4 Ways to Inspire Exhibitors to Adopt New Technology
The "If it ain't broke" mentality sounds good if we're talking about a bicycle or a toaster. But when we're talking about business tech, people in every industry have a natural reluctance that blinds us to possibility. Yes, it's working fine, but it could be working better. When we introduce new tech, we usually get a big surge up front from the early adopters, and then it tapers right off. So how do you hook those people in the middle and keep the bell curve going? Here are the markings of successful tech adoption at events:
1. The Tech Serves The Attendees
You know your market, you know what your attendees are all about. Technology that helps them meet their goals will be welcome, while tech that does not will be regarded as mere clutter. Tech geeks love new tech for new tech's sake, but most business professionals will allot their time and attention only to that which has a clear, practical purpose for them in their work. If you want your attendees to use the technology, consider these questions: What problem does this solve? What task does it make easier? You'll need to consider these questions beforehand, because these are the questions that attendees are going to want answered.
2. The Event Is Structured To Encourage Engagement
You can't just drop new tech onto a crowded event floor and expect people to be excited. The event has to be orchestrated so as to encourage engagement with the new technology. Integrating the new tech directly into the event will help attendees to understand precisely what makes it useful. Distributing an app for the event instead of brochures and physical maps, for instance, will go a long way towards pushing engagement. Wherever you can incorporate the tech, incorporate the tech.
3. You Can Count On The Wi-Fi
No matter how good the tech rollout is on every other front, if people have trouble accessing wi-fi on the event floor, it will all be for naught. This can be the number one barrier to engagement. You may have a tech-savvy crowd eager to engage, tech that's intuitive and easy to pick up, but if people simply can't connect then what good is any of that?
4. Attendees Have Been Primed
Getting people excited for the new tech that's going to be coming to the event through an email campaign can be very helpful. Even better: You can get people acquainted with the tech before they see it firsthand. This way you can save time on in-person tutorials, since many of your attendees will already have grasped the basics from the email campaign. This can drive enthusiasm for the tech and make it seem less alien on first encounter.
Even in tech-heavy fields, there's always going to be a reluctance to embrace something totally new. This can be a problem at events, where you need everyone to get up to speed quick. But by following these guidelines, you should be able to maintain a higher rate of success in adoption to the new apps and gadgets.
Original post on Expo Pass.
How to Keep Attendees Engaged Before Your Event
Creative Ways to Communicate and Interact - Before Kickoff
As an event planner you've no doubt learned a few tricks when it comes to interacting with the public to promote your event. Sure, your marketing team likely has a hard-hitting strategy in place, but take a moment to ask yourself, "What really will make pique interest?" Chances are, what worked five - or even two - years ago isn't quite catching the eye of your audience, so your attendee engagement today has to be just as amazing as your event agenda and catering menu to get people excited and in the seats.
When it comes to the event planning industry, we've seen it all - the blanket email blasts, the social media shout-outs - but in a world that revolves around an inbox of promotional emails and social media posts, is your current communication strategy the most efficient for keeping you top of mind to your audience? Understanding best practices for maintaining streamlined and consistent engagement strategies and how they help to keep interest levels high is a priority in the event planning space.
Read on for some creative ways to make sure your message doesn't get lost in the shuffle:
Ask For Feedback And Ask It Often
Who doesn't like feeling included in the planning of something great? Engaging with attendees through surveys, polls, and even quizzes not only offers and interactive means to gather audience data and new ideas, it allows your audience to feel like they have a stake in the outcome of the event - meaning a more engaged audience on site!
Set up short polls on Facebook and Twitter, create an online quiz, and send surveys via email in the months leading up to your event. You'll be surprised at the amount of valuable feedback you'd be missing out on by not asking!
Content is King
While much of your database may consist of previous event attendees and engaged email subscribers, how are you promoting your upcoming event to brand new eyes? Creating engaging, organic content through a series of blog posts, LinkedIn articles, and guest posts on sponsor websites is an effective way to boost engagement with potential attendees who are searching for specific industry-related content. Respond to comments and lead impromptu discussions with your audience to keep them interested.
People trust industry experts, so positioning yourself as a thought leader on your event topic makes you and your event even more reputable than you already are - and who doesn't want that!
Give Registrants a Means to Interact Before the Event
Promoting an event doesn't stop at a catchy event hashtag. We live in an age where we can communicate with whomever we want anytime we want - so give your attendees a way to network with one another before they sit down to listen to the Keynote speaker! Consider using a LinkedIn group, a slack thread, or even better use an online event management system. Give your attendees access to event FAQs, networking with fellow industry professionals and solution providers, and a place where they themselves can post questions to their counterparts. Creating this buzz ahead of your event is a creative way to add an air of excitement for what's to come on site.
Say Hello - Face To Face!
Give attendees a sneak peek into the content of your event by hosting a webinar! Ask one of your speakers to host it and focus on a topic or two to discuss with your audience, complete with Q&A and a chat panel. Your webinar attendees will appreciate getting an inside look into their investment and you'll be able to use that data to tailor future marketing messages to them leading up to your event. A small taste of what's to come can be enough to keep your attendees talking not only to you, but to their colleagues and cohorts too. And who doesn't love a few extra registrations?
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Getting creative and having fun with your audience sets the precedent that your event is one of a kind, while opening the lines of communication with you and their fellow attendees ahead of event kickoff. The work you put forth engaging your attendees ahead of your event will help facilitate livelier discussions and more interaction once they're on site - and that's an event planners dream!
Original post featured on Expo Pass.