Why Event Planners Need Humane Event Tech
Event technologist and educator Nick Borelli has been working in technology since he was 14. As he worked as a freelance web designer for the bridal market over the course of his career, Borelli’s tech and hospitality experiences continued to merge. As a result, he realized that the community and design elements shared similarities between online and in-person event spaces.
Because of his background, Borelli is aware of the significant distinctions that exist between event technologists and planners. He believes that improved communication between the parties is one of the most important factors in resolving this issue. In the technology industry, for instance, failure is celebrated as an opportunity to learn and improve the technology. In the meantime, the events industry prefers to quickly learn from mistakes and failures. This is because event planners are more wary of taking risks than tech professionals are.
In terms of technology, it might be difficult for tech to comprehend the distinctive and stressful requirements of event planners. In tech, launch dates are frequently pushed back. To give planners more time to iron out any kinks, events cannot simply be moved to a different month or quarter. The launch date cannot be altered. There are no reruns of the event once it has gone live. If you don’t provide the audience with the experience they were expecting, they may not attend the next one. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that event planning is frequently listed as one of the most stressful jobs. In addition, hand. Tech jobs typically do not appear on the same lists.
Data is a resource that technology is well-versed in and that events could use to their advantage. Although it may not be exciting, unlocking event data can offer opportunities for the entire organization to make better decisions. For instance, Borelli views an event as a focus group. As a result, you can determine whether the event was a success or failure by looking at the cues that people in the focus group, such as attendees, are giving you. This is similar to what you might find when designing a poll.
Your event, team, or organization’s future investment may rise as a result of these additional benchmarks. Borelli acknowledges that event planners frequently need to think like marketers and salespeople. However, if they are able to do so, and if they are able to use the data at their disposal to demonstrate the benefits of their efforts to the company and event, they can frequently successfully request additional resources to continue developing efforts and expanding their impacts.
The majority of event planners were forced to make the transition to virtual events and the technologies that go along with them as a result of the pandemic; however, this was not an area of event planning and hosting that they actively sought out and were looking to develop. The metaverse, which is located within the virtual event space, has been expanding in recent years, particularly since Mark Zuckerberg placed an emphasis on the metaverse and rebranded the parent company of Facebook as Meta. Borelli, on the other hand, contends that the metaverse is a thing of the future and is not where attendees or planners are right now. It is something that requires further development and comprehension.
Borelli believes that in-person events will continue to grow and that virtual events will not replace them. Esports, for instance, have never been more popular. The most recent League of Legends event was watched by more than five million people simultaneously, including Chinese viewers. Instead of spending 45 minutes in a lecture theater, he anticipates a continued shift in consumption toward activities like binge-watching lecture talks.
In the end, people will continue to attend in-person events to interact with other people. However, event planners must strive for innovation by removing any unnecessary components and making sure that all attendees feel included.
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