Virtual Events

Virtual Events Are Killing In-Person Event FOMO- Here’s How!

Eventually Learning Team

08 September 2022

Read time 5 minutes 10 seconds

“That fear of missing out on things makes you miss out on everything.” – Etty Hillesum

Fear of Missing Out or FOMO is real, always has been but have you ever wondered whether or not the digital age is slowly putting an end to it?

Well, it turns out it might just! The world has gone digital in all possible means and it has never really looked back ever since.

Is the Event industry an exception to this? Clearly not!

Once the pandemic struck, in came the virtual space and by changing the way events essentially happened, it acted as a paradigm shift of sorts.

So let’s look at how the ‘virtual’ element of the event management space is gradually impacting what was one of the most prized marketing tactics not so long ago – the F.O.M.O!

FOMO Meetings Are Going Downhill

Even if it's not completely eliminated yet, the fear of missing out is well and truly on its way down. At the onset of the pandemic, owing to global lockdowns, attendees across the globe got introduced to virtual events and slowly adapted to the idea of attending an event digitally.

It didn’t really take them long to get comfortable with it and before you knew, for various reasons, attending events virtually became indispensable for some industry professionals. The key reasons behind this were access to events that were expensive to attend in person but were easily accessible digitally.

This was not-so-good news for the event organizers, as over the years they had put a ton of effort and resources into crafting an immersive on-ground event experience by amalgamating influential elements like renowned speakers, engaging in-event activities and setting up high-profile venues.

All of this, though, was gone, in the blink of an eye!

Did we mention a paradigm shift to VIRTUAL before? We sure did and this is the end of FOMO Meetings and Events that we were talking about!

An Event Organizer’s Worst Nightmare – It’s Happening!

Wondering why we just said that? Among the key highlights of virtual events - was totally decimating entry barriers into the event market and effectively exposing the shortcomings and flaws of on-ground events.

Planning and executing a virtual event is relatively much, much easier than an in-person one. The resources involved, budgeting, logistics and strategies see a monumental difference when comparing the two formats.

This change is reminiscent of the seismic shift that happened within the film and television industry once Netflix gained a foothold, globally, not so long ago.

Nowadays, it is becoming increasingly difficult for organizers to adequately justify ticket prizes as apart from experimenting with content, there really aren’t many unique ways to create immersive event experiences!

FOMO presents a challenge, if anything!

While virtual events negatively impact FOMO, every development isn’t necessarily bad. It also offers a variety of opportunities for the event industry at large, to grow and upscale!

For example, by going digital, events that were previously hosting around 2000 to 3000 attendees on the ground can now easily widen their global reach and host up to 8000-10000 attendees at a time. Something that would be extremely hard to come by in an on-ground event scenario.

And now for the ultimate epiphany – event organizers who were always shackled by innumerable budgeting and logistical limitations now get to design the event just like they had envisaged since the only considerable expense would be the event software or platform.

Don’t Rule Out FOMO’s Future Return Just Yet

Now that the global markets seem to have stabilized, in-person events are gradually coming back and will most likely gather momentum sooner or later. You only get to realize the importance of something when it’s gone and FOMO’s absence from the events space is no exception.

If at all, its absence has further emphasized the significance of live, on-ground events. Young geeks and company professionals will stay glued to their computer screens in the long run but that’s about it as most attendees are bound to return to attending events in person.

After spending more than two years behind their screens, people have acknowledged the power of live experiences and the galvanizing effect that quality events have at large. Virtual events have their advantages, but nothing comes close to the in-person experience.

Wrapping Up

This is not to suggest that virtual events won’t be around in the long run. Its many advantages will continue to amplify the reach of events but whether or not it can successfully hold back the In-person FOMO within its clutches remains to be seen!

FAQs

What are the challenges of virtual events?

Some key Challenges for Virtual Events are as follows:

The lack of proper content strategy is one of the biggest challenges for virtual events!
Lack of technical expertise and support
Lack of engagement
Lack of understanding the return on investments
Lack of cybersecurity awareness

What is Fudding?

The abbreviation FUD stands for “Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt”. Some articles and news related to Crypto and NFT incorporate this kind of term in their reports to instil somewhat a NEGATIVE perception of a project. While some of it is general information, some can also be propaganda to disseminate false info.