Digital has saved many an event from cancellation over the past year and in many ways offers a great alternative to meeting in person – the same content, expert speakers and industry leaders can all be accessed online from the comfort and safety of the attendees’ home. However, one area where attendees still struggle to understand how they can maximise the value in attending a virtual event is when it comes to networking – how can attendees shake hands or meet serendipitously in the coffee queue when they are physically miles apart?

There are a number of ways event organisers can ensure their attendees maximise the networking opportunities available to them at digital events and don’t miss out on the professional and social benefits associated with attending a traditional live event.

Here are our top ways organisers can encourage their attendees to gain the most from their digital event experience without actually meeting in person.

Create a pre-event buzz
By promoting an event widely and generating a buzz, organisers can build anticipation for their event. Encouraging excitement can get delegates in the mood to chat, schmooze, exchange industry gossip and generally make the most of the opportunity to connect with one another, regardless of whether they will be meeting in person or otherwise. LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are great networking tools for business and can be used by organisers to promote the event, build relationships and start conversations.

Ensure attendees have a networking strategy
It is important for attendees to have a sense of their objectives in attending the event in the first place and an idea of other attendees that they would like to meet. Finding out who else will be attending allows delegates to research other businesses and individuals that they may wish to introduce themselves to or get to know better. Delegates can develop their understand where the best business development opportunities lie for them, ensuring a far more efficient use of their time at the actual event. For salespeople, knowing which clients will be in the room can help them set targets around the number of conversations they would like to have as well as the outcome they hope to achieve.

Circulate attendee profiles
To help make the event more successful, organisers should gather and circulate as much relevant information about the attendees and their business as possible. Creating profiles for attendees can be incredibly helpful in facilitating efficient and successful business networking.

Offer a chat room functionality
Providing opportunities for attendees to chat with one another through chat rooms is a great way to allow attendees to network, either in break-out groups or privately, ensuring many of the face-to-face opportunities are not lost at virtual events. Video chat is another great functionality that allows delegates to actually see one another, allowing attendees to connect with others face-to-face.

Allow attendees to engage in real-time messaging during presentations
As well as providing the opportunity for attendees to chat with one another, organisers should consider using a private messaging tool to allow one-to-one messaging or group chats – posing a question is a great way to break the ice, as well as building trust between contacts who can demonstrate their engagement with each other rather than simply viewing other attendees as sales targets.

Create virtual games
Gamification is as popular in the digital world as it is at live events. Pub quizzes or bingo could be another great way to engage attendees and create engagement at a virtual event providing the opportunity for ad hoc connections to be made through informal games.

Follow-up with new contacts
As at live events, it is really important attendees follow up with any new connections made. The event organisers can facilitate this by ensuring that, with permission, delegates’ contact details are shared. Other digital collateral can also be created, such as buttons, badges or hashtags for use on social media platforms allowing attendees to be sought-out and contacted after the event. Attendees should also be encouraged to cross-reference any new connections on LinkedIn, and to keep an eye on their emails, in case anyone reaches out to them.

While the experience of attending a digital event cannot replace that of a live event, virtual events can still offer incredibly valuable networking opportunities, and in circumstances where there is a choice between attending a digital event or not attending at all, digital has clear benefits.

Highly rewarding relationships with new contacts and new business opportunities can arise at virtual conferences as successfully as they can at live events – the challenge is for organisers to show attendees that effective networking is about more than being in the same room as another person.