Humanity kicked off the year 2022 with more joy than the last time we’ve celebrated the first moment of 2020. Because, even with the rise of the new variant of the COVID-19, significant numbers of affected people, and more canceled in-person events, we already know how to deal with it. From wearing masks, washing hands to getting the mRNA vaccines (which is the most effective way to handle the Omicron variant at the moment). In the eyes of people in the event industry, the more people know how to live in a situation like this, is the more chance for the in-person events to come back to their place.
But let’s not be too optimistic (Omicron variant, remember?)
Before bringing the in-person (or on-site) event back to the world, there are some factors you need to consider first. Mainly about the vaccination, but there are other factors, too. Let’s scroll down to see what we’re talking about below.
COVID-19 Vaccine Efficiency
The world is now facing the most challenging COVID-19 variant ever, the Omicron. Unlike the Delta variant, its effect may seem lighter but spread faster. And it’s all downhill from there. Even the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer or Moderna can handle the situation. However, that’s still not the best long-term solution for everyone.
The up-to-date thing we know for now is that the CEO of Pfizer has announced that the Omicron-specific COVID-19 vaccine will be ready in March. So let’s keep an eye on that (and other companies also) and try to calculate how long it will take before its worldwide distribution.
Our opinion is, if there’s no other variant that occurs during 2022, we might see the end of the pandemic, maybe at the end of this year or the beginning of next year. And that’s the time when the in-person event will come back to the industry.
Vaccination Speed
In 2020, people were suffering from the Delta variant before getting their life in the physical world back due to the efficiency of the mRNA vaccines. But, like the anonymous wise man once said:
“No one is safe until everyone is safe.”
We’ve seen many countries handling the pandemic situation well enough to take their mask off and get back to their pre-pandemic lifestyle. But then here comes the Omicron variant. Scientists first identified them in South Africa before spreading quickly in many countries. This mutation proves one thing:
“No one is safe until everyone is safe.”
So we have to keep an eye on the vaccination speed worldwide. Or else the mutation will keep going on and on. And we’ll end up at the place we were this year over and over again. Because:
“No one is safe until everyone is safe.”
The Economics (aka Your Audience’s Pocket)
We’re not going to talk about this in academic terms. Instead, we will talk about the money in your pocket. In the past two years, COVID-19 has shut down many businesses and taken tons of opportunities from the people. And recover from the situation isn’t an easy thing to do. And when people have less money to spend, they will pay for their needs first. And event might not be what they’re focusing on right now (foods, monthly bills, internet, and more.)
That doesn’t mean the in-person event isn’t necessary anymore. But if you’re going to host the kind of event that requires people to pay the tickets, travel costs, meals (while they’re at the event), to name a few. It would be best if you were more understanding about your audiences because it’s a lot more challenging to bring them out of the house in a situation like this.
An event with a matchmaking session where people can find their new business opportunities or a job fair can be a great example of what people need right now. Hosting a concert may be too pricey for most people, but with the right group of people, you may sell all the tickets out because we’re lacking this kind of on-site-analog-joy moment for at least two years.
The economic situation makes things more challenging, not impossible.
Each Country’s Event Policy
Even you have all those vaccines; people are ready to pay for your in-person events. There is one big thing to consider. Is the government letting you host the event right now? (Or shortly). Because some of them may be too scared to loosen some rules when the situation begins to get better) And when hosting the event is depends on time, we think all event organizers need to daily check for up-to-date information about the availability to host the event.
Some places may allow you to host with restriction rules like showing the COVID-19 test results or vaccine passport without mask required. However, some may still keep you away from your friend’s seat with the mask on. It’s not a problem for local event organizers because you always check out this information daily. But it will be a big task for global event organizers. So preparing for this step at first might help you set up the event more flawlessly.
Attendee’s Confident
Last but not least (you’re going to consider many things before hosting the in-person event during the pandemic), the people. Is your audience ready to leave their home, traveling to the venue, buy tickets, and spend their time in your event?
It’s a challenging task to guess people’s minds. But various tools help you gain helpful information for your decision to host the in-person event or not. It can be a social media ad that leads to an online survey form or the social listening tools that look deep into their interests. So with the data in your hand, you will be able to know that people are ready to go out to the event, or they’d love to stay home for a little longer.
Conclusion
There are a lot more things other than these fives we’ve mentioned above to consider before hosting the in-person event during a pandemic time like this. But it depends on what kind of event you’re going to create. So what we talked about on this blog are just the main things we think you should not overlook for the best outcome as it could be.
And while we can’t set up an in-person event at this moment, on the other hand, this is the rise of the virtual event. So for the professional and innovative outcome, please check out our event software products to see if there’s anything you might need for your upcoming event—click here.