Switching to a virtual event can save up to 50% of the cost of a B2B company. In the B2B industry, the virtual event, such as a webinar, is the most preferred virtual event, according to almost 99% of companies. So it’s inevitable to say that in the B2B industry, virtual events have become a key aspect to build a network and make people learn, build trust and relations, etc. In this article, we will go through the detailed process of B2B virtual events, their trends, best practices, and maximizing ROI in recent times.
What Are B2B Virtual Events?
B2B virtual events are online gatherings of businesspeople, allowing them to remotely meet up to share knowledge and make a stronger network. It takes no physical place and is arranged as a communication device with the internet. Any person from anywhere in the world can participate in a virtual event. More importantly, almost 74% of B2B event organizers do not charge for participating in the virtual event. These events allow businesses to showcase their products and services to others to create new customers and improve brand value.
Top 2025 Trends Reshaping B2B Virtual and Hybrid Events
In the past few years, virtual events have been losing their charm; people are no-showing up that much. Stat says 21% people are interested in virtual events in 2025, where it was 45% in the last year. So, to reshape B2B virtual events, you need the most trendy topics that can improve engagement and participant numbers. Let’s take a look at the top 5 trends for B2B virtual events.
- AI and machine learning
- AR/VR
- Hybrid events
- Gamification
- Micro events
These are the trendy B2B virtual and hybrid events that are on fire, but there are more, like data privacy, last-minute registration, etc. in 2025 hybrid event model are doing much better because of virtual event fatigue after pandemic so you can go for account based marketing, interactive games, virtual training, virtual concerts by taking data driven decision using real-time analytics.
How to Plan a Successful and High-Impact B2B Virtual Event
With the reduction of online showcases of B2B virtual events, you need your event to be strategic and a perfect way. Keep your goal clear, and identify your target audience, then concentrate on engaging content and interactive elements to keep attendees interested. Find out if someone is interested in event sponsorship for your live streaming program so you can set a better plan for event ROI.
Define Goals & KPIs
Planning is most important for a virtual B2B event. With a proper blueprint for organizing a virtual event, including KPI goal setting, you can easily meet the desired result. Don’t set a goal that looks impossible, set something practical because something that looks impossible will demotivate your entire team, and as a result, it will not be up to mark
Identify Your Audience & Personas
Who do you want to see at the event? That’s what defines the target audience. Personas are a business term in the B2B market that means people who are decision makers or influence the decision-making directly or indirectly. For a B2B virtual event, decision makers are the most prioritized audience, but not all decision makers, because you don’t sell to every kind of business. Find your industry-specific audience and invite them to your webinar.
Choose the Right Platform
If your target audiences are business professionals and you arrange a webinar on a platform like TikTok, then it’s nothing but shit. So choose the platform you want to host the event according to the audience’s preference and the one that is mostly used, depending on the location. Platforms like Google Meet and Zoom are mostly used and viral as well.
Craft Engaging Agenda & Speakers
All your plan arrangements will be wasted if your agenda of engagement and speaker turns out to be nothing but a recorded audio speaker. Prepare a script for hosting so you don’t miss any key points, and practice that to show promptness to the audience. An engaging and charming presentation can hook the audience and increase engagement; as a result, it will bring you new business, audience, trust, and network.
What are the Proven Tactics to Boost Engagement in B2B Virtual Experiences?
Several tactics can improve engagement in B2B virtual conferences, such as using interactive tools, human touch, data analytics, experimental elements, accessibility, AI-powered tools, event management software, etc. Let’s break down these aspects in the section below.
Interactive Tools: Different kinds of interactive tools can simplify the engagement, such as live polls, Q&A sessions, gamification, and social media integration. Platforms like Zoom, Mentimeter, Slido, and Hopin offer features such as breakout rooms, polls, and Q&A functionalities to facilitate interaction.
Human Touch: Human touch refers to interaction with a human agent online, like a chatting agent or live video content, which increases trust, builds a relationship, and brings new prospects. Potential customers also get encouragement if they have human interaction.
Experiential Elements: Cooking demos, magic acts, swag kits, augmented reality, virtual reality zone, gaming, etc, can also be a good idea for better engagement
Accessibility: Give accessibility to the audience on free books, demos, captions, guides, platform tutorials, etc, which are really effective for engagement and spread by word of mouth if your audience feels useful.
With online interaction and accessibility, you can easily increase engagement and generate leads using artificial intelligence to bring digital transformation. Even if you need more high-quality leads, you can contact CallingAgency for the best B2B lead generation service.
Best Practices for Promoting, Hosting, and Following Up After Your Event
Before the event, you need a solid plan for execution, like promotion for the event, so as to get a big audience, preparation before the event, testing the tools for proper work, automation tools, AI tools, and then follow up for lead generation.
Marketing & Promotion
Marketing and promotion after the event are important to the brand. It’s a kind of advertising, and then the participants are potential prospects. Now you need to promote your participants through different channels to let them know more about your service or product. Let’s say, find out participants who attended your event, filter them by category, by crucial role like influencer, decision maker, CEO, etc, then send them a sequence of emails for every step, use influencer by offering an affiliate program, etc.
Technical Rehearsals & Agendas
Imagine right in the event, your internet connection gets lost because of a loose connection, your projector’s sound does not work, your reputation will be harmed, and competitors will laugh at you. So make sure everything works well and make the digital experiences better. Test every tool, including event content, device properly again and again, so that in the live moment everything goes well. Keep sharing the schedule and promoting on social media and websites to gather an audience and show them how they can participate in the event.
Lead Capture & FollowâUp
Post-event promotion and follow-up are essential for bringing new customers to your business and generating potential leads. If you organize an event and don’t build a network by reaching out to them after the event, then the arrangement will return nothing to you. Organizing an event is a huge investment, so not following up properly may cost you your potential leads and business. Let’s break down the step-by-step process of following a B2B virtual event.
Conclusion
Almost 77.2% attendees prefer joining online events rather than physical ones because of their time-saving convenience for the journey, travel cost, comfort, etc. A statistic says, Registrants are primarily attracted to online events for the distinct content offered (67%) or the convenience of accessing it at a later time (60%). So this is how virtual events have become popular nowadays in the B2B industry. Prepare a solid plan, test everything before the event, start marketing, keep time on hand, then complete the event by hiring a good speaker, and follow up after the event.
