Fundraising events have existed for many years. These events aim to raise funds for a noble cause. These causes can be funds for the treatment of a particular disease. Or funds for helping the underprivileged children in getting an education. Whatever is the reason. These events serve society by raising funds for various causes.
However, with the outbreak of the pandemic, hosting an event became a massive challenge. And there are various reasons for that. To begin with, one of the significant reasons is the social distancing norms. And secondly, the lockdowns in different places around the world. It made hosting live events impossible, including the fundraiser events. Nonetheless, event organizers around the world came up with a different solution. And this solution was digital events. Among these events, Hybrid events have emerged as the best choice for organizing the event. But what are hybrid events, especially hybrid fundraising events? Let’s find out.
What are hybrid fundraising events?
Hybrid events or hybrid fundraising events are those events that are physical. But these events also serve virtual audiences alongside live audiences. One can say that these events’ audiences are part live and part virtual. These events let you communicate face-to-face. And convenience to attend the event from any location simultaneously. It makes hybrid events the best of both worlds.
To host a hybrid event, you need a hybrid event platform or hybrid event software. These platforms aim to unite both live and virtual audiences. For this, they provide experience to the virtual audience that is close to a live event. Also, the hybrid event technology allows one to host any event hybrid. But what is the type of events one can host to raise funds? Let’s see.
Ideas for Hybrid fundraiser events
Here are some of the popular fundraiser events that you can host hybrid.
- Hybrid Auctions: Here, the virtual audience can also bid for various items, just like a live audience.
- Hybrid Art Exhibitions: Just like auctions, virtual exhibitions, the audience can bid for art pieces to raise funds.
- Hybrid Galas: The live audience can dance, while the virtual audience can interact and enjoy the event virtually.
- Hybrid concerts: You can host a live performance by famous artists. It can be viewed by both live and virtual audiences.
- Hybrid Parties: Host a small VIP party for live audiences. And the rest of the audience can attend virtually.
These are some popular hybrid events. Now let’s see how you can host a Hybrid fundraiser event.
Steps to host a hybrid fundraiser event
- Identify event goals
Before anything, you need to determine the goals of your event. So you need to ask yourself, What type of fundraiser your event is going to be? Or how much funds are you expecting to raise? And so on. Also, decide who will be your target audience? It will give a target or goal to achieve. Also, you will be able to determine the success of your event.
- Determine requirements for your event
After settling on the goals, you need to lay down the basics of your event. You need to decide what type of activities will happen in your event. And which features and services are required to host virtual audiences. Apart from this, you have to select things like the date and timing of your event. Also, estimate the number of both live and virtual audiences.
- Preparing the budget
One of the most significant steps in hosting any event is preparing the budget for your event. It means you need to determine the total amount of money you can spend for the event. Also, you need to allocate this fund for different types of arrangements. For instance, you need to allocate funds for booking the event venue, platform, and so on.
- Booking venue and getting platform
The most crucial part of hosting the event is booking the venue. And since you are hosting a hybrid event, you need a hybrid event platform or a hybrid event software to host the virtual audience at your event.
To make everything go according to the plan, you need to estimate the number of online and offline attendees. It will help you in booking the right venue. Also, while selecting the platform of your event, make sure you get all the features and services needed for your event. Also, don’t forget to check the interface, engagement features, and networking tools. Apart from this, you can check the security of the platform and the support from the platform provider.
- Hiring the staff
Since you are hosting a hybrid event, you are going to host two different audiences. These audiences are live and virtual. Therefore, you need to have staff that can serve both audiences. You can bifurcate your staff members into two parts, One team for the live audiences and another for virtual audiences. It will help you to manage the event more efficiently.
- Inviting guests to your event
You can research well-known philanthropists that like to attend similar fundraising events. Also, you can use your contacts to reach philanthropists. Apart from this, you can contact donors that attended your previous events. While sending the invitation, don’t forget to mention important details. Mention the date, time, and venue/platform of the event.
- Promoting your event
One of the most necessary parts of hosting your event is promoting it. Without promoting your event, you won’t be able to make people aware of your event. And without any information about the event, you cannot expect people. You can begin promoting your event by creating a website for your event. Use keywords in the website for better SEO (Search engine optimization) ranking. After this, you can use social media platforms, YouTube, email marketing, and other marketing channels to create traffic to your website. But before all this, you need to have exciting content and an effective strategy to make your content popular on social media.
- Rehearsing the event
There are multiple advantages of rehearsing the event. For instance, you can check things like arrangements at the venue and event schedule. Also, you can test the hybrid event platform that you selected for your event. Apart from this, check the support from the platform provider. Also, you can identify the possible issues and work on them. In the end, you will be more confident about the event.
These are the steps to organize a hybrid fundraiser event.