Posted by MDI on April 7, 2020
As we enter the second month of the Covid 19 crisis, a lot of the talk within the events industry has honed in on the need for diversification by way of virtual events and meetings. Perhaps understandably so given that the live events industry has come to an almost complete standstill. However, are we placing too much emphasis on the need for companies to diversify into the virtual sphere once we finally reach the daylight at the end of this unprecedented tunnel? It's hard to comprehend that the worldwide lockdown and subsequent shutting down of the global events industry, is one that is going to permanently change the landscape of live events and meetings. Sure there will always be a need for virtual events but can they ever really replace the buzz, creativity and sheer vibrancy of a live event?
Once the dust has settled and the post Covid 19 landscape starts to become clearer, the need for audience engagement and face to face interaction will be more prevalent than ever. Live video conferencing platforms like Zoom are fantastic and offer an invaluable service, not only at times of lockdown, but also during periods of normality and stability. Being able to connect immediately and hold meetings remotely is something which has and will continue to grow in importance as technologies & societies continue to advance. There's no doubting that an online meeting can be efficient. Take the collaboration between UCL and the Mercedes Formula 1 team who together successfully developed a new breathing aid to help patients suffering with Covid 19 in unfathomably quick time. A project which took just 100 hours - largely consisting of online meetings - from initial meeting to production of the first device. Something which no doubt would have taken weeks if not months in the pre Covid 19 world.
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