Leveraging Technology to Enhance Meetings

Adding a technological edge to your events offers a wealth of potential benefits and can be used as a unique engagement tool for your attendees, it easily bridges the gap between education and entertainment. With the average attention span often recorded at around 10 minutes, there’s a good chance a lot of the information that is being offered and displayed won’t be completely captured by your guests. When it comes to putting on an event that makes an impact you need to do something a little different. Using technology to organize and facilitate the smooth running of your event isn’t anything new, but it gives you so many options that will enable you to create something that will live long in the memory of your attendees.

Here are few tips on how you can increase the engagement, enjoyability and effectiveness of your next event with a little help from technology.

Event Apps

• A dedicated app can give your event extra advantage – you can quickly and easily offer guide downloads, interactive maps, push messages for all or segments of attendees and the ability to display presentation materials. The added bonus is you’ll also have the option for banner advertising, which could help you earn back some, if not all of the cost of the app in ad revenue!

• Make meetings fun with custom games that help you and your attendees achieve meeting objectives. Use them as a catalyst for networking or drive traffic to exhibitor booths.

• Provide a single interface for attendees to learn, connect, interact, and share – giving them complete control over their event experience, while generating a signal-rich data stream that helps you optimize events and the guest experience.

Video Mapping

Video mapping, or projection mapping, is a projection technology used to turn objects, often irregularly shaped, into a display surface for video projection. These objects may be complex industrial landscapes, such as buildings, small indoor objects or theatrical stages. Video mapping will give your attendees that unbelievable WOW factor, however, the benefits don’t just end there. It can be great for publicity and, if done right, you could find videos and pictures of your event filling up your delegate’s social media feeds.

Twitter Live Feed

Twitter can be a great tool for promotion in the run-up to your event but it can also be an extremely useful platform to use during your event.

• Live Tweets from workshops - let everyone know what’s going on and where so they don’t miss out.

• Opening Dialogue – Most live tweeting software options give the option to display live tweets on a Twitter wall. This can be a great way to open the floor to your audience allowing all, including the speaker to see the questions. You’ll be able to collect feedback, field questions and open a dialogue with your audience. At the Vancouver Convention Centre you can also display your event’s social media feed on a number of different digital screens.

Live Polls

Even though attendees are at your event or conference for the same reason, because they are passionate about what brought them there, presentations can still become dull or boring. Instead of letting your attendees doze off during a talk, use your event app to hold their attention and get them involved with a live poll. A recent survey and found that events that included live polls saw 240% more app visits when compared to those not using polling services. Polling can be about anything including opinions on hot topics, determining emerging trends or even the subject matter the audience would like to talk about next.