Do you remember in 2015 when Time published a Microsoft study indicating that the average human’s attention span is less than that of a goldfish? Well, with the way screens, new media, and other mobile stimuli are all competing for the population’s ever-fleeting attention, It has only gotten harder to captivate one’s attention.
With people losing interest every eight seconds, conference organizers in the digital age face quite a conundrum: how do you hold the attention of attendees and audience members effectively? While a good keynote speaker and industry leaders may start the party, you can’t rely on the hook to keep things going.
Long gone are the days when a simple presentation was enough to keep people interested. Contemporary audiences expect to be actively engaged and look for immersive experiences, not boring lectures. And, brainstorming interactive activities for professionals in your audience can be difficult. So when you begin your next event planning project, consider these top interactive conference ideas to win the crowd over.
FIVE FUN WAYS TO ENGAGE AN AUDIENCE
The name of the game is interactivity. Event planners who can allow conference attendees to participate has been shown to increase their ability to personally connect with the information and improve the likelihood that they retain it later. Therefore, event planners must integrate audience members into the experience. Below are five fun and creative ways event planners can use to get audiences involved at their next conference.
#1 Breakout Sessions
Small group workshops are increasingly becoming conference staples. Commonly referred to as “breakout sessions,” these structured networking sessions offer a chance for attendees to reflect and build upon the overarching themes of the conference in a more intimate setting. Breaking up the greater audience into smaller cohorts is a fantastic way to make space for people to interact on a person-to-person level in a conference session.
Some of the many benefits of breakout sessions include:
- Creates a participatory environment
- Offers a more personal learning experience
- Facilitates interesting discussions and sharing of ideas
- Provides networking opportunities
- Helps break down big ideas and makes information more digestible
- Gets people informed about specific topics
- Adds value to the event overall
Wondering what can make or break a breakout conference session? The answer is organization. Structured networking sessions have a clear purpose and are planned well in advance. Start by devising a list of subtopics related to the theme of the conference session and then consider appropriate strategies to tackle them.
This may involve inviting a guest speaker or preparing a program, presentation, discussion guide, or business conference activities to structure the time. Let’s explore some ideas for structured networking sessions to keep in your back pocket.
Pre-Registration
It’s a good idea to let attendees select their breakout group in advance. Sending out multiple choice forms or invites ahead of time makes a conference session feel more hand-tailored rather than one-size-fits-all. Pre-registration is a fantastic way to ensure attendees have a valuable experience by ensuring their specific interests are addressed. It is also mutually beneficial as it will help you anticipate group sizes and plan accordingly and provide options.
Improv
A game can serve as a great icebreaker in small group sessions. Incorporating a few improv exercises is a great way to introduce people and create more openness within the group. The basic principle of improv is to say “yes” or accept whatever your partner(s) say. This type of mentality fosters a positive and collaborative environment that can easily be translated into the workplace.
#2 Interactive Presentations
A well-produced presentation can really captivate a room. Presenters must find ways to directly involve audience members and engage with them meaningfully. An interactive presentation should feel more like a conversation than a lecture, giving the feel that presenters are talking to attendees, not at them.
In this day and age, presenters have to pull out all the stops—audio, visuals, digital features, and more. We’re talking beyond just asking “by show of hands…” yawn—that’s not going to cut it. Luckily, today’s technologies offer many new and exciting ways to get audiences actively participating.
Creative Slides
Today, many event app choices come with innovative features that allow users to convey information and present content more creatively. Spice up a boring slideshow by integrating video, media, animations, and other design elements into a presentation.
To engage your audience through an eye-catching presentation, try one of these as an alternative event app to Powerpoint presentations:
- Prezi
- Google Slides
- Keynote
- Canva
- FlowVella
- SlideShark
Crowdsourcing Technology
Thanks to new tools like Sli.do, facilitating dialogue throughout a presentation is easier than ever. Such mobile apps allow attendees to communicate in real-time with presenters through digital messaging. Here are some of the coolest Sli.do features you will want to try out:
- Q&A: Sli.do allows attendees to send in live questions or comments via their mobile devices during presentations. Perks include that the event app lets audience members submit anonymously, and people vote on other people’s questions. The most recent and most popular submissions will then appear on the presenter’s screen. This setup maximizes the potential of Q&A sessions, making sure the interests of the audience are reflected in what presenters discuss.
- Live Polling: On the flip side, Sli.do live polling allows presenters to pose questions to audience members and post the responses and results on-screen. In terms of gathering feedback and engagement, live polling is a goldmine. Here are just a few ideas of how to use live polling to your advantage:
- Highlight learning objectives
- Quiz the audience on relevant topics
- Gauge opinions and compare viewpoints
- Identify shared traits, skills, or interests amongst audience members
- Get immediate feedback on the presentation
#3 Social Media Walls
Social walls are very dynamic and highly interactive. A media wall is a screen (or screens) designated to display photos, videos, and other digital content related to the event. Essentially, it functions as a newsfeed for your conference session. You can change what’s on display throughout the day and broadcast anything from posts to relevant information, gathering feedback, crowd reactions, event highlights, questions and answers, live streams, and more.
Having a wall is also a fantastic way to gather feedback, encourage people to post about a conference session, and utilize free marketing. Create an event hashtag or even an event app for your conference session, and then all the posts with that tag will be added to the wall. The screen will update in real-time to show the most recent Instagram posts, Tweets, or other shares by attendees.
For this to be most effective, it’s critical that people are well aware of and implement the event’s hashtag. Have designated social media hashtags for the event and use them months in advance on all flyers and advertisements.
#4 Special Events
After a long day, conference-goers need time to unwind. However, rather than letting guests sit alone watching TV in their hotel rooms, consider crafting a business conference music playlist or providing live entertainment to keep attendees engaged with each other. Offsite and after-hour events provide an opportunity for people to network, make new connections and socialize. They round out an interactive conference by providing a relaxed environment for people to attend, so that the experience isn’t all business, all the time.
The following are examples of fun events to add to the agenda that will keep people interacting through the night:
- Cocktail hour
- Round tables
- Live musical or comedic entertainment
- Nearby sightseeing excursion
- Food tour
- Sporting event
#5 Games and Giveaways
Another strategy to encourage audience engagement throughout an interactive conference is by incorporating contests and prizes. Games are active by nature and stimulate excitement, interaction, and motivation amongst attendees. Here are some recommendations for interactive conference games and giveaways:
- Raffle Tickets: Raffle prizes give people something to look forward to. Setting up a booth where people go to enter the raffle can also create space and time for organizers to chat one-on-one with other attendees. Prizes can be anything from vacation getaways, gift cards, gift baskets, or concert tickets.
- Augmented Reality Scavenger Hunt: Scavenger hunts can be for adults when Augmented Reality (AR) is involved. With new technologies, you can actually build an interactive scavenger hunt experience at and around your venue without having to place physical clues throughout the space. Mixed Reality experiences are a great way to get your guests out of their seats and engaged with the program with specific branding and messaging tailored to your event.
- Goodie bags: It’s always fun to put together goodie bags with pens, tote bags, water bottles, t-shirts, and other swag. Giving attendees something to take home is an excellent way to way to promote the interactive conference and make it more memorable. Coordinate with vendors at the event to optimize the goodies.
CONFERENCE IDEAS THAT WILL GRAB (AND KEEP) THE AUDIENCE’S ATTENTION
At an interactive conference, no one wants to be talked to hour after hour or bombarded with information during monotonous lectures and drab panels. Sitting amongst hundreds of other attendees in a crowd, guests may easily get bored.
To promote learning and keep people interested, conferences need to have more interactive elements. Breakaway from the one-dimensional, strictly business conference model by incorporating activities and entertainment, as well as new audio and visual technologies into your event.
To ensure the successful execution of these event features, you should consult with an outside management company, like Vario, who specializes in AV services and event technology. We are industry leaders in the event planning world and will be your number one advocate with the trust of transparency to ensure that your event needs are met. With the knowledge of the best event partners out there and the power of negotiation, you will be ensured to get the best service and creativity at the best price.
