Inside Moz‘s Playbook for Hosting Engaging Virtual Events

The coronavirus pandemic upended the $1 trillion global events industry virtually overnight. Suddenly, cramming thousands of people into convention centers and hotel ballrooms became unthinkable due to social distancing requirements and bans on group gatherings.

For leading SEO software company Moz, cancelling their annual MozCon marketing conference – an event 15 years in the making that attracts over 1,500 attendees from around the world and generates millions in ticket sales – simply wasn‘t an option. They had to find a way to bring their flagship event online.

"After quickly assessing our options, we made the tough but necessary call to pivot MozCon to a fully virtual format just three months before our planned event dates," says Moz CMO Christina Mautz. "Then the real work began to figure out how to translate an in-person experience our community knows and loves into something equally compelling online."

Moz isn‘t alone in this challenge – over 80% of major events scheduled for 2020 went virtual in some form or fashion. But pulling off an engaging multi-day digital event is easier said than done. A survey by event software company Bizzabo found that over 80% of virtual event organizers struggle with attendee engagement and over 65% grapple with tech issues.

However, when done right, virtual conferences can be incredibly lucrative – the average virtual event ticket price in 2020 was $443 yet organizer expenses are a fraction of an in-person event. And attendee appetite for quality online programming is only growing, with over 90% saying they plan to attend virtual events at the same or higher rate going forward.

So how can you maximize the opportunities of virtual events while sidestepping the pitfalls? Let‘s dive into the key lessons and tactics Moz used to pull off a wildly successful online version of MozCon in 2020 that not only broke even financially in record time, but doubled their usual attendance in the process.

Lesson 1: Re-envision, Don‘t Just Replicate

A common mistake many companies made in the mad dash to virtual events last year was attempting a 1:1 replication of their in-person event agenda and format. But an 8-hour day of back-to-back webinars or Zoom calls gets old fast without the energy of a live crowd and opportunities to step away between sessions.

To avoid virtual fatigue, Moz completely scrapped their standard MozCon agenda and started from scratch.

"We knew we had to go back to the drawing board and re-envision MozCon for a virtual format to make it work," explains Mautz. "A multi-day conference with our usual dizzying array of tactical workshops, keynotes and panels would leave attendees fried. We had to boil it down to the essentials."

Some key changes they made to optimize MozCon for virtual:

• Compressed event length: Condensed from three full days to just one action-packed day of online content
• Flipped content strategy: Pre-recorded all speaker sessions for higher production value and made available on-demand immediately after airing to boost accessibility
• Carved out engagement time: Dedicated over 50% of the agenda to interactive programming like live Q&As and breakout discussion groups to counterbalance periods of passive content consumption
• Simplified tracks and sessions: Streamlined their usual multi-track agenda into a single-track program of their most popular session formats and topics
• Unique virtual sponsorships: Swapped in-person expo halls and booths for virtual exhibit spaces, sponsored sessions and branded breakout rooms for partners

This overhaul didn‘t happen in a vacuum – Moz surveyed past attendees, analyzed years of session feedback data and studied virtual engagement benchmarks from other major conferences to land on their ideal agenda.

The bottom line? Thoughtfully adapting your event to a virtual medium is a must. Go back to your core objectives and reverse engineer the simplest way to achieve them online.

Lesson 2: Invest in High-Quality Content & Speakers

The main draw of MozCon has always been the highly curated speaker lineup and advanced content – past headliners have included SEO luminaries like Google‘s Search Advocate John Mueller and marketing legends like Seth Godin.

Moz knew they couldn‘t compromise on quality for the virtual event.

"Our top priority was preserving the premium content experience our attendees expect from MozCon," says Mautz. "That meant securing as many of our originally slated speakers as possible and giving them the support to shine virtually."

Some key steps they took to ensure a top-notch virtual content experience:

• Sent speakers equipment kits: Provided presenters with pro-grade lighting, mics and webcams to use for their recordings and live Q&A
• Held speaker training webinars: Coached speakers on virtual presentation best practices and worked with them individually to adapt their content for online
• Invested in production support: Partnered with an experienced video production firm to edit and enhance presentations with animations, lower thirds and music
• Commissioned bonus content: Had speakers pre-record exclusive behind-the-scenes interviews and strategy videos as virtual event "extras"
• Planned meticulous dry runs: Hosted full dress rehearsals with speakers and moderators prior to the event to work out any kinks

This upfront time and effort paid off – MozCon Virtual‘s speaker ratings outperformed their in-person benchmark, with an average of 4.7 out of 5 stars. Several presentations even got perfect scores, a first for the conference.

"I‘ll admit I was nervous about how our speakers would translate to virtual and if they could hold the audience‘s attention," reflects Mautz. "But they totally knocked it out of the park. The bonus content and live Q&A especially helped create that human connection we were aiming for."

Lesson 3: Provide Plenty of Structured Networking

One of the biggest challenges and complaints around virtual events is the lack of organic networking. The serendipitous conversations struck up while waiting in line for coffee or milling around after a session are often where the most valuable connections and "aha" moments happen.

Moz recognized this gap early and doubled down on designing structured virtual spaces for attendees to meet and mingle.

"We knew the networking component would make or break the attendee experience, so we invested significant time into planning touchpoints across the event journey," shares Mautz. "From the moment they registered through the post-event survey, we looked for ways to create community and peer learning."

Some of the most effective networking tactics Moz deployed:

• Pre-event discussion forums: Created a dedicated MozCon group on their Q&A platform for attendees to introduce themselves, share goals and arrange meetups prior to the event
• Slack channels: Launched a MozCon-specific Slack workspace with channels arranged by topic, job function and location for attendees to connect during the event
• Birds of a Feather sessions: Held multiple casual group video chats throughout the day on niche subjects like "Women in Tech" and "Agency Life"
• Virtual networking breaks: Organized short guided networking sessions between content blocks where attendees could choose from "tables" on different marketing topics and be matched for quick 1:1 video chats
• Hallway hangouts: Offered always-on, drop-in "hallway" video chatrooms for folks to swing by during downtime and serendipitously run into other attendees
• Hashtag campaigns: Drum up engagement with speaker insights and takeaways on social media with the event hashtag #MozCon
• Gamification and contests: Kept things fun with leaderboards for the most engaged attendees, random drawing prizes, trivia and scavenger hunts
• Post-event engagement: Kept the conversation going with "Takeaway Tuesday" emails, virtual roundtables and a dedicated LinkedIn group to stay in touch

The common denominator across all these was actively facilitating discussions and making it dead simple for attendees to find others with shared interests. For example, the Birds of a Feather rooms had pre-assigned topics and moderators tasked with getting conversations flowing.

"My biggest learning? You can‘t expect networking to just happen virtually," says Mautz. "You have to tee it up and tend to it at every turn."

Lesson 4: Prepare for Tech Troubles

With so many moving parts, virtual event tech snafus aren‘t an if but a when. Speakers drop off due to Internet issues, slides don‘t load, attendees get confused navigating the platform – all of these mishaps and more are inevitable.

Moz had their fair share of tech troubles in the lead up to MozCon Virtual.

"About a week before our event date, our virtual platform provider had a complete outage and their backup failed," recalls Mautz. "We had a minor panic until they got it resolved, but it was a good wake up call to pressure test our contingency plans."

Some of the steps Moz took to prevent and handle tech issues:

• Invested in a virtual event platform: Partnered with a leading virtual conference software company to handle the complex tech setup and on-site support
• Prepared backup content: Pre-recorded additional presentations and speaker interviews to use as "emergency" content in case of any live session issues
• Held extensive rehearsals: Spent over 40 hours training speakers and moderators on the platform and ironing out technical kinks before event day
• Assigned dedicated support staff: Put customer success team members on point to field attendee questions and troubleshoot problems in real-time
• Planned for the worst: Developed "in case of emergency" plans for major snafus like an Internet or platform outage, including how to communicate with attendees

While they couldn‘t completely avoid technical difficulties, all their upfront contingency planning and onsite support allowed Moz to resolve issues quickly.

"No virtual event is going to be flawless," admits Mautz. "The key is expecting the unexpected and being transparent with attendees when issues pop up. They understand technology isn‘t perfect – they just want to see you‘re prepared and working to fix it."

The Payoff: Exceeding Key Event KPIs

In the end, Moz‘s hard work and creative problem solving paid off. Despite only having three months to plan and pivot, MozCon Virtual was a runaway hit.

"To be honest, we had a lot of sleepless nights and moments of doubt as the event approached," reflects Mautz. "But seeing it all come together and getting such positive feedback from attendees made it all worth it. It far exceeded our expectations."

Some key outcomes Moz achieved with their virtual event:

• Doubled attendance: Attracted over 2,500 digital marketers, up from their typical in-person audience of around 1,500
• Grew global reach: Expanded to attendees from 46 different countries, compared to around 15-20 in past years
• Broke even in record time: Sold enough tickets to cover their costs within just 6 weeks of opening registration (normally takes 12 weeks)
• Rave attendee reviews: Earned an overall attendee satisfaction rating of 4.3 out of 5 and Net Promoter Score of 74
• Created evergreen content: Gained a library of recorded speaker presentations and sessions to repurpose for promotional content and training
• Boosted community engagement: Saw a 20% increase in activity on their Q&A forums and social media channels in the month following the event

But perhaps most importantly, MozCon Virtual provided a much-needed sense of connection and normalcy to their community during an isolating time.

"2020 was a difficult year for marketers professionally and personally," says Mautz. "Being able to bring everyone together safely to learn and encourage each other was incredibly gratifying. It reinforced that the core of what makes MozCon special is the people, not the venue."

While Moz intends to return to an in-person format in the future, Mautz says they‘ll definitely carry forward elements of the virtual experience.

"We learned so much about how to engage attendees on-screen that we‘ll never go back to a fully analog event," she explains. "Hybrid is the future, and we‘re excited to build on our virtual learnings to make the next MozCon even better.

Key Takeaways for Crushing Virtual Events

While nothing can completely replicate the magic of connecting at an in-person event, Moz proved that with some creativity, flexibility and strategic planning, you can come pretty darn close.

Whether you‘re contemplating a fully online event series or preparing for a hybrid future, here are a few key tips to steal from Moz‘s MozCon Virtual playbook:

1. Put the attendee experience first. Make decisions based on what will help them learn and connect better virtually, not what‘s easiest to replicate from your in-person event.

2. Invest disproportionately in content quality and interaction. Hire professional moderators, produce speaker content in a studio and pepper in engagement and networking throughout the agenda.

3. Promote early and often. Drum up FOMO and participation with teaser content, attendee takeovers and exclusive offers in the lead up to event day.

4. Triple your tech support. Have dedicated staff on hand to help speakers prep, moderate chats, field attendee questions and troubleshoot live issues.

5. Don‘t let your hard work go to waste. Continue the momentum post-event with attendee roundups, next step webinars and content that ties your event themes into your broader marketing narrative.

6. Lean on experts for the heavy lifting. Find an experienced production partner to handle the technical setup and optimization so you can focus on the content and attendee experience.

7. Embrace the new opportunities of virtual. Take advantage of the format to offer new ticket types, VIP experiences and evergreen content bundles to extend the life of your event.

8. Remember that virtual connections are just as meaningful as in-person ones. Focus on creative ways to spark conversation and create memorable shared experiences, even through a screen.

The future of events is virtual-first and those who embrace the medium‘s unique challenges and opportunities will have a significant advantage. By focusing relentlessly on your attendees‘ needs and being open to experimentation, you can make digital event magic just like Moz did.