COVID versus The Event Industry
Our clients started cancelling live events in February 2020. Because of this it became obvious that COVID wasn’t here for the short term. It was real, and it was serious. Social distancing was enforced, and as a result event calendars were wiped for the year ahead. Event organisers were put out of work and so they were forced to evolve. The good news is, technology has enabled us to do just that.
Hybrid and Virtual Meeting Platforms
Initially it felt like unfamiliar ground, comparing virtual platforms. Getting together with friends for a ZOOM party; what was it like, did it work, would you do it that way again or differently? The possibility of this being our future on a professional level was almost like starting a new career.
How do we go about this, where do we start and what is on offer. Enter virtual and hybrid meeting platforms. Yes it is true, they exist and they are changing the way we not only interact with each other, but the way we run events.
Hybrid events capture both live and virtual attendees whereas a virtual event is just that, a virtual experience only. Having just seen a second wave of COVID hit Australia, virtual events seem the only sure thing in the foreseeable future.
Virtual meeting platforms provide a seamless and intuitive online experience. These platforms allow you to participate at a virtual event, as you would at a live event. Live sessions, easy to navigate agendas, networking functions, exhibitions, poster sessions, access to sponsors, meeting hubs and live Q&A are just some of the features on offer. It is changing the way event professionals and the event industry operates.
Watch This Space
COVID has ironically granted the space to learn, to grow and to support our clients with their events in a clever way. Virtual and hybrid events are here to stay, they will connect, entertain and educate people amongst the crisis of this global pandemic.