TLDR: 1. Design the experience before you buy the technology
2. Stop calling remote attendees “the people online”
3. Production quality affects engagement
4. STOP READING and CLICK https://evmconference.eventbrite.com?discount=evmjohn to experience a global engaging stage in action for FREE.
—————————-
Two hours after The Presentation Summit ended in St. Louis, I wasn’t celebrating.
I was in the basement of an Airbnb surrounded by cameras, cables, monitors, lights, microphones, computers, and enough production equipment to make the AirBnB owner ask:
“Wait… are you running a TV network down there?”
Pretty much.
I had just finished producing The Presentation Summit.
And instead of packing everything up and heading home, I took the virtual production studio I had brought with me and started building the next event.
Because the next morning, the Association for Talent Development St. Louis Chapter was holding its 80th Conference.
And for the first time in its history, it was going hybrid.
That meant the room in St. Louis was no longer the boundary of the conference.
People outside Missouri could participate too—including ATD members in Arizona.
That’s when an Airbnb basement became a global stage.
Hybrid Isn’t the Problem
I still hear versions of this all the time:
“Virtual isn’t as engaging.”
“Hybrid is too complicated.”
“People online just don’t participate.”
I disagree.
Virtual isn’t automatically disengaging.
Hybrid isn’t automatically disengaging.
Badly designed experiences are disengaging.
You can have 500 people sitting in a beautiful ballroom staring silently at a stage and call it “in-person.”
That does not magically make it engaging.
Likewise, you can have someone joining from Arizona who is seen, heard, acknowledged, contributing, reacting, asking questions, collaborating, and influencing what happens in the room.
That person may be hundreds of miles away—but they can still be part of the experience.
That’s the point.
Hybrid doesn’t make an event engaging. Design does. Technology simply gives great design a bigger stage.
The Equipment Wasn’t the Win
Yes, I brought a lot of equipment.
Cameras.
Audio.
Computers.
Displays.
Switching.
Lighting.
Monitoring.
All the toys that make my inner technology geek very happy.
But the equipment wasn’t the real accomplishment.
The equipment simply made something else possible.
Access.
It allowed people from multiple countries to attend The Presentation Summit without ever leaving their living room.
It allowed people who couldn’t physically be in St. Louis to participate in the conference.
It allowed speakers to reach beyond the walls of the venue.
It allowed the ATD St. Louis Chapter to expand the experience beyond its geography.
And it allowed remote attendees to become something far more valuable than viewers.
They could become participants.
That distinction matters.
There is a massive difference between:
“Here’s a livestream. Good luck.”
and:
“We designed this experience so you are part of it.”
My philosophy is simple:
Every seat should be the best seat in the house—even when that seat is hundreds or thousands of miles away.
So What Can You Steal From This?
If you’re producing meetings, conferences, training, or presentations, here are five things I’d think about before your next hybrid event.
1. Design the experience before you buy the technology
The first question should not be:
“What platform should we use?”
It should be:
“What do we want the remote attendee to DO?”
Watch?
React?
Vote?
Collaborate?
Ask questions?
Talk to someone in the room?
Influence the program?
Solve something together?
The answers to those questions should drive the technology—not the other way around.
2. Stop calling remote attendees “the people online”
Language reveals design.
If the people in the room are “the audience” and the virtual attendees are “the people online,” you’ve already created two classes of participants.
Instead, design moments where remote attendees are intentionally seen and heard.
Call on them.
Show them.
Bring their comments into the room.
Let them affect what happens next.
When virtual attendees realize they matter, participation changes.
3. Production quality affects engagement
This doesn’t mean every conference needs Hollywood-level production.
But friction kills participation.
If people can’t hear.
If cameras don’t show what matters.
If presenters can’t see remote participants.
If nobody is watching the chat.
If transitions are confusing.
If microphones fail.
People stop engaging.
Good production removes those barriers so participants can focus on the experience.
This what I like to call “Removing mistakes so you can focus on the moment.”
4. Stop asking, “Why should we offer virtual?”
Try asking:
“Who are we excluding if we don’t?”
That question changes the conversation.
Maybe someone can’t travel.
Maybe their organization won’t approve airfare.
Maybe they have family obligations.
Maybe they live in another state.
Maybe they want your education but simply cannot be in the room.
Hybrid can expand access without diminishing the in-person experience—if you actually design it that way.
5. Your studio doesn’t need to be a studio
Sometimes your “studio” is a ballroom.
Sometimes it’s a conference room.
Sometimes it’s a classroom.
And sometimes…
…it’s the basement of an Airbnb in St. Louis.
The room matters less than the system.
The right equipment, process, team, and engagement design can transform almost any appropriate space into a place where people connect across geography.
And that creates possibilities.
Virtual Doesn’t Replace Human Connection
This is the part I think people get wrong.
Virtual and hybrid aren’t about replacing in-person interaction.
They’re about expanding where interaction can happen.
Done poorly, virtual can feel distant.
Done well, it can connect people who never would have been in the same conversation otherwise.
That’s not less human.
That’s more opportunity for humans to connect.
Which is why I’m still excited about what hybrid can become.
Not because I love cameras.
Although…
I do love cameras.
But because I love what happens when people who would otherwise be excluded suddenly get to raise their hand.
Speak.
Laugh.
Contribute.
Connect.
Belong.
That is what the technology is for.
Want to Experience It Instead of Just Reading About It?
That brings me to The Engaging Retreat.
October 20–22, 2026.
Seattle + virtual worldwide.
I don’t want to spend three days merely telling people how to create engaging meetings, presentations, and hybrid experiences.
I want people to experience them.
See how virtual attendees can be included.
See how production can support participation.
See how speakers can create interaction instead of broadcasting information.
See what happens when engagement is designed into the experience from the beginning.
And if you’re wondering whether you can participate without traveling to Seattle…
Yes.
In fact, your virtual ticket is FREE.
No airfare.
No hotel.
No Airbnb basement required.
Just come experience what engaging virtual and hybrid can actually look and feel like.
Don’t just hear me talk about hybrid engagement. Experience it.
October 20–22, 2026.
Join from anywhere.
The virtual ticket is free.
Register here:
https://evmconference.eventbrite.com?discount=evmjohn
—John Chen, CSP
CEO, Engaging Virtual Meetings
(206) 856-8491
The Engaging Thought Leader
PS: BONUS TIP: End on a high note. For The Presentation Summit, I created a customized recap song and video of everything that happened in 3 days. CLICK https://youtu.be/etpZD4XF3SY to see how this recap became the official conference song that summed up 3 days in 3 ½ minutes.
