Virtual conferences have gained a lot of traction over the past few years, and recent events have increased the demand for virtual access to industry knowledge and interactive sessions led by experts. Meeting virtually is a great alternative when face to face conferences are not possible – and there are some benefits that are unique to virtual events.
We all miss in-person conferences and the human aspect of them. However, there are many ways in which virtual conferences are as valuable as traditional ones. And you can get the best out a virtual event by taking the rights steps to make the most of the experience.
What can you expect if you attend a conference online? And what are the benefits? In this blog, as we prepare for our Service North Conference, we’ll discuss the Тop 5 benefits of attending a virtual conference.
Virtual is Global!
For most speakers and attendees, access to physical conferences is restricted by travel time and budget. Online events mean no travel time, and no budget for flights and hotels. There are no flights to catch, no travel restrictions, no visa issues, and no time away from work and families.
Coupling with lower ticket prices plus the ability to join from anywhere, results in increased registrations…from all over the world! More attendees, and more diverse audiences, mean the standard of the networking experience is higher.
Speaker diversity can also be much greater in a virtual conference. Speakers can join from anywhere with an internet connection, and the ability to pre-record means that time zone issues are no longer a problem.
Our Service North agenda includes speakers from India, China, Japan, Denmark, UK, Netherlands, Australia and Austria, giving a truly global perspective for our SIAM community.
Lower cost, greater value
Virtual events not only save time, they can save money as well. A virtual event eliminates all those extra costs like hotel accommodations, food expenses, etc. so you are only responsible for the registration fee.
With traditional conferences, finding the budget to attend can be a challenge and it’s often just one person who attends from an organization. Virtual conference tickets give the opportunity to any organization to have more of their staff attend the event.
It can be hard to take everything in at a face to face event. Virtual conferences allow you to catch up on recorded sessions after the event, so you get even more value from your ticket. Our Service North sessions are available for 12 months after the conference takes place.
Service North tickets are just £20, so you can bring the team – a fantastic opportunity to learn together and discuss ways you can make improvements in your own organization.
Flexibility
Initially, many people weren’t keen on the idea of virtual conferences. Sitting behind a computer screen for the whole day was not a brilliant sales pitch. But if last year taught us something is that flexibility is everything!
Flexibility to work from home, to learn from home and now your living room can be your conference hall. Virtual conferences mean no need for clashing ‘speaker tracks’ forcing you to choose between sessions, and attendees often have flexibility to access pre-recorded content. Accessing pre-recorded sessions at a time that suits you allows you to balance work, study or family arrangements.
Plus, most virtual conferences offer the session records or have an option for you to download them after the event, which means you can fit them into your busy schedule and listen at a time that’s relevant for you.
Networking
Networking is more important than ever, and with virtual conferences it can be easier than at a traditional in-person conference.
When we say easier we mean easier to connect and share information with professionals that have the same interests and issues…and most importantly, you can stay connected.
At Service North you can use our platform to connect with our sponsors, join general chat tables and meet other delegates. How much networking you do is up to you!
Interaction
With virtual events, you no longer have to be in a huge conference hall with hundreds of people to achieve self-growth. Now, you can motivate, learn and exchange knowledge through the chat and Q&A sessions.
By using live texting, audio and video chat you can motivate, learn and exchange knowledge with industry experts and get detailed, personalized insights.
If you’d like the opportunity to discuss your organization’s SIAM journey in more depth, the Service North pre-conference workshops are for you. Hosted by Steve Morgan (Syniad IT) and Ian Groves (Syamic), these workshops will give attendees the chance to work on specific SIAM challenges, and get advice from two of the most experienced SIAM consultants in the world.
