Tips and tricks for planning and hosting a variety of online events (professional, social, large, small, etc.)

1. Hosting an Online
Event
Sabrina Ricci

2. Determine What Type of Event You Want to
Host
Will your event be...
Large?
or
Small?
Professional? Social?
Educational? Entertaining?
Formal? Informal?

3. Some General Tips
● Ask everyone to be on camera, if possible
● Have a moderator, to keep the event on track
● Designate a tech person to help anyone with tech issues
● Stick to a specific amount of time, like 1 hour

4. For a Large, Social Event
Examples of events:
● Trivia
● Themed events (such as a dinosaur evening for adults)

5. For a Large, Social Event
Some tips:
● Keep the event lively
● Have interactive activities throughout, such as
○ Polls
○ Bingo games
■ Listen for certain words during the event
■ Tally up at the end
○ Drinking games
○ Quizzes
■ Ask for a volunteer, and have them play games or answer questions
■ Have the audience play along in a browser-based quiz
○ Drawing contests
■ Give everyone a drawing prompt to create during the event
■ Spotlight drawings at the end of the event

6. For a Networking Event
Some tips:
● Have keynote speakers
● Make schedules clear
● Ensure it’s easy to move from “room” to “room”
● Set guidelines for networking breakout sessions
○ Time sessions (5 minutes)
○ Give example topics or questions to discuss

7. For a Large, Action-Oriented Event
Some tips:
● Write out a clear agenda
● Post/share agenda widely and often throughout the event
● Set up small breakout rooms for a few minutes (with a timer), so
○ Attendees can get to know each other
○ Discuss particular topics or prompts
● Guide attendees to any links they may need to click
● Provide sample text for any actions you want attendees to take
● End the event with a wrap up celebrating any wins

8. For a Small, Educational (Training) Event
Some tips:
● Designate a moderator to stay on task
● Combine larger group sessions/lectures with breakout sessions
● Give smaller breakout groups 10 minutes or so to complete small
tasks
● Discuss assignments within the larger group

9. For a Small, Social Event
Some tips:
● Plan ahead!
● Host a couple prep meetings (if multiple organizers)
● Encourage ideas and participation from all organizers
● Tell attendees what to expect ahead of time, for example
○ If they should have a story ready to share with the group
○ If they need a phone handy to plan a game

10. Good luck with your event!