetings to avoid technical difficulties:
- Start with a comprehensive check of your internet connection. Run a speed test to ensure you have a stable and fast connection.
- Familiarize yourself with the virtual platform or app you will be using to comprehend how to attend a virtual conference there. Understand the virtual layout, and locate essential buttons to navigate effortlessly.
- Test your camera and microphone by joining a video call or use built-in tools.
- If virtual backgrounds are part of the virtual conference platform, experiment with them in advance.
- If you plan to share your screen during presentations or discussions, practice that to be familiar with the process.
- Ensure all your devices, be it laptops, tablets, or smartphones, are fully charged.
5. Take Notes During The Conference
Notes serve as a canvas for your thoughts, allowing you to preserve moments that will help you in the future. As you jot down key takeaways, quotes, and references, you’re crafting a library that you can revisit whenever you need inspiration, guidance, or a refresher.
You can keep a pen and a notepad with you or just type the points in your phone. Use this note-taking space to outline actionable steps, set goals, or draft implementation plans based on what you learn.
6. Network with Other Attendees
You usually attend meetings virtually to get in touch with other industry players and be part of a community experience. Therefore, you should take every opportunity to interact with other participants and booth representatives.
Who knows, you may even end up with a partnership or business agreement afterward. So, one of the best tips for attending a virtual conference is to go visit the virtual event’s networking lounges and participate in chat lobbies as enthusiastically as possible. Such virtual networking ideas will help you make the most of your time and forge the industry bonds necessary for you to progress.
7. Choose What to View Live & What to Watch Later
One of the best things about attending a virtual conference is that you don’t have to miss out on sessions. If you choose to watch a certain webinar live, you’ll likely be able to access any other webinars happening at the same time later for your reference. So, take a look at the agenda, and categorize the sessions accordingly. Make this choice according to your objectives, and be an active participant.
8. Participate in Sessions
When you’re attending a live webinar at the virtual conference you should also participate in its subsequent discussion or Q&A sessions. This will help you achieve your objectives, and make some waves in the industry. It’s quite easy, especially if the moderator opens up the floor to the audience.
So, aim to be as interactive as possible, and let your opinions and queries be known. After all, you’ll rarely have a chance to get so much industry-specific knowledge and expertise in one place. In addition, one of the best tips for attending a virtual conference is to ask for contact details and other such information from booth representatives in the exhibit hall to make a positive impression and make an informed decision.
9. Set Up Meetings
One of the best features of vFairs virtual events platform is the ability to schedule meetings. Just as event reminders can integrate into your calendar, you can also set up meetings for later dates with the booth exhibitors. These meetings can help you get solid results out of attending the virtual conference. For example, if you attended a virtual recruiting event, you could talk to booth representatives who will set up a time and schedule an interview with you later.
10. Make Room for Breaks
Even if you’re just sitting in your chair to virtually attend a meeting, it can still take up time and energy. You need to make way for breaks and give yourself a rest. Remember to add a few meals and screen breaks when you draft your schedule. Rotate these breaks around the sessions you want to attend live, and make sure you have the event agenda with you. This will help you come back to the conference when you need to when you attend meetings virtually.
11. Follow Up with Connections After the Conference
Virtual conferences are not only about gaining knowledge during the sessions but a lot of meaningful connections and collaborations can come out of it. One of the most important tips for attending a virtual conference is that you must keep track of the interesting people you find during the conference and reach out to them afterward.
Draft personalized messages for each with references to specific sessions, discussions, or points of mutual interest. If you see potential for collaboration, suggest a virtual meeting, a project, or a shared exploration of a specific industry trend. Following such tips for attending a virtual conference can lead to fruitful partnerships for the future.
To Sum Up
All you need to do when attending a virtual conference is to register and be active to get the best out of it. Asking thoughtful questions and networking with fellow attendees are the pillars of an enriching virtual conference experience. These tips for attending a virtual conference will help you be a virtual event expert, and benefit from everything that the conference offers.
