We began the new year with a virtual event in just outside Seattle in Redmond, Washington. The company develops laser scanning technology for projection, 3D sensing, and image capture and lidar sensors for automotive vehicles. Their team reached out to us on Friday, going into New Year’s weekend and the event was Tuesday and Wednesday the following week, so it was a really fast turn around event, but we pulled it together and the video has over 9,000 views! This production features:
A two camera set up
Shallow depth of field
Set inside of a traditional office
Single person presentations
Three person Q&A, with one person off camera reading audience questions
Micing & audio mixing for the live stream
Set lighting
Live feeds from the lidar sensor in real time & presenter PowerPoint slides
Start & end graphics and lower thirds
4K monitors for confidence & set display
Here is a recap of the event, if you’d like to watch the entire stream you can find it here.
Since Twitter has now deprecated Periscope and offers in platform live streaming, I thought it would be a good time to revisit Twitter as a streaming platform. It is important to note that professional live streaming is not automatically available on every Twitter account, and is most easily accessed by accounts who spend ad dollars on the platform. You can however go live via the phone app on any Twitter account. If you have professional live streaming capabilities on your account, here are the steps to go live. From the home screen, check your left hand navigation bar and select “More” from the bottom.
When you click “More” another menu will pop up, which will include the Twitter “Media Studio.” Select this option to enter the Media Studio.
The Media Studio has tabs, which include “Library,” “Producer,” “Insights,” “Scheduled Tweets,” and “Analytics.” Live streaming will be found under the “Producer” tab.
When entering the “Producer” tab of the Media Studio you will see two more tabs (I know, tabs for daysss!), one for “Broadcasts” and one for “Sources.” Your “Broadcasts” tab is where you will see current live streams, scheduled live streams and where the archive of your past broadcasts can be found.
If you haven’t set it up before, the first thing you need to do is to go to the “Sources” tab and click the blue “Create Source” button on the right hand side. This is where you will create an RTMP source so that you have a server URL and stream key to enter into your encoder. Make sure not to share your stream key with anyone, this allows anyone access to steam on your account.
Now you can navigate back to your “Broadcasts” tab and create a new broadcast by giving the broadcast a name, category (you must choose one category from a list of categories), then you can select a source (select the RTMP source you just created) and then choose whether you want the audience to be public or private. Choosing the “public” setting under the audience tab does not actually tweet out your broadcast, like you might think though. Setting the privacy to public simply creates a share URL and makes it possible for you to schedule tweets with your broadcasts and promote your tweets with ad dollars.
Next you need to choose whether you want to start your broadcast now or schedule it for a later time. Scheduling for a later time is recommended so that you have time to prepare your tweets and promotion posts, however there are some important things to note here. Twitter makes you choose a start time and an end time for the broadcast and they are very strict about it. If you are even one minute late sending a stream to the platform your broadcast will be deleted (unlike Facebook that gives you 10 minutes). Likewise, because you have to specify an end time, your broadcast will cut off at that end time, even when you don’t want it to. You can always manually stop a broadcast early, so make sure when you list an end time you are generous. At the time of writing this post, there is no auto start and stop on Twitter like there is on other platforms, which send your broadcast live anytime you are sending a feed, this is semi-auto by setting the time to start and stop on a clock if you are sending a feed.
Next set it up to be recurring if you want and upload a thumbnail image to let people know what’s coming. Below that you can expand the recommended encoder settings to be sure you have them set up optimally in your encoder, I have copied the current one from my account here.
Having now done some big events on Twitter using their Media Studio, it was a great experience and our clients saw huge number, especially in their targeted promoted tweets. If your audience is on Twitter and you have a following, or if you have ad dollars to spend to do targeted posts promoting your stream, this is a great platform to stream to. Otherwise, be sure to schedule your posts, and go in and manually tweet your live stream, and share the link in your email blasts, etc.
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/twitter.png191263Crystal Garciahttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngCrystal Garcia2021-08-03 17:06:222021-08-04 11:31:22Twitter Replaces Periscope With Its Own Media Studio Producer Tool
We’re seeing it all over the events industry, sponsors gave you their money to have a booth, they logo all over printed materials and other in-person returns that they expected for their support and now they want to know what they are getting since your event is moving online.
When it comes to virtualizing your event using live streaming and other event technologies, every organization that has event sponsors needs to respond quickly to their sponsors and offer them value or risk needing to return funds or lose valuable industry relationships.
The great news is, there is even more, yes more opportunity for you to give sponsor ROI (return on investment) for your virtual event then there was at your physical event! This is because some events are seeing a 3X increase in attendance online so your sponsors can reach a greater audience. Plus metrics are much more trackable, making it easy to measure ROI. We will cover 9 great ideas to get you started.
What is ROI and Why Does it Matter?
ROI stands for Return On Investment and means what your sponsor is getting in return for giving you money or as is the case for “in kind” sponsorships, services or products that you need for your event. In kind sponsorships might include providing all of the graphic design and logo creation for your event and are less common, but can be even more valuable to you if you’re on a tight budget to produce your event.
Some examples of sponsor ROI for an in person event might include:
Logos on printed materials like programs, banners and signage
A booth space where to sell products or advertise services
Names read during announcements
Branded swag (pencils, sunglasses, magnets, etc) distributed in event bags
Logos on event t shirt
It’s important to think critically about how to give real value to your sponsors and how to measure that value and treat them like your organization’s partners. These valuable relationships make events happen and losing sponsors can cost your organization a lot of money and may make holding your event subsequent years impossible.
How to Create Virtual ROI For Sponsors
Pre-Event
Sponsorship returns start as soon as your website is up and can be included on all of your digital materials. The key things to make sure you do here is have careful planning around sponsorship levels and clearing define where logos and mentions will show up for various levels. Some of these perks are things you’re likely already doing like putting sponsor logos on your landing pages and emails. Here are a few others:
An opportunity to wow your speakers or a list of targeted attendees your sponsor might really want to impress with a VIP experience. You send those targeted attendees a meal box, a case of wine or a service like a code for a food delivery or a car wash.
Speaking of sending your attendees something in the mail, send your swag bags and boxes to your attendees and include all of your sponsors’ branded swag!
During the Event
Sponsorship opportunities during the event are endless. Be thoughtful and don’t be afraid to include your long time sponsors in the planning of these activations. These relationships are so important and your sponsors want to know you’re working creatively to give them value as your partner.
Sponsored posts: some event apps have the ability to give you sponsored posts which appear in your events feed throughout and are more than just pinned posts, they repost offers and content on a timed basis. These can include app downloads, special offer codes and links to products or services. Attendify is one app doing this really well, you can read more about how they handle these posts here.
Sponsored entertainment: Just because your event moved virtual doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have fun built into the schedule. In the virtual world some entertainment that wouldn’t be as popular in a live event might be really well received online. Keep in mind, virtual attendees might be working at home with kids. Magic acts, a cartoonist, folk duos or yoga sessions have all had great online responses in virtual environments.
Instead of traditional commercials, have your MC interview sponsor representatives. Work with your MC to pull out the value the attendees want to hear.
And on that note, run sponsors ads during breaks or on each end of key sessions. Ask that your sponsors create their ads for your event to tailor the content and keep your audience more engaged.
Have sponsors host networking events in virtual rooms. Some fun ones that people are loving are virtual cocktail hours. We’ve seen some events hire a mixologist that teaches everyone how to make their own cocktails.
Have sponsors give away virtual backgrounds to attendees and then host raffles in sessions for a door prize for those who used the background.
If your event includes gamification, give attendees points on a leaderboard for visiting sponsors’ virtual “booth” or scheduling product demos or meetings with your sponsors.
Other ways that you should definitely use to provide sponsor ROI (and track it) are sending out push notifications about your sponsors deals and sessions if you’re using an event app. If you are not, utilize email notifications instead.
Use banner ads in your event app or on your event webpage or social media event accounts.
Make sure you give your sponsors a way to have a profile, preferable in your app, but if you aren’t using one, then on your event website.
Display sponsors’ logos on your live stream on opening and closing slates and even as a rolling ticker at the top of popular sessions.
Post Event Sponsorship ROI
The biggest thing you need to post-event is thank your sponsors and include your sponsors information on wrap up emails to your attendees. These are the people that made your event happen. Have a dedicated person on your team gather screen shots of memorable interactions online, meeting selfies and video clips from live streams. Post these to your social accounts and tag the sponsors in them. Remember to deliver all metrics to your sponsors that you may have collected about the number of links and appointments they scheduled and other data that shows they gained value.
Remember that COVID-19 has changed the events industry forever and you’re not experiencing this alone. Face your sponsors with humble optimism and a strong sense of value for their support. Look at your attendee demographics and the demographics of your sponsors. Be specific about how many attendees your event will have in person and online and what percentage of your expected attendance you are promising sponsors in order to keep their money (70% of last year’s attendance virtually and on sight if you have one) is a good starting point. With clear information and creative ideas you’ll master getting all the sponsor revenue you need and hosting an event people will be engaged in. If you would like more information on having a hybrid or virtual event, get in touch to schedule a time to talk.
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2018TECHSUMMIT_187-scaled.jpg17062560Crystal Garciahttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngCrystal Garcia2020-06-04 15:27:312020-08-17 16:40:30Valuable Sponsorship Ideas That Give A Better Return and Earn Your Virtual Event More Revenue
During the rapidly evolving crisis with COVID-19 we were contacted by Kim Jones, Executive Director of the Optometric Physicians of Washington.
Her organization had been planning their 55th Post Graduate Seminar scheduled to take place 8 days from the time she reached out to us. We were able to collaborate with Kim and her organization to quickly find a new venue, figure out safe and sanitary practices for crew and presenters (including one immunocompromised individual), and get a custom viewing page set up with tabbed videos, embedded chat function, email capture for each session and linked quizzes for participants to earn their continuing education credits.
Thanks to this joint effort between our teams, the conference took place on time and around 600 doctors were able to get their continuing education credit from the safety of their home.
Participants delighted at having free parking, no crowded hallways and other such light-hearted benefits from their devices. Many shared photos of them practicing social distancing at home while holding their babies, sharing a desk with their school-aged kids who are all home from schools, and enjoying the company of their furry family members.
Some of the safety measures we took during the production and streaming were frequent hand washing, minimal crew, who did morning temperature checks for fever before coming into the closed-off hotel conference room that had only production crew (3 people) the OPW Executive producer, 1 moderator and 1-3 speakers safely spaced throughout the room.
Our techs kept a minimum of 6 feet apart at their work stations and microphones, the presentation computer and clicker were all disinfected between each person’s use. In addition, we changed foam covers on lavalier mics after each presenter.
Finally, we had our audio person, who would switch mics and disinfecting gloved and masked when coming into contact with speakers.
Right now we serve many areas who are being affected by “shelter in place” orders or similar precautions.
As media professionals, our crews are small and carry press passes. We have also applied to have Varvid listed as an essential business in Washington state.
Our hope is to continue to help create ways to keep people in corporate, education and community organizations connected through bringing meetings, classes and conferences together safely online.
We also are offering consultations for individuals, groups and businesses who are sheltering in place and in need of a live streaming solution to meet their individual needs using existing gear they have on hand, and or by assisting them in making buying decisions.
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_1420-scaled.jpg17072560Crystal Garciahttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngCrystal Garcia2020-03-30 11:01:592020-08-17 16:39:50Live Streaming During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study
It’s a pleasure to introduce you to our Dallas Team Lead, Patrick Dolan! Patrick joined Varvid early in 2008, after working with Aaron Booker (Varvid’s CEO) on the board of directors for an IT industry peer networking group.
Being active in the IT industry for for 30 years, and having background in production management, Pat’s skills have established him as a practicing live streaming professional. In 2011, his accomplishments guided him to opening Varvid’s Dallas office.
Patrick is courteous, attentive, and honest. His devotion to your event’s success is founded on maintaining an upbeat personality even throughout the most trying times of production. Simply, Pat aims to provide the North Texas area with a professional and fun approach to creating a truly Connected Event!
Contact Pat by calling 214.838.6960, or emailing patrick@varvid.com.
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Image-uploaded-from-iOS-3-1.jpg15122016Emma Van Dinterhttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngEmma Van Dinter2017-03-10 11:35:382017-11-29 09:49:19Patrick Dolan: Creating Connected Events in Dallas
We are proud to introduce our L.A. Account Representative, James Lane! James provides the greater Los Angeles area with Connected Event services.
“Aaron Booker called me up and asked for my assistance for a live streaming event for Adobe in Hollywood. I was intrigued and found that I truly enjoyed the adrenaline rush of a live event and all of the unforeseen obstacles that can literally jump out of nowhere,” James said. It has been over two years since his first project with Varvid.
James has been a Los Angeles resident for over 15 years and has predominately worked as an actor and film editor. His work in the entertainment industry started over twenty years ago after he received a BFA from the University of Texas, Austin.
“I liken live streaming to performing on stage before a live audience. There is no, “Cut! Take 2, Take 3, Take 4″, etc. If something unexpected happens, you make lemonade from that lemon.”
James has a positive personality and a get-it-done attitude, his dedication to live-streaming production makes him a great person to work with!
“I look forward to developing vast relationships with the many folks out here in LA LA Land who are in need of a reliable, professional and fun live streaming crew.”
To get in touch with James, email him at james@varvid.com or call him at (323).244.0407.
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/IMG_20161116_093120-1.jpg12093085Emma Van Dinterhttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngEmma Van Dinter2016-12-13 13:39:472020-07-16 15:54:47James Lane: Connected Events in Los Angeles
Varvid live streamed a portion of Seattle Startup Week 2016 for JPMorgan Chase & Co. branch, and title sponsor of the event, Chase for Business last Wednesday. By using a Roland VR-50HD video switcher and three camera sources, we streamed to Chase’s YouTube channel. Out of the three cameras, two were operated: one focused on the presenters while they took turns speaking, and the other captured the audience’s reaction. The third camera was set in the back of the room capturing a wide shot of the audience and the presenters.
Although the entirety of the five-day event wasn’t live streamed, we did get to cover an important panel discussion titled: “Do I really need to invest in Digital Marketing?” The short answer:”Yes!”. Social platform leaders from Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Yelp held an hour long conversation and Q&A session about the role of social media shaping business identity through digital marketing.
SSW is an event led by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs that aims to develop the Seattle community by building momentum and opportunity for business owners. This year’s event was hosted at Impact Hub in Seattle’s Pioneer Square. If you are interested in creating a startup week in your town or city, learn more here!
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IMG_20161116_085255.jpg40323024Emma Van Dinterhttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngEmma Van Dinter2016-11-21 10:19:072020-07-17 11:12:44Digital Marketing Live Stream at Seattle Startup Week
Rob Read, Business Development Manager at Roland Professional AV, often comes to the Varvid headquarters to demo new products. Recently, we filmed Rob’s demo of Roland’s V-1SDI to share with you all!
The V-1SDI video switcher is flexible,versatile, and portable. Connecting and switching 3G-SDI cameras, playback sources, and HDMI sources (cameras, smartphones, computers, tablets, Blu-ray players) is made easy with the T-Fader and backlit buttons. The results are, certainly, nothing short of professional.
With support for 3G-SDI, the V-1SDI can operate at full 1080p resolution and can take advantage of the longer cable distance of SDI making this compact solution suitable for events and applications in even large spaces with the most professional level of SDI camera sources.
MAIN FEATURES OF THE V-1SDI
Support for SDI and HDMI cameras, smartphones, tablet computers and PCs etc.
Easy to operate with hardware controls
Compact and portable
Supports up to Full HD 1080p
3 x 3G-SDI and 2 x HDMI* inputs
2 x 3G-SDI and 1 x HDMI* output
Quad input multiviewer with source labeling and audio metering
Composition effects including DSK (Downstream Keyer), picture-in-picture etc.
Full 14 channel audio mixer included
Software control using V-1SDI RCS application for Mac and PC and remote control via RS-232 connection
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/IMG_3872-1-1.jpg17144032Emma Van Dinterhttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngEmma Van Dinter2016-10-31 13:29:042017-11-29 09:47:01Roland V-1SDI Video Switcher Demo
Marshall, a Louisiana native, delivers Connected Event services to the greater Delta region. After traveling across the country, Marshall moved back to Lousiana and obtained a BFA in Film from the University of New Orleans.
“I decided to become a filmmaker in the eighth grade while watching the opening credits of the 1989 Batman. My first experience of live broadcasting came in 1996 when I was the Studio Director for an ABC affiliate.”
Marshall’s interest and passion for production and live broadcasting guided him to the livestreaming world.
“Livestreaming is beginning to take hold, and I believe Varvid is ahead of the trend. The beauty of livestreaming is that it’s cutting edge and has a limited margin of error. Varvid can connect any event in crystal-clear resolution directly to an individual’s screen of choice!”
Marshall’s proficiency in cinematography, editing, and his upbeat personality makes him great to work with.
Want to meet Marshall? Let us introduce you!
Want to contact Marshall? Send him a message: marshall@varvid.com.
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Screen-Shot-2016-10-21-at-12.08.29-PM.png7391913Emma Van Dinterhttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngEmma Van Dinter2016-10-24 10:07:312020-07-17 10:14:58Marshall Woodworth: Connected Events in New Orleans
https://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/IMG_0082.jpg372615746Emma Van Dinterhttps://varvid.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/logo-light.pngEmma Van Dinter2016-10-13 14:02:182020-07-15 22:17:04The Future of BMW: Motorrad’s Global Premier Livestream