Often as an event planner the ‘main attraction’ of an event is determined before we are brought into the project to make the arrangements for an amazing event. The main attraction could be anything from a concert to a book signing to a circus act. Whatever it may be, it’s our jobs to get people into the seats for show time!
In my experience, there are three ingredients for a successful event: 1 part content, 1 part experience and 1 part chemistry. Given that content is often predetermined, that leaves event planners with the responsibility of creating the attendee experience!
Creating an atmosphere for your audience to engage with and drive the feel of your event is critical
Here are 5 different types of technology you can integrate into your event to build an amazing attendee experience.
Audio
It is quite common to see events start and end with networking and a mingling session. Audio is a great way to create ambiance and define the experience you are aiming for using background music. Music in between sessions and acts can help keep the audience’s attention, set the tone for the next topic or even give the presenter a kick in their step. Of course, audio before and after music events is often other related bands or upcoming bands within a similar genre. Either way audio impacts and defines the ambiance for the audience and sets the tone for the event.
Lighting
Lighting is a great way to set the mood for the event. Not only does it influence the audience’s attention, it can also build their enthusiasm depending on the design of your lighting display. Most modern concerts have elaborate lighting shows that tie to the music in order to create a visual interaction with the songs and to move the audience to feel the music in a whole new way.
At conferences and other non-musical events, lighting is a helpful tool to focus the audience’s attention in specific areas. When speakers are on and off the stage, lighting helps to redirect the audience’s attention and focus it on what you, the organizer, wants the attendees to pay attention to. It is a powerful tool that commands attention and definitely changes the event experience.
Projectors
Keep the audience informed with what is going on by using projectors. If they are not already installed with the venue, they are pretty affordable to rent and easy to operate from a laptop. Projectors are a great way to not only communicate with your attendees but also facilitate communication and interaction amongst the crowd.
Use projects at your event for a variety of visuals such as presentations, displaying pictures, videos, sponsorship highlights, social feeds, remote call ins, agendas, schedule, menus, etc. Social feeds, photo streams and the like help the audience get familiar with each other and build stronger connections while at the event. Streaming attendees pictures on a projector creates a sense of community within the event attendees thus adding to the overall experience.
Social Media
Use social media to spread the word about your event and pack the house! Depending on the industry you are in, social media can impact the reach of your event thus increasing the demand and desire to attend your event.
Promoting your event on social media can be a direct channel to your attendees but it is also a great method to get noticed by the municipal governments and the media. Social channels can also be used to demonstrate the value of an event as conversations can happen before, during and continue long after.
These types of interactions add value to the attendees experience because the networking they do now lasts beyond the event. The same applies to event hashtags, read about the value of event hashtags in my blog Hashing Out Event Hashtags.
Event Website
An event website is becoming more and more popular because it is a simple, central location for all of your details, easing your ability to effectively promote the event. Having all the details in one place as well as ticket sales, merchandise sales or donation collection keep it straight forward for attendees but also ensures all the event details are in tack and pieces don’t get left out.
Event websites allow you to tie multiple forms of media together to creatively promote your event and entice the potential attendee to attend the event.
Video is an effective method to communicate your enthusiasm about the event and get people excited about attending. They can also be a great way to highlight the band or a speaker by showing clips from previous events or promos for this event. Photo galleries are a great way to engage the audience and a great offering for your sponsors. Galleries can even be live streamed at your event using your projector!
Sub events assist by clearly communicating minor event details or sections of the event. They make it simple to organize information about each spotlighted item including specific videos, photos, bios, merchandise such as books, cd’s or t-shirts.
The real value in having all of this information clearly laid out before the event is that you create a promotional hub for the event that is extremely convenient to share across social media channels and convenient for the attendee the day of. This also means that event websites should be built to be used on mobile devices so attendees have no limitations when accessing the information on the day of the event. Event websites are definitely a piece of technology that will impact the attendee experience at your next event.
Integrating technology into your event
Eventastic has made it easy for you to integrate technology into your event and create your event website helping you creatively market and manage your event. You’ll be able to give attendees a true feeling for what they will experience. You’ll have access to multiple features like registration/ticketing, donation and guest funding options, item and service sales options, photo and video upload capability, gamification options and a full dashboard to manage all guest or participant responses. People worldwide are now using Eventastic for personal, business and community events and programs. Try it now!
Creating a positive experience for your event is sometimes a tough job, but the right tools can definitely make it easier.
