The New Virtual Event Management Basics: Planning Guide
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In-person gatherings came back, and virtual event formats never left. In Forrester’s 2026 research on B2B events, the number of organizations planning more virtual events doubled year on year.
So the questions have changed.
How do we keep online events worth people’s time when they could be in a room instead? And which practices bridge the gap between online and in-person?
How to empower your virtual event
One of the easiest ways to lift your virtual event is to hire a virtual event company. Pick one with a digital marketing background, because they know how audiences think and behave online, and a history with live events, so they understand both sides of the coin.
Yes, that describes We & Goliath and might be self-promotional, but that’s the kind of agency we would hire if we were in a client’s shoes.
Whoever you hire, make sure they share what they know with you and your team. You should walk out of your first engagement with a noticeably wider grasp of production, and at minimum a clear understanding of the platform you’ll be using and why.
Whether for a webinar, conference, virtual exhibition or virtual festival, the planning follows a pattern similar to in-person work. Some of the variables change.
If you hire a virtual event company, expect a close relationship with your account executive or project manager, or both. Since “close” does not mean “good,” meet and assess the would-be point of contact before you sign, and make sure it’s someone you could see yourself working with.
This person oversees and carries out the plan on the day, and will likely coordinate directly with speakers, attendees, sponsors and exhibitors. Good virtual event management means careful preparation of the whole event and of each session, with social media and audience engagement designed in from the start.
Besides this point of contact, expect a strategist on your account. They own the bigger picture of production, such as which technology to invest in, and of promotion before, during and after the day.
The strategist should understand social media, email automation and advertising. They also meet with you early to sort out goals, objectives and assets, and to decide how your event will stand apart from others.
Every agency has its own names for these roles. An account executive could be called a “Delight Specialist,” while project manager titles can include words like “Ninja” or “Scrum Jedi.”
That’s why it’s best to think of your partners in terms of their roles. Don’t be afraid to ask, “Which one of you would be my production point of contact?
And my strategist?” If they can’t answer the second question, hire someone else.
Who does what
| Role | Owns | Ask them |
|---|---|---|
| Account executive or project manager | Schedule, budget, vendors, the day-of plan | “Who do I call at 7 a.m. on show day?” |
| Strategist | Goals, positioning, promotion, the measures of a good result | “How will we know this worked?” |
| Producer or technical director | Rehearsals, the run of show, switching, backup recordings | “What happens if a speaker’s connection drops?” |
| Chat moderator | Questions, links, problems in the chat | “Who passes questions to the host?” |
| Attendee support | Log-in trouble and access issues | “How fast do you answer a stuck attendee?” |
Smaller teams combine roles, and that’s fine.
Make sure each line above has a name next to it before the day arrives.
Technology is also one of the largest costs to settle early. Your virtual event management company or planners will help you choose which software or platform suits your particular event.
Why host a virtual event?
Online events offer real advantages while serving your organization’s goals: building loyalty to your brand or product, driving leads and revenue, or getting a message about an initiative across to your target audience.
Chief among these advantages is access. Virtual events welcome attendees who can’t travel, so you can reach people on the other side of the globe.
They usually cost far less than the in-person option, for the host and for the attendees, speakers and performers who would otherwise travel. And once your team runs a few online events well, you’re in a strong position to add hybrid events.
Virtual events also keep your plans alive when there’s no other option. Whether the cause is extreme weather or a public health crisis, you can still go ahead.
How to plan a virtual event
An online event is built around engagement, data and content. Video quality and connection quality both matter, and a mix of live and pre-recorded segments lowers the risk on the day.
Elements to consider include the website, email marketing, registration logistics, pre-recorded segments, live video or audio, and interactive video conferencing. Below are the four universal elements across any format.
Event website
This is where everything lives: promotion, registration, FAQs and post-show material like downloadable slides or a recorded replay. The right design and feel can persuade your target audience to sign up; our webinar landing page template shows the parts a sign-up page needs.
Registration
Registration gives you important facts about your attendees, such as preferences, contact details and how they want to stay in touch. Some sign-up systems also collect payment.
An effective registration tool lets attendees sign up in a few clicks and gives you the details you need to prepare well.
Email marketing
An email list is one of the best ways to reach registered attendees at every stage, from the run-up to the day itself and the feedback survey afterward. Pick a tool that sends personalized, branded emails and reports opens and clicks.
Three reminders do most of the work: one when the invitation goes out, one a day or two before, and one an hour before the start with the join link. Our tips on ways to promote webinars cover the channels beyond email.
Mobile event apps
Mobile apps or online guides give your attendees a home base during the event, and they help at in-person or hybrid gatherings too. They can hold the agenda with links to sessions, so the essentials are a tap away.
Fuller apps let attendees message like-minded people. Some also report on engagement and session popularity, which helps when you shape future events.
Choose the right platform
Match the platform to the format before you compare vendors:
- Webinar tool: best for a talk or panel with one stage and a large audience. Tradeoff: little networking and few sponsor features.
- Full virtual conference platform: best for multi-session events with breakouts, networking lounges and sponsor booths. Tradeoff: more setup and a learning curve for speakers.
- Streaming to social channels: best for open, free events that need reach. Tradeoff: you get less data on who watched, and comments are public.
Ask for a trial with your own team before you sign. Test sign-up, a poll, a breakout and the replay, and time how long support takes to answer.
Accessibility
Plan for every attendee from the start. Turn on live captions, offer sign language interpretation for larger events, and send slides in advance to anyone who asks.
Pick a platform that works with screen readers and keyboard navigation, use large fonts and strong contrast on slides, and schedule around your attendees’ time zones.
Build the budget
Virtual events cost less than in-person ones, but the budget still has real lines. Plan for these:
- The platform license and any add-ons, such as extra sessions or attendee caps
- Production: a producer or crew, graphics and pre-recorded segments
- Speaker kits, such as a microphone, a light and a webcam, for anyone who needs one
- Captions and interpretation
- Marketing: email tools, ads and design for the landing page
- Post-event editing of replays and highlight clips
Keep a reserve of about a tenth of the total for surprises, such as a last-minute speaker who needs a studio.
Rehearsals and the run of show
Rehearse every session with the people who will appear in it, on the equipment they will use on the day.
Check cameras, microphones, lighting, slides, video clips and the hand-offs between speakers.
Then write the run of show: a minute-by-minute script with who speaks, which slide or clip is up, and who cues each change. The producer, host and moderators each keep a copy.
A simple timeline
| When | What to finish |
|---|---|
| 8 to 12 weeks out | Goals, budget, format, platform, speakers invited |
| 6 weeks out | Website and sign-up page live, first email sent |
| 2 to 4 weeks out | Speaker tech checks, pre-recorded segments filmed, reminder emails |
| 1 week out | Full rehearsal, run of show locked, backup recordings ready |
| Show day | Green room open an hour early, moderators in the chat, support on call |
| 1 to 30 days after | Thank-you email, replays, survey, follow-up messages, results report |
Virtual event types
Knowing the different virtual event formats helps you work out the nuances of each and make the occasion more meaningful to your attendees. Below are the common types.
Rise Up for Justice’s Black Lives and Our Collective Future (2020)
Webinars
Webinars resemble in-person seminars, where information mostly flows one way. A webinar usually lasts a short, defined period, and people from around the world watch one or more speakers present.
Webinars often include question-and-answer sessions and can mix pre-recorded video with presenting live to camera. Most stay available on demand long after the live date, which makes the format popular for internal and external training.
A multilingual forum livestream with live captions
Virtual conferences
Virtual conferences follow a complex agenda that often includes keynote or plenary sessions, breakouts and more, with several sessions and community features. Attendees watch keynotes in real time, build their own agenda from on-demand sessions, and talk with each other, sometimes rivaling in-person gatherings for lead capture and networking.
An awards stage with a seated audience
Hybrid events
This is where live and virtual event formats meet. It could be as simple as streaming a general session to attendees in the room and at home, or as complex as bringing presenters from around the world live onto your conference stage; our guide to choosing a hybrid event platform goes deeper.
Story of Stuff’s Reclaim Nestlé’s Troubled Waters (2021)
External events
External events serve people outside your organization, like industry conferences. They need higher production values, so the experience comes close to being there in person.
Internal events
These are events for people inside your organization, like team building, department meetings, sales kick-offs, town halls and company-wide gatherings. For seasonal ideas, see our list of virtual holiday party ideas.
What’s the difference between a webcast, live stream, broadcast and simulcast?
Before you go online, learn the main kinds of video transmission. The kind you choose shapes which platform fits.
Broadcast
Broadcasting means sending one message to many people, as TV and radio do. Technically, any webinar or online event is a form of broadcast at its core.
Simulcast
Simulcasting sends your message across more than one channel at once, like TV and social media together. Producers often simulcast to YouTube and LinkedIn, or to Facebook Live and Instagram.
Webcast
Webcasting sends video over the internet with streaming media, reaching many people at the same moment or on demand. It is broadcasting by way of the internet.
Live stream
A live stream is recorded and shown in real time. At larger summits where prominent speakers have clashing schedules, producers sometimes mix live stream footage with pre-recorded video.
How to make exhibitors and sponsors happy with a virtual event
Exhibitors, vendors and sponsors want the same thing online as in person: a good return on their investment. To deliver it, listen first.
Find out which problems their customers face, and what those buyers want to hear. That tells you how to place each sponsor in front of the right people.
Make sure they get enough exposure. Offer a tiered package and let them host a session, so their message keeps reaching people through on-demand replays after the day.
Online, put each sponsor’s session in the agenda right before that sponsor’s booth hours, and staff the booth during those hours. Attendees hear the talk, then go straight to the booth with questions.
Encourage sponsors to tell you their stories, so you can offer the right options and help them succeed. Our guide to the event sponsorship agreement covers what to put in writing.
Keep people engaged during the show
Online attendees have a second screen, an inbox and a door to close; your event competes with all of it. These habits keep them with you:
- Keep sessions short. Twenty to forty minutes per talk, with a change of voice or format in between.
- Staff the chat. A moderator greets people, answers questions, shares links and flags good questions for the host.
- Ask often. A poll or a quick question every ten to fifteen minutes gives people a reason to stay at the keyboard.
- Give attendees time with each other. Small breakout rooms with a clear prompt beat a general lounge that nobody enters.
- Fill the breaks. A host on screen with a short interview or a recap keeps the stream from going dark.
After the stream ends
Most of what people hear fades fast: attendees can forget up to 70% of what they heard within a day. A short, steady follow-up keeps the ideas alive and gives you a reason to stay in touch.
- Day 1: a thank-you note with the top three takeaways and a link to the replays.
- Day 3: a short survey, with a single question that asks what the person will do differently.
- Day 7: a highlight clip or summary article for people who missed sessions.
- Day 14: a practical resource tied to the main theme, such as a template or worksheet.
- Day 30: a check-in that asks people what they changed, plus the date for your next event.
Cut replays into short clips for social media and your newsletter. A good recording keeps working for months.
How to tell it worked
Pick your measures before the day, so the report answers the questions your leadership will ask. These are the numbers worth tracking.
| Measure | How to calculate it | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Sign-up conversion | Sign-ups divided by visitors to the sign-up page | Whether the page and the offer persuade |
| Show-up rate | Live viewers divided by sign-ups | Whether reminders and timing worked |
| Average watch time | Total minutes watched divided by viewers | Whether the sessions held interest |
| Participation | Share of viewers who chatted, voted or asked | Whether people took part or only watched |
| Net Promoter Score | Percent promoters minus percent detractors | Whether attendees would recommend it |
| Replay views | On-demand views in the 30 days after | How far the content travels |
Compare each number with your last event, and with the goal you set at the start.
If a number drops, look at the step that feeds it. A low show-up rate points to reminders and timing, and short watch time points to session length or a weak opening.
Frequently asked questions
What is virtual event management?
It’s the planning, production and follow-up of an online event: choosing the platform, building the website and registration, preparing speakers, running the live show and reporting results.
How far ahead should you plan a virtual event?
Plan a webinar four to six weeks out, and a multi-session conference two to three months out. Leave at least a week for a full rehearsal.
What tools do you need?
At minimum: a website or landing page, a registration tool, an email tool and a streaming platform. Larger events add a mobile app, networking features and analytics.
What does a virtual event manager do?
They own the plan from start to finish: the timeline, the vendors, the speakers’ preparation, the run of show and the follow-up. On the day they keep the event on schedule and solve problems as they come up.
How do you keep attendees engaged online?
Keep sessions short, staff the chat, use polls and live Q&A, and give attendees a reason to talk to each other. Follow up after the show so the ideas stick.
Virtual event management is both an art and a science. The elements resemble those of an in-person gathering, but you still need to stay open to your attendees’ and sponsors’ different needs; do that, and your event sends the right message and stays memorable.
Run your next virtual event with a team behind you
If you want help, We & Goliath works across every format, from virtual to hybrid to in-person. Our virtual event management covers strategy, platform setup, production and follow-up, and your team can run as much of it as you like, with us carrying the rest.
We run events on Airmeet and Zoom. For the American Alliance of Museums’ Future of Museums Summit 2025, that meant 680 registrants at a 79% attendance rate across 28 museum disciplines.
The SMART Event Method™ starts with strategy: goals, audience, format and how you’ll measure results, before production begins. So book a strategy session to talk it through.
