Welcome Webinars Are Out, and Virtual Orientation Events Are In!

If I had to draw just one significant conclusion from the New Member Engagement Study results, it would be that onboarding programs are evolving by becoming more responsive to members. We are moving from mass communications to finding ways to personally welcome each person once they join, connect them to a future friend, and get them what they need when they need it.

I wrote a post about this shift in onboarding programs toward more responsiveness and another about how this evolution impacts welcome emails. Today we will direct our attention to a tactic that has experienced a radical transition and a surge of interest. More associations are conducting virtual orientation events than they were four years ago, and these events are the top tactic association leaders want to try.  

Virtual orientation events were welcome webinars four years ago. Once highly scripted and static, now these events are far more responsive to attendees' needs. Association leaders report that most events — 70%, are produced live (not recorded) and provide ample time for Q&A. 42% of these events are super flexible and allow attendees to drive the topics and content discussed.

I predict that more associations will add virtual orientation events to their roster of onboarding tactics because they are so effective. Likely the effectiveness of the events will continue to rise because there are a lot of innovation opportunities available to us. Here are some suggestions for creating a new member onboarding event that educates members about their benefits, seeds belonging, and creates connections.

Lean into Responsiveness

Webinars are an invitation to multitask. Instead, grab attendees' attention by making them the star of the program. Ask them about their goals and challenges and connect them to the appropriate solutions. Slides and scripts feel safe, so event hosts might need time to work up the courage to abandon these prompts and turn on the improv. So, start slow. Add questions for attendees throughout your script. As you become more comfortable answering them, eliminate the slides and rely on web show-and-tell. Eventually, you may have a post-it note with three items you need new members to know about, and the rest of the time, you respond to their questions and prompts.

Break the Ice

Responsiveness is a two-way street. We can only be responsive when new members participate. Crickets 🦗 aren't going to cut it. One great way to guarantee participation is to prime them to participate. Breaking the ice can get attendees to share before they have a chance to feel shy.

In my events, I keep introductions short – maybe a single sentence so that I can start asking attendees a question within seconds of the event's start. And not every question is created equal; there's a science to asking good icebreaker questions.

1.     Ask easy-to-answer questions

2.     Make sure the icebreaker questions cannot be answered incorrectly (a.k.a. the attendee can't be wrong)

3.     Prioritize fun or unexpected questions to grab their attention.

The first question doesn't even have to be about their professional experience. Your first question can be unique, like "if you could have any superpower, what would it be?"

Keep Looking For the Next New Thing

If you've been reading my blog for a long time, you'll know that I love Zoom chat. Chat is an excellent way for presenters to have all attendees talk to them (and for attendees to talk to each other). I also like to keep people's attention by shaking up the chat dynamic. Vary how your attendees can participate by having them respond via Mentimeter to create live word clouds or answer polls. Try Piccles, where attendees can submit little drawings, which works great when trying to express emotions.

Can your new members be a little withdrawn sometimes? Ask a recent new member to volunteer as a chat energizer. In this role, they lead the way by jumping right in and answering your questions. Tell them they can be overly exuberant by splashing in upbeat messaging and a dash of emoji if that's their style. They can raise others up when they see interesting ideas or questions.

Some new member onboarding events include a quick and fun networking opportunity so each new member can connect with a potential professional contact or friend. My friends at Matchbox Virtual Media have sooooo many ideas about how to do virtual networking right. Check out their recipe for a trivia game and dive into the ebook we co-created, Host Your Own Meaningful Networking Events.