Why democratized access is better for the bottom line
In-person gatherings of any kind are basically canceled for 2020. After the initial rescheduling to the fall, it becomes ever more apparent to most of us that even these dates will not be viable.
Is there a for organizers profitable, and for attendees valuable alternative ?
I believe there is. What if instead of the 1000$ daily ticket, organizers would move their events online ? A traditional, and well run, B2B event yields a profit of around 50%. Assuming a ticket revenue of 1.000.000$, that would equal a profit of 500.000$. Such an event also comes with a price tag of 500.000$. If said event would be hosted online, production costs would dramatically drop. A widely accepted profit margin for virtual events is 90%. While barely anyone would spend 1000$ to sit in front of Zoom and listen to a panel discussion, 200$ seems a lot more reasonable.
Assuming you used to have 1000 attendees due to the physical constraints of the venue. These constraints are no longer relevant. If the provider of your choice is capable of hosting more attendees, you may be on to something.
Your event may now be open to a broader audience, still willing to pay to listen to experts and meet likeminded professionals. It is up to you, the organizer, to put together a compelling lineup and facilitate interactions, but the technology is certainly there.
If your event now would be attended by 3000 people, paying 200$, your event revenue is 600.000$. Pay the vendor, and you may not just have connected more people, which let’s be honest is the primary reason for an event to take place, but also increased your revenue YoY by 8% to 540.000$.
Not every event is suitable to be taken online. If your event is about a physical product that has to be experienced in person, logistics may eat into your profits. However, if it is a conference, a networking event, anything related to the knowledge industries of the economy, it is an opportunity to be creative and take advantage of the opportunities that online events offer. Not only to maintain revenue, but also to broaden the event’s appeal (you may very well go back to a physical event but with a higher audience interested in attending), and most importantly, to stay relevant.
