As the fall gala season begins to slow down (though it’s nowhere near done), I wanted to reflect on what I’ve learned about virtual galas over the past 6 months and after hosting dozens of virtual events!
Virtual Galas are Profitable
Not just profitable as in you make more than you spend, but they are almost always just as profitable as in-person galas. Most of my clients this year have had equal or more net revenue in their virtual events than they had in their in-person galas in 2019. So I will call that a win for 2020!
Watch Parties are a great bonus experience
Watch parties are a great way to create a semi-hybrid experience and build a little peer pressure when it comes to giving. Instead of having table hosts, you will have watch party hosts who invite their friends or family over to watch the event in a safe environment. They can celebrate and share your organization together but remain in their “pod” to avoid COVID spread. Adding catered food options for additional purchase can heighten the experience and make it more exciting.
Give yourself time to plan
A colleague of mine on LinkedIn said it best, your virtual event can only be two things: fast, cheap or good, but it can’t be all three. This is true. There is definitely a learning curve when planning virtual events and you need to give yourself time to figure it out. You also need time to create hype, obtain sponsors, market the event, design guest experiences and plan an engaging program! Because you don’t need to worry about a venue, you may not need to start planning a year in advance, but you should expect to work on your event for 3-4 months.
Hire professionals
Unless you have a full-time producer, live streaming expert, scriptwriter, and videographer on your team, do not try to do this yourself. Hire a virtual event planner or a producer. Make sure you have a team who can successfully record and livestream your event without a glitch! Hire a professional fundraising host (yes, that’s what I do) who knows how to engage an audience through a screen without rambling.
Keep them short and sweet
I’ve been saying this one since the beginning, but keep those virtual events to about 30 minutes. Cut the fluff and get down to business. An experienced virtual gala producer will help you plan it out and a professional fundraising host will make the most out of your 30 minutes with your audience.
Focus on getting people to attend
I’m talking about more than throwing it out on social media (though you should use every tool in your toolkit), but you should send physical invites, create an email funnel, personally call donors to invite them, encourage people to host watch parties, incentivize watching the event live. Get creative here. It is important that your guests take this virtual event as seriously as they would an in person event.
Overall assessment: Virtual Galas Work
People attend them. People give to them. They are NOT a risk. They are the best way for you to connect with your audience right now. Do I think in-person events are dead? Heck no! People are craving connection, but for now, they are showing up for you. Your donors know the work you do is important. They know you haven’t slowed down just because everything else has shut down. They will show up for you if you give them the opportunity.
