Corporate event trends have changed rapidly in recent years. And with 2023 just around the corner, you need to be ready for what’s in store. There’s so much at stake when you host an event. So it’s important to keep up with new corporate event industry trends to make your events more successful than ever. We’ve gathered information from meetings, conversations, and reports with event industry experts, analysts, and our customers from leading Fortune 500 companies to identify the 13 corporate event trends that will shape the event industry in 2023:
Event trend #1 Hybrid events are on the rise
The popularity of hybrid events has steadily increased over the past few years. In 2022, 71% of organizations with 5000+ employees had hybrid events in their portfolio (Markletic). And it’s an event industry trend that’s expected to grow in 2023.
New generations of event planners have seen how a combination of virtual and in-person elements can boost event sustainability and accessibility. So, they’re pushing for the event industry to continue in this direction.
But there’s another reason that hybrid events will be one of the big 2023 event trends.
Event attendees’ desire to meet in person is record high. But event planners are hesitant to go back to fully in-person events for 2 reasons: travel and venue costs.
Prices of energy, fuel, and inflation are rapidly increasing all over the world. This will drive event planners to host more hybrid events in order to avoid the high expense of running a traditional in-person event.
Corporate event trend #2 Events are becoming part of the omnichannel experience
“Omnichannel marketing campaigns using three or more channels in any one campaign earned a 287% higher purchase rate than those using a single-channel campaign.” (Omnisend)
So, just think about how powerful an omnichannel event strategy could be. Event marketers have realized this. That’s why omnichannel events are one of the important corporate event trends of 2023.
No doubt people are more likely to buy your product or service after seeing it at an event. So, create an experience that starts way before the launch of your event and continues way after it’s over, personalize messaging, and use multiple digital channels to create a customized journey for your customers. And you’re likely to see your revenue soar in 2023.
Implementing an omnichannel event strategy is one of the best ways to connect your customers to your brand and boost brand loyalty.
Corporate event trend #3 Events are one of the only remaining sources of first-party data
The cookieless future is fast approaching. But all is not lost for marketers. There’s still first-party data to give companies an invaluable competitive advantage and improve business outcomes, sales, and marketing efforts.
And what’s one of the best ways to get first-party data? Through events.
According to Accenture, 83% of customers are willing to share their data to create a more personalized experience.
When you organize engaging events, attendees are more than happy to share their details with you. After all, they want to get the most out of your event. And they want a customized experience.
That’s why one of the 2023 event trends is that marketers will plan more events to obtain this all-important data. It will help them make their events more personalized and effective by creating better customer experiences based on what they know about their audience.
A gentle reminder: make sure you’re transparent about collecting first-party data and explain to attendees how you will use it. You want your events to be compliant.
Corporate event trend #4 Event data measurement and analysis are becoming more important
The more you use data to measure the effectiveness of your events, the better you’ll be able to plan future ones. That’s why this corporate event trend will be a top priority for event marketers in 2023. Especially with the growing pressure to run events that are better than those of your competitors.
If an event doesn’t deliver on its goals, it can be a waste of time and money that you could have used elsewhere. If the event is successful, you want to know why so that you can replicate it in future events.
There are now many event platforms and mobile apps that enable you to measure a huge amount of data such as:
- No. of registrations
- Attendance rate
- Returning participants
- Engagement rate
- Session popularity
To take full advantage of event data, you need to be able to measure your success and make changes as needed. This means creating clear goals and objectives for your event and then measuring against those goals.
After all, if what matters most is attendance at an annual conference or convention but it turns out that people really enjoyed meeting in smaller groups during breaks in sessions – and they were more likely to attend future events because of this – you should know so that next time around you can give attendees what they want: smaller groups with more opportunities for interaction.
Dive deep into your event data to figure out what worked well and what didn’t. And you’ll plan future events that’ll shine brighter than before.
Corporate event trend #5 Building eco-friendly, sustainable events is crucial
With more and more concerns about the environment and the future of our planet, it’s no wonder that event sustainability is an important corporate event trend for 2023. And it’s not an event industry trend that will go away anytime soon!
According to Mark Bannister (Technical and Operations Director for COP26), there’s a lot of support to make the events industry more sustainable.
In fact, COP26 released a report to encourage event planners to follow in their footsteps and run more sustainable events. Here are some of the actions they took to make their event as eco-friendly as possible:
- Prioritized low-carbon alternative energy sources
- Re-used and recycled material
- Prioritized locally sourced and seasonal food items
- Encouraged attendees to use sustainable transport
- Employed local people
Another way to reduce your event carbon footprint in 2023 is to organize more virtual and hybrid events.
Making your events sustainable will help them stand out from the crowd in 2023. You’ll show your attendees that you care about their well-being and the climate.
Corporate event trend #6 Mobile event apps are one of the best ways to make events interactive and keep audiences engaged
Studies show that an average American checks their phone 262 times per day! And 88% of that time is spent on mobile apps.
So, of course, one of the corporate event trends in 2023 is that companies will increase the usage of event apps.
People get a lot of convenience, benefits, and interactivity from the mobile apps they use on a daily basis. They want to have the same experience at your events.
And that doesn’t just mean keeping attendees engaged with interactive user experiences during the event.
You can use your conference event app before your event to inform participants about the agenda, speakers, and topics. You can even enable them to start interacting with other attendees on the feed and with the networking tools.
And your mobile event app usage doesn’t stop after your event is over. You can upload your on-demand content and allow participants to continue exchanging information and building relationships with one another.
Using an event app also helps you to clearly showcase your brand and collect valuable event data about participants that you wouldn’t have known otherwise (see corporate event trend #4).
Corporate event trend #7 People want on-demand content that they can consume on their own terms
As years go by, people have less time and shorter attention spans. That’s why a corporate event trend for 2023 is investing in an on-demand content hub. You can upload videos and other content from your event that your customers can choose to consume when and where they prefer.
Creating evergreen Netflix-style content after your event and storing it all in one easily accessible place will keep your customers engaged long after your event has come and gone. And not only.
Producing on-demand content from your live event in just a few clicks helps you reach a wider audience and share high-quality video content that showcases your brand in the most authentic way.
Plus, having a gated content hub is also another way to get valuable first-party data (see corporate event trend #3) and remain compliant while boosting on-demand engagement with live clapping and replayed polls, Q&A, and claps at the time they happened during the live event.
Corporate event trend #8 Virtual-only events are on the decline
This is perhaps a surprising corporate event trend for 2023 because virtual events have been so popular over the past few years.
Companies expected virtual event fatigue to become more of a problem. And it’s safe to say that it has.
According to a study by Rainfocus, “For virtual event components, continued innovation and adjustment will be critical to ensure those events meet their goals now that the novelty has worn off.”
There are a number of tactics companies can use to keep engagement high at virtual-only events. From shorter events to live streams and gamification. And there are so many elements of virtual events that bring huge advantages and help with sustainability efforts (see corporate even trend #5). But people are craving for in-person elements too.
So, to get the best of both worlds, hybrid events will take over as the event industry trend in 2023 (see corporate event trend #1)
Corporate event trend #9 Intuitive event tech & no-code solutions are increasing
Another corporate event trend for 2023 is that event tech will become more intuitive and less code-heavy.
Simply look at the recent funding Canva raised and the acquisition of Figma. People are hungry for simple, user-friendly, no-code solutions. And this will be the same for the events industry.
At the moment, setting up the backend of an event management platform backend is tricky and time-consuming. That’s why a lot of event solutions have 24/7 support and implementation teams to help with getting an event platform ready. And some already have no-code solutions to help you build your events.
Event tech companies are working on making their products easier to use in 2023. And some are even introducing AI (artificial intelligence) and voice technology to enhance event experiences in real-time.
But we’re not sure how fast this event industry trend will take off in 2023 (see corporate event trend #13).
Corporate event trend #10 No more business cards, real-time networking instead
Business cards are a relic of the past. They’re impersonal, and they don’t provide you with any value beyond the initial exchange.
Real-time networking is a corporate event trend that has taken hold in recent years as more and more people turn to social media platforms to stay connected with their favorite brands, products, and services.
When companies host events, they want attendees to truly feel like they’re part of the brand’s community – and real-time networking is one way for them to do that.
Real-time networking provides an opportunity for attendees to experience your company on a personal level by interacting with other participants in person or through digital channels like forums, social media, or event apps.
As we’ve seen at events recently, this kind of authentic interaction can lead to lasting relationships between attendees and their favorite brands – whereas business cards won’t last long enough even if someone does decide to keep them around after receiving one!
Event tech companies are working on improving their mobile event app networking tools to facilitate better real-time networking at hybrid and in-person events.
Corporate event trend #11 Event communities don’t work. It’s key to use the right platform that engages your audience before, during, and after your events.
Perhaps a surprising corporate event trend for 2023 is that building an event community doesn’t really work.
Modern event communities are online – on social media, communication platforms, and of course, event platforms. And with the rise in virtual and hybrid events over recent years, event marketers started asking themselves why the activity on event platforms should only take place during an event. Attendees can also interact with content and exhibitors before and after an event.
But if you run one traditional event a year, it’s highly unlikely that your attendees will log in to your event platform or app every week to comment on and discuss your content before and after your event. You’ll see a peak in engagement the day before, the day of, and the day after. But that’s it.
Hence the new event trend for 2023: the event industry is moving toward a 365 community engagement model.
By running at least four events a year, you can:
- Start engaging participants long before your event begins by posting on your mobile event app feed and creating pre-event polls.
- Keep engagement high during your event by using Q&A, breakout rooms, and gamification.
- Keep engaging your audience when your event is over. Use post-event surveys and turn your live event into on-demand on a gated content hub.
Run more regular events and turn your event platform into a year-long thriving online event community. It will not only help boost continuous audience engagement. It will also help you ensure that your brand stays top of mind amongst your customers.
Corporate event trend #12 Companies are delivering event experiences that are bigger than life
As you plan your corporate events in 2023, remember that “experience is the new marketing.”
This corporate event trend is about the fact that it’s no longer enough to simply communicate information about your business or product at your events. You need to create a unique and personalized experience that will stick with attendees long after they’re done consuming it.
When people think back on their time at your event, they should be able to recall specific moments and details – the sights, sounds, and smells of the day. You want them to feel as if the experience was bigger than life. One that not only left them satisfied but actually changed how they see things in some way.
There are several ways to achieve this goal: from hiring actors who can bring your brand story alive through performances or providing immersive activities to offering more hands-on demonstrations so attendees can learn more about your offerings.
To get some inspiration on how to make your event stand out, why not read 20 interactive conference ideas to increase engagement with a virtual or hybrid audience?
Corporate event trend #13 Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are not yet ready to take the world by storm
You may have heard people talking about AR and VR as one of the new corporate event trends of 2023.
With the evolution of virtual event software and the development of the metaverse, some event tech providers have introduced this type of experience to their events. Take virtual 3D environments for example that enable attendees to navigate, interact with each other, and consume consent.
But, AR and VR technology is very expensive and complex. So, it’s tiptoeing its way into the event industry. We believe it may become a corporate event trend in the next five years but not in 2023.
Find the best event solution to be ready for 2023
With these corporate event trends in mind, you can make your events a success in 2023. You can also use this information to identify which of these trends will have the most impact on your business or industry.
To run hybrid events as part of your omnichannel strategy and get quality first-party data, you’ll need the right event platform.
Guest Blogger: Kathryn Humphries, Head of Content Marketing. SpotMe is a hybrid event platform that enables you to track numerous event metrics, so you can analyze your events and improve them in the future. https://spotme.com/blog/event-trends/
