Exhibition World Issue 3 — 2020 | Page 47

in alued ade iness, were s and eighs oviding lp our ting ded etings the ain to ngs ts for e with ioned urrent try Below: Cvent CEO Reggie Aggarwal onAIR to replace ‘junk food’ webinars ustralia-based event tech brand EventsAIR has launched its new OnAIR virtual/ hybrid event platform for exhibitions and events following a turbocharged period of development. CEO Trevor Gardiner told EW the platform had been built in a matter of weeks with staff working 24/7, as the company reacted to demand from five of its largest customers who had been in contact in “distressed tones” to see if a virtual/hybrid solution could save their events against the background of the Covid-19 outbreak. “There was an incredible amount of product development,” Gardiner said. “We were motivated by getting the product into the hands of our customers, but we have built it for the long term. “It will enable planners to develop new skill sets and create content and personalise it. It is not just firing up Zoom! People doing virtual meetings to date have tended to be marketers rather than event planners. Now the skilled planners can get involved with OnAIR.” And Gardiner believes that hybrid events are very much the new normal. “Virtual events can stand up quickly and cost effectively.” He also believes webinars will die out and calls them the ‘junk food’ of the events industry. OnAIR offers a four-week boot camp training programme of online learning and the product offers session scanning for CPD credits for users. www.exhibitionworld.co.uk