Top 5 Takeaways from Virtual Edge Summit 2012
January 31, 2012
Recently I had a great opportunity to attend VES in San Diego, acting as the moderator for one of the session rooms for a content-packed day of 5 workshops with anywhere from 30 to 100 people attending. In addition to meeting some wonderful people – both presenters and attendees – I got a lot out of the content and dialog that the workshops enabled. I’ve thought about my ‘Top 5’ takeaways from my experience and thought I’d share them. If you would like to see any of the sessions from my room or the several others going on concurrently, you can do so online at the Virtual Edge Summit (VES) EPIC EVENT – registration is available on-demand.
1. Content that is audience-specific, digestible, concise and interactive should always be at the top of the priority list for keeping people in your environment. That, and how you are going to communicate and market your event – it is VERY different than physical event marketing.
2. Objectives should drive content; content should drive technology application. All too often we start with discussions of technology instead of developing really clear objectives and identifying stakeholders. It no different than meeting planning around a certain location or venue before discussing what is attempting to be accomplished.
3. It is important to question format, delivery, content, and anything that will be part of an audience experience online versus in person. All of the dynamics are different, and people just do not engage digitally the same way as they do physically. It is okay – and highly desirable – to rethink how interactivity, engagement, messaging and content ‘show up’ for the online user. Try something new regularly and assess the results.
4. Virtual product launches are an underused and huge potential for companies to augment multi-tactic major launch initiatives. In one workshop Microsoft shared some compelling examples of a global ‘follow the sun’ launch and results they were able to attain. Done correctly, they may be what sets launches apart in the future – just as digital extensions, experiential marketing approaches and mobile applications are doing for so-called ‘physical’ events.
5. 365 environments with evergreen and always-updated content can take your marketing and communications investment further. Like the post-event period following a physical meeting, successfully creating an always-on place for your members to return to and contribute into is more likely to show the maximum return on the event and build community.