What is a Virtual Summit?
Before we dive into the lovely why’s of virtual summits…let’s chat about WHAT a virtual summit actual is!
A virtual summit is a type of collaborative online event where speakers either present topics, or are interviewed by a host. It’s like an online conference with a collection of online presentations from usually 10 – 40+ experts on a topic all geared around a certain industry.
Virtual summits have the ability to bring together hundreds (or even thousands) of attendees who are able to learn from all of the speakers & presentations – in many cases for free–without having to travel, book a hotel, or even change out of their pajamas.
Sounds pretty damn awesome, right?
How can virtual summit’s benefit you?
Whether you’re an attendee, host, or a speaker at a virtual summit, there are definite bonuses for being apart of them.
If you’re an Attendee:
In short, you have nothing to lose and a TON to gain.
Virtual summits allow you to sponge up TONS of knowledge, get inspired, listen to expert insights/advice/tips, ask questions and even network with others – without having to worry about traveling…or even changing out of your pajamas.
And most of the time….they’re FREEEEEE.
So you save on travel AND admission (double win here, right?!)
You also don’t have to sit through things you’re not interested in. Summits typically have at least a dozen presentations…but you don’t have to attend or tune into every single topic. You can take a look at the schedule ahead of time and plan for which talks you want to pop in on. Sometimes you’ll even get access to the presentations and interviews for up to 24 hours AFTER they go live, so you can tune in at your convenience.
If you want access to #allthethings at your fingertips, usually you can snag an all-access pass during or at the end of the summit so you can take your time soaking up the new information instead of getting an information overload.
A lot of summits also do fun things like giveaways or offer insane discounts on products and services.
As an attendee of a virtual summit, you get ALLLL the bonuses of attending a conference…without the price, hassle, or annoyance of being stuck for the whole day in a building dressed as an adult.
If you’re a Speaker:
Being a speaker at a virtual summit has some pretty awesome perks.
For starters, most speakers at virtual summits are showcased as experts. So what does that mean for you? It helps you establish trust, authority, and expertise in your industry…which is insanely valuable!
Most of the time speakers agree to participate for free (there are exceptions to this), and in exchange for their time and knowledge, they’re able to become an affiliate for the summit which can allow them to rack up some cash by promoting it to their audience.
Speakers also usually get the opportunity to share a quick intro about who they are, what they do, and where to find them after the summit, which can lead to an increase in website traffic, email subscribers, and paying customers/clients.
So in short, why should you consider speaking at a virtual summit?
It’s an awesome opportunity to:
- Connect + gain exposure with a new audience
- Showcase your expertise and build authority in your niche
- Promote your content
- Promote your products or services
- Have new people join your community
- Increase your website traffic
- Grow your email list
- Grow your social media followers
- Network with influencers and people in your industry
- Make cash moneyyyy as an affiliate
- Get new customers for your products and services (some summit organizers let you offer your products or services – at a discounted price – as a bonus for those who buy the lifetime access pass)
If you’re a Host:
Four words: Lead Generation + Brand Awareness
Lead generation: Virtual summits are insanely powerful for generating traffic, increasing email subscribers, and boosting sales. The potential to view presentations and absorb helpful knowledge from dozens of experts on an interesting topic can attract more people than a typical webinar. And when it comes to marketing the event, you’ll not only reach YOUR audience but the audiences’ of the speakers as well!
Brand Awareness: When you host a virtual summit, your visibility has the potential to SKYROCKET. I mean, think about it…you’re not the only one promoting it. You have all of your speakers who are showcasing the event to their audience, so that multiplies the number of eyeballs on not only the summit itself, but your brand as a whole. And in order to sign-up for the summit, attendees have to give their email address to access the trainings and info, so your email list also has potential to grow (a lot!).
And then, if you’re feeling really saucy, after the summit ends, you can turn it into an eproduct!
You can bundle up all of the content you and the speakers have created for the event and offer it to your audience (and the speaker’s audience’s if they become an affiliate for the product) to watch and engage with at their leisure! A lot of the time, summit hosts will label this as like an “all-access pass” that gives the attendees lifetime access to the presentations….and brings you passive income. Win-win, babyyyyy!
Conclusion:
What are your thoughts?
Have you been apart of any virtual summits? If so, which ones and what did you like about them?! We’d love to know!
And if you’re a host of a virtual summit that’s geared towards online entrepreneurs, bloggers, and business owners, submit your summit to us so we can list it!
