The problem
Majority of the tech events and conferences that for years were in-person were forced to become virtual events due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Event organizers and companies that produced events, conferences and trade shows needed to find new ways to continue. The good news is that many virtual event platforms came to market which provided frameworks in shifting live events to virtual ones.
What is the ideal solution?
A survey of event professionals by etc.venues during its first hybrid event in 2020 revealed that almost three-quarters or 73% are planning to combine in-room and virtual events even before the end of the year. One of the reasons stated in the survey is the ability of hybrid events to offer the best of both the offline and online worlds as well as accommodate a larger number of participants.
Another survey conducted by e27.com reported that 60% of their respondents believe that digital conferences will play a big role in the future, despite the fact that only less than 10% of them have organized a hybrid conference before. This proves that there is a high level of trust and expectation for hybrid events even by professionals who have not tried it yet.
Research shows that a virtual platform for hybrid and virtual events offer solutions to the challenges presented by the pandemic. A virtual platform eliminates additional overhead costs while being customizable according to the theme desired by the organizer. Logistics-wise, with virtual platforms, event organizers are able to accommodate up to 15,000 concurrent users, much more than what it could if it was a face-to-face event.
Another advantage of a virtual platform is its ability to provide a rich content experience to the participants. It allows attendees to create conversations with each other, event experts and sponsors. Virtual event platforms further provide a personalized experience through the ability to customize tracks and manage calendars and agenda.
Our solution
The first Philippine‐based virtual event platform, Webplay Virtual Events by Waveplay Interactive, offers fully customized virtual venues from interface, features, to back‐end functionality. In a span of a few months, Webplay has successfully powered hundreds of virtual events for leading local and global brands. Its work has ranged from product launches, conferences, year‐end parties, virtual expos, sales rallies, and activations to name a few. With the birth of Webplay, the playing field for virtual events in the Philippines and Asia was reinvented.
What’s in store for the future?
Virtual and hybrid events are the present solution, but it might as well be the norm in the future. With more and more people getting online, virtual platforms have created ways for event organizers to pursue immersive and memorable brand engagement initiatives that used to be done on-ground.
