A Congrex case study on social media
juni 09, 2011
Congrex was featured in the latest edition of Headquarter magazine with a case study on social media. Click here to read the full article in Pdf.
A Congrex case study
The way we were, the web we are
The development of social media and technology has changed all of this. The landscape of events and the communication of these, to its audience, are increasingly driven by technology and the ever-evolving way in which we are now communicating. Where an event is concerned, we have gone from an event having a finite lifespan to an environment of pre and post event as well. One of the key advantages of the newtechnologically-driven world is that it has allowed the content and the lessons to become more widely available, and for the opportunity for participants to share their experiences concerning the event.
Congrex in the Social Media Space
When it comes to the use of leading-edge technology and social media in the marketing of events, Congrex, the event organizer, is actively involved in using and developing tools that come under this banner. The group recognizes that this new form of communication is not just a nice ‘add-on’ but an integral part of the way participants are communicating or will be communicating in the future. Whether it’s putting out a message, updating a particular group of people or receiving vital feedback in real time, social media provides an efficient and effective means to market for an event and communicate before, during and after. Congrex’s initial interest in engaging this area was further fuelled by its involvement as a Sponsor of the study Convention 2020 for the Meetings and Events industry.
Congrex’s Regional Managing Director for the UK & Benelux, Rob Harrison, explains: ‘Although for us and everyone out there the impact of new media tools is obvious - and only growing, our conviction is that this area stands to influence the meetings industry greatly. This was confirmed by some of the key findings in the Convention 2020 study that gave us a strong indication of what participants of the future are looking for, and this is all about a desire to be able to interact with each other in advance of the face-to-face meeting.’ Rob talks about examples of Congrex clients using social media tools at their events: the
World Parkinson Conference and the Icograda event. The World Parkinsons Conference took place last year in Glasgow and hosted more than 3,000 participants.
Rob comments: ‘The Parkinson’s community was very much used to communicating in this way, and we were able to use a number of tools in different ways such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Many of the discussions that occurred were interlinked and added to other initiatives which resulted in significant levels of communication and awareness about Parkinson itself and the support that’s out there for Parkinson’s.’ Equally in the Icograda event, designers were the participants, and as a group, very much used to interacting with these tools. As Rob remembers, ‘Twitter was very prevalent pre, during, and post event, and was one of the main channels for notification changes to the programme which were actually done on-site, at the event, via Twitter.’
In another Congrex organised event, a Department of the Dutch Ministry hosted a network reception where the main objective of the event was to establish a ‘networking feel’. Participants were invited to set up Twitter or Facebook accounts on-site during the event and then communicate with those in attendance, and with the guest of honour specifically. Congrex organised the necessary infrastructure and provided participants with tutorials on the use of social media. Read more...