Yesterday I posted on feedback from Judith Hurwitz and James Governor on their experiences of attending virtual events. Extending some of those thoughts, Judith's summary, which James also endorsed, was:

1. Virtual conferences need really good planning and execution. It cannot simply be a disconnected voice with some slides on a shared screen. That is called a conference call.

2. Streaming or live video is wonderful but it needs to have the technology foundation so that it will work no matter what the customer/participant’s environment happens to be.

3. If virtual conferences are to work they have to be conferences.  I don’t think that we have good models for executing virtual conferences that work. They need to be electric, informative, and have interactivity.  Right now the virtual meeting is not a true model. It is simply old execution applied to a new idea.

I'd agree with most of the above. With the possible exception of the last couple of sentences.

Taking the points in order:

Yes, just like face-to-face conferences, virtual events need great planning and preparation. We have a specialist virtual events team and, just like our live events team, they often have to tell clients that unless the content is interesting and presentation is top quality, it doesn't matter if the event is virtual or not, it will flop.

Yes, the technology needs to just work. This actually becomes more critical the smaller the size of audience. With thousands of visitors online no-one notices if ten people drop off, but with just thirty visitors, losing ten would distract all the participants and send the event down a cul de sac.

Regarding the last couple of sentences:

Right now the virtual meeting is not a true model. It is simply old execution applied to a new idea.

Yes, that is probably an accurate view of the typical virtual event today. But I would say that the organizations that are running and hosting frequent virtual events - the Microsoft's and Cisco's - are rapidly gathering the practical knowhow, the technology platforms and the conceptual frameworks or execution models, that will achieve success.

Tags: virtual events, Judith Hurwitz, Redmonk, James Governor