Newly Emerging Roles and Trends in The Events Management Industry in 2017

This year will see some big changes in the events planning industry. New roles and trends are emerging to meet current social and technological demands. It's important to understand these, especially if you want to stay relevant in today's competitive world. In this article, we’ll discuss seven of these recent developments, and how each of them could affect your business.

1. Planners Specialising in Virtual Events
   High-speed Internet has made it easier than ever for people to put on “virtual events.” These are inexpensive to produce, and can reach huge audiences all around the world. As a result, they're rapidly gaining popularity.

   Virtual events can take many forms, ranging from webinars to live broadcasts. And while these are generally easier to set up than an in-person event, they still require special planning.

   Because of this, many companies are now hiring people to plan their virtual events for them. Getting into this field is a great way to expand your client-base and work with companies from all over the globe.

   
   

2. Managing Real-Time Feedback
   Social media has made it easy for attendees to provide feedback during the actual event. If people like (or dislike) what is going on, they can voice their opinions instantly.

   Because of this, many planners have started using “real-time response” methods, where certain details of an event can be adjusted to meet their audience’s needs.

   Just how can you collect (and collate) feedback in real-time? By using a mobile event app, such as the powerful Angage Event App.

   
   

3. Security
   Safety has always been a concern for event-goers, perhaps even more so in 2017. To ensure that attendees are protected, event planners (especially in countries where crowd safety is a genuine concern) are taking venue safety very seriously.

   Measures include having security checkpoints and briefing staff on how to deal with emergency situations. These extra steps can feel like a hassle at times, but will make guests feel more secure at an event.

   
   

4. Big Data
   An event's success used to be based on guesswork and “gut feel”, but not anymore. Thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT) and software like the Angage Event App, every attendee’s smartphone is now a mobile data collection device that’s turned on all throughout your event – making it easy to collect crucial data on attendee feedback, usage and attendance patterns.

   Having this data on hand, especially when it’s complied into a reader-friendly report, will allow you to make improvements in every aspect of your event that’s being tracked and measured.

   
   

5. Social Media
   Even in 2017, many planners feel like they simply don't “get” social media. They iknow how to use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram in their personal lives, but not (yet) for professional purposes.

   Because of this knowledge gap, there’s a genuine need for event planners to know how to use social media platforms to effectively market their events. Otherwise, you could engage digital marketing companies to do it for you. (Though we definitely recommend learning basic digital marketing skills, so you’ll be able to better understand how your events are being marketed.)

   
   

6. Event Apps
   Data has shown that event attendees love using event apps, as they make events more engaging and fun. Incorporating a good event app into your event is a great way to capture and hold your audience’s full attention, and get useful event/feedback data from them.

   Get yourself familiar with at least one leading event app, so you’ll have the option of using it at any of your events.

   
   

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