Beyond virtual career fairs: 7 virtual events to help your members grow their careers

When it comes to career advancement benefits for your members, virtual career fairs aren’t the only way to help your members in today’s virtual world. Here are seven virtual events you can host to give your members new ways to grow their careers.

We’ve written a lot on this blog about virtual career fairs. And for good reason: They’re popular ways to connect job seekers with employers looking to make new hires.  But when it comes to providing career development opportunities to your members, they aren’t the only way to help your members grow their careers in a virtual environment.  

Here are seven types of virtual events you can host to give your members a convenient, dynamic, and low-cost way to advance their careers: 

1. Online virtual conference – Taking your annual conference online is a great way to connect companies in your industry with your members at a time when in-person events are still a challenge. You can go a step further and turn your virtual tradeshow into a member acquisition tool by inviting non-members.
    
2. Online résumé review – Offer your members and industry job seekers free résumé reviews and online coaching given by expert résumé writers and career coaches. You can even tie the event into your annual conference or a recruiting event.
    
3. Online mentoring event – Plan an event that connects mentors and mentees. Provide an online space where the two groups can engage one-on-one – which can be set up by specialty, region, or subject matter. Offer a public forum for group conversations and allow conversations to be saved for future planning.
    
4. Virtual networking event – Community Brands research shows that networking is one of the primary reasons members join an association. Invite members to connect after hours in a casual online setting by hosting events that can be run by region, job specialty, or other themes. These events can also be mobile-optimized so attendees can log on from anywhere in the world.
    
5. Online learning event – A study on member engagement by Community Brands shows that members place increasing value on having ways to connect and learn year-round. Consider hosting a topic-focused event that’s relevant to your industry or profession. This type of event can help you engage members in a meaningful new way by providing an online venue for members to learn.
   

   TIP: Take your learning events even further: Integrate Crowd Wisdom learning management software (LMS) with your career center to do things like offer courses from your continuing education program directly on your career center home page and promote relevant courses based on members’ job searches.

6. Online membership event – Why not offer an event that’s solely focused on your association? Provide a venue for professionals in your field to learn about your association and all it has to offer. Set up booths dedicated to membership, learning and education, and careers, while giving yourself an opportunity to engage with prospective members and increase your membership.
    
7. Multi-focused virtual event – Bring together the benefits of more than one of these types of events by hosting an all-in-one event that combines different themes that complement each other. For example, you might have a combined membership and networking event or a career coaching and resume review event.

YM Careers by Community Brands is focused on providing association professionals like you with career center and career event solutions like the ones in this article that help you deliver more of the career advancement benefits members seek.