ShowGizmo } News
02/01/12 by joshdry | Blog | No Comments »
The first ever Event Camp DownUnder and the first in the world for 2012 will take place in Sydney, Auckland and online on 26th and 27th February. Expecting more than 70 #eventprofs in the room in Sydney and in Auckland with a virtual audience of hundreds, the event organisers have kept the ticket price low at only $75 for this amazing hybrid event.
The Showmanator’s 6 reasons why you have to get there!
1. Connect with the impressive presenters leading the discussions – Jo-Anne Kelleway (CEO Info Salons Group), Paul Cook (Planet Planit) and Mitchell Beer (Conference Publishers) feature amongst other keynotes that include 13 expert speakers and facilitators from around the world. They will be leading debates and posing questions to the audience on topics like social media, large scale event production, hybrid events, mobile apps and creating communities….
2. Meet likeminded professionals. EventCampers worlwide thrive off this forum to interact with, discuss and create new business opportunities. A collection of the most concerned and active event people and sevice providers downunder.
3. Witness a hybrid event in action. With so much buzz around events going hybird for numerous reason – you can come witness one in action and discuss the outcomes with fellow event profs.
4. Experience emerging technologies – In Auckland we will be using the very cool, new Holo-Info-Desk. This multi-touch surface allows our Auckland presenters to watch the twitter feed, live streams, post their presentation notes and more on the one interactive screen.
5. Hear one of the most influential technology speakers in the Industry. Corbin Ball will be presenting on Event Technology. We expect something very impressive from Corbin!
6. The event in Sydney is being hosted by IML Ltd at their offices at 60 Carrington Street – and attendees will be spoiled by local caterers, swag providers and sustainable initiatives to make this an event not to be missed for 2012!
‘If these aren’t enough, it’s ‘cheap as’ to attend and attend remotely. We want this event to be accessible to every event professional and generate some amazing conversations that will fuel event and technology design in 2012,’ Josh says.
Register at www.eventcampdownunder.com today!
01/20/12 by joshdry | Blog | No Comments »
Countless numbers of trade shows, conferences, exhibitions and other large-scale events are held around the world each year. The billion-dollar meetings industry, euphemistically referred to as MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions), undeniably delivers considerable economic benefits to the towns, cities, regions and countries that act as event hosts.
But looked at through a different lens, this global behemoth could also be viewed as being something approaching an eco-terrorist in terms of the less-than-mouse-sized carbon footprint it leaves wherever it sets foot. Long-distance travel … excessive use of print … disposable everything from food and drink containers to branded ‘goodie bags’ … the list of things that are not good for the environment is an impressive one when it comes to events.
As a consequence, over recent years, there has been a concerted effort on the part of responsible event producers to “green up” their acts. Many industry associations have put in play voluntary best practice codes to drive improvements, giving birth to the concept of the sustainable event.
Producers of fully sustainable events aspire to minimise the impact of their events on the environment through following these best practices at every stage of the event’s life from registration through to the physical mop up afterwards. In response, a sub-industry of innovative technology providers has sprung up offering an amazing variety of viable alternatives to conventional event practices across the board.
In the realm of printed materials, where the waste volumes are eye-wateringly high, ShowGizmo is one such product. A web and smartphone event application, Show Gizmo incorporates a digital event programme and floorplan and allows people to exchange v-cards and connect with each other without any paper changing hands. The system’s smart use of QR codes opens the door for printed exhibitor/vendor brochures in any quantity to be a thing of the past as attendees can simply collect and store them using the app on their phones.
Read more →
01/11/12 by joshdry | Blog | No Comments »
The Showmanator Says… 2012 is set to be the year of experimentation for event people!
So are you ready for the roller coaster ride? It’s time to shake it up! Do things differently …. go hybrid … run an ‘un-conference … manage a virtual audience … integrate digital media platforms to create lasting communities. If you don’t, you can bet your bottom dollar (pound, yen, euro etc) that your competitors will!
But if that’s all gobbledegook to you, don’t panic! There’s an easy answer. Try an Event Camp this year.
A what? That’s right, an Event Camp. This international movement is spreading like wildfire through drought-stricken bush. Event Camps were established to connect event professionals with the latest and greatest trends (hybrid, un-conference, virtual, digital media, communities etc). Sounds like every other event you’ve ever attended or organised? Think again! Instead of just talking about the issues, or worse, zoning out as other people talk interminably about them, the Event Camp format means everyone involved ‘lives’ them and can test what works, what’s easy, what’s fun and, frankly, what might never apply in their own situation but is just cool to know about.
Event Camps emerged out of a twitter group that follow the #eventprofs hash tag. That collective of tweeps put on the first event, following the design of the geek equivalent, Bar Camps. As a result, Event Camps have a more laid-back networking feel to them than traditional association type events – and often some ‘unconference’ elements, where participants design the content and flow of the day. In addition, they’re hybrid events with one main centre and various satellite ‘pods’ or smaller live groups and a following of virtual participants who connect using Twitter and view sessions via Live Stream. Phew!
Typically speakers are international, and connect via Skype or present in the room. The presentations spark conversations and collective thinking about what’s coming next in the event world.
Event Campers are owners or staff of event management companies, event technology evangelists, event social media experts, professional event and conference organisers, marketers and suppliers to the event industry. They’re likely to be purchasers, event designers and owners in their own right, and probably a little younger than the usual PCO type crowd – 25-45.
Can you see yourself in that audience?! If you can, then make your New Year’s resolution to experiment with events. Even if you can’t, get your head round what else you can do to shake it all up and do things differently. Most of all, do it before your competitors do.
SmartShow is part of the team making the first Event Camp of 2012 – Event Camp DownUnder – come to life in Sydney, Auckland and of course, online. We’re experimenting with events this year and hope you will too. Better still, take the bull by the horns and join us by registering here: www.eventcampdownunder.com
12/05/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
The Showmanator Says “2012 the year smartphone revolutionises and mobilises”
What a year it’s been for mobile technology in general, but that’s nothing to what 2012 will bring – talk about the perfect storm! Here are ten reasons why event smartphones apps are set to become the ‘must have’ accessory:
1. Mobile web just isn’t cutting it – the extra functionality, interaction and up-to-the-minute information offered by smartphones will finally win over the luddites whose heads have been well buried in the sand thinking it’s enough to create a mobile version of their website. Not any more! As more people convert to smartphones, the pressure will be on event producers to offer the fuller experience delivered by native applications for the different smartphones and tablets.
2. The Android factor – phones running on the Android operating system are predicted to account for 50% of the smartphone market by 2015, a trend that’s already well underway. The Android operating system offers a great experience across a wide range of mobile devices, many at genuinely affordable prices. Android is no longer for geeks alone – it’s going mainstream in a big way and the number of apps for Android just keeps on growing. The big loser? Blackberry.
3. Proliferation of iPads and Tablets – offering all the functionality of smartphones but on a grander scale, these ‘puppies’ are changing how people work and opening up amazing possibilities for event producers to manage their events in real time.
Read more →
10/26/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
Well the good news is no-one’s writing off face-to-face meetings and events any time soon! Looking at a couple of recently published industry reports, it’s clear that industry professionals still expect face-to-face events to be an important part of the marketing mix as far out as 2025. Event City of the Future Report, published by Meet Birmingham, and UFI’s 2011 Report are upbeat about the future of the industry … but conditions most definitely apply, and the underlying theme in both is we need to do better.
The UFI Report highlights the need to supply clients with ‘future-oriented information instead of simply selling space’ and that exhibitions should become ‘kings of content’ which can be ‘leveraged throughout the year’. The report acknowledges that too many visitors still don’t catch the right business partners and that there need to be changes in customer relationships.
The enticingly titled Event City of the Future asked 70 leading industry professionals what they see as the predominant trends over the next 15 years. They answered:
- Delivering an effective and tangible ROI is seen as the key success factor.
- Attendance levels, new business leads and generating new contacts will be the most important measures of success.
- Addressing the apparent skills gap in how to use technology effectively will also be critical, rather than ‘just paying lip service to technical wizardry’.
- There will be a shift from regional to urban event centres.
- Trade shows must become thought leaders in their markets.
While these findings are interesting and certainly the issues need to be addressed, the industry still needs to successfully capture the hearts and minds of event participants (to say nothing of their dollars) and neither report offered much in the way of genuine crystal ball gazing about how this transformation is to be achieved.
Read more →
07/27/11 by Frances | Blog, Uncategorized | No Comments »
ShowGizmo’s team is growing rapidly to include sales partners with in-depth knowledge of our key markets. Following our successful launch at the Middle East Event Show in June, we’re delighted to have teamed up with Satellite Visual Communications in Dubai and Bahrain-based PR company, Warren MacLeod.
“We understand the need for a fresh, invigorating and professional approach to how companies present themselves and communicate, and we see technology products like ShowGizmo as being an important way of taking this philosophy to trade shows and other events,” says Satellite’s owner, John Quinn.
John is a well-known figure in the Middle East events scene, as is Megan MacLeod, Managing Director of Warren MacLeod. Read more →
06/26/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
SmartShow is delighted to have partnered with Hamish McSporran to act as our first sales representative in Australia. Hamish describes himself as an ‘Events and Excitement Entrepreneur’ and says he can see a big opportunity for ShowGizmo in the Australian market.
‘The reception for ShowGizmo when it launched at the Perth Event Show in May was phenomenal. We are very excited about the potential for ShowGizmo here—smartphone uptake is growing almost daily and there is genuine hunger here for affordable and effective event technology that delivers better results.’
Hamish founded Spirit Productions based in Western Australia where it has built an unrivalled position in event innovation & management and was Managing Director until 2009 when he decided to pursue some new challenges. Hamish’s extensive experience of the events industry, combined with the innovative ShowGizmo platform, will be a strong calling card for Australian event producers. In fact, he’s moved into this new role with relish – he’s now known to his Twitter Followers as @MrMacGizmo!
06/03/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
Seems that everyone in the Middle East has a smartphone! At least, that was our impression at the Middle East Event Show in Dubai on 01 and 02 Jun. All the statistics that are bandied around like 50% of all business transactions taking place on smartphones by the end of 2012, seem much more credible in that part of the world if what we saw at the show was anything to go by.
Thinking about it, a remarkable number of people had two phones – an iPhone for personal use and a BlackBerry for business. Surprisingly few Androids in sight though. This of course is great news for people who make smartphone apps for the events industry – for us Gizmologists, all those phones are like mana from heaven considering the low penetration as yet of smartphones in some of our markets. But, and there is always a but, it was also apparent that the ‘smart’ bit of the deal has not entirely filtered through. Read more →
04/10/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Seems a bit like a statement of the bleeding obvious, but knowing you need to work smarter and actually doing something about it are entirely different concepts, as we all know.
To explain, we picked up a copy of Future Watch’s ‘2011 The Year Events Get Smart’ at Confex and it makes interesting reading.
Read more →
04/05/11 by Frances | Blog, Uncategorized | No Comments »
BIBA is the UK’s leading general insurance intermediary organisation. Last year’s event attracted more than 4,000 attendees and 170 exhibitors. This year’s May conference, with the theme ‘Opportunities in Adversity’ looks set to be another winner.
Read more →
03/20/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
ShowGizmo was the official app for International Confex 2011 – the UK’s premier expo for the meetings industry – at Earl’s Court in early March. Here’s what our Gizmologist on the spot had to say…. Read more →
01/25/11 by Frances | Blog | No Comments »
QR codes have been around for a long time – as measured by the pace of technological change that is. But they’re just a type of snazzy bar codes aren’t they? So what’s all the excitement about?
‘It’s all about driving more qualified leads,’ says top Gizmologist, Marie-Claire Andrews. ‘To really get the most “bang for you buck”, you need to get creative with these babies,’ says Andrews. Read more →
