Meet the Morning Show
Whether it’s the station you listen to on your way to work or the team you watch as you get ready, your audience develops a relationship with your team. Offer a fun, virtual event to get to know them better with a behind-the-scenes meet & greet with members of your morning team.
Chat with an Athlete
While COVID has limited the world of sports programming, one creative way to engage your audience of sports fans is with an exclusive opportunity to chat with an athlete. A virtual event with a local athlete or sports figure is a great way to enhance your sports content and drive opt-ins for your sports newsletter.
Ask the Expert
Local media companies hold an important position in their community as a trusted media source. Your audience comes to you for important and accurate information, and a fantastic way to serve your community is a virtual Ask-the-Expert event.
Try a COVID Q&A with a healthcare professional, a forum to ask local government officials about issues happening in the community, or a session with a financial advisor to allow readers and listeners to get information about their financial situation.
Private Musician Performance
Utilize virtual events to give your audience the exclusive chance to experience a private musician performance! This type of event is wonderful for building your Concert or Entertainment email lists.
Chat with the Artist
Whether it’s a section in your print publication or a special on-air segment, you can showcase local artists, designers, and makers with a virtual event! Not only is this a fantastic way to highlight artists in your community but it’s also a great chance to build your email lists. If you have a special section for arts or design, this is a great way to grow that, too!
Cocktail Demo
If your editorial calendar is normally filled with content around local bars and restaurants, a virtual cocktail demo is a great way to highlight bars and restaurants in the area, especially during COVID. Make it a virtual competition between local bartenders, or simply use it as a way to teach readers or listeners how to make a signature cocktail at home. Lastly, when thinking about bars or restaurants for this event, look to the top nominees from your Citywide Best Of Ballot!
Chat with the Anchors
TV stations can utilize their audience’s unique relationship with on-air talent to create virtual events. Something like a virtual meet and greet or topic Q&A is a perfect way to strengthen your audiences’ relationship with your talent, drive great website traffic, and grow related newsletters.
Meet the Chef
A virtual Meet the Chef event is a perfect tie in for your food programming or food section during COVID. Have a chef from a popular local restaurant host your event and provide instruction on how to make a favorite dish. With so many restaurants offering limited menus right now, you’ll have hungry audience members eager to sign up to hear how to make these recipes at home. Don’t forget to include an email opt-in for any related newsletters (food, local restaurants, business) to grow that audience!
Sign Up for a Cooking Class
Your audience will eat up a chance to attend a virtual cooking class! This could be hosted by an in-house culinary expert, a local restaurant chef, or simply a popular foodie from your community. And, if you have any email lists related to food, this is a prime opportunity to grow your newsletter audience.
Virtual events are a great fit for your content and programming initiatives! Check out these 5 Steps to Drive Event Registration to maximize your virtual event engagement.
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Ellen is a Manager of Customer Success. She works with clients to help them create engaging campaigns that are optimized to reach their digital goals.