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Imagine attending a conference or trade show while still getting to enjoy dinner with your family and without dealing with the headache of airport delays. Thanks to the emergence of virtual events, you can attend sessions, meet vendors, and mingle with attendees-all without leaving the comfort of your desk chair.
For proponents of virtual events, a perfect storm has created an opportunity: The struggling economy that has forced many companies to reduce their travel budgets and an increased focus on being "green" - with a desire to reduce overall travel as an environmentally friendly thing to do - have converged to make virtual shows a realistic endeavor for the conference business.
Laura Ramos, vice president at Forrester Research, points out that marketers spend nearly a third of their marketing budget on trade shows. "They're looking at ways to reduce that expense; and ways to make that money more effective will be top of mind," says Ramos.
In addition to the financial and environmental factors that are leading more and more companies to try virtual trade shows, the advent of online social networking is also helping to increase acceptance of the medium. "We wouldn't be talking about virtual trade shows if social computing wasn't on the rise," adds Ramos.
INTEREST INCREASES ATTENDANCE
Unisfair, an organization that provides the technology for companies that host virtual shows, has seen interest in the shows increase at a rapid pace over the last couple of years. According to VP of marketing Brent Arslaner, Unisfair worked on 125 events during its first 5 years in business. Last year, it worked on 150 and has done 250 this year. "One reason companies have embraced them is the economy - the first thing that gets cut [from a budget] is travel," says Arslaner. "It's a lower-cost alternative and it lets you reach a much larger audience." Another benefit, notes Arslaner, is that a reduction in travel can provide a boost to organizational productivity.
For the companies testing the waters of virtual events, these are very compelling reasons to try this format. Ann Handley, chief content officer for MarketingProfs, says that her organization has hosted two virtual shows so far. "We saw the virtual conferences as a way to get a lot of...