---
name: hybrid-event-plan
description: "Plans hybrid events with in-person and virtual audience coordination, tech setup, and unified experience design."
allowed-tools: Read Write Glob
metadata:
  author: matthewhitcham
  version: "1.0"
---

# Hybrid Event Plan

## When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:
- Plan a hybrid event that serves both in-person and virtual attendees
- Coordinate technology, engagement, and logistics across two audience types
- Design a unified experience where neither audience feels like an afterthought
- Solve the unique production challenges of simultaneous live and remote delivery

**DO NOT** use this skill for purely in-person or purely virtual events. This is specifically for events where both audiences attend simultaneously and both must have a quality experience.

---

## Core Principle

A HYBRID EVENT IS NOT AN IN-PERSON EVENT WITH A CAMERA IN THE BACK — IT IS TWO COORDINATED EXPERIENCES DESIGNED TO MAKE BOTH AUDIENCES FEEL LIKE FIRST-CLASS PARTICIPANTS.

---

## Phase 1: Brief

### Required Inputs

| Input | What to Ask | Default |
|-------|------------|---------|
| **Event type** | "What kind of event? (conference, workshop, meetup, summit)" | Conference |
| **In-person attendees** | "How many in-person?" | 100-200 |
| **Virtual attendees** | "How many virtual?" | 200-500 |
| **Duration** | "How long?" | Full day |
| **Budget** | "Total budget, including hybrid tech?" | $30,000 |
| **Primary audience** | "Which audience is the priority if you had to choose?" | Equal priority |

**GATE: Confirm the brief before proceeding.**

---

## Phase 2: Design

### Unified Experience Framework

```
## Experience Parity Checklist

| Element | In-Person | Virtual | Parity Strategy |
|---------|-----------|---------|----------------|
| Content | Live sessions | Live stream + replays | Same content, camera angles for virtual |
| Q&A | Raise hand | Chat/Q&A tool | Moderator reads from both sources |
| Networking | Breakout areas | Breakout rooms | Parallel sessions, cross-audience intros |
| Engagement | Polls on screen | Polls in platform | Same polls, shared results on screen |
| Materials | Printed handouts | Digital downloads | Same content, different format |
| Swag | Physical bag | Digital resource pack | Equivalent perceived value |
```

### Tech Setup

```
## Hybrid Tech Requirements

**Video:**
- Main camera on speaker (professional, not webcam)
- Wide-angle room camera for audience shots
- Slide capture (direct feed from presenter laptop)
- Switching system to toggle between camera angles

**Audio:**
- Professional lapel or headset mics for speakers
- Room mic for in-person Q&A
- Virtual audio through the streaming platform
- Audio mix for virtual (room audio + speaker audio balanced)

**Streaming:**
- Platform: [Zoom Events, Hopin, StreamYard, etc.]
- Stream quality: 1080p minimum
- Backup stream: [Secondary connection or platform]
- Dedicated internet connection for streaming (separate from venue wifi)

**Interaction:**
- Shared polling tool (Slido, Mentimeter, or platform-native)
- Chat moderation for virtual audience
- In-room display showing virtual chat and questions
```

**GATE: Present the tech setup and experience framework for approval.**

---

## Phase 3: Build

### Production Team

```
## Hybrid Event Team Roles

| Role | Responsibility | In-Person / Virtual / Both |
|------|---------------|---------------------------|
| Event producer | Overall coordination | Both |
| Stage manager | Timing, cues, transitions | In-person |
| Virtual producer | Stream management, virtual backstage | Virtual |
| AV tech | Camera, audio, slides | In-person |
| Stream tech | Encoding, switching, quality monitoring | Virtual |
| In-room moderator | Q&A from live audience | In-person |
| Chat moderator | Q&A from virtual audience | Virtual |
| Host/MC | Introductions, transitions, energy | Both |
```

### Engagement Design

```
## Cross-Audience Engagement

**Shared experiences:**
- Polls: Both audiences vote simultaneously, results shown on screen and stream
- Q&A: Moderator alternates between in-person and virtual questions
- Chat wall: Virtual chat displayed on a screen in the venue
- Reactions: Virtual emoji reactions shown on screen in real-time

**In-person exclusive:**
- Physical networking spaces
- Sponsor booth interactions
- Hallway conversations
- Live Q&A proximity (can approach speakers after sessions)

**Virtual exclusive:**
- Chat with other virtual attendees
- Breakout rooms for small group discussion
- Replay access (not available to in-person only)
- Virtual sponsor booths with downloadable resources
```

### Run-of-Show Additions

For hybrid events, the run-of-show must include:

```
| Time | In-Person | Virtual | Cue |
|------|-----------|---------|-----|
| 9:00 | Doors open | Stream goes live — holding slide + music | Producer starts stream |
| 9:05 | MC on stage | Camera 1 on MC | Switch to camera 1 |
| 9:10 | In-person poll on screen | Virtual poll in platform | Moderator launches poll |
| 9:15 | Q&A (room mic) | Q&A (chat) | Alternate sources |
```

---

## Phase 4: Polish

### 1. Rehearsal Plan

```
## Hybrid Tech Rehearsal (mandatory, 1 day before)
- [ ] Full run-through of streaming setup with actual platform
- [ ] Camera angles tested for all speaker positions
- [ ] Audio levels checked for room + virtual balance
- [ ] Slide sharing tested (presenter laptop → stream)
- [ ] Poll tool tested on both in-person display and virtual platform
- [ ] Virtual Q&A → in-room display tested
- [ ] Backup internet connection tested
- [ ] Emergency switch to virtual-only tested
```

### 2. Common Failure Points

```
## Monitor These During Event
- Stream latency (keep under 10 seconds)
- Audio balance (virtual attendees hear echoes or room noise)
- Chat engagement (if virtual chat is dead, virtual audience is disengaged)
- Camera framing (speaker walking out of frame)
- Slide readability on stream (fonts too small for screen share)
```

### 3. Post-Event Metrics (Split by Audience)

```
| Metric | In-Person | Virtual | Combined |
|--------|-----------|---------|----------|
| Attendance | | | |
| Satisfaction (1-10) | | | |
| NPS | | | |
| Engagement (polls, Q&A) | | | |
| Would attend again | | | |
```

---

## Example 1: 150 In-Person + 300 Virtual Business Conference

```
Tech: Professional camera setup, StreamYard to Zoom Events, dedicated 100Mbps upload line
Team: 8 people (4 in-person, 4 virtual production)
Engagement: Shared Slido polls, alternating Q&A, virtual networking rooms during in-person breaks
Budget: $15,000 for hybrid tech overlay on top of in-person event costs
```

## Example 2: 30 In-Person + 100 Virtual Workshop

```
Tech: Single HD camera on tripod, Zoom Pro, USB mic for facilitator
Team: 3 people (facilitator, in-room assistant, virtual moderator)
Engagement: Zoom polls, breakout rooms for virtual, table exercises for in-person
Budget: $500 for tech (camera, mic, Zoom subscription)
```

---

## Anti-Patterns

- **Camera in the back of the room** — virtual attendees see tiny people on a stage. Invest in proper camera angles.
- **Forgetting virtual Q&A** — if the MC only takes in-room questions, virtual attendees feel invisible.
- **Same content, different quality** — if the stream looks amateur while the in-person experience is polished, virtual attendees feel cheated.
- **No dedicated virtual moderator** — virtual chat needs a human managing it. Unmoderated chat becomes chaotic or dead.
- **Ignoring audio for virtual** — room echo, background noise, and poor mic placement are the top complaints from virtual attendees.
- **Treating virtual as an afterthought** — virtual attendees who feel like a secondary audience do not return and do not recommend.

---

## Recovery

- **Internet fails at the venue:** Switch to a mobile hotspot. Pre-arrange with a speaker to stream from their phone as emergency backup.
- **Virtual attendance is much lower than expected:** Focus on delivering a premium experience to the virtual audience you have. Quality over quantity.
- **In-person audience ignores virtual participants:** Have the MC explicitly acknowledge virtual attendees and read their questions first occasionally.
- **Budget too tight for professional hybrid setup:** Scale down to a single camera, good USB mic, and a laptop running Zoom or StreamYard. Simple but reliable beats complex and glitchy.
