The world of events is constantly evolving, with new conference tech making waves in the events industry. It’s tough for event profs to stay on top of all the latest and greatest in conference tech trends. However, using tech tools can help create real value for your next conference, so they’re a necessity. Below are 6 pieces of conference tech must-haves you can use to drive attendee engagement, interaction and satisfaction.
1. Event App
First and foremost, make sure your conference tech line-up includes an event app. Event apps are imperative for delivering a seamless and cohesive experience to attendees. Attendees can use an event app for networking, gamification, social media integration, content delivery, scheduling, venue navigation and more. Consider your event app the conference encyclopedia. Since attendees are constantly on the go, they rely on the event app to keep them informed at every stage. An event app is an absolute must-have conference tech tool.
2. Charging Stations
There is no bigger buzz kill than having a dead phone at a conference, so setting up a charging station is a no brainer. If people are as reliant on (some may even say addicted to) their smartphones as I am, they likely carry a spare charger with them. But for everyone who doesn’t, it’s important to offer a safe, secure charging station where attendees can leave their phones to charge.
Bonus: charging stations are also an awesome place for attendees to meet up or network with each other, or with the person manning the station.
3. Live Streaming
Share the wealth with people who can’t physically attend your conference by live streaming the event. Live streaming allows you to broadcast your conference to a larger audience, and there are many live streaming services that work based off a pay-as-you-view basis so that you don’t miss out on ticket sales.
4. Virtual Reality
VR is gaining more traction in the events industry, both with event profs and attendees. Many venues are using VR to give event profs virtual tours, and VR is popping up more on the tradeshow floor for demo purposes. While VR is still a relatively new conference tech tool, it’s increasing in popularity and has the potential to become a staple at your next event.
5. Wearable Tech
Wearable technology is an upcoming conference tech tool. From Google Glass, Apple Watches, Snapchat Spectacles and even handbags with phone chargers built into them, wearable tech is on the rise. And more event profs are integrating wearables into their conference tech line-up, starting with smart badges. However, smart badges are only the beginning. Wearable conference tech is paving the way for a new generation of events.
6. Beacons
Bring the power of proximity to your conference with beacons. Beacons can sense the proximity of nearby mobile devices and send/receive notifications using Bluetooth. This is a great tool for pushing information to attendees based on their location. For example, registration codes when attendees are near the registration table, exhibitor information when an attendee is near a booth and much more. Beacons are also great networking tools, notifying attendees when they are near people they might be interested in connecting with.
These conference tech must-haves will take your conference to the next level.
