COVID-19 has definitely changed the event’s industry in an unprecedented way, but changes will stick way longer than post-quarantine and social isolation times. A few regions are slowly opening their doors again, with more relaxed “stay home” rules and commerce slowly starting to reopen. While events are still not happening, we are already thinking about what the future of events will be like once things go back to “normal”. 

With the businesses that are getting ready to reopen, we can observe that things are not going back to what they used to be. It may be temporary or it may be long term, but you should expect caution for at least the next one to two years to come. Businesses are ensuring their spaces are safe and clean, designing spaces that avoid crowds and improve walking traffic flow, and measures are being taken to provide a safer space to all: employees and consumers. In this new scenario, it’s tough to imagine how events will occur, since one of the main selling points of events is exactly to get people together. So what will change and how we, as event professionals, can plan for the future of events post COVID-19?

In a hybrid event, attendees have the option to choose to attend the live event or to watch the sessions online. Many large conferences already offered this option pre COVID-19 as a way to provide more affordable ticket options for those who couldn’t afford the high ticket price for the full event, or could not travel to the event destination. We expect this to become a bigger trend, as people may still avoid large crowds for at least another year (or more) to come. 

Busy tradeshow and conferences filled with people are no longer synonymous with a successful event, this can in fact make people uncomfortable or even detract people from joining the event. Showing that your event is implementing measures to ensure everyone’s safety can help to get more buy-in from prospects, sponsors, and exhibitors. More than ever, planning the use of space and crowd management will become an extremely important part of the job of event planners. For example:

If you haven’t done so yet, going digital can help your events to stay safer in many ways by avoiding the exchange of materials, handouts, swag bags, cash and more. Here are some ideas to replace physical materials to digital options (and you can check this blog post for a few more ideas on this topic!):

For event planners with a large portfolio of events, it may be time to re-evaluate the technologies supporting their efforts. Having a hybrid platform at this time will help planners to manage all event components from one platform, whether online, in-person, or hybrid. Using event technology software like Attendease will allow planners to host in-person events with online components while giving better flexibility to manage fully online and fully in-person events as well. Using cloning features, which allows planners to duplicate previous events to create a new one, is yet another form to make the job more efficient, especially when working with a large event team.

As we see this new reality unfold, it’s important that we keep learning and thinking about ways to pivot and adapt our events to this new world we are living in. If you’d like to gain new insights in this regard, watch this webinar on-demand with guests from HubSpot, MPI Group/ PCMA, and Attendease, discussing how to pivot from in-person to online events. 

With the disruption of the events’ industry due to COVID-19, many event managers are now pivoting their in-person events into online meetings. While hosting a single-session webinar may be a breeze, hosting a multi-session online conference can seem like a daunting task for event professionals planning events in the online space for the first time. Knowing this is a big challenge even for experienced planners, we put together an implementation guide to help you manage your next multi-session online event. You can read the implementation guide here. Now, if you want to learn how other event leaders are managing this challenge, don’t miss our next webinar: an Online Panel with top-notch specialists who will share how they are transitioning from in-person to online events.  Some of the topics discussed will include:

Hosted by: Sureena Parmar, Account Executive at AttendeasePanelists: Kerry Sheehan: Partner Event & Community Manager at HubSpotShawn Cheng: Project Manager, Conferences at MCI Group Canada, and President of PCMA Canada – WestTroy Kasting: Customer Success Manager at Attendease 

Join us to learn how you can smoothly transition into the online space and how to ensure your corporate events keep running and your employee and customer engagement remain high. Register here to watch the.

While the number of confirmed cases of the COVID-19 is increasing by the day, event producers around the globe are faced with the tough decision whether or not to proceed with their in-person events, to cancel it, or to shift the event into an online or virtual event. 

While shifting in-person events online may not be how you envisioned your event, it is a great way to keep the event happening and keep people connected. In times where governments are pushing for social isolation and limiting large gatherings as a measure for precaution, virtual events and meetings provide an efficient solution to keep people together.

Attendease, an all-in-one event management platform for all event types, has a robust set of tools to host and manage online events, from webinars and livestream broadcasts to virtual meetings and conferences.  This upcoming Thursday, March 19, the team at Attendease is putting together a webinar to showcase how event managers and planners can use online event management software to shift their in-person meetings into online events.

Register today to save your spot! 

With many global events being canceled due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, event managers are looking for solutions like Attendease as an alternative to bring in-person events online

The World Health Organization have declared the novel Coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency, and the fear of spreading the COVID-19 is presenting businesses in the events and travel industries with an unprecedented global challenge. Governments are imposing event bans and new regulations to ensure safety, airlines are cutting down the number of flights to and from Asia, and companies are restricting employee travel in an effort to protect their welfare. 

“The current business environment is uncertain, with COVID-19 causing concerns with day-to-day business operations running as usual,” Attendease CEO Todd Heintz said, “With this uncertainty, the need for staying connected and able to collaborate with others is even more critical, and the Attendease Platform is ideal to enable the event teams from being able to support their events, even as public interactions are temporarily on hold.”

While the number of confirmed cases of the COVID-19 in North America are much smaller when compared to Europe and Asia, that number keeps growing by the day. To date, according to the Channel News Asia, a transmedia company owned by Mediacorp, there are over 80,000 confirmed cases in China, compared to 91 in the United States. With that, some large scale American-based events have decided to proceed with their agenda and are seeing sponsors dropping and/or a significant number of attendance drop as well. With so much fear and uncertainty around, many event producers are considering alternatives to running in-person events.

Leading collaboration technologies like Attendease, a versatile enterprise event management  platform, can fill that demand. Having an event system in place that allows the flexibility to manage events of all types and sizes can be the solution event managers have been looking for to temporarily migrate live events into online events. 

The core differentiating feature of Attendease is the versatility to empower events of all types and sizes, meaning in times of uncertainty around in-person events, large global organizations can still maintain connections and collaboration for employees and customers through online and private internal events. The Attendease Platform supports both online streaming and recorded sessions, giving attendees from different timezones the opportunity to watch replays at a time that is most convenient to them. The recordings can be available for the public or it can be private with users required to  register in order to watch a session online. One advantage of using such a versatile platform, is that it can provide accurate attendance metrics, incorporate online surveys, and integrate with other corporate systems. 

Are you thinking about bringing your events online? Talk to our team to see how Attendease can help!

Event management has gotten a lot more complicated in the past few years. With new technologies coming up regularly, it can be overwhelming to stay on top of the fast changes in the industry. There’s a constant need to reinvent events, all while trying to increase productivity and work more efficiently. Meeting and event planners have to keep current to continuously manage a range of fields – analyzing data, planning, communicating, and most importantly transforming ideas into real experiences.

Needless to say, this complicated discipline of event marketing is powered by productivity. Since 2020 is set to be a busy year for event planners, here are 5 event planning productivity tips that will help event planners make the most out of their days:

The first rule of administrative command is prioritizing tasks on the basis of importance. With the overarching vision of the event serving as the parameter for judging the importance of tasks, tackling each task at a time is the most efficient way of getting things done. Time management and focusing on the right objective at the right time is the secret to efficient event planning. Prioritizing doesn’t mean rating certain event-related tasks as unimportant, it means doing the right thing at the right time.

As the event planning cycle is very similar in nature for every event type, you may consider creating a system that can be used through the entire portfolio of events you manage. For example, to plan for a conference you may start with booking the venue (so you can set on the date), followed by finding speakers and attractions (so you can promote the event), and reaching out to sponsors (to secure funds). Tasks that would take lower priority on the early stages of event planning may include catering, AV, promotional material, and more. Here’s a workback schedule template that can help you plan, prioritize, and delegate all aspects of your event.

Events have become increasingly analytics-based. There are various measurable factors that determine the success of an event. Hence, every important decision you make should be backed by information. Making data-based decisions also gives event managers the chance to improve with every decision.

Measuring Net Promoter Score (NPS) at the events, a metric for evaluating customer-loyalty for a brand or product is a great way of incorporating data into your event management processes. Also, conduct thorough surveys that surpass mere opinions and stories. Use calculable metrics to verify that the choices you make are impacting the event in a positive way.

Using data to make practical decisions helps event managers to learn from their mistakes and plan better events the next time. Since all decisions are being made based on prior results, event managers can reject ideas that haven’t worked in the past.

Despite the scientific approach that all event managers are obliged to have when planning for events, at its core event management is still a creative process. Without innovation and the skill to anticipate what attendees may or may not like, event managers will never manage to host successful events. Innovation is what makes an event stand out.

Team up with creative partners — design artists, comedians, musicians, entertainers, furniture and visual effects artists. The goal is to make your event as appealing as possible. Challenge your creative partners to do their best- from designing event merchandise, to creating Instagram worthy spaces.

When selecting an event destination, be sure to inculcate certain aspects of that region’s culture into the event. Since there are going to be a lot of local attendees, integrating the culture of the community into the event is a great way of showing appreciation and making the event feel unique.

Collaborate with the Convention and Visitors Bureau of the locality to ensure you incorporate all the right cultural aspects of the place into your event so that your guests have a memorable outing. Take into account the nature and demographic composition of the region your event is being held in to steer clear of any oversights.

Event management software can save event planners a lot of administrative time and make teamwork more efficient. There are actually a number of benefits of using event technology to help you be more productive. Event management platforms help event profs build event websites and manage registration, ticket sales, event schedule, attendee messages, and more. Here are some ways you can save time and be more productive working with an event management platform:

Event management solutions like Attendease can help you by providing intuitive digital tools for event professionals across multiple industries. Event automation platforms can help you automate important processes like registration, event check-in, event surveys, email notifications, and more. User-friendly features in a website that cuts down on the time needed to carry out these tasks individually boost the productivity levels of the event management team.

With all the effort that goes into organizing a perfect event, there’s always the risk of an unforeseen error. That’s where all this preparation helps. By following these essential tips, event managers will be ensuring that they are fully prepared to battle any unexpected circumstances.

Want an easier way to manage events in 2020? Attendease helps event managers create customized, branded and full-featured event websites while managing registration, passes, attendee communication, event analytics, and more. With a tool like Attendease, event managers can provide their attendees with a comprehensive one-stop-shop for all the event-related information that they need.

Sponsorships are the lifeline that keeps the events industry sustainable. An important aspect of event management is finding the right sponsors who can provide the right financial assistance needed to pull off a big event, in exchange for brand exposure. 

Over the last decade, event sponsorship has become the primary way in which events receive funding, products, and other services. Undoubtedly, the most lucrative form of sponsorship for event managers, the brands too gain a lot from these events. For them, these events serve as an extremely specialized branch of promotion and marketing, bringing together brands and potential customers/business leaders on a face to face basis.

For example, the watch company Rolex was one of the first brands to support TED conferences. Rolex created short promotional videos and played them at various TED Talks. The event marketing campaign was called, ‘Rolex’s DNA: innovation and design’, a theme that suited the nature of TED Conferences.

Budget

In a survey conducted by EventMB in 2019, it was revealed that over 70% of event professionals who spent over $5 million on events in the 2019 budget plan to spend even more on event technology in 2020. 57% of the event professionals who took part in the survey stated that the budget needs to increase in order to improve the event experience.

Organizing an event is an expensive undertaking. Ticket sales rarely recuperate the expenses. Ticket prices also have to be kept affordable to ensure maximum attendance. What’s an event planner to do? Sponsorship.com revealed that in 2017, sponsorship spending in North America on events reached 23 billion dollars. Sponsors make events financially feasible, keeping ticket prices reasonable, ensuring the implementation of the latest and the most innovative event tech.

Credibility

When brands and event heads enter into a partnership, both parties can gain credibility from each other. A great example of both parties coming out as more credible due to an event is TechCrunch Disrupt and New Relic. The cloud-based software platform New Relic started sponsoring the TechCrunch Disrupt events in the early 2010s. 

Since then TechCrunch Disrupt has become one of the most highly anticipated conferences in the technology industry with their event “Hackathon” which pits contending hackers against each other, gaining a widespread following. Both New Relic and TechCrunch Disrupt gained credibility due to this exchange. All events are aimed at brands and events lending and sharing credibility while increasing the number of potential customers and event registrations.

In 2020, finding event sponsors is not going to be difficult. Businesses have enough evidence proving that events are one of the most, if not the most effective form of marketing – both B2B and B2C. Here’s a complete guide on how to improve your event with event sponsorships.

Before you start reaching out to potential collaborators, you must have a clear overall vision for your event. Answer key questions like –

Only after thoroughly analyzing your ideological goals can you start planning for the practical ones. Brands are extremely particular about how the event will feel for attendees. The way they want the attendees to communicate with each other and the brand may not align with your views.

Teaming up with organizations that do not share the same vision as that of your event brand is pointless. Another important criterion is the experience of these organizations in sponsoring events. If they have limited or no experience at all, teaming up with them may not be fruitful in the long run.

Find organizations and brands that fit your overall event idea. For instance, partnering up with a meat company for an event about sustainable eating habits isn’t ideal. Choose only after thorough consideration and create a detailed list of potential event sponsors with their contact information.

Once you’ve created a list of potential sponsors, the hard part follows – pitching the event idea to them. Be it via mail, phone or personal meetings, pitching sessions shouldn’t be used by event managers to pander to all the demands that potential sponsors may make. It should be a collaborative endeavor focusing on important issues such as –

The better the communication is during pitching, the better the outcome. Even if an organization rejects the pitch, it is much better to clearly state everything in advance instead of facing disappointment and confusion in the future. Event managers need to communicate the value the event can add to the brand.

A fair exchange of value is what organizations are looking for when participating in such conversations. They care more about how the event will affect their bottom line. Hence, conveying crucial data such as –

The sponsor may also ask for event-specific data, statistics, etc. You can collect such data from previous events, especially if you use event management platforms with data collection and analytics visualization dashboards. Overall, communicating value and guaranteeing returns for the sponsors is the most important aspect of pitching. 

Explain in simple terms every benefit, incentive, and necessity in clear terms. The sponsors should know exactly what to expect in return for their investment. Since large sums of money are usually involved in sponsoring large events, a detailed projection report must be provided to every sponsor you pitch your event idea to. Another great way to convince sponsors is to provide them with testimonials from previous sponsors.

Since securing all the required funding from one or two sources is not possible, it is better to offer brands different sponsorship packages. Create multiple levels of sponsorship, each granted with various benefits and plugged at varying prices. For example –

Make sure to make the sponsorship page on your event website as optimized as possible. Use rich graphics to design the page.

Lastly, once a pitch has been made, event managers will have to give a clear ROI estimate to the sponsors. To prove that your event can return the amount you want them to invest, you must provide them with data from past events, information about attendee demographics, and testimonials from past sponsors.

Show the sponsors that you have teamed up with a professional marketing event automation platform like Attendease. Automation platforms are essential tools for event management teams. They help in creating a scalable event planning process. A partnership with a reputed platform like Attendease will indicate the sponsors that the event is set to be an intuitive, seamlessly branded and convenient experience for all attendees. 

Refrain from forcing sponsors to increase their level of interest. Teaming up with only the companies that suit your event ideals is a better approach than teaming up with anybody and everybody who is willing to pay money. Innovative event ideas when powered by the right sponsors have the potential to create something special. Use this guide to find the right sponsor for your event. 

Want an easier way to manage events? Attendease helps event managers create customized, branded and full-featured event websites while managing registration, passes, attendee communication, event analytics, and more. With a tool like Attendease, event managers can provide their attendees with a comprehensive one-stop-shop for all the event-related information that they need.

The events industry has been behind some of the most innovative tech conferences in the past decade. Opening the doors for new business prospects, these conferences are places where the top professionals meet and showcase their innovative concepts and bold theories for the future. Needless to say, 2020 is set to be another bar-raising year for event management professionals. Here’s a complete round-up of the ten best event tech conferences that you should be excited for in 2020.

Scheduled for October 13th-15th, 2020 in New York City, this is a must-not-miss for every event professional on the East coast. With three exhilarating days already planned, this year’s Event Planner Expo will focus on building industry relationships, allowing top influencers to network with professionals from the industry.

What to look forward to –

Even in this digital marketing age, nothing beats the power of face-to-face experiences. The Experiential Marketing Summit has become the event industry’s mega-show and brings together b2b and b2c brand-side marketers, executives from leading event agencies, meeting planners, tradeshow organizers, event strategists, experience designers, event technology gurus and more. Each year, our attendees hail from more than 32 countries—a great testament to the global growth of a booming experiential industry.

What to look forward to –

C2 is known for being one of the most progressive business events in the world. In its fifth year in 2020, the event plans to take greater strides by providing professionals from over 60 countries and 34 different industries with the latest industry trends via exclusive events for event organizers. The event is going to be held on May 27th–29th, 2020 and already has over 7500 registered attendees, 57% of whom are executives and senior managers.

What to look forward to –

Set to be held this September 15th-17th, 2020 in Las Vegas, IMEX America plans to hold over 180 classroom-style educational and networking seminars that are guaranteed to give every attendee a clear insight on how to mix creativity with hard-work and technology.

What to look forward to – 

The most significant yearly conference for wedding industry specialists, this two and a half-day conference, set to be held on November 17th-19th, 2020 in Las Vegas is a must-not-miss. Wedding industry experts will be speaking on wedding trends, what technological advances to expect this year and more. The seminars will be entirely focused on helping new entrepreneurs elevate their business reach.

What to look forward to –

http://wec.mpiweb.org/events/wec-grapevine

MPI WEC is one of America’s foremost guidance and networking conferences for event professionals. The theme of 2020 will be exploring the importance of authentic events and how authenticity is the new currency for up and coming professionals. Set to be held in Grapevine, Texas on June 6th-9th, 2020, here’s what you can look forward to at this event-

March 9th-12th, 2020 will be three special days in Las Vegas as two of the finest event planners join forces – The Special Event and Catersource are set to hold a combined event which will have conferences, tradeshows for event and catering specialists and interactive sessions with some of the world’s leading event marketers, business owners, chefs, caterers, designers and event planners.

What to expect –

EVENTtech joined forces with the Experiential Marketing Summit (EMS) in 2019. In 2020, May 11th-13th this event will give attendees a chance to meet top marketing and event industry experts from across the world. The event will be held at the famous McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago.

What to look forward to –

Attendees always get to experience creative and educational conferences at Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC). This year, the event will be focused on finding new and more innovative hospitality solutions. It is set to be held in June 15th-18th, 2020, in San Antonio, Texas. 

What to look forward to –  

Historically, one of the most exciting event planning conferences, the NACE Evolve Leadership Conference in 2020 will be held in Dallas, Texas and will focus on bringing together some of the leading event professionals from across the country. The NACE Evolve community already has 3,500 professionals as members. The event will be held on January 24th–27th, 2020. It is known for providing first-rate educational tools and resources to attendees, and for hosting industry experts.

What to look forward to –

There is simply too much to expect in 2020 for event professionals in the USA and Canada. Use this updated list of the top marketing and events technology conferences to plan out your calendar and boost your networking skills. It is time to explore new horizons of the events industry.

Another easy way to learn more about event management in 2020 is to get an all-in-one event management tool like Attendease. Attendease helps event managers create customized, branded and full-featured event websites while managing registration, passes, attendee communication, event analytics, and more. With a tool like Attendease, event managers can provide their attendees with a comprehensive one-stop-shop for all the event-related information that they need.

In 2020, events are going to become an even stronger pillar of B2B and B2C marketing. With major organizations like Salesforce, Google, Adobe and HubSpot investing heavily in planning out innovative and interactive events, the smaller organizations aspiring to be industry leaders have to rush into event planning just to update their marketing strategies. Top B2B Chief Marketing Officers plan to allocate almost 30% of their marketing budget to event planning in 2020. 

While this is good news for event professionals, they need to start preparing to handle all of this work that is set to come their way. From determining and meeting event targets to choosing a top planning software to use – there is simply too much to focus on. Adopting a clear event strategy will be critical to seize this great opportunity. Here is a comprehensive guide for event professionals as they gear up for what could be the busiest year of their lives. 

The planning stage is unquestionably the most important. Event managers must set a clear schedule prioritizing each step of the event. From choosing what type of event will best suit the event objectives to a clear budget – decide on every important factor during this stage. 

The first and the most significant step of your event plan is determining the reasons behind organizing the event. Answer these important questions at the start of the planning stage – What are the objectives behind organizing this event? 

The most common event objectives include:

As much as companies have evolved with progress in technology, face to face interactions still are as important as ever in marketing. All of these objectives are achievable when an event is well-planned. It is the duty of the leadership team to determine the main goals of the event and prioritize them so that a clear event schedule can be devised. (If you want to learn more about setting your event plan, check this whitepaper with a comprehensive step by step guide to building your event plan.)

During the planning process, event administrators must also have a clear estimate on –

Based on these estimates, the leadership team must then create a final budget. Itemize every possible expense. Leave some room for additional expenses. Without a set budget approved by the leadership team, it becomes impossible for workers down the line to determine the safest promotional channels for the event and the necessary tools needed for managing these channels.

Lastly, event profs must decide on what types of Event Management Tools they must use to ensure that the event goes smoothly. Modern event planners have to use event management tools to keep track of every activity. Depending on the budget, select some of these key tools necessary for efficient event management –

A comprehensive solution is to get an all-in-one event management tool like Attendease. Attendease helps event managers create customized, branded and full-featured event websites, supporting from the simplest to the most complex registration needs. Offering all the key features needed to manage your events, Attendease power their platform to provide attendees with an intuitive, seamlessly branded and convenient digital experience to go hand-in-hand with a live experience. 

With a tool like Attendease, event managers have a comprehensive one-stop-shop for all the event-related information that they need. Here are a few features you can expect: 

Once the planning process is complete, start sending invites. Create a comprehensive mailing list to reach out to masses of potential attendees. Inform them about event details and create a countdown to the event. A simple mail mentioning a detail like ‘7 days left for you to register for the best tech event of 2020’ can influence potential attendees to check out the event website. 

Update the event app and website. Create an event hashtag and encourage target attendees to post about the event on social media websites using the hashtag. Start reaching out to social media influencers to create hype around the event. Publish a press release detailing the activities that are expected to take place at the event. Press releases, blogs and articles about the event increase the chances of potential attendees hearing about it. 

In all of the event-related content, focus on mentioning how unique and different the event is going to be. Mention the names of notable guests, speakers, event goals and outcomes in all the event-related content that you post. To make sure that the event details are read by a large number of people, reach out to top Press Release Networks like 1888 Press Releases, SB Wire, PR Newswire, PR Web and Business Wire. By doing so, target attendees and journalists will start receiving Google Alerts on their phones alerting them about the upcoming event. 

Once the word is spread about the event, team leaders must use all media avenues to promote the media in the best way possible. This includes email marketing, blog posts and social media integration. The best social media platform for promoting events is Facebook. Create a Facebook event and invite all potential attendees. Send customized messages to these potential attendees informing them about registration time, costs, best ways to reach the event location and the benefits that they can get from attending the event. The key question to ask when promoting the event is – what should potential attendees be expecting when signing up for the event? Raise their interest and expectations. 

Team up with SMO and digital content marketing experts so that regular posts containing high-quality images, infographics, etc. can be made on the official event page. If the budget allows it, hire videographers to create and edit promotional videos. Create a promo code for users and track how many times this code has been used to get a better estimate of potential attendees. Offer discounts and prizes to attendees for sharing event related content on their social media profiles. 

If the planning process is precise and detailed, managing the event surprisingly becomes the easiest aspect of the entire ordeal. Especially for event administrators who have invested in a customized event app, it is very easy to keep track of attendees. Make sure all the attendees are satisfied with the event proceedings. Greet them with a welcome email or an update on the event app containing the Wi-Fi password and other relevant information. Encourage visitors to engage with each other and take part in the planned activities. Ask attendees to take part in brand-related or event-related surveys. 

Make sure to follow up on all the attendees via mail. Ask them about their experience and thank them for visiting. Now that all the guests have left, the final task is to assess all the collected data. The event objectives are already established so match them with the overall event Return on Investment. Adopt an attribution and analysis model. Assess the success of the event by analyzing the total number of attendees, attendee surveys, number of business engagements made, etc.  

2020 is the perfect year for event managers to balance technology with face to face communication. Events are usually very successful because they are the most personal form of marketing. As long as event admins have a clear set of objectives and the necessary event technology tools needed to achieve those targets, they can expect great results. The goal must be to create unique and memorable event journeys for visitors – an experience that they will never forget! 

Need professional help with planning your 2020 events? Attendease is one of the leading names in the field of all-in-one event management software. Offering all the key features needed to stay relevant in 2020, Attendease provides event managers with an intuitive, seamlessly branded and a convenient digital experience that goes hand-in-hand with a live experience. Book a demo to learn more.