Technology, connectivity, data, and creativity have driven entirely New Concepts in Live Events. Established, proven event ideas have undergone enormously exciting changes too! Trends have emerged across the spectrum. Read on for updates on Live Streaming, Keynotes, Remote Presenters, Panel Discussions, Fireside Chats, Product Showcases, Guest Speakers, Video Presentations, Q&A, Team Building and Culture Building.

Live Event Trends are evolving as fast as culture and society.

The internet, mobile devices, and interactive social media are ubiquitous, touching every aspect of peoples lives every day. Expectations are higher, attention harder to earn, content is on-demand, video is essential, connectivity is non-negotiable. Creating and producing Live Events that connect with an Audience, present a memorable Message, and deliver Results is a more complex, more demanding task than ever but ultimately it can be a thrilling, rewarding experience for everyone involved.

Whether it’s a Quarterly Meeting, Town Hall, All Hands Meeting, All Employee Meeting, Monthly Meeting, Sales Update, Employee Resource Group, or Weekly Meeting. Some or all of the elements discussed here will play a part, especially in the Bay Area where innovating and forward-thinking is what we do! So, let’s move forward.

A Keynote encompasses the main theme, innovation and ideas of a Conference or Convention. The Keynote Address dates back as far as 1891 in American History but it is no longer the exclusive domain of Politicians and Academics. The modern use of the term “Keynote”  was popularized by Steve Jobs and his masterful use of the format, so much so that a keynote is even referred to colloquially as a Stevenote.

“One More Thing…”  Does this phrase resonate with you? Very probably… and that’s because well-constructed Keynotes are an incredibly effective communication tool.

It is increasingly common for internal meetings, quarterly meetings and Live Events of all types to feature a Keynote by a C-Suite Executive, Leader or an Invited guest.  It has become Science as much as Art. There is an entire world of resources available online including great examples of Keynotes, fantastic software to handle your presentation deck, and online articles and entire library shelves full of books to help prepare a great Keynote speech.

Production Tip:

We recommend Powerpoint or Keynote for Slide Presentations over Google Slides during live events. We love Google but for Live Production, Google Slides excellent open collaboration feature can be its downfall. Technical Elements for Live Events should be tested, double checked and tested again, and a well-meaning last minute change can be disastrous!

What is a Film Festival without a Panel Discussion? More and more, the same is true of Corporate Live Events, Quarterly Meetings, and Live Streams. The Panel discussion allows for an inclusive group to be seen and a range of perspectives to be heard. The trend for Panel discussions for corporate events is typically a line of “directors chairs” or stools across the stage instead of using a table or desk.

Presenters who have already given a presentation will have lav mics and a handheld microphone is passed between guests that are new to the stage. Also very common is that the Panel discussion will entail a Q&A or will be scheduled back to back with the main Q&A session and function as a lead-in. Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Production Tip:

Some wardrobe decisions don’t mix well with Directors Chairs or Stools on camera or on stage! Be sure to send a Modesty Warning to your Presenters if you are using furniture that will cause embarrassment! Rose Eveleth explores this issue in depth in this article on Design Bias over at VICE.com.

When companies gather to communicate with their employees, it is often the case that some groups aren’t fully aware of the progress made by other divisions. Similarly, large organizations may have employees working on only one part of a product or service. Many meetings need to facilitate a demonstration or unveiling, separate and apart from a full-on Product Launch Event. With such a diverse range of Products on the market, producing a Live Event may require some additional planning if a Product Showcase is required.

Production Tip:

From the very small to the very large, Connected devices, VR devices, AR Devices, Web-based products, IoT devices, data services, and anything else you can imagine, a litany of different production considerations may come into play. Does the Product require a shelf or podium for display? Is additional lighting set up required? Do you need a Camera with a special lens to zoom in? Are specialized adapters or connectors required to take a video signal from the device? Do you need IMAG in the Event Venue? Does the device make noises and should a microphone be strategically placed or connected?

These questions should be asked in pre-production. Plan ahead, story board your ideas and communicate your vision to your live event producer ahead of time!

This is a huge subject of increasing importance and sophistication for all event sizes and types. Q&A before your event, during your event, after your event. Many events, Live Streams and individual event segments will conclude with a Q&A session. Q&A may consume as much as a full quarter of the duration of a meeting or conference. Q&A can take many different formats ranging from pre-submitted questions, live attendee questions, live stream audience questions, verbal, text, tweet, email, or chat room.

Q&A also serves many different purposes, inclusion, addressing concerns, and understanding employees. The success of meetings is very often measured directly or indirectly by this form of engagement, and questions that are not answered live are sometimes collated and answered post-event. Follow up questions, Polling, and Surveys are all-but mandatory marketing and success measurements for Live Events, Employee Meetings, and Conferences.

Production Tip:

There are many different ways to faciliate a live event Q&A session. A ‘Voice of God’ moderator in the back of the room reading questions sent by email. Real time live stream audience questions can be sent to a Down Stage Monitor for the MC to read. A traditional “Mic Runner” delivering a microphone to an audience member with a raised hand, or try a new idea like a catchbox which can add some fun!. (If you do have to stick with the traditional Q&A Microphone runner format, you can’t go past this great article by Roman Ray about all things Microphone Runner).