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Brands explore how to maximize the impact of significant events by extending their reach in the digital domain. You connect speakers to a broader audience as a producer/scriptwriter/moderator for the digital program.

What is new: Events are no longer a face-to-face channel, and excellent hybrid deliveries are non-trivial to plan and execute.

Why it matters: Extending your reach beyond physical visitors can help you receive

📜 Interstitials only or engaging with speakers in a conversation: Interstitials bridge between topics, and can be tightly scripted in advance or briefly summarize the main points and teeing up the next question. An alternative is to engage with speakers in a conversation around each topic. Starting with the main question, and adding follow-up questions and color vo

The latter delivers more exciting sessions. It requires that you, as a moderator, be more up to speed on the subjects, but it also gives you more as a knowledgeable and integrated part of the conversation.

📝 Written or digital Q cards versus memorizing 🧠 talking points: As the moderator or emcee, you ensure flow in each show. In its simplest form, you introduce speakers who deliver a keynote-like talk. The next step is to do more interviews for fireside chat-like sessions. Speakers depend on you to set and keep the pace—a job you can do in two ways.

Q cards with write-ups of questions and talking points are well-proven support tools for moderators. You can choose the classic paper option or keep them in digital form on a tablet or smartphone. Please pay attention to how you structure your digital Q cards so you can read them easily on your target device.

The alternative is to memorize all questions before going live, an approach that can make you appear more prepared and engaged. But in the middle of the action, staying on top of all the notes for a complete session is hard. Aim for micro refreshes in between major topic shifts or when switching speakers.

3️⃣ Support speakers with storytelling by focusing on three crucial points for each subject. Interacting with subject matter experts can add value to the preparation phase. Hybrid success depends on solid face-to-face and virtual deliveries. Focus your efforts on the virtual delivery and what it takes to come across strong in front of a camera.

This journey often starts by simplifying stories to make them come across well on a screen. Consider a few proven models for how to support SMEs to structure their content:

• opportunity centric (identified problem, target outcome, proposed solution)
• timeline (what is new, what was it like before, how do I change)
• action-oriented (why, what, how/when)
• activity-centric (what did you do, what did you learn, how can your audience take advantage)

With stories scripted for digital deliveries, you increase their odds of turning out well at showtime.

🕹 Customize your moderation to give each speaker the proper support. Your SMEs will likely have strong subject matter expertise but varying speaking skills. Strong speakers are comfortable with keynote-like deliveries, but less experienced speakers can come across better in a fireside chat setting.

Tune your moderation to give your SMEs the proper support. Varying moderation support between sessions is more entertaining and brings out each speaker’s best selves.

⏱ Stick to your pre-defined time plan: Virtual deliveries, especially live, are an art in sticking to your time plan. I ask the producer to give 1-minute left notifications at pre-defined milestones in the program to push the transitions to the following sessions.

The following session lengths are my baselines for planning each step in hour-long sessions:

7️⃣ minutes, when the interaction is only between you and the SME

6️⃣ minutes when you co-moderate with an account representative. Color commentary by the account representative adds value to the audience.

5️⃣ minutes, when you, an account representative, and a customer moderate. Giving excellent results when you know how to close each session.

Sticking to your plan can seem challenging, so make sure both co-moderators and SMEs are on board in advance.

🪗 Tailor questions to speaker pace: No matter how much you prepare in advance with speakers, the pace of the talk will vary at show time. By adding questions to the flow, you can extend a session where the SME is direct or deliver very quickly.

Other speakers might talk slowly or deliver comprehensive answers, where you need to find ways to cut them short. Find a term you can throw in, like “That was a good point,” that the SME knows is your signal to move on.

Bottom line: These six tricks help you be a better moderator, bringing out the best in your SMEs for the digital portion of your event program.

Inspired by a series of moderations from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona between 2022 and 2025.