Driving eCommerce Success Through Virtual Events: Strategies For Engaging Online Shoppers

Guest post 19.9.2023. Reading Time: 5 minutes
virtual events

In the digital age, eCommerce businesses are constantly on the hunt for new ways to engage and retain customers. Virtual events can be one of the most effective ways to do this. In this article, we’ll explore what a virtual event is and how it can help your eCommerce business grow.

A virtual event is an online learning experience

A virtual event is an online learning experience. It’s a way to bring people together for an online experience, whether it’s training employees, educating customers, or selling products.

Virtual events can be hosted on a website or through a virtual event management platform. They typically include:

  • A registration page where attendees can sign up for the webinar and pay for it if necessary
  • An agenda that outlines what will be covered during the webinar (this may include links to additional resources)
  • Slides containing information relevant to each topic listed in your agenda
  • Video content recorded by presenters who will speak during your live-streaming session

Virtual events can be used to drive sales and engage customers

Events are a great way to engage existing customers, but they’re also an effective way of reaching new audiences.

Virtual events can be used as a platform for product launches, training sessions, or even live chat sessions with customers. They offer the opportunity for brands and retailers to interact directly with consumers in real time over video chat (such as Skype) or social media platforms like Facebook Live or Instagram Stories.

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Virtual events can reach new audiences

If your brand is looking to expand its reach and engage people who wouldn’t normally attend an in-person event, virtual events are an excellent choice. They allow you to connect with shoppers who live in remote areas or those who don’t have the time or resources to travel across town for an event, while still providing them with all the benefits of face-to-face interactions.

It’s important to remember that virtual events are not a replacement for in-person interactions. While they can be a great way to reach new audiences, they don’t provide the same benefits as live events. If you’re trying to build customer relationships or increase brand awareness, virtual events probably aren’t the best choice.

Instead, think of virtual events as a supplement to your in-person outreach efforts. This way, you can use them to give shoppers who can’t attend live events an opportunity to learn more about your brand and interact with your team members.

Virtual events are a great way to engage existing customers

Events can be used to keep them up-to-date on new products and services, provide customer support, and reward loyalty. A virtual event can also be used to build a community of shoppers who enjoy sharing their opinions and building relationships with one another.

The types of virtual events you choose will depend on your business objectives and what makes sense for your audience. For example, if you’re launching a new product line then an announcement campaign would be appropriate because it gives shoppers time to prepare for the launch by stocking up on related items from previous collections or reviews from other shoppers who have already tried out this new offering before deciding whether they want to buy it themselves (eBay).

virtual event ideas

How to host a virtual event?

Establish a brand identity

The first step in building an effective virtual event is to establish a cohesive and consistent brand identity. This means using your logo, colors, voice, and tone across all channels of communication-including the site itself–to make it clear that you’re communicating on behalf of the company rather than for an individual or group of individuals. It also means ensuring that all messaging aligns with your overall message so that visitors don’t get confused about who they’re interacting with when they sign up for an event registration form or comment on social media posts related to it (more on this later).

Next, it’s important to build a community around your virtual events. You can do this by creating blog posts and other content that educates people on the topic of your event, how they can participate in it, and what they’ll get out of attending. It’s also a good idea to start building buzz around your event by promoting it on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Make sure the event is well organized and professional-looking

When planning and hosting your virtual event, make sure everything is well-organized and professional-looking. Make sure the event has a clear call to action so that attendees know what they are supposed to do next. You can also add a countdown timer or social media share bar at the bottom of your screen during your presentation so that people can easily share it on their social media channels after they’ve watched it.

Make sure there’s an agenda in place that includes topics such as: who will be presenting; what each presenter will cover; how long each segment will last; when breaks between presentations will occur–and any other relevant information that attendees would want before signing up for this type of event (such as whether lunch is provided).

Make sure the content is relevant and useful for your audience and consistent with your brand’s message

When creating a virtual event, make sure the content is relevant and useful for your audience. This means that you need to identify what problems your customers have, and then offer solutions that will help them solve those problems. If you can’t do this, it’s likely that your event won’t be successful because people won’t see the value in attending or participating in it.

The same holds true for brands: if they don’t have a clear message about why they exist in the first place (i.e., what problem they are solving), then any attempt at building an online community will be doomed from the start–no matter how many Facebook groups or Twitter chats you set up!

Use a virtual event management platform

If you want to organize and manage your virtual event, a virtual event management platform is a must-have. These platforms help with all aspects of an online event, including logistics, marketing, and content creation.

Some of these tools include:

  • An agenda builder that allows you to create different events with different speakers. You can also set up recurring events so that people can see what’s coming up next or subscribe for email updates about future events
  • A ticketing system for selling tickets through PayPal or Stripe (or both)
  • A live chat feature where attendees can ask questions during the presentation–this allows them to engage directly with speakers rather than just listening passively from behind their computer screens

Engage online shoppers by hosting a live webinar, web conference, or other virtual event!

You can use a virtual event platform to host a live webinar, web conference, or other virtual event! The platform will let you connect with attendees through audio and/or video feeds in real-time.

Virtual event management platforms allow you to manage attendees and registration for your online events from one place. These platforms also allow you to track the number of people who have registered for an event, as well as measure conversion rates (e.g., how many people attend versus those who register).

Make sure that at the end of each virtual event, there’s a clear call-to-action so that attendees know what’s next after participating in the webinar/web conference/etc.

We hope this has helped you understand how virtual events can be used to drive eCommerce success. Remember that the key is to create an engaging experience for your customers, one that will keep them coming back for more.

Author

Mike Khorev
Mike Khorev is a B2B SEO consultant who helps SaaS, software, IT, technology, B2B, and start-up companies generate more sales and grow revenue online. He offers expert advice on marketing your company the right way through performance-based SEO, inbound marketing, conversion rate optimization, search engine marketing and many other online practices.