Top 5 Unusual Event Formats: How to Choose the Right One for a Business Event?

We all love to study other people's successes, but even more we love to discuss other people's failures. And often it is those who make mistakes that achieve success. It is no coincidence they say: we learn from our mistakes.

A well-chosen format for a business event is the key to the success of your event. Standard conferences with plenary sessions are becoming a thing of the past, while seminars and forums are changing. Interactivity, dynamism and creativity are coming to the fore.

How do you choose the right event format and stand out among partners? 

We offer a Top 5 of unconventional and modern event formats that will draw attention to your event and make it memorable. They are suitable for various audiences and any number of guests.

1.   Pecha Kucha

Pecha Kucha is one of the most popular modern event formats. And no wonder: brevity, dynamism, substance, informality and light delivery of information are its strengths. Pecha Kucha is a presentation technique in which a speaker shows only 20 slides and allows 20 seconds for each. It is no coincidence that in Japanese this word means blah-blah-blah or chatter. No matter what topic your presentation is on, the main thing is that it is dynamic. As a rule, after the talk there is a short break for exchanging opinions. Such events are most often held in the evening. Moreover, in places that at first glance seem least suitable for this – bars, parks, university classrooms, etc.

2.   Business dates.

Did you know that dates are not only romantic? A business date implies an informal atmosphere and helps build relationships among its participants. This format lowers the level of formality, even if serious guests are invited – politicians, businesspeople or scientists. The best venues for such dates are cafés, restaurants or clubs. Thanks to the absence of strict timing and moderation by the organizers, communication takes the form of a polylogue. This helps to hear all participants and gain valuable experience. The dynamism and easy atmosphere at such dates help build new informal relationships among the event participants.

3.   Fail conferences

Literally, Fail is translated from English as “to suffer defeat.” We all like to study others’ successes, but we like even more to discuss others’ failures. And often it is those who make mistakes who achieve success. It is no wonder they say: you learn from mistakes. Fail conferences are a little-known format in Russia. But this trend is gradually gaining momentum. After all, experienced specialists’ stories about failures, downfalls, and big and small mistakes are useful and relevant in any field of activity. The main thing is to find good speakers who are “on the same wavelength” as the audience and are ready to answer uncomfortable questions. Negative experience is no less interesting than positive experience, and an atmosphere of friendliness and openness allows you to get the maximum benefit.

4.   Game

The game is not a new format, but it is dynamically developing. Not long ago, games were either team-building or business games. However, now their number is growing – for any event and for any purpose you can find something suitable. For example, you can create a one-day advertising/information/real estate/any other agency in which the event participants will work for one day. Or you can analyze real thematic cases. The main advantage is dynamism and full immersion in the process. Participants gain tremendous experience, emotional charge and motivation. Guests also have a unique opportunity to study the pitfalls of a particular process, test their strengths in different positions, and learn to work in a team or alone. Games are good not only for young people, but also for an older audience.

5.   World Café

World Café is a simple and unusual format of informal business communication, where participants exchange knowledge and ideas over a cup of coffee in a cozy café. At the beginning of the meeting, people sit in groups of 4–5 and discuss a common pressing topic. After that, one participant from each table moves to the next group. The speaker at the new table tells what conclusions their group reached. In this way, participants bring with them the knowledge and ideas of different groups. Both 12 tables and more than a thousand people can take part in World Café . The main thing is to listen to others’ opinions and ideas, share your thoughts and connect different points of view. And, of course, it is important to be open and hospitable.

Choosing the right format for an event means bringing success closer. Even with the best program and a “star” line-up of speakers, but with an unsuitable format, an event can pass unnoticed and not remain in memory.