You’ve got something to present to the world, so let’s happily get it out there.

A press event or press junket is a chance to announce, to communicate, or to promote whatever it is your business would like directly to local, national and international journalists, reporters and media outlets.

Recently we produced a webinar to release and discuss the findings of the American COVID-19 Vaccine Poll to national print and digital media outlets. At your leisure, you can read more about that case study here.

Even as the possibility of in-person events begin to appear on the horizon, going virtual with a press event has everlasting advantages.

Here are some real pros to producing a virtual press event to keep in mind.

1. Reach a wider amount and scope of media outlets

Your event can be attended by or shared with all media outlets that you need to target; local, national and international. There are no limits to where they are based.

Also, we love the accessibility that online events allows to smaller, community based and start-up digital or print media outlets.

2. A shareable recording is as easy as pressing a button

With an in-person event generating a quality video of the event - a video that you would be proud to send to the media and out into the public - will likely require hiring a videographer and will take time to be edited.

With a virtual event, the recording is done and ready the moment that event has ended. This means you will have it instantly to share in an email blast as a reference to attendees, and to anyone who could not attend live.

3. Little time commitment means journalists are more likely to tune in

The fact that journalists can tune into your virtual event from anywhere and that they don’t necessarily have to turn on their camera, means it is easier for them to find the time to attend live. A lot of people in the media are time poor, with rather busy daily schedules, and them having the option to multi-task can be welcomed.

4. You can have a short runway to the event

The planning and pre-production stage of a virtual event can be much more condensed than an in-person event. This is dependent on the complexity and scope of the virtual press event, of course, however, at Happily we know how to hustle and bring together an event asap.

5. Any keynote speakers, staff or experts can participate from anywhere across the country - or the world

You can curate a diverse panel of guests to contribute, as no travel is required for them, and they would have to commit less time to the event.

6. It can be a private or a public event

Depending on how you would like to gate or divide the event, there will be a way to do it in the digital space. For example, there can be a separate viewing platform for media outlets to allow them to interact and submit questions, and have a platform for the general public to enter and view the live broadcast.

7. A Q&A session can be robust and ordered

If you would like to have a Q&A element to the press event, there are various ways that can be produced depending on your needs. For example, a simple way is to have a chat box function in which journalists and media outlets submit a question, and they can be answered systematically at the end. Or we could craft a process to allow them to submit a question verbally with their audio and camera switched on.

8. They are economical, scalable and highly customizable

Just like any in-person event, a virtual press event can be as basic or as dynamic as you need it to be - or as your budget will allow. It can be a fully branded experience; from the registration roll-out to the event itself, and to any follow-up correspondence. We can keep it real simple and use Zoom as the viewing platform, or we can build a fully custom microsite for attendees to watch the event.

Pro Tip: When we say we are experts at event planning, we mean every aspect of it that you can think of - including marketing, registration, experience designers, IT security - so if you have a concern or need extra help in any area, just chat to us about it.

9. Going virtual does not mean you miss out on anything

Together we can craft a run of show that has all the elements that you need - maybe even more - for a press event.

We’re talking graphic presentations, video presentations, a pre-recorded message from someone who can’t attend, panel discussions, an open Q&A session, private interview breakout rooms with media outlets - whatever other element you need, we can find a way to make it happen.

10. The event can be translated live

Having any event translated into multiple languages and/or American Sign Language live during the broadcast is a must for accessibility and reaching more communities - and countries. If your press event needs to reach multiple language groups and audience, then that progress is straightforward when going virtual. We have a blog post all about the ways to have a spoken language translations, and another one for ASL translations.