Top Ideas for Hosting Your Next Virtual Event in Gather.Town

In no particular order:

1. Customize your character to reflect your personality. This really helps other people get to know you!
2. Create a custom environment that fits your virtual gathering to a T. There are so many ways that your space can be customized to give a sense of what the event is truly about.
3. Make sure that people understand how the radius around you works for hearing others. I’ve been in large groups and always try to stand as close to the middle as I can so I have the greatest chance of hearing others. There are always people on the edges that are talking over each other because they have no idea someone else is talking.
4. In conjunction with #3, make spaces in your gathering where people can hear others no matter how far away. This makes a great gathering space because you can all hear everyone’s comments to further the conversations.
5. Have someone at the “door” welcoming others. If you have a specific place where people are supposed to go, have them well versed to give directions to find the group. You can also add signage to the floor of the space to give people directions on where to go.
6. Utilize the chat function and really understand how it works. There are so many times that all I have to say is a quick sentence. I don’t need to take up the audio channel to say that one thing. Using the chat is a great way to get my question/statement out there. There are also settings on there that allow you to talk to everyone on that Gather.Town space, to the specific area that you are in, or to specific people. Make sure people understand how these work!
7. Practice, practice, practice before the session begins. If you are doing things like slideshows or presenting materials, make sure you try them out before the day of the event. There’s nothing worse than sitting in an event and the hosts can’t get things to work right.
8. Give yourself and the others around you some grace. As we all know, things don’t always work 100% right when it comes to technology 100% of the time. You can practice things over and over, and something can still go wrong.
9. Add some fun games and/or activities for people to do when you aren’t in event activities. Throw in some video games, a whiteboard with activities, or some poker. There are tons of other fun things to add as extras.
10. Have fun with the event. Make the space fun and inviting, functional, and have some extra “bells and whistles” to make it more exciting to be there.

– Brandon Vreeman, Front End Developer

Get together!

Gather.Town is a great way to get together whether it be for business, networking, conferences, or even family and friend gatherings! Ditch the boring Zoom calls and create a virtual space for your group that will allow you to engage in a whole new way.

Get creative!

Find ways to personalize your gather maps to fit the vibe you want for your event. Sure, you can choose from some pre-existing maps, but the real fun comes into play when you get creative and make a space that is uniquely yours.

Get interactive!

There are a ton of fun, interactive elements you can build into your Gather.Town map that allow your guests to engage with each other. Test out a variety of games, videos, and more.

Get collaborative!

Bring your team together and collaborate in real-time using whiteboard or editing shared documents directly within Gather.Town.

Get personal!

Remember to create some private spaces throughout your custom Gather.Town space to give your guests a place to sneak away for a private conversation.

Get promoting!

Creating your gather space is just the first step to hosting a successful virtual event. Be sure to think through how you will promote the event, invite your guests and introduce them to Gather.Town features so they know where to go and what to do when they arrive. If you’re looking for a partner to help you create a one-of-a-kind virtual space and market it to your audience, contact us – we’d love to help!

– The Ironistic Team

Some great things to do virtually are:

• Online Office Games: Great team-building experience in a virtual world.
• Virtual Happy Hour: Enjoy a beverage of your choice and unwind with some friends/colleagues.
• Coffee & Conversation: Start your morning off with a little virtual water cooler chat.
• Cooking together: Hop in the kitchen for a cooking class. Cook together or share recipes.
• Exercise/Yoga: Enjoy a class together.
• Refrigerator Game: Ask friends to share pictures of the inside of their refrigerators ahead of time and then have them match the pictures to the person.
• Learn a skill together: Photography, painting, creative writing – anything that you’re interested in learning.
• Dinner Party: Pick a theme for the event and everyone brings their own dinner. Share recipes!
• Movie Night: Watch a movie together or choose a movie ahead of time for everyone to watch before the gathering. Discuss the movie together.
• Book Club: You can get together to discuss the book by chapter or choose a different book each month. You can involve children by choosing kid’s books and reading together online.

– Mary Ann Jacobsen, Human Resources

1. Host some sort of Alternate Reality Game (ARG) to launch a brand/initiative.
2. Lean heavily into the video game space by creating product-specific experiences.
3. Partner with Minecraft festival.
4. Set up monthly digital vendor suite with multiple speakers/sellers available at booths.
5. Gather.Town app for smart TVs/Stadia/Xbox/PS5.
6. Promote Gather.Town’s “Breakout session” capabilities.
7. Create a showcase Suite that shows the different kinds of offices you can have.
8. Partner with an Automotive brand for a digital car show.

– The Ironistic Team

It’s always fun to get together and even better when you don’t have to fight traffic. Gather.Town Events can be great for the following:

• Happy Hours
• Team Meetings
• Coffee Chats
• Social Media Groups
• Pet Nights (Show off your fur baby!)
• Game Nights
• Book Clubs
• Music Swaps
• Remote Dinners
• Karaoke

– The Ironistic Team

Have fun with it! Utilize the unique and customizable options Gather.Town offers within the platform to mix up the event experience virtually. Gather is a refreshing alternative to your typical (and boring) zoom calls.

– The Ironistic Team

• Sponsored Sessions
• Townhall conferences
• Watch parties
• Happy hours
• Pre-recorded keynote speakers
• Ted Talks
• Product releases
• Influencer takeover
• Sip and paint
• Cooking classes

– The Ironistic Team

It would be fun to have a virtual movie event, Battle of the Bands, shopping, or even a cool, virtual expo that you could wander around.

– Jennie Linn, Customer Success Manager

• Fantasy Sports draft events
• Movie/TV Watch parties
• Hosted Webinars & Seminars
• Concerts
• Virtual Store

– Justin Trevorrow, Technical Manager