The events industry has faced incredible uncertainty these past two years. Whilst the world has been in and out of lockdowns and restrictions, 2022 carries a new promise for a return to the “normal”—or a “new normal”, at least. This can be said for the event industry as well. High vaccination rates and cities opening up once again have seen a slow, but sure, return to in-person events.
Once safe to do so, we believe the events industry is eager to get back larger and better than before. This has fueled new market trends that we predict to continue far into 2022. From hybrid events and increased health protocols to instant follow ups; Read on for our top event industry trends for the year ahead!
1. An Increase in Hybrid Events
Due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, 2021 was the year of the hybrid event. As we enter 2022, these events featuring a “live” in-person event with a “virtual” online component show no sign of slowing down — for many reasons.
Behavioral data collecting is easier with virtual audiences, so hybrid events enhance reach and attendance. Additionally, they make it easier to prove ROI and ROE (Return on Event). You’ll be better equipped to arrange successful future events if you have more attendee data on hand.
Delivering engaging, tailored event experiences for both in-person and virtual attendees will be the largest issue for event organizers and marketers in 2022.
After all, how can you offer distinctive experiences for virtual event attendees, in comparison to in-person events?
Our advice is to choose event management software with features that lend well to both digital and in-person experiences. momencio, for example, lets you to share digital collateral such as videos, PDFs, html5 bundles, slideshows, and more. It also allows you to share personalized landing pages for an experience that converts online too.
Don’t forget to use data to create customised experiences based on attendee type. Additionally, make sure your event software and tech stack seamlessly integrate together.
2. Health and Safety Will Have Greater Importance Than Ever Before
According to an EventMB study, 55% of event planners still cite safety concerns as the biggest obstacle to hosting live events. Another study by PCMA found that 39% of event planners plan to require proof of COVID-19 vaccination from attendees.
With the Omicron variety quickly spreading around the world, we expect event organizers to do more to protect the health and safety of attendees, sponsors, and staff members in 2022.
Therefore, we anticipate an increase in hybrid and virtual events that can more readily guarantee attendee safety. Additionally, we expect to see a rise in the number of event organizers requiring confirmation of vaccination.
Extra Covid-19 safety precautions might include onsite testing, more frequent cleaning, social distancing where possible, providing adequate ventilation, mandatory mask-wearing, and having hand sanitizer at every booth or table, for example.
momencio’s Kiosk Mode is particularly helpful in reducing the risk of Covid-19 exposure at events. It lets attendees to obtain the collateral they need at the touch of a button and without directly coming into contact with a salesperson at the event. Additionally, it swaps physical marketing documents for digital collateral. This not only reduces the handling of marketing material but can also have a hugely positive effect on the environment.
Moving forward, event organizers must keep these health and safety protocols at the forefront of their minds.
3. Instant Follow Up Will Be a Game Changer
In previous years, it wasn’t uncommon for salespeople to wait a certain amount of time before following-up with their event attendees. Gone are the days of outdated habits like the “cooling off period”. Instead, 2022 is seeing technology move at a more rapid pace than ever before.
It’s critical that the relationship you’ve built with your leads continues beyond the event. In reality, 80% of event leads are never followed up on. This is owing to a lack of capabilities to track prospect engagement following tradeshows and events. That’s a lot of effort thrown away!
An excellent lead capture app should automate the follow-up process as much as possible. This is especially true for two critical emails: the instant follow-up and the post-event follow-up. Deepening lead engagement with relevant content is easier with an app that automatically delivers or schedules customised versions of these emails, like momencio.
If you’re looking for an all-in-one lead management solution to take your events into 2022 and beyond, momencio can help. Schedule a demo today to find out how our event lead capture app can help your business to succeed.
