The onset of the global pandemic in early 2020 disrupted every facet of our world. Businesses and employees were caught off-guard and were forced to make drastic changes in the way they conducted business. Almost a year later, we are still facing the challenges posed by COVID-19 and are far from returning to normalcy. As the CDC enforced social distancing standards in the U.S. to control the spread of the virus, large in-person events had to be canceled.
Changing Environment in Event Industry
Today, virtual events have taken a front row to make protecting the health of clients, vendors, and employees a priority. Aventri, a cloud-based event management software, has helped thousands of brands globally transform how they plan, promote, execute and analyze their virtual, hybrid, or in-person events.
The pivot to virtual events has helped businesses continue their operations. However, virtual events have brought in their own set of challenges. Steve Yellen, head of the product strategy team at Aventri, has been closely observing the changes in the event market.
According to Yellen, since the pandemic began there has been an evolution of virtual event requirements. Businesses initially pivoted to virtual offerings by getting their feet wet and doing their first few events in the summer and fall of 2020 on a small scale. Now, event organizers have become more comfortable handling events that involve more than 5,000 or 10,000 attendees. The team at Aventri understands these changing needs and has revamped its virtual event platform to support clients adjusting to the new environment.
Revamp of Aventri's Virtual Event Platform 2.0
Aventri is set to roll out Virtual 2.0, an upgraded version of their virtual event platform in spring 2021. Some of the key highlights of Virtual 2.0 include:
Networking and Matchmaking: Virtual 2.0 will provide attendee matchmaking (networking recommendations) that can match attendees based on mutual interests, facilitating a structured environment to help businesses promote networking through their live and virtual meetings.
Attendee Engagement: A major portion of the audience attending events is on the lookout for networking opportunities in all shapes and sizes. Marketers and organizers need to realize that engaging with other attendees and engaging with the event organizer themselves lies at the core of networking. Virtual 2.0 will provide newer capabilities that can open up new avenues for attendee engagement.
Monetization and Sponsorship: Monetization has always been important to marketers and event organizers, long before virtual events. Virtual 2.0 will provide businesses with tools for more formal sponsorship capabilities through lead generation opportunities via virtual booths.
Virtual Event Booth: As attendees can no longer walk around physical trade shows, Aventri has provided virtual event booths to incentivize through clicks, conferencing, and more. Exhibitors and sponsors can configure virtual booths and interact with attendees via video conferencing or chat sessions.
Modern UI and UX: In a world of business commitments and technical dependencies brought about by the pandemic, a modern platform is a must to add value and promote attendee engagement. Virtual 2.0 will come with modern UI and UX that can provide a rewarding attendee experience.
