Want to plan ahead for the New Year? You’ve come to the right place. Here is everything you need to know about events going into 2022.  

We have seen a shift in the events industry since COVID-19 dawned on us in 2020. We experienced businesses and events quickly closing their doors to large crowds and events. In-person events shifted to virtual events, which persisted until 2021. This encouraged the development and implementation of advanced technology to host high-quality virtual events. However, as the year 2022 approaches, a glimmer of hope shines down on us. Venues are reopening, and events and performances are filling up the schedules for the next year. But, does this mean the end of virtual events?  

Hybrid events are here to stay  

In 2022, face-to-face activities will be back in full swing, but there will still be a virtual element playing a part. In-person events will always be more admirable than virtual, but to stay connected, we had no choice but to adapt to virtual communications when in-person wasn’t an option. Because virtual events became more accessible to registrants, the number of attendees climbed significantly. Instead of people having to commute to an office every day, meetings and other interactions could be supplied virtually instead.   

Networking will be in high demand  

After a couple of years of minimal contact with people and opportunity to network, people are going to want to make up for lost time. Events are hotspots for networking so expect a lot of face-to-face interaction that will involve sharing experiences, lessons, coping mechanisms and future prediction for their businesses during a pandemic. If there is one thing to take away from this blog, it is to make sure your event is encouraging as much networking as possible, for example including areas where attendees are able to chat and talk to others.  

Event venue safety is here to stay  

What is the biggest lesson you’ve learnt from the global pandemic? One thing COVID-19 has taught us is that health is the most important thing in life. It must be made a priority!  

Prior to the pandemic, guests would freely shake hands, pour from the same jug of water, dive into the same dish of mints at their shared table, and scribble notes with the pen they found on a desk. All of this was standard event behaviour. This could not be further from reality now. Event safety measures don’t just spot clean and set up sanitiser stations. There is so much pre and post event preparation to ensure the safety of attendees and workers, such as proof of vaccination, limited numbers of attendees and track and trace processes.  

Final thoughts… 

This is everything you need to know about events going into 2022. Although COVID-19 has impacted the events industry massively, you can still host an outstanding, memorable event that attendees will not forget! Get planning for 2022 now and schedule a call with one of our team at Fresh Productions.