The Cloud Conventions Podcast: Recent Episodes
Convey Services
Cloud Conventions is The Platform for Virtual Events, Conferences & Trade Shows. In this podcast we talk about trends in the industry, emerging technologies, best practices, and the general process of hosting or complementing your events virtually.
Before the term collaboration was a thing, there was “conferencing” where I’ve spent the bulk of my business career. I’ve seen technology evolve from having an AT&T operator dial out to connect everyone to their call to where we are today with an array of low-cost video and collaboration tools at our fingertips. The real story doesn’t necessarily lie in how technology has moved the ball forward, but rather the profound impact it has had and continues to have in the way we get our jobs done while at the same time helping us balance the way we live.
When I co-founded InterCall in 1991, we had a very simple premise. Companies with a distributed salesforce or field team just could not hold conference calls. So instead, managers had a Monday phone day, called everyone individually and spent hours repeating the same message with each team member. So, we simply asked them to use an 800 number to dial in, have a weekly conference call and get everyone on the same page in an hour vs. an entire day and that simple concept transformed how managers worked with their remote teams and how much more those individuals felt connected to their organization and that their opinion mattered.
Let’s face it. Most of you who are in the event industry and are listening to this podcast probably think that the online experience we all had to create over the last two years to produce our tradeshow, conference or event was a passing fad. After all, mask mandates are disappearing, the event halls are filling back up, and people are coming out of their houses and traveling again.
Historically, the event industry has always been strongly rooted into paradigms that dictated how we should all think about our events and how we should deliver them. Now, I’m not an industry professional, but I’ve had a long business career and attended dozens of tradeshows and conferences, so here are some paradigms that were deeply rooted in this industry before the Pandemic changed them.
The research that I’ve read about the future of live events all points to the fact that no matter what happens with the Pandemic, having a virtual attendance option is something that an overwhelming majority of organizations want to incorporate in 2022 and beyond. But having said that, if you make that statement to event organizers, they may agree in principle, but not in practice. It seems as if the big elephant in the room is that to them, virtual represents a set of complications that make it harder to plan, execute and fund when you’re having to create an event for both the virtual and physical world.
I’m getting ready to be the mother-in-law to a newly graduated nurse who earns her bachelor’s degree this December. Getting an education during the Pandemic has been more than a challenge for her especially with COVID restrictions that significantly reduced the hands-on clinical experience she needed to feel more confident to work with patients as she enters the workforce. However, as our company has been called on more and more often to deliver virtual and hybrid events for nursing associations, I realize that the challenges my daughter in law will face as an RN are going to be profound.
So, I took a deep dive into the nursing association virtual conferences that we have been privileged to deliver to learn more about how these groups are using virtual during these conferences to bring their membership together, address the challenges that nurses face, and get their members prepared for what continues to be a fast moving and ever-changing healthcare environment.
Here is what I learned from how our virtual event customers and the key challenges that they are helping their nursing members address.
What happened after 9/11 gives us a clue as to what will likely happen to the event industry. Even though live events are returning, the industry will likely not go back to a time where there are little to no technology options to participate virtually. Here’s why:
You’ve put most of your effort into pre-event marketing, building out your content strategy and making your virtual booth memorable. Now it’s time to think about the follow up. Virtual events almost always have extended timeframes for attendees to watch live sessions on-demand and come back to the exhibit hall to explore the virtual booths. Extend your marketing plan to include on-going follow up with attendees.
Having worked with so many exhibitors, I always advise them to have a strong follow-up plan and utilize the following strategies.
Strategy #1 is to follow up quickly
Exhibitors often collect attendee contact information all the way through the event as individuals respond to calls to action. Use that data to segment what they are most interested in and have your plan ready to follow up within 24 hours after the live portion of the event ends.
If the only thing an attendee can do inside a booth is look around, then the exhibitor has missed opportunities to get the attendee involved with the booth staff, participating in educational opportunities, or having a path to get important items delivered to them. Calls to action enhance attendee engagement, keep them in the booth longer and accomplish what the exhibitor values most...valuable sales leads.
As someone who has worked closely and trained with a lot of exhibitors, I always recommend they utilize the following calls to action to boost attendee engagement, and really get the most value for their time, energy, and money.
Exhibitors participating in multiple events use different technology platforms that host their virtual booths, all of which are different. Successful exhibitors get to know the technology for each individual event, gain a full understanding of the features and learn how to leverage them to enhance the attendee experience. Exhibitors must compensate for virtual booths that offer fully-featured immersive experiences to those that are more basic.
It's important to learn the features of the virtual booth in order to get the most value for your efforts, and create a positive experience for attendees. After working with hundreds of exhibitors, I’ve seen great success for exhibitors who take some times to understand the technology in order to get a grasp of all the features available to them. Here is a list of a few strategies for exhibitors to incorporate into the virtual booth and become familiar with in order to create a successful and dynamic booth.
Smart exhibitors ask for data before, during and after the event and use that intelligence to adjust strategy. Attendees often register for virtual events at the last minute, and sometimes don’t ever login. Exhibitors should understand how many people are actually active in the platform to adjust their expectations. If available, exhibitors should closely monitor booth traffic, content views and engagement to adjust their strategy mid-event if needed.
Here is a list of ways you can utilize data; these can be extremely beneficial in helping your company to stay updated and make any necessary adjustments.
Let’s face it, virtual conferences and tradeshows struggle to keep things interesting. When the event fails to delight the audience, that gives the exhibitor an opening to step in and make the attendee experience memorable inside the booth. The more creative the booth appears, the more the activities inside the booth are interesting, or the more the content is engaging, the more the exhibitor will be remembered.
Attendees will pop into dozens of booths each day of the event, so getting creative and making your booth stand out from the others in crucial. Here are a few ideas you can incorporate into your booth to really wow your attendees, and make your booth memorable.
Exhibitors that excel know how to position themselves as industry experts, trend-setters and educators. They go beyond just having sessions focused on selling their product, and instead showcase their expertise in the marketplace, what is trending, and the changing face of the customer. A content strategy defines the exhibitor inside the booth as well as on the show’s event stage.
As an event manager I’ve worked very closely with exhibitors in helping them develop a content strategy. I’ve seen some exhibitors do a really great job with this, and I’ve seen others that really miss the mark with their content strategy. Here is a list of a few insider secrets that will help you to develop interesting and successful content.
Move around the virtual exhibit hall and visit various booths and it’s clear to see which exhibitors just ”phoned it in” and those that worked hard to build a better booth. Booths that attract attendees and hold their attention have compelling graphics, offer video content, upload the right marketing and product materials and have a strategy to give attendees what they need and want.
I’ve assisted countless exhibitors set up their virtual booths, and I’ve seen some exhibitors really do a great job to create a dynamic and captivating booth, and some that just miss the mark. Here is a list of some strategies that I’ve seen that work really well for exhibitors.
The booth is only one segment of the event platform and successful exhibitors know how to place themselves outside the booth to elevate their profile. Sponsorships offer exhibitors advertising placements, sponsorships of sessions, the opportunity to host the social sessions and coffee breaks, have premium placements in site directories and be showcased in the exhibit hall pavilions.
As an event specialist, I’ve worked on many events that offer sponsorship opportunities for exhibitors. I’ve seen the value that these sponsorship opportunities can bring, including much more attendee engagement, recognition, and better quality of leads. Here is a list of some different ways you can think outside of the booth for a more prosperous exhibitor experience.
The time to engage attendees in a virtual event is not when it opens; it’s well in advance. Successful exhibitors have a strategy to let the market know that they are exhibiting at the event, tease potential attendees about what they will experience if they come to the booth and give people reasons to meet while the show is live. Successful exhibitors use every promotional tool at their disposal including social media, email marketing and press announcements.
Here are some ways exhibitors can engage with the audience before the event even starts.
Companies sometimes incorrectly assume that exhibiting at virtual shows is easier, less labor intensive, and requires less planning than a live event. While most of the manual labor of traveling and physically setting up the booth is eliminated, a clear and concise plan is still crucial to a successful event. Companies that don’t prepare ahead of time or don’t give themselves enough time to strategize are likely to be disappointed when they don’t receive the ROI they were hoping for.
After working with hundreds of exhibitors, I’ve seen what works and what doesn’t work for exhibitors, and here is my list of what exhibitors get right during their planning process, so you can incorporate these into your own planning strategy.
**Your company had to transition your exhibit to a virtual environment in 2020 and now with 2021 on the horizon, virtual events will likely be your primary tradeshow and conference strategy. This calls on you to reimagine the trade show booth, find ways to attract people to you, and create calls to action that result in sales leads. And you want to be personal, stand out from the crowd and motivate attendees to engage.
We have launched our next eBook series and podcasts: The Insider Secrets to Exhibit Success. Here is an overview of what you will learn when you listen to our podcasts and download our eBook.**
The platform that powers your event can be one of the most critical decisions you make. Picking the wrong platform will leave you frustrated, cost you more in time and money, and underperform. It’s critical that your technology match the size of the audience, the complexity of the event, and your capacity to manage some of the components if needed.
I should know because I manage the product and platform that drives Cloud Conventions. Certainly, we are not a perfect technology, but we’ve been evolving the platform based on mistakes that we ourselves have made and ones we see customers make when they pick a platform that doesn’t work for them. Here are some common mistakes to avoid in selecting your event platform.
It’s not enough to state that you want to hold a virtual event and make it your primary goal. When you run your company, association or nonprofit, you are clear about who your customers and prospects are, your financial objectives, your position in the marketplace and what makes you successful.
Delivering a virtual event should follow that same philosophy. If you fail to understand and set goals and objectives for your event, the focus becomes unclear and it’s virtually impossible to create a successful plan.
Here are a few reasons why our customers sometimes miss the mark on their virtual event.
Events that fail pack their programs full of content or don’t have enough of it. Without the right balance, attendees tune out because they become overwhelmed or don’t tune in at all because there isn’t enough to look at. Don’t expect attendees to stay online for hours in front of their computer and don’t skimp on the content risking that attendees will decide there is not enough value for them to invest the time to participate.
As an event manager, I’ve been intimately involved with my customers in the design, planning and execution of their content strategy. And I’ve seen events where they really nail it and delight their audience and those that totally miss the mark.
I think all event planners understand conferences, tradeshows and events being planned for the latter part of 2021 and beyond will not look like meetings from the past. Although we’d love for everything to go back the way it was a year ago, returning to live events will be more gradual than we think. A recent Harris poll of 2,000 people revealed that 60% of those polled would not be comfortable in large events and crowds until herd immunity is achieved.
Although creating a virtual event was hard for most of us, having online options for event attendance is what audiences in the fall and beyond now expect, so we can either fight the change or embrace it and evolve our strategy. Because we will now have audiences that travel to the venue, those that are behind their laptops and some that do both, our goal is to create an experience that is equitable and meaningful whether the attendee is logged in or on the exhibit hall floor.
Now, many of you are likely thinking that we’ve not seen a hybrid event so we’re right back where we were a year ago...in the dark, not really understanding how to satisfy an audience that participates in the same event but in different ways. The reality is that we’ve been involved in hybrid events for decades but perhaps just didn’t think of it that way. You may love watching football games from the comfort of your living room, listening to the sports commentators, and watching the instant replays. However, there is another audience that traveled to the stadium and experienced the same event, but just in a different way. That football game is a good example for both audiences, despite the fact that one group watched it from home while the other was in the stands in the middle of the action.
We still have to figure out what hybrid means when we plan our tradeshow, conference or summit, but the change is upon us and our audiences are expecting us to figure it out for the fall shows. Listen now for three things to consider in your virtual vs. live event strategy design.
For today’s podcast we will focus on a some of the biggest mistakes companies make when hosting a virtual events, specifically how to avoid having unsatisfied Exhibitors & Sponsors
In today’s environment companies are inundated with requests to participate in virtual events. They struggle to learn multiple platforms, figure out how to sell in a digital world, and find ways to attract attendees into the booth. Events that fail to provide exhibitors what they want most: leads, interactions, and a strong ROI will create a community of companies that won’t support you when the live event returns, be there for the hybrid experience or join the next virtual event.
Much of my time helping companies execute a Cloud Conventions tradeshow or conference is spent helping my customers create a strong exhibitor and sponsor strategy. If your strategy has flaws, then your exhibitors will walk away feeling deflated and disappointed. Here are some critical mistakes that we see events make in the way they manage their exhibitor and sponsor strategy.
We are getting more and more confident as more of us get vaccinated, feel comfortable to get back on an airplane, and are ready to connect at tradeshows and conferences. Just to be on the safe side, event organizers are delaying their live shows until August and beyond to make sure that their audiences are ready to hit the show floor.
If we had a crystal ball and could have predicted how disruptive 2020 and 2021 would have been, I’m sure we would have gone to our insurance brokers and added “pandemic” as a trigger for being compensated if an event couldn’t go live and stage in Vegas, Orlando, Chicago and beyond. So, as we get ready to go live again, how should we ensure that our audiences can see those new products from exhibitors, get their CE credits, and connect with each other? And that our event can fund our budgets and make us a profit?
Attendees have logged in but are confused about what to do next. Exhibitors don’t know if anyone is looking through their booth. People are expecting big things from the event, but don’t know how to navigate, find the right sessions, explore the exhibitors they care about and find all the ways to connect with each other. If there is a gap in what people expect and what you’re delivering, attendees and exhibitors will walk away dissatisfied.
On this podcast we will be running through one of the top mistakes to avoid when running virtual events. We will focus on engaging your audience so that a registrant becomes an attendee.
Learn More at Cloud Conventions »
Our team has watched hundreds of exhibitors across many, many virtual trade shows and conferences that we have delivered over Cloud Conventions in 2020 working directly with a large number of companies as we helped our customers stage their event. So many exhibitors and sponsors were hoping to get a lot of sales leads, have a crowd of attendees enter their booth and approximate their experiences from a live event. The reality is that most of those exhibitors walked away disappointed.
Here are some lessons that we learned about what it takes to make exhibitors succeed in a virtual tradeshow, conference or event.
The move to virtual events in 2020 came on slowly as people believed we’d be back on the tradeshow floor in the summer. But the harsh reality of the virus caused trade shows, annual meetings, conferences and summits to all go virtual. Unlike simple conferencing, virtual events proved to be much more of a challenge because people were unfamiliar with technology, struggled to translate their live event into a new medium, and faced criticism for attendees who were bored and exhibitors that didn’t get a return on their investment.
This is the first in a podcast series designed to take the lessons we have learned and offer ideas on how to operationalize them as we plan our virtual events for 2021. 2020 was the year of the “pivot”, but let’s all commit to having 2021 be the year we get it right.
This podcast series is going to focus on hosting and managing virtual shows, with regard to the lessons we learned, the mistakes we’ve made and seen our customers make and help our new industry continue to do better. So, we’re going to start with some common mistakes and how to avoid them and then with each subsequent podcast do a deeper dive and then make all of this content available to anyone that needs it.
Learn more about Cloud Conventions »