InFocus
Outsourced Events would like to present to you our ‘In Focus’ articles in which we will take the time to reflect on our experience with the virtual event platforms, specific tools and technologies available.* We hope that these articles will provide you with some more information about the technologies and us as a company. In this article we would like to take a look at the platform Social27.
Social27 In Focus
In November last year we supported Veeva Systems with their Commercial & Medical Europe, Summit Online, held on Social27 and hosting more than 3,000 professionals from the Life Sciences industry. This featured two main days with more than 80 pre-recorded sessions (available in local languages) with live Q&A, running concurrently across 4 specialist streams. There was also exclusive pre-event content and invitation only forums, post event. Select sessions were then made available on the platform for 30 days post event.
As part of our long-standing relationship with Veeva Systems, we were enlisted to support on this event with particular focus on registration and data reporting, sponsor management, speaker recording scheduling and on the day support.
AI recommendations
One of the main features that attracted Veeva to Social27 was the Recommendation Engine, enabling personalised learning, networking, lead generation and analytics. Attendees selected areas of interest during registration which helped create a personalised experience for them on the day. Providing helpful recommendations of other attendees and sponsors they are likely to be interested in connecting with and the sessions most relevant to them.
Usability
Overall the platform is clearly laid out and easy to navigate via the toolbar tab. On entry, attendees can update their personal profile with a bio, profile picture, interests and they can even record a hello message to be shown in the Networking area. Sessions can be viewed by speaker or via the sessions page, where you can filter using the pre-set options and add to your personal agenda tab.
During sessions, attendees can use real time reactions as well as getting involved in the chat. There is also a moderated Q&A tab which we used for the live Q&A. Incoming questions from attendees are moderated and pushed to the speaker for answering.
Networking
The 1:1 chat enabled attendees to interact with others easily, to share information and organise a follow up meeting if necessary. The roundtable feature was utilised for interactive face to face discussion in small groups. Attendees could simply filter by area of interest and then click to save a seat in a particular discussion. There was also a tab for discussion groups where attendees could set up a group meeting.
The platform has other options for networking such as ‘SoapBox’, where attendees can record videos sharing questions, opinions and thoughts throughout the event, which can then be commented on by peers. ‘Happy Hours’ are ongoing chat threads centred around a specific topic that attendees can drop in and out of.
Partners
Another key element was ensuring partner engagement. We had 18 sponsors, all of which had a dedicated booth page containing more information about their company, any useful resources and contact information. These are fully customisable so there are a lot of other potential ways to increase engagement, such as embedding a meeting link, additional content and offering sponsor prize draws for those that visit.
Recommended partners are shown on the platform homepage and attendees profile page, based on their areas of interest. They can also be showcased in banners across the top of their associated sessions.
Demos
Product demos were held within the Veeva booth area, showcasing the latest innovations and updates.
From an organiser’s perspective, the platform was easy to navigate and update. We set up push notifications for key announcements throughout the event and had a dedicated team to manage the virtual helpdesk, troubleshooting any platform issues and responding to general event queries. The post event analytics provided an excellent overview of account, attendee and content insights.
*Disclaimer: This article was not paid for and is not a full review of the platform, but our opinion of the platform based on our experiences.
