General Meetings (GMs) must be held at least once a year. This legal obligation can sometimes be a problem, especially during a pandemic when events and gatherings are banned (because of Covid, obviously).

An event as significant as a GM is hard to postpone, and sometimes requires reaching a quorum (the minimum number of represented votes needed for the meeting to be held).

Forced to hold a virtual or hybrid meeting, some companies are lost when it comes to organizing their GM.

Define the objective of the GM

Before diving into the ideal format (in-person, virtual, or hybrid?) for your event and the features you want to use, think about your objective. Does your GM require a quorum? Will you use this opportunity to communicate with your members, shareholders, or delegates? Who are your attendees? Defining these objectives can take several meetings within your company, but these are important questions to answer before creating your online events.

  • If your quorum is already reached through pre-voting or proxies to the chair, the focus shifts to communication. Your GM will let you reconnect with your members and share your outlook.

You will then need to create an event website and various invitation email campaigns or notices for your contacts to communicate effectively. There is nothing stopping you from holding an online general meeting. For this type of digital event, nothing beats a video broadcast from a production studio. As always, organization is key, as far in advance as possible. For smaller budgets, you can opt for your webcam or your video-conferencing room. In addition, favor content-sharing tools to share the resolutions that were adopted and rejected.

  • If your GM requires reaching a quorum, it is essential to plan a system that will help you achieve it.
    This comes down to a good digital communication strategy:

1 - Timing management

To maximize participation, and thus make sure you reach the quorum among your attendees or shareholders, you will need to send impactful emails at the right time. An event management platform can automate these email sends, so your company can focus on the content rather than the technical constraints.

Here is an example of an effective email sequence:

- A notice 10 days before, stating the date, time, agenda, and duration of the GM, as well as the option to pre-vote (if your bylaws allow it)

- A reminder the day before with the schedule, the connection link, and the check-in and voting protocol.

- A final reminder 15 minutes before the digital check-in begins, so guests can log in to the "live" session.

It is very important to check the click-through rates and open rates of your emails as you send out your campaigns. This will tell you about the overall experience you are offering as well as your audience's online engagement.

On top of that, gathering these statistics will let you anticipate the number of connections on the day and therefore your chances of safely reaching the quorum. You can also plan an "I'm attending the GM" button via a form embedded in your email invitation 10 days before, to make this tracking easier. Even though it is hard to confirm a shareholder's presence at remote events, you will get a better picture of the attendance rate.


2 - The user journey

Who needs to attend your General Meeting? Do you have auditors, members of your team, or other guests who do not have voting rights? If the answer is yes, it is essential to plan different user journeys for these categories of guests.

Indeed, they probably do not need to sign in with a signature and should not have access to the resolution voting tool.

Do not forget to share your bylaws with your chosen provider so they can make sure the voting solution meets your specific needs (voting colleges or GAEC structures, proxies, pre-votes, elections, etc.).

3 - The structure of the "live" site

A virtual event is by definition watched by a multitude of guests, all using different internet providers, smartphones, and computers.

Your solution needs to be responsive and compatible with most devices. In addition, favor a simple, clean interface so you do not lose users who are less tech-savvy.

Ideally, you should have a background image, a banner showing the name and date of the GM, a broadcast video, and a resolution voting tool, all on the same page.

Pro tip: If you want to share content with your members, send it after the GM so they stay focused on the vote and the video during the live session.

4 - Supporting your guests

Attending a remote GM is not easy for all your members. You should support them beforehand with clear, effective communication.

Also plan technical support on the day, so you do not leave them stranded if they have questions about connecting. You do not always need to go through an event agency, some platforms (like Digitevent) offer this service as well.

Finally, a private chat with attendees on your General Meeting site is ideal for handling requests and having guests with an issue called back, especially when you are expecting more than 100 people on the day.

Conclusion

Clearly define the objective of the GM: is it simply to communicate about the vote and its results, or to build a quorum of voters? Adjust your strategy accordingly.

Use an online event solution such as Digitevent to ensure data protection and a smooth experience throughout the meeting.

Do not forget that you will need a technical provider and support throughout the process.