Virtual Event

Creating a “Perfect Storm” The Virtual Show — Where Five Ttends Converge An increasingly mobile workforce The need to reduce costs and travel and increase efficiency Increased virtualization The green movement A focus on accountability, measurability and ROI

Taking Advantage of the “Perfect Storm” The Virtual Show — Where these Five Trends Converge Workers can be anywhere and everywhere Can participate on their own schedule The ideal solution in a tough economy The need to reduce travel and physical events, even as the need to communicate increases Ability to leverage resources across a wider area of touch A virtual event is virtually carbon- free Evidence of an organization’s commitment to green business practices Lead generation- lower cost, higher quality, measurable ROI Increased effectiveness- more engaging and interactive Genuine Benefits Across the Convergence Spectrum

Why sponsor a Virtual Show?

1.Leads – By participating in a Virtual Conference and Expo one of the biggest returns for a sponsor (ROI) are leads from the attendees. A lead is generated for a sponsor when an attendee enters their booth or downloads a piece of related content from the resource center. 2.Leads + - not only do the Virtual Show sponsors get leads but then they can start qualifying attendees by the ‘engagement’ or interest in what is in their booth, e.g. word documents, pdf’s, video – in other words what presentations they viewed, what white papers they downloaded, the details of their discussion and how long they stayed in their booth. Please note that this data is richer than most companies collect at physical events as it’s impossible to track.

3.Time spent in a Virtual Show – customer interaction with a brand or a product and service, especially in the era of digital marketing can be fleeting. People often make decisions based on what they see on a web site and what they increasingly hear from the user community. But the average time an attendee spends in an ON24 event ranges from 1.5 to 2.5 hours. This is quality time for them to listen to presentations, spend time with the Sponsors and interact with company executives and product experts all in a very easy and convenient to access environment. 4.Reach to a wider audience – of course those attending the virtual event will be a very targeted audience and therefore automatically relevant to the sponsor, but the ability for the partners to reach a wider geographical audience is real and tangible by participating in this event. Not only are organizations of all sizes cutting back on attending physical events because of increasing cost factors but also attendees face the same travel and t&e restrictions

A Virtual Show Gives: Structure and more ‘useable’ information commonly found on companies websites. Advanced search engines take users where they want to – they are in control. A Virtual Show gives the chance for the user to discover something they might have otherwise missed. Every action in a Virtual Show can be tracked, reports are transparent and ROI’s easily calculated – ‘Super-charged’ sales leads! They mirror and adapt to business-users’ behaviors – discovery, research and professional opinion and… They provide continuity and complement every form of in- person contact and physical event.

Some “Best Practices for Sponsors”

A.Here are some pointers to give to the sponsors to help make sure that their booth is the one that gets the visitors attention: 1.Avoid clever tag-lines: Sponsors should spell out what quickly what their company does. Attendees often go from virtual booth to virtual booth - like channel surfing looking to see who and why they should have a conversation or download information. 2.Up the branding: When online attendees see names of familiar companies that your customers do business with, they will be more inclined to enter into a conversation. On the face of their booth, sponsors should consider listing the top customers they work with. 3.Using video: Encourage the use of videos. Each Virtual Show booth comes with the option to include video. Sponsors should consider having the expert in their company, (not the marketing director) give a quick overview of why the attendee should stay in the booth, i.e. what is compelling. Perhaps they could include testimonials from some of their customers, technical experts and their company leadership.

4.Include their most valuable resources: Sponsors should recruit technical experts and well known figures in their companies to be available for booth chats. Pure marketing messages should be kept to a minimum and a visitor must be able to get answers to deeply technical questions instantly. A Virtual Show is all about instant gratification - even from technical experts behind your products or services. For the same reasons that attendees are finding it more challenging to get to physical events, company experts cannot travel the world on speaking engagements. This is THE chance for many customers to talk to THE person who can help them make THE purchasing decision. 5.Give their nearest and earliest location: Their virtual booth needs to tell virtual attendees where they can meet the sponsor and their team face-to-face. Are they going to be at an upcoming industry conference? How about listing an upcoming event schedule. Steer virtual attendees towards an action, a sales call or an in-person meeting. Please note: Don’t forget the sales funnel – Virtual Show leads are targeted, qualified and ranked but nothing like seeing that virtual person in the flesh. Sponsors could ask them personally what they thought about the event.

6.Avoid clever marketing tactics: Attendees to a virtual event should be treated as they would at any real trade show attendees. It’s good advice to stick to the overall event theme and remind them to be mindful of how they use the time and fleeting attention that the online attendees are giving their virtual booth. 7.Marketing: Marketing ‘speak’ should be kept to a minimum in booth presentations BUT marketing executives can be present in the booth to get feedback from attendees. For example a sponsor’s Marketing Director can interact directly with their customers and receive instant feedback on a product, strategy etc.

Locations in a Virtual Show

Welcome Hall

Exhibit Hall

Virtual Booth

Conference Hall/Theatre