Convention Centres around the world attract huge numbers of international delegates and demand high costs for an experience that reflects a brand with the aim of engaging delegates. There is a clear need for greater conference technology adoption.
But do these centre’s embrace conference technology to enhance the experience and address the key performance indicators expected from the client?
The brand-new, state-of-the-art International Convention Centre, Wales (ICCW) is being built with conference technology at its foundation by embedding technology into its infrastructure to ensure the high expectations of organiser’s are met.
Consider the movement of people. Many visitors to large facilities like airports ask “Where are the staff, when we need them?” or “Surely they anticipated a large crowd?”. When these questions are asked, satisfaction levels decrease and with it patience. These are not desired outcomes during a costly event.
Upon arrival if confronted by an abnormally large queue, first impressions are not ideal or what’s expected from the event organiser.
Emerging technologies are addressing these issues with real-time, rapid response solutions and the International Convention Centre, Wales embraces systems to satisfy requirements and conference organiser expectations.
During the design phase, ICCW consulted with conference organiser’s around the World to identify crucial Key Performance Indicators. Many of these KPIs are being addressed using conference technology to enable ICCW to be ‘best in class’. These identified KPIs include improvements to:
- Pre-event booking
- Delegate count
- Queue length
- Dwell time
- Waiting time
- VIP concierge services
- Delegate journey
- Lecture timings
- Transport logistics
- Parking options
- Security
People movement is a vital issue in large conferences. Solink are addressing this need through the innovative use of a network of artificial intelligence and 3D cameras. Constantly monitoring delegate flow through an entire facility. From the taxi arrival ensuring there is space to drop-off, to registration where little queues should be the goal. Solink anticipates any high traffic areas based around aggregated data just like a rush-hour, so staff can be allocated effectively.
Long queues reflect poorly on conference operations. Even when queues don’t necessarily equate to a long waiting time, managing delegate expectations along their entire journey is key.
By putting smart cameras to work, aggregated data is used to anticipate a delegate’s journey and analyse the real-time movement of people. Higher than anticipated people movement triggers predefined responses such as: Improved messaging to signs/mobile devices and better staff allocation. All of this data from Solink, paves the way to smoother delegate movement, increased customer satisfaction and overall security.
Identifying pinch points is crucial but delivery is equally important. Teldio are able to tap into existing infrastructure to communicate efficiently with organiser’s and even staff who are not connected with a radio through regular SMS or instant notifications.
Solink monitor, and anticipate people movements, while Teldio connects into the infrastructure to alert staff and organiser’s of issues and manage the task efficiently. Areas of the facility as well as important assets can be digitally setup as secure, restricted areas and through Teldio’s tracking beacon technology, unauthorised approach or access will alert personnel.
Teldio’s heat maps of staff movements and locations provide visual information for real-time event planning. This capability is further enhanced by InitLive, a staff management tool that updates each staff member with changes to their role, or location instantly.
These systems anticipate the arrival of large delegate crowds to areas, particularly in banqueting and food & beverage zones. The delegates can then enjoy the appropriate levels of staffing for a first-class experience.
Many delegates today carry smartphones and look for information and support from these platforms. Conferences have bespoke apps to alert people to conference proceedings. Evidence shows us that the use and importance of these apps is increasing but they fail to connect the delegate to human based support to address their unique concerns. This is particularly important when offering VIP Concierge Services. Talkative is a solution that ICCW promote as an essential add-on for anyone’s conference app. Talkative is simply embedded in seconds within your app and offers real-time communication tools between your conference delegates and a team of specialists. By using embedded web-chat or video-calling, queries can be resolved face-to-face through the device within seconds making best use of delegate time.
Talkative provides an individual with a preference for how they would like to communicate. In a noisy venue, text-chat may be a quick and appropriate method, but other times video chat to maybe translate signage or help with ongoing travel may be more useful. All of this done within the conference app to again increase delegate satisfaction.
To monitor and analyse attitudes during a conference creates a unique understanding of sentiment, a key tool in public relations and news generation.
New conference technology is now available through companies like Eyesover and Echosec who utilise publicly accessible social media and online data to understand trends and opinions in real-time. Armed with this data, artificial intelligence analyses a venue to compile reports of positive and negative impacts, event influencers and common opinions. By understanding which elements or insights are having a positive or negative effect on delegates, organiser’s are able to react and trigger timely responses to alleviate undesirable impacts.
By understanding and addressing opinions before they go viral adds an extra level of control to ensure the smooth running of the event.
Conference venues like the International Convention Centre, Wales, as well as event organiser’s who embrace just some of these real-time technology solutions attract new and repeat business as a direct result of improved staff management, delegate flow, rapid response times and sentiment analysis
Written With Thanks to the Conference Technology Companies Working with ICC Wales From Wesley Clover’s Global Portfolio
Eyesover
Eyesover uses Artificial Intelligence to transform online data into real time market research and focus groups. It allows events to customise analysis of which elements are having a negative or positive impact on attendees and delegates.
For more information visit https://www.eyesover.com
Echosec
Echosec can ring ‘geo’fence social media and other online data to discover and interpret trends and event influencers, filtering posts by relevance and reach to extract insights for advanced analysis or to trigger timely responses to any content of concern.
For more information visit https://www.echosec.net
InitLive
InitLive is a world-class volunteer managements platform, helping recruit, schedule and communicate with event volunteers. It ensures volunteer data is current, secure and available and the mobile app can let all volunteers know where they need to be during the event, what their duties are and who to contact in the event of an issue.
For more information visit https://www.initlive.com
Talkative
Talkative offer real-time communications tools between your conference delegates and a team of specialists to enable a smooth operation. By using web-chat or video-calling from within your conference app, queries can be resolved face-to-face through the device within seconds making best use of delegate time.
For more information visit https://talkative.uk
Teldio
Teldio maps conference staff and delegate locations in real-time allowing movements to be seamless and effective. Any issues around secure areas, assets or task management are allocated appropriately and actioned. Monitor and adapt to staff locations, delegate movements and secure areas with ease.
For more information visit http://www.teldio.com
Solink
Solink’s innovative stereoscopic cameras pave the way to smoother delegate movement. Building up a knowledge of delegate movements, Solink enables a plan-ahead and real-time approach focussing on staff and delegate locations, peak-time flow, queues and location capacity to optimize conference efficiency.