Evolving Education and careers – A virtual conference
PR, Comms, Marketing, Social Media, Virtual Conferencing
Evolving Education and Careers: A virtual conference
Organising an engaging three day virtual conference during a pandemic was always going involve thinking differently. The Evolving Education and Careers conference from DMH Associates offered a fantastic opportunity to mix technology and innovative presentation for more than 400 delegates.
The brief
The brief was to support DMH Associates on increasing delegate signup to a three-day virtual conference utilising innovative marketing techniques and partnership marketing. We were to research and identify the most appropriate technology platform to run the event from a website portal. This included the registration process, multiple webinars, delegate networking and technical support throughout the event. Additionally, the organisation of advance training for the moderators, speakers and staff on the chosen technology platform was required. So too was the provision of delegate guides to ensure easy access.
What we did
To ensure delegate numbers:
- Email marketing to DMH Associates event subscribers creating a story for the conference with tailored messaging to the potential delegate groups
- LinkedIn contact identification and liaising with speakers and partners to spread the word using their own established networks. Speaker cards and example posts were created to support this process
- Working directly with sponsors to share the message using their regular channels – web, social etc
- Developing key strategic partnerships (such as with FE News) so that articles could be published using their channels
Following technology platform research we implemented the following:
- Set up and optimisation of a landing page to promote the conference and allow delegates to easily source information on any sessions – https://dmhassociates.org/conference
- Use of Eventbrite to manage the registration process
- Use of Zoom for webinars – this choice was based on both the technical benefits and that as a recognised name that it would reduce fears over operation
- Use of Whova – a networking platform that integrates with Eventbrite and Zoom. This allowed us to send notifications and emails to delegates, gain feedback, one to one chat with both delegates and speakers, swap business cards and even shared articles
The impact
Feedback gathered indicated that the virtual international conference was a great success. We received an overall rating of 4.8 out of 5 for the speakers, content and organisation of the event.
One delegate even tweeted – It’s like the equivalent of the Glastonbury Festival for education and careers professionals”.
Whova proved successful, allowing delegates to get many of the same benefits as attending in person, including networking and the development of new industry contacts.
The event ended with a surprise, having a rapper to close the conference with a poetic overview.
Impact in numbers
International delegates
Industry speakers
Ministerial conference addresses
Conference days
CPD hours earned
Event sessions
Debate topics
“Mark Mitchell is a true professional. Over the last two years he has provided dmh associates with first-class technical support. Mark is always willing to find ways to solve problems and has the dual expertise of digital and marketing. He really helped with the development of our first Virtual International Conference with over 400 delegates and speakers which was an amazing success! He also backed this up with an innovative social networking platform and a Digital Resource Toolkit. I would not hesitate to recommend Mark’s services.”
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