Key Takeaways

• According to 85% of companies, virtual events will extend beyond 2021.
• More event planners will leverage easy-to-use, innovative event technologies in the future.
• More than half of event planners reported prioritizing attendee experience over logistics due to virtual events.
• About 70% of event organizers have indicated that hybrid events would be critical to the industry's future.
• Organizers will leverage seamless and engaging future-proof platforms that are innovative and can keep their audience's attention in the future.

Introduction

Innovative Tech Solutions

• Event planners are creative, forward-thinking, and efficient individuals. They expect more tech innovations in the event planning industry over the next few years.
• Organizers will leverage seamless and engaging future-proof platforms that are innovative and can keep their audience's attention in the future.

• About 73.6% of organizers in the event planning industry are more accustomed to tech usage due to COVID-19 experiences.
• The changing demographics of event audiences to more tech-savvy individuals will also drive the adoption of innovative tech solutions to promote convenience. Similarly, event planners would leverage tech solutions like Social Tables to be more efficient.

 

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Expert Opinion

• Marco Giberti said that more event planners would employ easy-to-use, innovative event technologies in the future. Giberti is an industry expert with decades of experience in the event planning industry and CEO of Vesuvio Ventures.
• Organizers would be intimidated by the vast array of available innovations in the event tech space and look towards simpler tech.

Monetizing Virtual Events

• Virtual events have become a necessity in the event planning industry. This trend is illustrated with the sudden change in the International Broadcasting Convention's (IBC) event from in-person to virtual because of pandemic-related uncertainties.
• Event planners are now seeing the need to make accommodations for such eventualities.

• About 86% of attendees reported equal or more engagement at virtual events than in-person events.
• Another 80% would like to attend a virtual event again, and more than half of event planners reported prioritizing attendee experience over logistics due to virtual events.

 

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• Furthermore, 70% of event organizers have indicated that hybrid events would be critical to the industry's future. Companies (85%) reiterated this prediction, stating that they expect virtual events to extend beyond 2021.

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• Although ticket sales are among the most common ways to generate revenue in the events planning industry, the industry has recently reported lower revenues despite increasing virtual events. The reason is that virtual tickets often sell for one-fifth of in-person tickets.
• About 91% of virtual events organized in 2021 were free to attend, indicating that most virtual event organizers did not monetize their events.
• However, with reducing revenue and increasing adoption, more event planners are poised to monetize virtual events in the future.
• According to Goldman Sachs, live events leveraging virtual reality (VR) would generate $4.1 billion by 2025.

 

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• According to Giberti, most people are now aware that they can capture between 70%-80% of an event without being physically present.
• Chris Borja indicated that in the future, "virtual events will overtake in-person events due to the convenience, cost efficiencies, and the life-like experience that can be created." Borja is the founder of Borja Virtual Conferences and Events.

Research Strategy