Tech News: yellobox, MeetingPlay and JUNO Enhancements, Aventri-BrandLive and Intrado-Interprefy Partnerships
September 10, 2021
With the pandemic showing no signs of abating, the event tech boom is continuing to transform the way virtual and in-person gatherings are planned and experienced, as well as the way event professionals are skilling up. Check out some of the latest developments.
yellobox
As the world gets back to in-person events, yellobox is persuading event professionals to think outside the box. The startup, which is the brainchild of tech entrepreneur Laurence Moore, launched in 2019 as a tool to seamlessly blend data sharing, digital marketing and lead-capture for in-person events into one opt-in interaction, without the reliance on a mobile app or the need for physical elements such as badges and paper marketing materials.
The company took advantage of the pandemic downtime to make enhancements that benefit event organizers and attendees alike.
“We have bolstered our technology, made improvements to both our hardware and software and streamlined processes both internal and external,” Moore explained. “We’ve taken the time granted to feed in to our continuously improving business offering and ensure that we’re better placed than ever to serve the events industry the ultimate in data, customer insights and customer experiences.”
The technology works with a small yellobox placed at the entrance of an event and on each exhibitor stand, and each attendee wears a yellow wristband or carries a yellow card in place of a badge. Individuals can share their info with exhibitors by “tapping in” to the box to opt in for communications and content. This allows attendees to retrieve relevant content on-demand more easily and quickly and enjoy a more streamlined event experience overall.
Event organizers can access real-time and post-event attendee analytics, low-cost and easy content production and distribution, increased engagement features, increased lead conversion and greater exhibitor and attendee retention with the potential for increased revenues throughout.
MeetingPlay
MeetingPlay, one of the pioneers in creating innovative solutions for in-person, virtual and hybrid events, launched a newly augmented app designed to enable planners to streamline events, further engage attendees and provide greater value to vendors.
“Strong mobile conference app technology lifts the experience for everyone from the planner and the attendees to the vendors, and that’s what drove the development of our advanced mobile app,” said MeetingPlay Founder and CEO Joe Schwinger. “Our newly designed app is feature-rich and has even more tools to activate attendee engagement and promote personalization, the real currencies for events.”
MeetingPlay’s new mobile app creates a unified user experience, increases attendee engagement and provides a strong return on investment for sponsors. New features bridge the gap between in-person and virtual attendees during hybrid events, create a safe in-person experience and allow virtual attendees to join sessions directly from their mobile device instead of their desktop.
Key features include:
- Fast-Pass Check-In through facial recognition for seamless entry and safety when in-person
- Agenda Management to effectively manage time and scheduling throughout the event
- Advanced AI Networking with 1-on-1 video chat between attendees
- Session Scanning to track attendee engagement and interaction
- Go Live Function that allows speakers and exhibitors to stream live to a virtual audience from their phone
- Real-Time Polling, Chat, Vote-up Q+A, Gamification, Networking and Matchmaking for increased attendee interaction and engagement
- Identify and Capture Leads and Access to Lead Data in Real-Time for sponsors to easily see the ROI
JUNO
JUNO, a software company that connects and educates people in virtual environments, debuted Launch U, a modern learning experience for event and hospitality professionals.
Launch U features micro courses that include video interviews with industry leaders, short articles and thoughtful questions to promote personal and professional growth.
“These leaders have a lot to share,” said Josh Hotsenpiller, founder and CEO of JUNO.
“In this time of uncertainty, we hope people will find ideas within Launch U to prepare them for the future and help launch them into the next phase of their careers.”
Seven courses are currently live on the site, including Equipping Organizations for Change with Robb Lee of ASAE, Pivoting your Livelihood with Cindy Lo of Red Velvet events and Life Always Changes: Change With It with Mike Irwin of Bottle Rocket Advisors.
Aventri and Brandlive
Organizers can bring the magic of television to virtual and hybrid events via a new partnership between Aventri, an event management software company, and Brandlive, a video solutions platform.
The partnership combines Aventri’s all-in-one virtual and hybrid event platform with Brandlive’s patent-pending video production software, Greenroom.
“This partnership deepens our ability to serve customers in their ambitions to host the most engaging events in the industry,” said Kurt Chessman, vice president, corporate development and strategy at Aventri.
Brandlive provides TV-like show production across live, pre-recorded and mixed formats in vivid 1080-pixel HD.
"The key to having a great event is content that will blow attendees away and keep them engaged before, during and after the event," said Sam Kolbert-Hyle, Brandlive CEO. "We’re invested in supporting partners like Aventri to help all their customers create content experiences worth watching, truly unlike anything they've ever seen."
Earlier this month, Brandlive launched the next generation of Greenroom, which puts a complete virtual video production studio in the cloud and at organizers’ fingertips.
Greenroom features that are now available on the Aventri platform include:
- Showboard, a timeline-style display that allows organizers to manage the show’s flow and make real-time adjustments.
- Showbuilder, a drag-and-drop tool to build shows in advance, including pre- and post-stream media, shot layouts, product notes and cues.
- Producer and Backstage Comms, which allows organizers and presenters to speak with each other without fear that their audio is being heard by the audience.
- Presenter tools that ensure speakers can view notes and teleprompters, drive their own slides, images, gifs and videos, share their screens and create mixed playlists of slides and video content.
The partnership with Brandlive comes on the heels of Aventri’s Virtual Events 2.0 premier in April. The new digital platform features a networking suite that brings like-minded attendees together through artificial intelligence-driven matchmaking and smart recommendations.
In April, Aventri also unveiled a new version of its mobile app, retooled to support hybrid events.
Intrado and Interprefy
Intrado Digital Media, a cloud-based global technology company, has enhanced its multilingual capabilities through a partnership with Interprefy, a cloud-based interpretation solutions company.
Through the alliance, real-time audio interpretation is now available in 26 languages on Intrado Digital Media’s webcasting platform, Studio.
“Event planners and organizers all over the world are thinking of new ways to integrate the virtual and in-person event model, including content delivery, to a dispersed global audience in multiple languages,” said Ben Chodor, president of Intrado Digital Media. “Integrating Interprefy into our webcasting solution will enable our clients to expand their global reach and deliver seamless webcasting experiences for their attendees, regardless of location.”
Interprefy’s cloud-based software was built for interpreters to deliver their services without needing to be on-site, making it a cost-effective, flexible solution to reach global audiences in their preferred language in real-time via desktop or mobile, and on-demand or post-event replay.
“As organizations around the world continue to communicate and engage virtually, the need to provide live language interpretation has significantly increased,” said Richard Roocroft, director of global sales at Interprefy. “Interprefy’s multilingual capabilities help drive engagement and foster inclusivity.”
Interprefy’s managed interpretation experience seamlessly integrates with Intrado Digital Media’s webcasting solution, providing users with language options to overlay as audio tracks on video presentations and the ability to select different interpreted slide presentation formats.
Partner Voices
Less than six months ago, Lisa Messina joined the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) as the first-ever chief sales officer after leading the sales team at Caesars Entertainment. A 12-year Las Vegas resident, Messina is a graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration and serves on MPI International’s board of directors.
TSNN had a chance to catch up with this dynamic leader and talk to her about her vision for the new role, current shifts in the trade show industry, creating more diversity and equity within the organization, and advice to future female leaders.
Lisa Messina, Chief Sales Officer, LVCVA
With Las Vegas becoming The Greatest Arena on EarthTM, what are some of the things you’re most excited about in your role?
Our team was at The Big Game’s handoff ceremony earlier this month, and I couldn’t help but think, “We’re going to crush it next year!”
These high-profile events and venues not only drive excitement, but also provide unmatched opportunities for event planners. Allegiant Stadium hosts events from 10 to 65,000 people and offers on-field experiences. Formula 1 Grand Prix will take place in Las Vegas in November, after the year-one F1 race, the four-story paddock building will be available for buyouts and will also offer daily ride-along experiences that will be available for groups. And, of course, the MSG Sphere officially announced that it will open in September, ahead of schedule, with a U2 residency. It’s going to be the most technologically advanced venue as far as lighting, sound, feel, and even scent, and it will be available for buyouts and next-level sponsorships inside and outside. There’s no ceiling to what you can do when you’re doing events in Las Vegas.
Allegiant Stadium
As the trade show and convention business returns to the pre-pandemic levels, what shifts are you noticing and how do you think they will impact the industry going forward?
Our trade show organizers are very focused on driving customer experience. Most of our organizers are reporting stronger exhibitor numbers and increased numbers of new exhibitors, with trade shows proving to be almost or above 2019 levels. Now our organizers are really doubling down on driving attendance and focusing on the data to provide that individualized, customized experience to help attendees meet their goals and get the best value. Some companies continue to be cautiously optimistic with their organizational spend when it comes to sending attendees, but I think it will continue to improve. As the U.S. Travel Association makes more progress on the U.S. visa situation, we also expect a growing influx of international attendees.
What are some innovative ways the LVCVA helps trade show and convention organizers deliver the most value for their events?
We focus on customer experience in the same way that trade show organizers are thinking about it. We got rave reviews with the West Hall Expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), so over the next two years, we will be renovating the North and the Central halls, which will include not just the same look and feel, but also the digital experiences that can be leveraged for branding and sponsorship opportunities.
Vegas Loop, the underground transportation system designed by The Boring Company, is also a way we have enhanced the customer experience. Vegas Loop at the LVCC has transported more than 900,000 convention attendees across the campus since its 2021 launch. Last summer, Resorts World and The Boring Company opened the first resort stop at the Resorts World Las Vegas , with plans to expand throughout the resort corridor, including downtown Las Vegas, Allegiant Stadium and Harry Reid International Airport. The LVCVA also purchased the Las Vegas Monorail in 2020, the 3.9-mile-long elevated transportation system that connects eight resorts directly to the convention center campus. This is the only rail system in the world that integrates fares directly into show badges and registration. For trade show organizers, these transportation options mean saving time, money and effort when it comes to moving groups from the hotels to LVCC and around the city.
Also, the more we can focus on building the infrastructure around the convention center, the more it supports the customer experience and ultimately supports our trade show organizers. Scheduled to debut in Q4, Fontainebleau Las Vegas will offer 3,700 hotel rooms and 550,000 square feet of meeting and convention space next to LVCC.
What are some of the plans for advancing DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) within your organization?
We’re currently partnering with instead of working with a leading consulting firm, to lay the foundation and create a solid DEI plan and be the leader when it comes to DEI initiatives. The heart of that journey with the consulting firm is also talking to our customers about their strategic approaches to DEI and driving innovation in this space.
What are your favorite ways to recharge?
My husband and I have an RV and we’re outdoorsy people. So, while we have over 150,000 world-class hotel rooms and renowned restaurants right outside our doorstep, one of my favorite things to do is get out to Red Rock Canyon, the Valley of Fire, and Lake Mead. Five of the top national parks are within a three-hour drive from Las Vegas, so there’s a lot you can do. We love balancing the energy of Las Vegas with nature, and we’re noticing that a lot of attendees add activities off the Strip when they come here.
Valley of Fire
What advice would you give to women following leadership paths in destination marketing?
I think it’s about being laser-focused on what you want to accomplish; building a team around you that lifts you and helps you achieve your goals; and being humble and realizing that you do it as a group. No one gets this done alone. Thankfully, there are a lot of women in leadership in this organization, in our customers’ organizations, and in this city that we can be really proud of. We’re a formidable force that is making things happen.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
This article is exclusively sponsored by the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority. For more information, visit HERE.
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