A Multiverse of Metaverses: the Future of Events Is Here!

Earlier this summer, I took a journey to the future of events. Or more accurately, a JOURNEE, courtesy of “the beautiful Metaverse” company itself. 

Journee develops immersive digital environments and experiences for brands inside bespoke creative worlds. These settings are engaging and interactive, inviting visitors to play and explore. Despite their description as “metaverses” what Journee builds for clients are not exactly true metaverses–rather, they are bounded, virtual spaces where brands can manage the participant’s experience. This is a big benefit. We’ve found over and over again how events in true metaverses can suffer from distraction when organizers can’t control the environment– or how your attendees engage with it. Just ask our marketing manager Clélia who once found herself digitally trapped inside a stairwell in Decentraland 😅. That was the experience she came away with– not the brand experience she came to explore.

Inside the bounded environment, organizers are able to create tailored participant journeys. Should you choose, there’s no struggling with controls or navigating avatars. It ensures that your attendees don’t miss anything inside the experience. 

What sets the Journee environment apart from many other 3D worlds and digital event experiences we’ve visited lately, is the beauty and luxury feel of the spaces they’ve created. At the closing of our tour, many of the participants wrote into the chat asking for the chance to stay longer, wanting more time to explore. For event organizers, this is exactly the feeling you want your attendees to come away with every time. The desire to stay and enjoy a little bit longer. Creating the feeling of an event so special, participants don’t want it to end.

Not everything about our tour inside Journee was perfect. There were a few bugs and a hoverboard that became impossible to get off of. But the experience left a memorable and lasting impression – another primary goal for event organizers. 

For me, it showed that we’re only just scraping the surface of what’s possible with digital events. The best certainly is yet to come– if we– and technology providers– are brave enough to think outside the box. Digital events can be so much more engaging, creative and immersive than the multitude of event platforms out there that currently present an experience, not unlike an upcycled social media feed. The millions that have been pumped into eventtech over the last two years should have something better to show for it. 

The Journee experience shows that not only is it possible, but it is already here.

Here’s what I’ve been catching up on this week:

The event industry’s changing landscape:

• Summer 2022 Meetings Outlook [Meeting Professionals International] The latest industry report from MPI shows continued recovery for the event industry, albeit with some challenges on the horizon with regard to talent and prospective restrictions this fall. Overall 82% of respondents predict positive business conditions for the coming months, despite increased costs overall. 
• Metaverse experience hall to debut at 2022 CIFTIS [Yahoo Finance] One of China’s largest trade fairs, the China International Fair for Trade in Services has set trends with an entire exhibition hall dedicated to metaverse experiences. Unfortunately, the tradefair does not appear to be able to be experienced in the metaverse itself. 
• Kein digitales Konzept: IFA in Berlin hat ein Nachhaltigkeitsproblem [T-online] Berlin’s IFA trade fair begins today, but under the cloud of 110,000 tons of CO2 emissions caused by the event’s foreign visitors. The unsustainability of these large events is coming under increasing pressure, in light of upcoming energy crises and rising prices. Critics cite the German fair industry behind others when it comes to sustainability, especially after significant government investment in the sector’s recovery. 

Digital eventtech

• Ticketmaster taps the Flow blockchain to let event organizers issue NFTs tied to tickets [TechCrunch] NFTs are coming for your tickets. There’s a lot of hype around NFTs, but these digital tokens can be an extra incentive for event attendees to upscale their experience. NFTs connected to tickets can be used for memorabilia or provide greater ticket security, depending on the use case. 
• Tewkesbury tech firm Gravit8 launches ‘world first’ DIY virtual event platform [Business & Innovation] Gravit8 has now made their digital event venues available to a wider market, without an agency or developer necessary. Their new DIY product allows organizers to create their own 3d and virtual event venues for experiences of all kinds. 
• Meta head of virtual reality platform Horizon leaving company [Financial Express] Horizon, Meta (Facebook)’s digital metaverse for work and events has had a bumpy few weeks– now sees the departure of one of their top executives. The company has sought to transform the work environment by moving into digital horizon worlds but has struggled to find adoption and enthusiasm– which for some has called into question the viability of metaverses for digital events and experiences. 
• In-Person Events Have Returned; Can We Leave Event Tech Behind? [Trade Show News] Since events have moved full-on into physical formats this summer, digital event technologies have somewhat become an afterthought. But this is a mistake, argues Marco Giberti in this opinion piece. He worries that the lack of technical adoption will severely limit the industry’s potential going forward, and now is time for the industry to fully embrace digital and a hybrid future.

How to do it:

• How to buy a virtual event platform [Conference News] Event organizers must be more choosy about their eventtech platforms and not take technology for granted. Here is how you can begin to ask the right questions of your technology providers, and truly find a platform that meets your– and your participants’ needs for your next event. 
• 5 Do’s and Don’ts of On-Site Care at Live Events [BizBash] An event organizer’s worst nightmare– a medical emergency onsite. Be prepared by having the right resources and plan in place before your welcome your guests. Here’s a handy guide to making sure you develop the right safety plan and procedures for your next event.
• Event marketing: is social media enough? [Conference News] Marketers know that the social media landscape changes quickly. For events, a purely social media outreach strategy can be limiting, especially in a crowded market. New evidence shows that consumers are now finding a pushback from consumers via marketing in social media, where brands are increasingly experiencing a negative response after seeing advertisements across their social platforms. It gives caution to event marketers about the platforms and channels they should focus on– to prevent poor responses to promotional messages. 

Don’t miss it:

• Event Planners Manage Clients Wanting More for Less [Skift] Tightening wallets tends to not always accompany smaller expectations. Agencies have had a tricky balance this summer, grateful for client events, but higher costs on staff, equipment and venues. How to combine both? 
• 9 Things That Annoy Frequent Event Attendees [BizBash] Don’t find yourself guilty of one of these annoyances at your next event. Anything from lack of proper signage, to poor waste management, are the things that might leave your event memorable for all the wrong reasons. A quick glance at this list before your next event might be helpful to ensure you’ve not skipped on those vital details. 
• Studienergebnissen des Forschungsprojekts „Plant a Seeed“ [Event Partner] Event organizers have rallied around more sustainable event concepts, but what about clients and participants? A new German study has examined event sustainability head-on– initial findings suggest that when sustainable options are provided on-site, they will find strong adoption.

Closing thoughts

We’ve had the chance to work on some really interesting and immersive projects lately– in the offline space. If you’re looking for a creative partner for an upcoming event or experience, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you. 

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The Lookout Newsletter #66

Written by:
Felix Josephi
PIRATEx Managing Director