Virtual Meetings & Conferences
I must admit, I really enjoy my job, and the industry that I’m in. This week I went to the Virtual Edge Summit conference in Santa Clara. Today, I am attending that same conference, but I’m participating while lying on the couch, in my jammies, and getting some other work done at the same time.
Virtual meetings and conferences are wonderful. I’m not saying this replaces face-to-face interaction, but there are many advantages to attending meetings and conferences virtually:
- Convenience — no traveling; easy to join in; can squeeze in between other tasks because you don’t have to go anywhere
- Increases productivity — you can do other work when parts of the meeting don’t apply to you, or during conference sessions of no interest to you
- Document share — you can share documents or other computer assets instantly
- Increased communication — while one person is talking, you can IM others pertinent information
- Expense — virtual conferences and trade shows cost a lot less to run than physical ones, or extend the physical
- Increased Participation — Folks from all over the planet can join since no physical travel is involved
- Near face-to-face – Video and avatars, plus live chat or voice, provide a near face-to-face experience that is immediate
I’m looking into various software applications for CollabNet to use for virtual conferences and trade shows. Yesterday while at the Virtual Edge Summit in person, I had a chance to talk to a few vendors. My experience has been mainly with Second Life, so this was a nice opportunity to see what other folks are using, and what features are provided.
Some of the software was mostly 2D, some of it 3D similar to Second Life, and one ran in the browser, using graphics and a menu system. I was impressed with all. Some are quite pricey but have a lot of features. I’m also looking online for less expensive alternatives, and to see what is available.
I welcome suggestions from you folks who have experience with particular software that you really like. I’d also welcome hearing your experiences with virtual conferences and tradeshows.
February 17th, 2010 at 10:26 am
All great ideas but I would also add another item to it: consider doing a virtual event/meeting. Virtual events and meetings are a great way to stay in front of customers, generate new leads and help close business already in the pipeline. These solutions are being deployed so rapidly by companies that the market is projected to exceed $18 billion by 2015. If you are interested in how you can use virtual environments attend the Virtual Edge Summit Feb. 22-23 (virtually or in-person if you are in/near Silicon Valley). There is no registration fee if you take a short survey.
Virtual Edge Summit 2010 is the only event that focuses exclusively on providing education, training and solutions for planning and producing virtual events, meetings and communities. Over 2 days, 80 experts will share their experience with you, and be available for one-on-ones. The event also offers a rich program for featuring experts from Cisco, Stanford, IBM, Disney SAP, Oracle, Intel as well as top virtual technology and service providers like InXpo, ON24, 6Connex, Stream57, CGS VirtualEvents365, George P. Johnson, Unisfair and Digitell.
When: February 22-23, 2010 8am until 6pm
Where: At the Santa Clara Convention Center in California and virtually in browser based virtual environments offering 2D and 3D experiences.
Register at http://www.VirtualEdgeSummit.com