by Carl Mavromichalis
How can I set up a hybrid meeting? Hybrid meetings are hot, and we see the appeal.
Many organizations are saying “We are ready to get back to in-person.” Lots of us miss the camaraderie or even travel that in-person meetings offer. Real live human beings! Old friends! Smiling faces! Shaking hands or bumping elbows. It feels great.
Some of you got better participation online than you ever had in person, and it’s hard to give that up - No need for parking or childcare, and no limits from geography.
There’s also the challenge of planning in-person events in these uncertain times. Will your in-person meeting get canceled?
Enter the latest craze - hybrid meetings.
Do you want to plan a meeting that accommodates in-person and online attendance, but wonder how to do that successfully?
All participants deserve the same access. Every step has to be considered. If you don’t do it right, you might get people once, but they may never take part again.
My first hybrid meeting was in 2013 when I paired our telephone town hall system with an in-room event. It was a more complex setup for sure, but it went smoothly because we spent the time necessary to consider all the variables.
Today, the online virtual portion of the hybrid meeting is all about video. The experience for those online has to be at least as good as it would be if the whole event was only online.
If you want some help thinking this through, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Below are a few questions to help you start planning your hybrid meetings.
What is a Hybrid Meeting?
From our perspective, a hybrid meeting is one where you have an audience in the room as well as an audience remotely. Having speakers in the room and streaming the video is not a hybrid meeting, in our view. A true hybrid meeting has people in the room in-person and people online or on the phone.
Can online participants see the speakers up-close, or is there one camera aimed at the panel from the back of a hall?
Having a camera at the back of a room with a bunch of heads facing the panelists, and the panelists far away, is not engaging for the those online.
We recommend that each speaker has their own computer with their camera on, as well as a camera and mic (or two ideally) for those in the audience. You have to be extra careful to ensure speakers on their computers use the mute button each time. External mics controlled by an A/V team helps prevent feedback.
Can online participants speak live to ask questions or make comments the way the in-person participants can? Or are the online participants stuck with typing questions only?
If you get the right setup, bringing remote attendees live on a big screen should be doable, as well as having their audio play through the speaker system in the room.
Can the online participants hear the questions and comments from the in-person audience, or will they be muffled and impossible to hear?
Make sure the room has a sound system with a mixer. Audio is more important than video, and if people can’t hear they will become more frustrated than if they can’t see.
The people in the room should be visible and audible to the people online. That means a portable mic and video camera.
Do you need the ability to manage an online question queue? How will you integrate the online questions with the in-person lineup at the mic?
If you want to bring live questions on-screen in the room, you’ll have to think through the logistics of identifying and bringing them on live. We have a meeting system that can help with that. The simplest way is to alternate in-room and online questions, but this should be thought through in advance and rehearsed with your moderator.
How can I avoid ear-splitting feedback?
There is nothing more important than a clear audio connection between the online and in-person participants. Muffled voices or feedback will ruin your hybrid meeting. Avoid feedback by having the A/V team be in control of all the mics in the room, even if you have all the speakers on their laptops. There are ways to ensure you still avoid the feedback. There are a few levels of production. Which one is right for you?
Like a two-way tv show. Requires multiple cameras, video mixing, and a production team.
The virtual people could be audible to the room but not visible, and vice-versa.
If the logistics are simply too complicated or expensive, consider doing two separate meetings – one live and one virtual.