Reshaping the definition of hybrid events with RSI

When someone mentions the term hybrid event, we are quick to imagine a meeting with a mixed audience of two different species: on-site and remote. However, the evolution of remote simultaneous interpretation has expanded the face of hybrid events far beyond this simple definition.  

The modern understanding of a hybrid event is broader – it now includes hardware integration, inclusivity, and better accessibility.

Enabling on-venue and remote interpreters to work together

Due to the pandemic, most organizations – businesses and institutions – had to change their work mode. And, even now, when many processes have come back to normal, companies and some local governments stick to the best pandemic practices, choosing to work in a hybrid manner. This trend shows that events with a hybrid setup are becoming prevalent in the industry.

That’s why we can’t wait to share more about the evolution of hybrid events in a post-pandemic setting. The event industry is experiencing more changes than ever before!

Looking at the technology

The technology behind such a hybrid event consists of on-site equipment and a remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI) platform of your choice.

Complex hybrid meetings require direct integrations with hardware conferencing equipment located on-site. Interpreters who choose to stay at the venue use hardware interpretation consoles, while remote interpreters can provide interpretation from home, connecting to soft consoles enabled by RSI platforms like Interactio.

In this case, remote simultaneous interpretation platforms get audio inputs and give audio outputs similarly to traditional audio receivers. What’s even better is that RSI providers take care of the entire integration, lead you throughout the process, and provide technical support along the way.

Use cases of hybrid events with a virtual component

You can apply RSI in many cases, and previous examples of hybrid events do not limit your meeting topics at all.

We have organized over 40K events, and there have been a lot of hybrids among them. Even though many of them are governmental sessions, you can arrange a business meeting, a conference, a multilingual community gathering, and so on. Basically, just bring us anything that comes to your mind, and we will make your participants happy!

Drawing a definition

At this point, you might start wondering, why is this setup even called hybrid? The answer is simple: hybrid meetings with hardware integrations allow remote and in-person interpreters to work together seamlessly.

Both physical and remote interpreters can communicate together, do the relay and handover, or switch channels without any distractions. The audience of such a meeting can be located in the venue or remotely, as well.

Expanding the audience reach in hybrid events

As the world begins to open up, we can expect some organizations to return to their in-person meetings while others choose to go hybrid, opening their events to diverse audiences.

How so? With hybrid, which is a combination of an in-person event and a virtual event, you can upsize your meeting audience without decreasing their engagement. By attending virtually, remote participants will discover event content in a whole new sense.

Additionally, more virtual attendees will be able to network and increase their knowledge during online sessions.

Instead of limiting your participants to one geographic location, you can connect virtual attendees across the globe, overcoming physical barriers to communication with the RSI solution.

Address the changing needs of your audience with a hybrid event

Hybrid events provide opportunities to cater to people from the two demographics: those who want to attend a live event in person and those who wish to remain engaged in their own manner. Clients are shifting their budgets to adapt to the changing environment and will sponsor your digital or hybrid event if you can ensure your virtual attendees engage and interact.

If your organization can only maintain live meetings for specific purposes, your portfolio is becoming a riskier business now — it needs adapting to remain there. A hybrid event can help you address both the need for live and online events and the need to interact with your employees.

Regardless of the complexity of the setup, the process of organizing hybrid events requires increased attention to security and privacy issues. To meet the high standards set by institutions, RSI solutions have to work hard in making hybrid meetings secure and easy to access for all.

Security measures are a must for a virtual event

For example, Interactio has acquired a top-security standard in the industry – ISO 27001 certification.

What does it mean to the users of our platform? In simple words, whenever you log in to the Interactio platform, you can speak, chat, share files, and vote in the polls, knowing that your data is encrypted and protected. You can now access a conference and participate in a hybrid meeting without any worries!

To read more about how Interactio RSI platform keeps your data safe, check our FAQ page.

After all – a hybrid meeting is nothing to fear

You have to try it out! Hybrid events do not require high-end technologies – virtual reality, augmented reality, or holograms. They are also more affordable than anyone thinks. Of course – they do need experience and expertise for an exceptional hybrid meeting.

Just to remind you, there have been a lot of positive outcomes from hybrid events like increased attendance and reach, increased engagement, and more partnership opportunities. Before, any successful event could only have in-person attendees. However, during a global pandemic, the virtual audience brought new opportunities, and most live events now have a virtual component.

As we see, hybrid RSI solutions hold the key to diverse and equally important aspects of remote and in-person participation. It ranges from taking care of hardware and software integrations for interpreters to focusing on inclusivity for everyone despite their location during a meeting.

A short, final overview of a hybrid meeting  

In the end, let’s focus on the key points of a hybrid meeting. A hybrid event means a few additional tools from a host side, two different types of audience, remote participants, who lead us to more attendees, the ability to track the performance of any online session, and many other examples.

Bonus tips to attract more attendees to your virtual events

Additional tools for virtual participants

Ready to kick off your hybrid meetings? Some meeting organizers produce different sessions for their virtual attendees. For example, they enable additional tools for virtual events that include gamification, recorded presentations, and other perks for remote participants.

Pricing adjustments based on the audience differences

Additionally, if your participants have to pay money for an event, e.g., a conference, you can adjust an entry fee for virtual attendees. Don’t hesitate to try out a virtual component and make it less expensive at first. Figure out what your remote meeting participants like and adjust to their needs.

Now tell us, what do you think: what future transformation virtual meetings of mixed origin are yet to experience?