The Myths and Realities of Event Budgets Post COVID

In the webinar, The Myths and Realities of Event Budgets Post COVID, A2E President, Mark Khan joined Bob Russo, Founder of Bob Russo Event Design & Consult, BizBash, and other event budgeting experts to sit down and discuss the future of event budgets and planning in a post-COVID-19 world.

The key takeaway was that, moving forward, event organizers need to think creatively while maximizing event spend. According to Bob Russo, it’s more important than ever to “rethink everything; the new normal is that normal doesn’t work.”

“rethink everything; the new normal is that normal doesn’t work.”

Ongoing COVID concerns and safety precautions will undoubtedly continue to affect plans and budgets, though the situation is fluid, and will be for a while moving forward. So, why not just stick with all-virtual events for the foreseeable future? Well, as Mark put it, “Why are we bringing people together? Because quite honestly, we miss people!”

For now, event marketers have found a happy medium in the form of hybrid events, which allow for more meaningful and engaging experiences for the host and the attendees while mitigating some of the safety concerns. From a budgeting perspective, hybrid events come with significant cost savings. We’ve evolved from entirely in-person events that used to be two days of travel and four days onsite, to a two-day live event with virtual breakout rooms.

In addition to reducing health risks and costs, hybrid events also allow event hosts the flexibility to conduct the learning segments virtually, and have the more meaningful, interactive discussions in person. Why is this an advantage? As Mary Bracoloni, VP of Global Events at Collibra, points out, “the fun of these events is not the part where 250 attendees sit and listen for an hour, but the part where peers can get up and engage, communicate, and meet with one another.”