Event Content Spotlight: Effective Event Content for All Learning Styles

Everyone’s brain operates a little differently! We’ve all heard people mention that they’re visual learners. Or perhaps they’re auditory learners, reading/writing learners, interpersonal learners, or kinaesthetic learners. Some people might not have identified their exact type, but they know that some event sessions they’ve attended over the years simply “worked” better for the way they prefer to process new information. 

Accommodating your attendees’ learning styles is a critical part of smart, inclusive event content planning. Whether you’re an event leader planning out the big-picture agenda for your next big conference, a content manager evaluating and reviewing external submissions, or anyone else involved with event content, considering how your attendees can best absorb the content improves engagement, learning outcomes, and overall attendee satisfaction.

Fortunately for busy event teams, the keys to creating content for various learning styles can be simple. There’s no need to pursue advanced studies in psychology and neurology or learn convoluted color-coded quiz systems to get it right. Based on our experiences working with high-performing event teams, we’ve compiled some quick tips:

Start with industry practices and role preferences. One easy first consideration: How do people in your field or within each expected attendee group typically prefer to learn? Although individual variety will no doubt exist, certain industries may attract a large number of learners wired to favor a particular form of presentation. For example, B2B sales reps who spend their fast-paced days in conversation may learn best if they can speak to others and role-play in dynamic conference sessions rather than silently viewing a series of slides.  

Offer a mix of formats. When planning the event agenda and reviewing event content submissions, consider adding a field to all documents and tables referencing potential sessions to indicate the learning style(s) the session most strongly serves. Speakers might also have preferred presentation and teaching styles, creating a natural balance. When the agenda is released, include the format, planned activities, and other relevant information in session descriptions. Attendees can favorite sessions and build out their event schedules based on their desired style. With this information, a learner who wants to explore an advanced topic by listening and taking notes, for example, won’t inadvertently wind up in a session centered on a group whiteboard exercise. 

Make it interactive. Regardless of format and targeted learning style, most event sessions can benefit from incorporating interactive elements when possible. Even an introductory thought-provoking exercise or series of quick hand-raising polls scattered throughout the presentation keeps audiences engaged. Gamification, surveys, and other technology-enabled interactive features not only further boost engagement, but also provide valuable data from attendees for their global attendee profile. 

Embrace flexibility. Finally, accommodating attendees’ learning styles at your event is valuable, but it shouldn’t dominate every content decision. Event teams know that a variety of important factors go into their selection process. Your final session catalog might not have a perfectly balanced mix of presentation types — especially if you identified earlier that many of your likely attendees share a common learning style. Encourage open-mindedness and exploration among attendees. They likely already experience content and events presented in a range of styles throughout their everyday work lives. At your event, they may even find they enjoy learning in a whole new way!

Learn more about how RainFocus’ streamlined content capabilities support an efficient content management process and a seamless guided content experience for every attendee.