VIRTUALLY
NEW
CN looks at how ITB Berlin
went virtual to get the show
on the road, and how
Eventscase adapted their
product to help clients
he events industry –
like everything else
– was forced into
going about its
business online when
countries around the world
went into lockdown to fight the
spread of Covid-19.
The world’s largest annual
travel trade show, ITB Berlin, was one
of the first event casualties of the
Covid-19 outbreak in March.
The event, which launched in 1966,
brings together decision-makers,
experts, buyers and professionals from
across the travel industry. ITB Berlin is,
for many, much more than a four-day
event with business meetings taking
place ahead of the show opening.
Connecting buyers and suppliers is
paramount for organisers. Messe
Berlin had already appointed tech
supplier Grip and its intelligent event
matchmaking software platform to
help attendees meet and do business
during the event.
In excess of 130,000 people were
scheduled to arrive in Berlin for the
event which was thrown into doubt
and then cancelled fully after the first
cases of Covid-19 in the German
capital were announced.
But with the imminent challenges
facing the travel industry in the wake
of the virus, Messe Berlin knew that
now it was vital to connect the
industry despite not being able to
meet face-to-face. In the space of two
days, Grip had adapted its platform to
allow event attendees to still hold
meetings despite the event
cancellation.
To support those who had already
travelled to the city in anticipation of
the event, Grip modified its
technology to include varying
locations, allowing attendees to meet
with their colleagues, selecting
alternative locations around the city.
The new offering gave attendees the
opportunity to hold the pre-event
scheduled meetings virtually allowing
colleagues to meet and do business.
Around 300-500 virtual meetings
took place after the cancellation of
ITB Berlin and across the Grip
platform throughout March.
www.conference-news.co.uk
15
Technology
On the case
We have all been using video meeting
software but integrating such
technology into existing assets for a
professional look has not been
something a lot of businesses thought
they would need.
Jose Bort, CEO and co-founder of
EventsCase, explained how his company
has provided a solution. He said: “We
realise that many of our users want a
quick and very simple way of hosting
virtual events but without large-scale
changes or any big investments. They
had the video software and production
team – the missing piece was the
platform to stitch everything together in
a professional way.
“We’ve created a feature which leans
on our existing technology stack to
replicate the experience, engagement
and value of a live event. Organisers
could be up and running within hours,
and the only difference is the way in
which they present their content.”
Live streams are activated by the user
clicking a ‘play’ button next to each
session on the event’s agenda page.
Attendees can use the same app to
build new connections via EventsCase’s
1-2-1 networking feature, which has
been enhanced through a new video
chat option.