Elearning! Magazine: Building Smarter Companies via Learning & Workplace Technologies.
learning!100 IBM's Virtual Event Center
Many businesses responded to financial pressures during the recession by slashing travel budgets, and IBM was no different. This created a huge obstacle for its mar- keting team. Without the ability to travel, they no longer had as many opportunities to meet current and potential clients in person. Being able to interact face-to-face was essential to their business. To overcome this challenge, IBM
launched its first global partner virtual event, using the Internet to allow business executives from around the world to inter- act and share information.
The virtual events cost, on average, $10-20 per
participant, mak- ing them consid- erably cheaper
than an in-person meeting.
The impact was overwhelming. The
company's marketing group saved millions of dollars, and still reached thousands of suppliers and resellers. This success inspired IBM to implement virtual events throughout its operation. Thus, IBM's Virtual Event Center was born.
DOING BUSINESS VIRTUALLY IBM's marketing division launched the vir- tual environment in April 2010 to handle product launches, conferences and training for executives. They were able to reach
26 May / June 2012 Elearning!
Larry Cook, Manager of Events and Digital Metrics, IBM, pictured with Angeli Primlani (right) EMG
18,000 clients and potential clients in 26 countries in 2010 alone. They tracked over 15,000 document downloads. Each visitor participated for an average of two hours. The virtual events cost, on average, $10-20 per participant, making them considerably cheaper than an in-person meeting. Feedback from IBM'
s marketing profes-
sionals was very positive. The Virtual Event Center was credited with improving lead generation. In addition to facilitating con- tacts, the data collected by the system could be analyzed to identify new potential clients. Now many IBM divisions use these vir-
tual events for training, career develop- ment and similar on-demand programs. The system allows for complex interactions between far-flung instructors and learners.
DRIVING INTERACTIONS VIRTUALLY The IBM Virtual Event Center does its best to replicate an in-person event. It provides a wide range of tools to help participants make contact from all over the world. "The virtual platform seemed to be the
best environment in which to do that," said Cheryl Max, director of corporate functional capabilities at IBM. "With the number of countries we reach, virtual events allow us to be anywhere, anytime with clients.
" Attendees can attend pre-recorded keynote
speakers, download podcasts, and access arti- cles from the resource center. They can meet other attendees in the networking lounge and participate in interactive discussion forums. There is an exhibition hall where a user can attend virtual exhibitor booths, ask questions, watch presentations, and make contact with company representatives. A participant can create a virtual briefcase
to store contact information, messages from new contacts, and documents. Polls and other tools are used to track user engage- ment. The entire system links to Facebook and Twitter, so attendees can share their experiences with their wider social networks.
GLOBALIZATION DRIVES GROWTH IBM is only one of many companies lever- aging virtual event platforms. The shift isn't just driven by the economic down- turn. In an increasingly global economy, the need to have opportunities for interac- tion between business professionals across the world is becoming critical. As the global economy recovers, Max
said virtual events will still be valuable. They will still allow businesses to reach more people in more countries, improve training, and keep attendees in contact after an in-person event. But, Max says, the quality of event pro-
gramming will be more important than ever. The big challenge for future hosts of virtual events is keeping its far-flung participants from logging off and disengaging. To do this, content has to be relevant and compelling. "You have to create the right triggers
and opportunities for people who are par- ticipating to engage with the speakers and one another,
" Max said. "You have to
think about the capabilities built into your platform for tweeting and interac- tions. We've certainly looked at enhance- ments to the platform.
" Learn More:
Experience IBM: http://youtu.be/Ql61bW2rY3A