Isn’t live illustration very distracting? 10 reasons why hiring a live illustrator will make your online event more engaging

May 24

Written By Katie Chappell

“It’s not as distracting as you might think!

Nae messing about today - let’s get straight to the juicy bits.

*clears throat*

10 reasons why hiring a live illustrator will make your online event more engaging

60% of people are visual learners
The Zoom fatigue is real, yo
There are different display options - live illustration can be as visible or as subtle as you like
Hiring a live illustrator puts the spotlight on your amazing content!
Create a legacy after the event
Harness the power of timelapse videos
Live illustration makes your online event more accessible
Colourful useful notes = turbo boosted learning
and 6 x the remembering powers!
It’s fun :) for everybody involved

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1. 60% of people are visual learners

It’s true. Leave visuals out of your online event and you are making 60% of your attendees’ lives harder. Over half! Why make people work hard to listen when they’ve already given you their precious eyeballs and time?

2. The Zoom fatigue is real, yo

You don’t need an expert to tell you this bit. We’re all DONE with Zoom, but virtual events are not gong away any time soon. Make it fun! Have a laugh and remember more stuff.

3. Live illustration can be as visible or as subtle as you like

There are loads of different options!

This is where I get to put on my nerd hat. I have spent the last 14 months honing my live illustration approach for all kinds of client requests.

Every online event is different, and different companies want a different level of live illustration visibility.

Here are some of the most common options that strike the perfect balance between engaging and not-too-distracting:

Hi then bye
Let your attendees know there’s a live illustrator present at the beginning (I can even draw a little waving hand on my screen) and then I can sneak off and illustrate off-camera until the very end of the event for a grand reveal. It keeps people engaged and online - they want to see the final result!
GO BIIIIIIG
I’ll share my screen so my drawings are the main focus of the whole event. This is the less-oft chosen option (because it can take over a bit!) but if you want the pictures to be the focus, it’s brilliant.
Small but perfectly formed
Most common option!
My iPad screen shows instead of my webcam (through fancy software and special connections). People can choose to have a look at my illustration, but it in no way detracts from the main speaker/presenter.
Break time sneaky peek
Similar to the ‘hi then bye’ option, I draw off-screen, but share my illustration as a screensaver during the breaks.

4. Hiring a live illustrator puts the spotlight on your amazing content!

It’s all about yooou. I’m just showing you off, like you deserve.

5. Live Illustration creates a lasting legacy after the event

In one ear, out the other? NOT ANYMORE, YISSSSS. Share your illustration on your website, on social media, email it out to attendees (and to the people who didn’t attend so they can see what they missed). The sky’s the limit. No more online events dying in the cloud storage graveyard. Hooray!
p.s. I didn’t make up this phrase, the V&A Museum did when I worked for them. CLANG namedrop. flips hair I know.

6. Harness the power of timelapse videos

What’s better than a still illustration? That’s right - a timelapse video. One hour of drawing becomes 1 minute of illustration. It’s an incredible way to share and visualise information super fast. With attention spans the way they are in this age of technology, we need all the help we can get.