Sarah Platt, Director and Co-founder of Kinura, provides some top tips for success with virtual events.
Kinura have been connecting remote audiences and supporting virtual events for years. Our approach has always been to support clients with the process of going digital, making it as hassle-free as possible. We took our remotely operated PTZ camera kits on a Google tour in 2011, and built a temporary studio for livestreamed gigs above the Southbank Centre in 2012. We broadcast live from London buses and the London Eye in 2015. We’ve run tons of virtual Town Halls for clients across EMEA.
Here in 2020, we can pull together a full-day online broadcast through a custom branded microsite with a lead time of less than six weeks. The challenges we’re facing are new but not completely unusual for our team. We have a network of experts with the right skills to be virtual producers, virtual showcallers, virtual floor managers, and vision mixers; a virtual AV team with a few less heads than you would have on location!
But how do we do it?
We have been able to produce successful online events and broadcasts by:
- Finding expertly skilled producers with vast experience across livestreamed events and broadcasts.
- Carrying out rigorous pre-event tech checks and planning for reliable delivery.
- Providing real-time engagement support and planning.
- Setting out clear roles, back channel communications, and contingencies.
- Having a calm approach, and integrate with clients’ events teams “backstage”.
- Using tried and tested workflows, robust streaming networks, and multi-platform streaming services.
Our focus on integration, not platforms, keeps us ahead of the curve. Our service plugs into any livestreaming or webinar platform with high-quality production values and maximum reliability. What makes the difference is understanding the digital workflow. Our technicians make campaigns work across global Content Delivery Networks, multiple social channels or within a secure environment. Our remote production units deliver digital broadcasts at TV quality for virtual conferences, AGMs, launches, and panel debates. All these events can be successful online and made more engaging with voting, polling, interactive sessions, and networking.
Our advice to anyone starting out with “pivoting to virtual” would be to take a step back and work out what you want to achieve before thinking about platforms. Break it down. Get a clear brief. Then find a partner who can deliver it with the same level of confidence you’d expect for a physical event.
Our services in action
Inmarsat Aviation
Kinura worked with Ogilvy and airline industry partners to create a day-long virtual event – Flightplan. The result was attended by over 2,500 industry peers. Presented in a linear TV format we broadcast a mixture of live talks and panels with remote contributors, pre-recorded interviews, and live studio links. We built a temporary MCR to mix feeds, graphics, and remote contributors. A custom, branded site with in-built marketing analytics and online networking was also provided by Kinura. The entire virtual event was put together with a six-week lead time.
Nudgestock
We also collaborated with Ogilvy in producing Nudgestock, a global festival for behavioural science and creativity. The event was broadcast across LinkedinLive and Youtube, and consisted of 25+ world class speakers delivering 14 hours of content. The result was 30,000+ registrations, and the social media reach was exponential, with 4,520 mentions/posts on Twitter creating 40,214,120 impressions, and the hashtag #Nudgestock2020 trending by 9:30a.m. On LinkedIn, the event received 87,270 views, 213,238 impressions, and a total engagement of 11,876.