Key Takeaways

• About 39% to 54% of those who register for a virtual event attend the live event.
• Research by One Cause showed that 19% of nonprofits held hybrid events (virtual blended with in-person events) in 2020.
• About (58%) of virtual events are small, with organizers capping at 300 live attendees.

Introduction

Nonprofit Virtual Event Registration

• While data on nonprofit virtual event registration rate is unavailable, 76% of virtual event marketers say that email is the single most effective way to drive registrations.
• The infographic below shows the best ways virtual event marketers drive registration to their page:
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Percentage of Registered People That Attend Virtual Event

• While data specifically for nonprofits is unavailable, research by Instrado found that the percentage of registrants that attend live virtual events is 39% to 45%.
• However, a different study in 2020 by Bizabbo found that 50%-54% of those who register for a virtual event attend the event.
• In addition, about 20% of attendees view the event on-demand.
• About 10% of "those registered and did not participate live, attend on-demand."
• In addition, 17% of those that attend the live event also return to view on-demand.

Hybrid Events

• One Cause surveyed 1,997 nonprofit professionals in the US and found that 19% of nonprofits held hybrid events (virtual blended with in-person events).
• The study also found that hybrid events are becoming more popular, with 42% of nonprofits planning to organize a hybrid event in 2021.
• The infographic below summarizes data on the percentage of nonprofits that organize or plan to organize a hybrid or virtual event in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
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Seat Cap vs. Unlimited Seat

• While data specifically for nonprofits is unavailable, a survey by Bizabbo shows that most (58%) virtual events are small, with organizers capping at 300 live attendees.
• In general, small events are the most popular types of virtual events.
• The planning for large virtual events typically takes more time, and organizers need to take that into account while offering unlimited seats.
• According to data from Markletic, "for small virtual events, most planners need between 3-6 weeks to promote the event successfully. For large virtual events, 65% of marketers need more than six weeks to promote the event and drive the desired amount of registrations."

Nonprofits Use Free Events to Drive Registration and Attendance

• A survey of 1,142 nonprofits, associations, clubs, and other membership organizations found that 29% of the organizations that ran a virtual event in 2019/2020 said that they didn't charge for the event despite the fact they typically charge for the same in-person event.
• In addition, 27% said all their events are free, or they charged much less for virtual events compared to in-person events. The graphics below provides additional details:
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• The above suggests that nonprofits sometimes make their event free to increase registration.

Research Strategy