Most of us are striving to establish some sort of normalcy as the leaves change colors here at the end of 2020, many events and meetings are still being held online. In a recent article from Successful Meetings Start Here, experts offer tips on how to convert attendee admission fees, whether to charge sales tax and more for online events. Surprisingly, one of the first pieces of advice is, don’t call your event “free.” Beth Surmont, director of experience design for 360 Live Media, urges planners to remove the word “free” from their marketing language. She states, “meaning comes from sacrifice,” and instead suggests organizers say the event is a “$100 value” but attendees will not be charged because of sponsorship, coverage by a grant or provided due to the generosity of the host. The article also advises organizers to consider attendees’ situations when determining price. Some industries or specific roles have felt only minimal impact, without high numbers of jobs lost or furloughed, while others have been severely debilitated. Surmont suggests considering a “pay what you can” policy. Another aspect of this article discusses whether sales tax should be charged and advises organizers to use The Sales Tax Institute, which offers a helpful FAQ that delves more deeply into questions related to the sales tax nexus for different states. Surmont also suggests looking for value-adds by saying, “let’s lay everything out on the table and figure out how we’re going to make these things fit together,” to determine what value you can provide. Finally, the article’s last piece of advice is “don’t get stuck on one rate.” Surmont urges organizers to keep their options open by considering offering a subscription model to attendees. For more helpful information on pricing virtual events visit the link below!
https://www.successfulmeetings.com/Strategy/Meetings-Events/How-to-Price-Virtual-Events?utm_source=eNewsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=eltrHowto&oly_enc_id=3347J7813312A4X
