VR in Events: Revolutionising the Event Sector & Why it’s the Future

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VR is a game-changing technology in the event industry. It’s not the future, it’s now. Not a nice-to-have but a must-have.

Delegates expect immersive event experiences while organisers and exhibitors chase engagement and brand awareness. With hardware ever-evolving and virtual reality platforms continuing to push the boundaries, the events industry in particular can benefit from investing in VR brand experiences.

Let’s explore how VR and AR are revolutionising events and why it’s only the beginning…

VR on Your Stand: Bring Your Brand to Life in Ways That Matter

The days of static booths and traditional demos are gone. Even giving away a ton of freebies won’t cut it anymore. Modern event marketing strategies need something else. Something better.

Interactive and immersive event experiences help you get those leads and convert them. The power of VR for trade shows is unparalleled, allowing attendees to interact and engage with your brand at a deeper, more memorable level. Products can be showcased ‘hands-on’ via digital twins, virtual hotels and holiday destinations are open for exploration, or clothes could be tried on with an AR mirror. 

For example, we recently provided a VR experience for BESA (Building Engineering Services Association), to showcase their member services as well as educate and impress delegates:

 

“Thanks to our VR experience on the stand we dominated the room at the event. It was amazing to be out in front. Lots of people came over to our stand and the reaction was what we had hoped for. And the impact of this VR experience is so much bigger than just the headset. We’ve created something that we can use for a whole lot of upcoming events and more.”

BESA
BESA VR In Events

Digital Twins: A Virtual Version of Your Booth, Anytime, Anywhere

Digital twins for trade shows have made the impossible possible. They’ve also revolutionised the event experience. McKinsey describes digital twins as “a digital replica of a physical object, person, system, or process, contextualised in a digital version of its environment.”

But what does that mean for remote event participation? In short, you don’t have to physically be at a trade show or event to still attend, either as an exhibitor or a guest. Not only do virtual booths provide an excellent and novel digital experience, but they also come with a ton of real-world benefits:

  • You don’t need to invest in and continually update physical event equipment like stands, screens, furniture etc. A virtual booth can be developed and updated indefinitely.
  • You can save money on physical attendance at an event, both for the stand and your staff. No travel, no emissions, no jet lag.
  • Digital twins for events can offer experiences in different languages, cater to different needs and maximise accessibility.

Even better than that? They’re unique. We know that people will remember them, and they’ll remember you. We recently worked with Ellison to create a digital tradeshow stand that wowed guests:

 

“We were extremely happy with the finished result. Allowing users to immerse themselves in our 360° booth tour has been nothing short of fantastic and has supported our objective of bringing to life our traditional exhibition in a virtual world.”

Ellison

Virtual Reality Events: Expanding Your Reach Beyond Physical Limitations

VR removes geographical barriers, opening up remote event participation. Guests can interact with your brand from anywhere in the world. You’re not just limited to who’s there on that day, at that time and in that place. Immersive and interactive event experiences are available at the click of a button. COVID woke us all up to the reality that a lot of our lives can be moved online. And that’s a good thing.

Virtual environments are often only limited by imagination. They can do things, create experiences and provide interaction unconstrained by physical rules. 

Entire worlds can be explored without the need for huge spaces. Users can collaborate in real-time from opposite sides of the world, and those with disabilities or specific needs can be included… as we demonstrated with Spotify’s VR treasure hunt that brought thousands together when COVID cancelled a big conference. 

Similarly, when Syngenta wanted a way to launch new products to a global audience in a live online 3D environment, we built a fantasy 3D exhibition centre. Complete with an auditorium for presentations, a series of exhibition spaces and a cafe for breakouts, new metaverse techniques offered the perfect solution.

Promote Your Event or Venue Space with VR Tours

Event venue VR tours are one of the best ways to harness the power of VR to improve ROI and enhance your marketing efforts. From travel to event spaces, offices to venues, there’s nothing like seeing and feeling your way around a room. Photos are videos were great in their day. Ideal when it was all we had. But not anymore.

With a VR headset and a perfectly recreated space, potential clients, exhibitors and planners can explore in their own time, before committing time and budget to travel. 

How many times have you been on holiday or even visited a potential wedding venue, and despite seeing photos and videos in advance, it feels different? That happens with event spaces too. A place that looks good on paper might not work in real life, but an immersive VR tour changes everything. 

Suddenly event planners and exhibitors can visualise how things will look, how people will move through the space, where centrepieces can be put, and try different layouts to find the perfect fit. Potential issues can be predicted and mitigated.

Venues that offer immersive and engaging VR tours can increase venue bookings and ensure customers get the experience they expect. And that’s the key to long-term customer satisfaction.

The Customer Outcomes That Matter: Why VR Works

The crux of it is that customers love VR. For brand engagement, lead generation and ROI, it’s a safe investment that’s hard to beat. Innovative brands that embrace VR rarely regret it. And here’s why:

  • Learning & Engagement: VR engages people and captures their attention in ways other tech just can’t. It’s truly immersive and groundbreaking. Photos and videos allow observation – VR enables experiences. Digital twins or VR tours let people engage with products, places or services in ways that might be too expensive or impractical to do in other ways.
  • Brand Recognition: Experiences make memories and memories create recognition. Brands that can capture and engage with potential customers in new and innovative ways find that they keep coming back.

    Events can be full-on. By the end of the day, guests may have spoken with hundreds of people and interacted with multiple exhibitors. Most of these will be forgotten quickly, but VR is one of the best event marketing strategies for making connections that last.
  • Lead Generation & Conversion: Time spent engaging with a brand is directly linked to how likely someone is to convert. Capturing and keeping their attention is half the battle, and VR for trade shows is proven to work.

    The more customers are engaged, the more likely they are to contact you as a warm lead. In fact, some brands report a 29-33% increase in leads generated from trade shows when using VR.
  • ROI: The metric that matters. Virtual event ROI can be significantly higher than their in-person equivalents.

    In 2020, 84% of organisations who ran a virtual event spent less. In 2019,  89% of businesses saved around 200 hours per year, while 20% saved an average of 360 hours or more.

Brands often spend tens of thousands to exhibit. Adding a VR headset, virtual tour or other AR tech can make them stand out from the crowd and keep guests engaged. 

And when they’re engaged, guests often become customers. 

Why VR is the Only Future for Events

The scalability, flexibility and cost-savings that come with VR will make it the future of event marketing and participation. As guests and exhibitors pay more attention to their carbon footprint and customers demand better experiences, the transition is inevitable. 

Innovative brands that want to get ahead of the curve are already making VR the basis of their event marketing strategies. As a long-term investment, it can evolve as businesses, their products and their customers do. Forward-looking event planners, venues and exhibitors are already on board, so embracing event technology solutions now is vital to not get left behind.

The Future is Now

As we’ve seen, VR is no longer the future. It’s not a passing fad or the latest buzzword. It’s an essential part of the event sector. A part that’s delivering results for those who’ve embraced it. 

As the technology grows and creatives push the envelope of what’s possible, we’re going to see truly groundbreaking VR brand experiences. We’ve worked with some of the world’s most innovative and experimental brands to deliver award-winning virtual experiences

Contact us today to find out how we can transform your next event with VR.

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