Event planning is not only about logistics, budget, and venue. It's also about creating memorable experiences for your attendees, speakers, and sponsors. And one way to do that is to leverage emerging technologies that can enhance your event in various ways. In this article, we'll explore some of the latest trends and innovations in event tech and how they can improve your event experience.
The pandemic has accelerated the adoption of virtual and hybrid events, which combine online and offline elements. These events offer more flexibility, accessibility, and scalability for both organizers and participants. You can use platforms like Zoom, Hopin, or Remo to host live sessions, networking, and exhibitors. You can also use tools like Slido, Mentimeter, or Kahoot to increase engagement and interaction. Virtual and hybrid events can help you reach a wider and more diverse audience, reduce costs and environmental impact, and extend the lifespan of your event content.
The key to successful event technology lies in the following areas: 1- User experience 2- Marketing 3- Implementation From my perspective, Tech can professionally do all of them.
With a hybrid event, it’s critical to decide whether the at-home experience will be interactive or more like watching tv. Do you want to bring in-home people into the in-person experience? Or do you want something polished for them to watch? Either way, make sure to have people who’s only job is to run the at-home side. Otherwise, you end up with an at-home experience that’s like watching old home movies.
Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are technologies that create immersive and interactive experiences by overlaying digital content on the real world or creating a simulated environment. You can use AR and VR to make your event more engaging, memorable, and personalized for your attendees, speakers, and sponsors. For example, you could create virtual tours or demos of your products or services, provide gamified or educational experiences, enable remote speakers or attendees to join your event in a realistic way, or add fun and novelty to your event branding or marketing. These technologies can help you create truly unique experiences that will be remembered for a long time.
No doubt that emerging tech can enhance the way we do events. It start even way before the events is happening. The entire relation with the client can be improved. Starting with the use of AI bots to qualify and have a better understanding of a client needs, to a virtual visit in a 3d realistic render of an event space, to an assisted brainstorming session and marketing plan generation with tools such as perplexity.ai chatgpt (…) We can also benefit of the use of AR technologie to demo furnitures in an empty space without having to carrying heavyweights. Not to mention a sales process improved by AI (ex: Einstein GPT) All of this even before your event start… If I had more than 750 characters I’ll could keep going for hours…
Artificial intelligence (AI) and chatbots are technologies that use natural language processing and machine learning to understand and respond to human queries or commands. You can use these technologies to automate tasks like registration, check-in, or feedback collection, as well as provide personalized recommendations or suggestions based on attendee preferences or behavior. AI and chatbots can also enhance customer service and support by answering FAQs or resolving issues. Additionally, they can generate insights and analytics from your event data. By utilizing AI and chatbots, you can save time, money, and resources, improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, and optimize your event performance and outcomes.
Live streaming and social media are technologies that enable you to broadcast your event content live or on-demand to a wider audience and to interact with them in real time. By leveraging these technologies, you can expand your reach and visibility, increase engagement and interaction, create a sense of community and connection, and build brand awareness. Moreover, live streaming and social media can help you grow your audience, generate leads, create buzz, and enhance your event reputation and credibility.
Internet of things (IoT) and wearable devices are technologies that connect physical objects or devices to the internet and allow them to communicate or exchange data. You can use these technologies to improve your event in several ways, such as improving security and safety with tracking or monitoring, enhancing convenience and comfort with lighting, temperature, or music adjustments, providing personalized experiences through tailored content, offers, or rewards, and collecting data and feedback by measuring attendance, behavior, or satisfaction. Ultimately, IoT and wearable devices can help you create a more secure, comfortable, and customized experience for your attendees, staff, and sponsors.
We often forget that an event without staff is like a croissant without butter. I noticed that, when all this amazing technologies and their applications are listed we rarely mention the staff running the event. We speak about how beneficial it is for the clients, the business… what about the guys on the floors ? Don’t you think that being the one allowing all this tech to be in use, being the one doing long hours, facing stress and dealing with technical issues (…) they should be taken in consideration ? My team and I are working at changing this thanks to an app. We are super open to discuss the subject so feel free to reach, we’ll be happy to hear your thoughts ;) Best Thibault