5 Common Mistakes Your Company Should Avoid
With a reputation for being long-winded and numbers-focused, the thought of attending an “investor day” often doesn’t energize a company’s financial stakeholders. But it doesn’t have to be that way! Read on to learn the five most common mistakes businesses make when hosting investor events—and how to avoid them.
1. Ignoring Your Story
No matter the event format, remember: you are there to tell the story of your business, both past and future. While sharing last year’s financial accomplishments is key, the main focus should be on your strategy for next year. Your goal is to inspire confidence in the company’s brand and to share your roadmap for the future. Many businesses fixate on the numbers rather than creating a cohesive narrative. Avoid this misstep by concentrating on the overall plan first, and filling in the final numbers later.
If your budget allows, consider outsourcing the event and content planning to an outside consultant. An expert can help you hone your message and brand, and passing the torch to the pros adds structure and accountability.
2. Presenting Boring Content
Speakers have been putting audiences to sleep even before companies switched to virtual and hybrid modalities. And with more presentations going online, there’s even more potential for attendees to tune out and multitask. You can make your sessions more interesting with the following tips:
Most adults have an attention span of about 10 minutes, and audiences are tired of the typical solo speaker and slideshow model. Keep investors engaged with interactive Q&As and break-out sessions.
Avoid one-way presentations
Most adults have an attention span of about 10 minutes, and audiences are tired of the typical solo speaker and slideshow model. Keep investors engaged with interactive Q&As and break-out sessions.
Change up the format
Try to segment your event into activities that keep viewers engaged. Use polls, videos, and product demos to break up the monotony.
3. Not Scheduling Time For Rehearsals
Take a cue from the theatre world: make ample time to rehearse and perfect the event long before you bring in an audience. Affording your speakers adequate time to familiarize themselves with their presentations is a good start, but it’s equally crucial for them to rehearse in the space to improve stage presence and plan for blocking and movement. The ideal practice session will merge the creative with the technical, allowing the production team to plan for audio cues, visual effects, and lighting design.
Speakers also should practice with the tools they’ll use to ensure a seamless experience. If they’re using slides, for example, make sure they know how to use the remote to advance the presentation. They should also be familiar with how the microphones work and where the cameras and teleprompters are positioned.
4. Fearing New Technologies
While sticking with older and familiar tech might be comfortable, modern audiences expect a much more sophisticated production. Today, new technologies have made it possible to replace the traditional investor day with a rich and multifaceted broadcast experience. Treat your event like a two-hour- news show about your company, complete with video drop-ins from expert analysts, ticker-style graphics about your company, and real-time polling and surveys that staff can tally and report immediately.
While sticking with older and familiar tech might be comfortable, modern audiences expect a much more sophisticated production. Today, new technologies have made it possible to replace the traditional investor day with a rich and multifaceted broadcast experience.
Consider letting attendees submit questions anonymously during presentations or panels, keeping the conversation lively and letting attendees feel heard.
5. Not Distributing the Event Properly
A successful virtual or hybrid event depends on a customized, interactive platform—your event’s home base. Depending on your current technology and constraints, you can choose to host the event on your current website, or you can build out a new microsite dedicated solely to your investor day.
Hosting on your own website allows you to drive more traffic to your site and ensures that the event is under your brand and URL, but it also restricts your options to the security and tech constraints of your current hosting platform. Most business website platforms don’t have the capability to host a customized event experience—and it’s rare for the company’s web team to give the event staff carte blanche to make changes to the back end.
Building a separate event website usually offers more freedom. A microsite eliminates permissions and access issues, which means that presenters can easily upload photos, content, and videos. Even better? A microsite can be managed directly by your vendor, without worrying about other access or security issues. Some platforms even offer options like registration, break-out sessions, live chat, and interactive agendas. Another plus: a separate website eliminates the possibility of breaking the code on your current site.
Make Investor Days Work For You!
To learn how Stagedge can help take your investor event to the next level, visit https://www.stagedge.com/services. To learn more tips for keeping your audience engaged and invested, read our related blog, Returning to In-person Events. Here are 5 Things Event Planners Don’t Want to Forget.
Stagedge: Creating Immersive Experiences for 50 years is proud to be one of Boston's premier full-service event production companies dedicated to conceiving, creating, and executing immersive brand experiences through live, virtual & hybrid events, domestically, and worldwide.