Technology must be embraced by event organisers to maximise real-world impact warns Sli.do's head of interactive
Event organisers must embrace technology to maximise the impact of real-world events, according to the head of interactive Q&A platform Sli.do.
“Event hosts should be experience architects that can manage audience participation moments”, Sli.do’s Juraj Holub told an audience at Social Media Week. “We want to make non-attendees look back and think ‘that looked amazing. Why wasn’t I there?’”
“User experience is everything,” he continued. “Our research shows that 74 per cent of your average audience at an event fears public speaking. So if you want to create public interaction you need to make it pain free, be that by using a social engagement tool like sli.do, or even just a piece of paper where people can write comments. Prompt the dialogue and make it easy for people.
“Live displays can boost interactions. For example, the same people who might be scared of asking a question aloud might be drawn by the appeal of seeing their question appear on a Twitter wall.”
Jon Ross, managing director of social media agency, Social Fuel, agreed that technology can play a key role in improving the event experience.
“Make guests feel special and take away their pain points,” he said. “Start with some of the most irritating things, and improve them. Make it as easy as possible for people to get registered, get in, and find the info they want.
“We do a lot of research pre-event to find out what subjects attendees are most interested in, then strategically place infographics, or quotes from the speakers about the venue so that they will be photographed and shared.
“Similar principles apply to B2C events. You also want to provide opportunities for the audience to create content that they want to share – for example fun photo opportunities. It’s simple, but effective.”
“But don’t forget to promote your hashtag,” added Holub. “At the recent launch of the iPhone 6 Apple assumed people would know the hashtag to use so they didn’t promote it heavily. People ended up using different variations, which fragmented the conversation. Make no assumptions.”
Organisers should also plan to extend the lifespan of an event, both in the build-up and in the aftermath.
Marino Fresch, head of marketing at event technology platform, Eventbrite UK, said:
“We’ve reviewed a number of festivals and found that 54 per cent of discussions between attendees happen before the festival.
“And social sharing of ticket purchase has a significant positive impact on further ticket sales.”
Meanwhile, Ross highlighted the importance of having a post-event content strategy.
“It’s very important that you keep the conversation with your community going,” he said. “Straight after an event you have a window of opportunity to connect with people who you wanted to come but didn’t using highlights packages.
“If you can make them think ‘I wish I was there’ then you stand a much better chance of getting them to attend next time.”
The story was written by Adam Reed, senior editor of digital agency Zone.