Pushing Zoom to the max!

Yesterday we managed the Italian Meeting Industry Conference with the topical theme of how meetings are to start up again. With over 2000 subscribers, the obvious choice was to hold a webinar. But since we have all been cooped up for so long, the organizers wanted to have as many faces on screen as possible so participants could see colleagues, partners, and friends, and have unrestricted chat between themselves and the panelist. Thus, we pushed Zoom Meetings to the max with their 1000 participant package (everyone was informed that the overflow would be on Facebook). So, how did it go?

Well, audio held out quite well, which is always the most important part. Video, instead, suffered a bit as the video was choppy. From a service point of view, Zoom should look into their product packaging and ensure that they can actually deliver the same quality for all audience sizes. After all, if they are offering it, they should stand by their claims. On the other hand, scrolling approximately 20 pages of faces was quite an experience. It really made me appreciate the wonders of modern technology.

As usual, expectations need to be managed. The possible outcomes were thoroughly discussed but the added value of having everyone potentially on screen was the driving force that made us push Zoom Meetings to the max. All in all, everyone was satisfied with the outcome.

If you are ever planning on putting up such a large meeting, check out the video so you can see what you’re looking at.