10 Tips to Host an Engaging Virtual Townhall Meeting

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Rajasthan Jaipur - 302018

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Contact Name

Saanvi Patel

Email

saanvipatel099@gmail.com

Phone

09509936100

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Rajasthan Jaipur - 302018

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Description

Virtual town hall meetings are engaging media for an organization to connect with each employee, shareholder, or manager. The word virtual is self-explanatory which means, it happens over the Internet or a secure online platform that has most of the features to replicate the environment of an on-site meeting or conference.



We know that bringing a large group of people on the platform is quite easy but, then what does it take to retain them on the platform?



To have a clear understanding of this, let us take you through the most essential tips that can make your virtual town hall meetings more engaging and productive.



 





  • Begin with an icebreaker session





Icebreaker sessions are great engaging activities that encourage attendees to participate more actively in virtual meetings. With these meetings happening remotely over the Internet, you need not keep it only formal and compromise on the team-building activities. Allowing some time for casual chat helps promote audience engagement right from the beginning of the online event. To make this an exciting 2-way interaction, try keeping interesting questions for this icebreaker session, for example;





  1. Are the attendees liking the work-from-home culture, or are they craving to return to the office?




  2. Do you work from a dedicated space at home?




  3. How do you manage to keep distractions aside while attending a Zoom meeting?







  • Set definite ground rules





Letting everyone know about the do's and don'ts of an online meeting is a great way to ensure that the decorum of the event is maintained. So, it is essential to set some defined rules that should be followed by each attendee, for example;





  1. Employees need to use raised hand feature if they wish to speak in the meeting




  2. If an employee or speaker is speaking, the other participants need to mute their mic




  3. Each attendee should ensure there's no background noise while they are speaking




  4. They should have a reliable Internet connection to avoid any interruption while they speak




  5. Make sure to remind these rules before the meeting starts





 





  • Be clear with the meeting Agenda





There is definitely one or multiple reasons why companies host virtual town hall meetings. So, make sure to keep your employees updated with the reason that why everyone has connected. You can also consider displaying the meeting Agenda on the platform itself. It helps everyone know about the order of sessions that will be followed and the topics that would be discussed.



 





  • Celebrate the distinguished wins of the company





We know how employees have been working remotely since the pandemic hit the world. They have put in their 100% effort to contribute towards the growth of the company. So, it is the responsibility of the organization to make the employees feel valued. Celebrating their success during the virtual meetings is a great way to let the other departments and employees know about each other's performances. 



 





  • Keep the joining process super easy





With the availability of so many event solutions, make sure that your virtual town hall meeting platform has a user-friendly interface and a seamless joining procedure. You can consider sending an invitation link to your employees and other potential attendees at least 3-4 days in advance. On the main day, make sure that the invitation link is simply accessible without attendees making unnecessary downloads and installations.



 





  • Keep shorter sessions or include breaks in between the sessions





The motive of hosting a virtual and hybrid town hall meeting can only be served when you succeed in keeping your audience engaged. So, you need to check on the duration of the sessions your keep during a virtual town hall, conference, summit, or meeting. You can also think of including breaks in between if the sessions require a longer duration. This way, you can eliminate boredom and cut down the chances of attendee drop-off. 



 





  • Consider including multiple speakers





All you require is attendees staying on the platform for a longer time and in turn, making the event even more productive. So, bringing different guest speakers or department leaders on board will add more variety in the way they speak and deliver the content exceptionally. It is an effective way to save your event from getting monotonous. 



 





  • Leverage live polls and Q&A sessions





To make the speaker sessions more interactive, it is a must to promote 2-way conversations. Hence, it is important to look for an excellent online town hall meeting platform to hold periodic live polls and Q&A sessions to keep everyone actively engaged. Live polls can be about taking employee feedback on vital topics & relevant discussions or having interesting quiz sessions related to the latest industry trends and developments. It is one of the excellent practices to recreate the experiences of an in-person meeting.



 





  • Include a real-time chat function





Including the possibility of speakers and attendees interacting in real-time is a great method to make the virtual town hall meeting more prolific. Live chat functionality can be used for both private and group chat options. It allows the employees to get their doubts cleared while the meeting is live.



 





  • Make sure that the platform has the best audio & video tools





During a virtual town hall meeting, there are several guest speakers and attendees who need to speak & interact in real-time. Several organizations also include video conferencing as an essential part of their meeting. To let this happen without any interruptions, the audio & video tools should be of top-notch quality. This way addressing a wide spectrum of an audience becomes even simpler be it, while interacting, sharing insights, sharing the screen, or discussing significant topics.





 



Final Thoughts



Virtual town hall meetings are way more than just coming together and addressing the audience. The adoption of ideal digital tools and technological advancements can make it super unique and memorable. Now, it's up to event planners on how they want to host their meeting based on their requirements, budget, audience segment, etc. In the end, it is important to remember that an online meeting can be completely successful if the attendee's viewpoint is kept in mind.


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