Actual article date: Jul 3, 2013

The traditional way of organising an event assumes attendees/exhibitors networking as an aftereffect. Basically, attendees/exhibitors are left to fend for themselves when they signed on to events that promises huge networking potential at their events but provides no medium for them to tap on the potential.

In recent times, event organisers and PCOs are gradually realising the potential in crafting special networking sessions to improve attendees ROI (and not only their own ROI). At the same time, by analysing the potential of networking in an event is actually a marketable perk.

It is high time that we look critically at how to maximise attendees networking experience.
But first, how does an event organiser realise the face-to-face potentials at their event?

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1. Are event apps the mean to an end?

Event applications are great when you are visiting and require information of the event. However to download and app itself is a huge barrier and while this fact is not well documented, we have heard that the conversion rate at events with apps is actually pretty low (one case that was presented to us is that out of a 10,000 people event, only ~100 person downloaded and used the event app).Furthermore, do you really want to download an app that you might use for a day or two? After speaking to many attendees, the general consensus is that there is more incentive to download an event app if there’s a networking feature. However, they don’t really want to be overwhelmed by the mass of information that organisers tend to squeeze into their apps. Event apps have to be useful, not just informative. The most easily accessible, scalable and least expensive way to allow easy access to event information is to actually modernise and make your event website mobile optimised. With that, you won’t need to fret over the type of devices that is being used, be it Android, iOS, firefoxOS, WP8, Blackberry… you figured. So much better than building apps to fit the different devices and then end up… having a web app version too.

Fundamentally, event apps are cool. But are they effective?

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2. Crafting specialised networking sessions!

Speed networking and private meetings at exhibitors booths are the most valuable face-to-face networking sessions that organisers can provide. Instead of mindlessly scanning badges as well as speaking to the random guy next to you, attendees can definitely better craft their experience at events. And that, is really up to event organisers to organise and provide the relevant tools to facilitate specialised networking sessions.Over here, we are strong believers of crafting our networking experience BEFORE an event, and following up with them DURING the event itself. “Inbound networking” at it’s best. Technology has enabled us to do just that that and the traditional model of accumulating leads DURING an event and following up only AFTER the event itself, needs to take a backseat. Setting up specialised networking sessions need to start pre-event. However, it is still a laborious challenge for event organisers to generate meetings manually. And that is why Jublia exists: to facilitate the laborious process by automating the setting up of meeting schedules and provide a pre-event networking platform that makes following up on leads DURING an event possible.

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3. The Holy Grail: Analysing your event networking potential

How many good leads is your event generating? Which industry/person/company has a great interest in networking with who? How is the networking at your event distributed? Are you sponsors getting their worth in terms of tapping on the networking potential in your event?These are great questions which few event organisers can answer. The capability to answer these will make your event stand out from the rest as attendees can now quantify and justify why exactly attending your event will do justice to their ROI. The best marketing is done when your event’s value is well defined.We currently provide a post conference networking report for each event organiser that uses our networking platform. That is however, just a surface view of what we can analyse in each events based on attendees demographics, networks and leads.

‍Big Data for events has huge potential in shaping the events industry in times to come!