Fusion Collective Summit Recap

Behind the Scenes of a Virtual Business Summit: What It Really Takes to Pull Off a Multi-Day Event

Have you ever thought about hosting a virtual summit, but felt overwhelmed just thinking about the logistics? You’re not alone. In the latest episode of Redefine Business Podcast, Brittni pulls back the curtain and gives us an honest, detailed look into what it took to plan and execute her second annual Fusion Collective Business Summit—a free, multi-day event featuring over 30 speakers, custom web pages, email funnels, social media campaigns, and more Diet Coke than she’s willing to admit.

Whether you’re curious about hosting your own online event or just love a good entrepreneurial behind-the-scenes, this episode is packed with insights.

Going Bigger the Second Time Around

Brittni first launched the Fusion Summit with a modest 10-speaker lineup. After learning the ropes during that first go-around, she decided to scale it significantly this year, setting a goal of 30 expert speakers across a range of business niches—social media, copywriting, business law, email marketing, and more.

To find speakers, Brittni started with her email list of over 10,000 and created an application form. From there, she and her assistant built out a database (using Airtable and automation tools) to keep track of applicants, interviews, and selections. She was intentional about speaker quality and reach—because in online events, speakers are often key promoters.

Speaker Expectations and Onboarding

One of the major upgrades this year? Clarity and communication. Brittni set expectations early on with contracts, email templates, and even Zoom calls with potential speakers to make sure everyone was aligned. This helped avoid the problem she faced last year—where only half of her speakers actually promoted the event.

This time, she emphasized the importance of speakers being present—even for pre-recorded sessions—so they could engage in the live chat, drop links, and answer questions in real-time. A bonus this year was a virtual meet-and-greet among the speakers, creating more opportunities for networking and collaboration.

The Tech and Timeline

Here’s the truth: pulling off an event of this size requires a lot of planning time. Brittni started about three months ahead, and even then she wished she’d started earlier. Between unresponsive emails, last-minute dropouts, and juggling the speaker lineup, the prep work was real.

Some key changes she made this year:

• Switched from live presentations to pre-recorded sessions (less stress and more consistency).
  
  
• Trimmed sessions from 1 hour to 30 minutes to improve engagement.
  
  
• Created a Contributor Hub for speakers with everything they needed: graphics, email copy, timelines, and FAQs.
  
  
• Built multiple custom web pages, including a sales page, thank you page, summit entry page, resource page with freebies and VIP upgrades, and more.
  
  

Email Marketing, Social Media, and Promotion

If you know Brittni, you know she doesn’t mess around with email marketing—and the Fusion Summit was no exception. She wrote 10+ promotional emails, warmed up her list, and built out automated email sequences for both free and VIP registrants. Each email included speaker spotlights, daily schedules, and strategic calls to action to upgrade to VIP access.

Social media also played a big role. With 30 speakers, she and her VA created speaker posts for Instagram and Stories, leveraged collaboration tags to increase reach, and even used ManyChat to automate DMs and link delivery. She also dabbled in Facebook ads and tested new tools to increase signups.

What Worked (and What She’s Changing Next Time)

The summit pulled in close to 500 registrations—a number she’s proud of, even if it didn’t quite hit her stretch goal of 1,000. She knows that with free events, not everyone shows up live, which is why the VIP upgrade is a key revenue driver. At just $97, it included replays, exclusive bonuses, templates, consults, and more.

Some lessons she plans to implement next time:

• Start speaker outreach even earlier, especially for high-demand topics.
  
  
• Consider SMS reminders to boost live attendance.
  
  
• Provide speakers with pre-selected topics to reduce overlap and improve session variety.
  
  
• Schedule more Instagram Lives and podcast promo ahead of time.
  
  

Final Takeaways

Hosting a virtual summit is a lot of work—but it’s also a powerful way to grow your network, expand your audience, and create momentum in your business. Brittni’s transparency and willingness to share both the wins and the hiccups make this episode a goldmine for any entrepreneur considering a summit of their own.

If you missed the Fusion Summit live, you can still grab the VIP replay—with access to 30+ expert presentations, a library of free resources, and actionable tools to level up your business.

CLICK HERE TO GRAB THE VIP UPGRADE