Event production is the art of crafting unforgettable experiences where innovation knows no bounds. In essence, it’s an enchanting dance between creativity and precision, representing the relentless pursuit of excellence. But in the end, it all depends on how well your event synchronises with the audience’s needs and interests.
That’s why evolution is considered the heartbeat of the event industry, as people are always looking for the “wow” factor.
Not to mention the fact that the event industry is a high-valuable market in the UK, it’s a £42.3 billion industry where 85 million attendees spend £6.4 billion annually as fees. And to capitalise on such a huge yet diverse market, you must be aware of the latest event trends.
In this article, we’ve discussed the event trends that will dominate production services in 2023. This will give you a better idea of how you should design and produce your events.
Focus on Event Personalisation
Event production is about offering curated, organised, and engaged experiences to the audience. And to tailor the event, experienced producers base their strategies on event personalisation. Market research shows that more than 51% of event producers heavily rely on personalisation data to ensure the success of your event.
Personalisation allows you to customise an event as per your attendees’ needs and expectations.
You can design and produce an event based on:
- The Company
- The Role
- The Persona
So, you can set the event tone considering the organisation as a whole. And if you are producing a business event, tailor the event precisely for specific roles. For instance, design the event for CMOs, CFOs, or CEOs. Personalisation based on persona means focusing on identities or characters, assuming attendees are from the same industry, like healthcare or digital marketing.
However, for personalisation, event producers need accurate data to gather information about attendees. Registration and marketing systems, surveys, and apps are the most trusted sources for data accumulation.
Pro Tip: Collaborate with the event organiser or planner to understand the audience. Identify the key characteristics and create an audience persona to ensure event personalisation.
Go For Aesthetically Appealing Venues
Your venue choice directly impacts the event’s success and takes a toll on the budget. So, choose it wisely, as people tend to attend events based on the venue locations. Do some research to find a reliable and suitable event location considering your audience. Ensure that your venue is easily accessible and if possible, closer to transport links.
While selecting a venue, keep in mind:
- Space size and layout
- Ambience
- Type of event
- Activities to be held
Remember, the sitting arrangement is critical, but ambience and experience are crucial for an event. Choose the venue after considering the event type. Business meetings, seminars, charity events, and fashion shows all require a different feel.
If you need suggestions, below event venues are in trend right now:
- Museums
- Conference centres
- Botanical gardens
- Rooftops
- Breweries or distilleries
- Co-working spaces
- Libraries
- Historical homes
- Art galleries
Pro Tip: Ensure that your selected event venue is easy to locate and near transport links. Also, make arrangements for attendees that are coming from other cities using private transport or airlines.
Integrate Digital Elements into Events
The event industry went through a sudden digitisation phase during the pandemic. We are now back to in-person events but digital elements are here to stay. Organisations are asking to integrate digital touchpoints during events for better user engagement. They are using technologies like mobile event apps to offer an interactive event environment.
Also, there’s a growing demand for LED video walls, as businesses want to create a big impact. Large digital screens play their part in making an event more immersive. Including tech is a sensible decision because over 70% of audiences at events are under 40 and they love digital elements.
Additionally, onsite meeting pods are generating buzz at conferences and exhibitions. These portable offices are more popular in recruiting events as they come equipped with all the necessities. Meeting pods come in various sizes, are fully enclosed, and can accommodate more than two persons. For event production, you can add AV equipment and may include lighting, laptops and cameras as well. Organisers can use them to take interviews and participate in podcasts.
Pro Tip: Focus on event digitalisation but keep in mind the audience’s needs. Integrate the right audio, visual, and lighting equipment to set the mood and improve the overall experience.
Produce Larger Than Life Experiences
Experience is the new big thing that’s driving the event industry. Today, people want to get involved in things that they can cherish for years to come. So, produce a larger-than-life experience using sounds, stage design, lighting, and digital elements. Add details that stick in the minds of attendees and bring joyful memories when they recall the event.
Introduce a “wow factor” to surprise and delight the audience. For this, you have to be creative, and organised, and focus on personalisation as an event producer. For example, follow a theme that matches your corporate client, match colours to create harmony, and provide a source of entertainment.
Pro Tip: Pay Attention to key details like stage design, lighting, sitting arrangements, and catering. Music and a live performance (comedian or magician) often provide gleeful experiences.
Be Ready for Virtual and Hybrid Events
We’ve seen the boom of online events, but they aren’t going anywhere yet. In fact, organisations are still preferring virtual events, thanks to their higher attendance rates. In a recent market survey, 93% of organisations claimed their virtual event was successful. On the other hand, 77% of the attendees preferred virtual events mentioning they are easy to attend.
Surprisingly, organisations see hybrid events as a convenient and cost-effective solution. In 2021, 63% of businesses with 2,000+ employees went for hybrid events. The ratio was higher for large companies with over 5000 employees, as 71% of them had hybrid events.
So, it’s not surprising that event production managers are gearing themselves for hybrid events. Both virtual and hybrid events expand the audience reach and require less budget and equipment.
Pro Tip: Hire an experienced event production company. Make sure they have all-inclusive AV equipment and technicians for producing virtual and hybrid events.
Utilise AR and VR Technology
If there’s one trend that’s truly reshaping events, it’s the use of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies.
AR technology offers better engagement at events and is often used for hologram creation. This interactive technology allows industry leaders to participate virtually and thus saves time. VR technology, on the other hand, allows businesses to promote their products or services at events. Organisations can offer demos to people how their products or services can make their lives.
Pro Tip: AR and VR are still not common as these are expensive technologies. However, you can recommend it to companies which are in industries like engineering and healthcare.
Event Gamification
Gamification has been part of events for a long time now. It provides organisers and producers with a fun way to keep the audience engaged. You can ensure the success of your event and boost the learning process by giving participants reward-based challenges.
The top benefits of event gamification are:
- High user engagement
- Increase in motivation level
- Sense of achievement among participants
- Improvement in the learning process
Gamification allows you to turn your event from a boring one to a highly interactive session. However, the key here is to break the ice through games and improve engagement and networking.
Pro Tip: Align the games and rewards with your main events and topics. Select appropriate board, paper, or virtual games and use them throughout the event. Your goal should be to keep the attendees on their toes to ensure they stay motivated.
Don’t Ignore Live Streaming
Most event organisers get confused when it comes to deciding whether or not they should livestream the event. It feels like a chore that requires extra effort that may increase the event budget. But considering its benefits, live streaming your event is a sensible choice.
For starters, live streaming provides you with content that may live forever. You can use this content for marketing or monetise it to generate additional revenue.
The biggest benefit of web streaming is exposure. According to Meta, people love watching live videos 3 times more than generic visuals. Live streaming also allows you to generate buzz for a longer time period. You can target the ideal audience on different social media platforms using relevant content.
Pro Tip: Live stream your content on multiple platforms for a wider reach. Repurpose your content, break long videos into shorts, and share them to keep the audience engaged.
Pay Attention to On-Demand Content
One of the biggest challenges faced by the event industry is the decrease in event attendance. Today’s audience doesn’t have the luxury of time, and they don’t want to spend hours at a single event. This is why they prefer participating in events virtually where they can consume content on demand.
According to Forrester’s research, around 75% of attendees showed interest in on-demand content. This allows them to watch content at their convenience. They can play, pause, rewatch, and rewind content which further increases engagement. So, you must try providing on-demand content as it benefits the brand in the long run.
Pro Tip: Make sure the recorded content is updated and always available on your chosen platforms. You can use it to gather data and can add questions to see how the audience interacts with it.
Put Sponsors in the Spotlight
Event management is expensive and that’s why organisers are always on the lookout for sponsors. These promoters ensure the success of an event by providing necessary resources, especially if you are producing a charity event.
So, if the event has got sponsors, make sure they get the necessary spotlight and coverage. That’s because most of them sponsor events to promote their businesses. Normally, organisations and event planners inform the event production team whether they have sponsors for an event. But if they forget to mention it, it’s your job to remind them and keep it going.
Pro Tip: Represent sponsors using billboards or mention them through their logos. Provide them space on the stage or near utilities for a better view.
Emphasis on Cost Savings and Efficiencies
Do you know the cost-per-attendee has increased by 25% in 2022 as compared to 2019?
What’s more worrisome is that it’s expected to get even higher in 2023 by 7%. This means organisers and event production companies have to make arrangements within their means. You must follow a cost-effective approach to fight rising costs and make your production business future-proof.
Pro Tip: The key here is to find gaps and work on your ROIs. You must focus on areas where you are bleeding cash right now and look for inexpensive alternatives.
Strengthen Partnerships with Suppliers
A recession in the United Kingdom is looming around the corner. According to financial experts, there’s a 60% chance of recession during the third quarter of 2024. This means if you are in the event production business, you need to strengthen partnerships with your suppliers. After all, producing an event requires various suppliers and need extended partners to make an event happen.
Strong supplier relationships mean a steady supply chain even when your business is under stress. You’ll be able to meet demands and earn bread when others will be struggling.
Pro Tip: You should forge contractors considering your future needs and client requirements. Also, diversify your clientele and target multiple industries to stay afloat.
Follow ESG Standards
The UK government is urging large corporations and local businesses to take a stand on environmental conditions. Authorities are pushing businesses to abide by ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) policies. So, you must never forget to consider the sustainability factor while offering event production services.
As a local business, your first priority should always be to minimise the environmental impact. You should try reducing carbon emissions while organising, planning, and producing events.
Pro Tip: Work on your logistics, use energy-efficient products, and curtail waste production. Also, encourage your partners and attendees to keep the environment clean.
Focus on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
DEI, or Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, is another policy matter that one cannot ignore. Being part of the community, you must act as a promoted equal opportunity provider. Your production company should include and respect people from different backgrounds, ethnicity, races, genders, and religions.
Also, ensure you are selecting the venue and producing the event considering the general public’s needs. Your role is to ensure that attendees can participate in the event and move around the venue freely.
Pro Tip: Have diversity within your organisation to show support for DEI. Keep in mind the needs of special persons when you are setting the stage or arranging seats.
Use AI & Event Management Software
There’s a lot happening in the event industry right now, especially after the development of AI tools. These platforms are making the job easy for organisers and event producers at so many levels. For instance, you can use event management software for better organisation. These tools can help you track tickets and attendees while letting you manage speakers and sponsors.
The best part is that you can arrange and access information within seconds using AI. All the details necessary for successful event production are always at your fingertips.
Pro Tip: Use AI tools to explore data, find patterns, and provide translation during events. Ask for a free trial or subscription to ensure you are choosing the right tool for the job.
Bottom Line
To bring an event to fruition, you have to carefully harmonise the resources, personnel, and logistics. From the initial spark to the final triumphant applause, every detail must combine like the pieces of a grand puzzle. But it all means nothing if you fail to follow the current event trends.
EMS Events is synonymous with innovation in event production services. Having over 25 years of experience means we know how to add the “wow” factor to your event. We are always aware of what’s trending and what needs to be done. Contact us to discuss the details, and let’s make your event a success!
