Special events are one of the first types of events to be cut in the current economic downturn. Their impact on a business’s bottom line is much more difficult to define. However, many corporations do recognize the value of these intangibles (esprit d’corps, employee loyalty and trust, motivation) and instead are reinventing how they execute these events with less.  Some best practices include:

<Read MORE about the Best Practices>

Less than five years ago virtual meeting technology was known for its erratic video delivery and participant connection issues. Today it is a different story. Now web and video conferences can include options such as visiting an exhibition floor (complete with live booth representatives), joining one of several simultaneous breakout tracks, sponsorship opportunities, networking lounges for attendees and – yes! – a chance to win fabulous prizes!

From a purely budgetary standpoint, it would stand to reason that a virtual event is the singularly best alternative meeting and event tradeshow approach. By some calculations the elimination of such meetings costs as hotel rooms, venue space, food & beverage, transportation, as well as exhibit shipping and drayage could save 50%-80% of event costs. Add to that highly convincing statistic the recent drop in conference attendance felt nearly everywhere today, and more and more companies are, at least for the moment, moving to the virtual arena. Cisco Systems cancelled all its sales training this year. Apple pulled out of future Macworlds, Hewlett Packard “temporarily” moved all its live events to webcasts – and those are just the tip of the iceberg.

However, as one pundit said, “Asking if virtual meetings will replace live meetings is like asking if singles’ chat rooms will replace live dating!” What live webcasts can mimic with frightening accuracy is the traditional meeting dynamic – a presenter talking to a passive audience (that may or may not be fully engaged).  What they cannot replace in certain meeting scenarios are called “intangibles”:

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