As a speaker at an event—virtual, live or hybrid, you will be competing for your audience’s attention. From smart devices and laptops to pastries and coffees, your audience will face any number of distractions.

If you do manage to win your audience’s undivided attention, well done. Though you are unlikely to keep it for long. According to research, people’s collective attention spans are shrinking. Our brains are so accustomed to frequent distractions and immediate gratification, activities requiring sustained concentration are becoming a drag.

As a speaker, you are not just competing with your peers and other thought leaders in your industry. You are competing for your audience’s attention with, well, everything and anything.

Channel your inner storyteller

Storytelling has emerged as a crucial technique for capturing and retaining audience attention and making complex ideas more relatable. Good storytelling is a hallmark of TED Talks and executive influencers around the globe.

In fact, neuroscientists have found that narratives activate multiple areas of the brain, making information more memorable and easier to recall. By using vivid imagery, incorporating personal anecdotes and creating relatable characters, we can channel universal human experiences and emotions—and make deeper connections with audiences.

Authenticity in storytelling is also key. Sharing personal stories about challenges and revealing vulnerability shows humility and can foster empathy from your audience.

Stories that paint a rich scene help us engage and process information faster. That is why it is important to incorporate visuals when possible into your presentation to make your narrative stronger and more impactful.

Harness interactivity and technology

Asking questions direct to audiences or leveraging live polls, group activities or breakout sessions are all great techniques to liven things up, stimulate debate and encourage engagement.

Videos, images and animations can help capture audience attention and make complex information more digestible. Speakers can transport their audiences to different environments or create interactive experiences using virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). Technology really is opening up a whole new world for speakers and audiences to explore.

Let your body talk

Researchers from ‘Science of People’ conducted a study of TED Talk audiences and discovered some remarkable insights. Researchers found a direct correlation between number of hand gestures and views. In the study, the speaker with the lowest-viewed TED Talks made, on average, half the number of gestures compared to the highest-viewed talks. Gestures, it seems, help you win attention on both a visual and emotional level.

The research also found people had already formed their impression of the entire talk in the first seven seconds of the video. Researcher Nalini Ambady says that for efficiency purposes, the brain makes very quick judgments of people within the first few seconds of meeting them. Typically, this happens before any words are exchanged. This underlines the fact that the way you take the stage, how you greet the audience and how you deliver your opening line are crucial. Vocal variety and smiling are also crowd-pleasers according to the research.

Amplify through social media

Social media allows you to connect with audiences before, during and after your presentations. By sharing clips from upcoming speeches or giving behind-the-scenes access, you can generate interest among potential attendees. During live presentations, social media offers real-time interaction between you and your audiences. After a presentation, social media acts as a channel for you to continue to engage your audience and amplify insights.

Embrace inclusivity, accessibility and diversity

Today’s presentations are expected to be inclusive and accessible. So be mindful that your audience may include many abilities, ethnicities, genders, geographies, races, sexualities; and socio-economic statuses.

Aim to use universal imagery and inclusive language. Provide written or visual examples that reflect diverse perspectives and backgrounds. Prepare for individuals who may experience deafness or reduced vision. For example, use large fonts and caption images and videos. The Office for Digital Accessibility (ODA) at the University of Minnesota provides a more comprehensive breakdown of what you may want to consider. 

If you are intentional about inclusivity, accessibility and diversity, you will create an environment where everyone feels valued and respected. This will encourage deeper audience connection, participation and engagement. 

The battle for attention is on. In an era of short attention spans and constant distraction, it has never been so difficult to win your audience’s attention. Storytelling can transform speeches into captivating narratives that have a lasting impact. Technology can be leveraged to delight and engage. Inclusivity and diversity inspire fresh perspectives and ideas. By embracing innovative technologies, honing storytelling skills and fostering inclusivity, you can have a lasting impact well after the speech is over.

Check out the work we do for thought leaders on our thought leadership content page.

What do the colour of Google’s toolbar, Obama’s 2008 Presidential campaign and Airbnb’s referral programme have in common? They are all examples of marketing experimentation success – and generative AI is proving to be an innovation game-changer. 

Recent research from digital experience platform provider, Optimizely, ‘Tested to Perfection’ found 75% of marketers believe experimentation is essential to strategic business decision- making. The rapid rise of AI offers marketers immense opportunities to experiment and deepen customer connections through enhanced personalisation.

Marketing experimentation is a systematic approach to testing and optimising marketing strategies, tactics, and initiatives. It involves creating controlled conditions to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing actions such as different advertisements, pricing strategies, promotional offers or content. 

The goal is to gather data and insights that inform better decision-making which leads to improved marketing performance. It helps identify the most effective marketing tactics and optimise campaigns for better results through empirical evidence rather than guesswork. It allows testing on a smaller scale before full-scale implementation, thereby reducing risk of costly mistakes. In essence, experimentation is a fundamental practice for enhancing marketing effectiveness and aligning with customer needs and preferences.

Some examples that highlight the power of experimentation include Google’s 41 Shades of Blue. One of Google’s most famous experiments involved testing 41 different shades of blue for its toolbar and ad links. The goal was to find the shade that maximised user engagement and click-through rates. This extensive A/B testing experiment led to a significant increase in ad revenue, demonstrating the value of detailed and data-driven experimentation.

Obama’s 2008 Presidential campaign was a marketing triumph. During the campaign, his team A/B tested extensively on their website to optimise sign-up forms and donations. One experiment tested different versions of a signup button and a hero image. By testing combinations, they identified the best elements, significantly increasing conversions and donations. This data-driven approach was crucial in mobilising campaign support and funding.

AI supercharges marketing innovation 

Generative AI can create vast amounts of content quickly and efficiently, including ad copy, blog posts, images and even videos. Recent joint research from Google and Bain identified what differentiates high-growth B2B software businesses from their peers. Companies are reporting new gains from adopting AI, with respondents reporting a 15% improvement in KPIs after implementing AI.

AI analyses large datasets to understand consumer preferences and behaviour patterns and generate individually personalised content and tailored offers. This level of personalisation enhances marketing effectiveness by ensuring that messages resonate with target micro audiences. 

Traditional A/B testing is limited, often testing one or two variables at a time. Generative AI can manage multivariate testing, simultaneously testing numerous variables and combinations to identify the most effective elements in a campaign. AI-driven tools reduce the time and resources needed for experimentation. They can automate repetitive tasks such as data collection, analysis and reporting, freeing up marketers to focus on strategy and creativity.

AI algorithms predict outcomes based on historical data, allowing marketers to anticipate the results of experiments before they are run. This predictive capability helps prioritise experiments and focus on the most promising strategies. It enables real-time data analysis and decision-making, allowing marketers to refine campaigns on-the-fly. This agility is particularly valuable in digital advertising, where factors can change rapidly.

Oracle, spotlighted in the Google/ Bain research, is an example of best-in-class marketing experimentation. It has dedicated funding to encourage experimentation and fields innovation teams to accelerate and scale up experiments. The company ran an experiment with an AI-enabled virtual assistant tool that handles communications with customers and provides conversion-ready prospects to sales teams. Even with a few employees dedicated to the project and minimal funding, the AI engine delivered substantial value, putting $140 into the sales pipeline for every $1 invested and increasing conversions fourfold. The company then expanded the team and funding to scale up the tool.

The integration of generative AI into marketing experimentation offers transformative potential. It enhances the ability to test, learn and optimise quickly, leading to effective and efficient marketing strategies. As technology evolves, it will undoubtedly play a central role in how businesses engage with and understand their audiences.

Further reading: https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/intl/en-apac/future-of-marketing/management-and-culture/marketing-experiment-playbook/

Stepping up to the podium with all eyes on you, the pressure is palpable. You’re not just at the conference or event to inform; you’re there to inspire, to spark new thoughts and, most importantly, to be remembered long after the event ends. The real challenge for anyone delivering a keynote isn’t about battling stage fright or mastering the content. It’s about leaving a mark on the audience, sparking business conversations, and opening doors to opportunities that stretch far beyond the auditorium.

You want your words to linger, your ideas to ignite discussions, and your presence to pave the way for future collaborations. To make it happen, you have to elevate your keynotes and create experiences that resonate on a deeper level. That’s what we do at PaperplaneCo and we have a few tips to help you transform your next presentation into a keynote that captivates minds and converts interest into action.

1. Craft a Compelling Story That Gets Your Audience Thinking

At the heart of any memorable keynote is a compelling story. Humans are naturally drawn to narratives—they evoke emotional connections and make information easier to remember. Start by identifying the core message you wish to convey and then weave a narrative around it. Make it personal! Use anecdotes from your own experience, historical examples, or hypothetical scenarios to illustrate your points and make them relatable. A well-crafted story can transform a mundane presentation into an unforgettable journey.

At PaperplaneCo, we emphasise the importance of storytelling in presentations. We recommend breaking down your content into a clear beginning, middle, and end. Introduce the problem or challenge you’re addressing, delve into how it can be solved or explored, and conclude with a strong resolution that ties back to your main message. This structure not only makes your keynote more engaging but also helps the audience retain the information.

2. Use Visuals Strategically, to Awe and Captivate

Visuals play a pivotal role in making an impact with your keynote. The right images, charts, and videos can reinforce your message, simplify complex ideas, and—again—evoke emotions. However, the key is to use visuals wisely—each one should serve a purpose and add value to your narrative. Excessive text and irrelevant images can distract or confuse your audience. If you’ve created a clear theme and narrative, use it to guide the image selection across your deck. Our team typically uses more slides that speakers can move through quickly, rather than slides full of lengthy bullet points or paragraphs.

Our team curates high-quality images, GIFs and video content that complement our client’s message. We also design and re-design clean and readable charts that are on-brand and ensure the speaker’s research hits home. 

3. Engage Your Audience

Engagement is the cornerstone of a memorable keynote. Your goal should be to create a two-way conversation, where your audience feels invested in your presentation. There are a few commonly-used techniques, such as conducting live polls or posing a question. But there are also less common techniques to use, such as inviting your audience to try a tool or demo on the spot. Activity-based techniques are a great way to break up the monotony of one-way communication and create a more interactive experience.

Some keynotes don’t allow for that, of course, but if you use your keynote in multiple settings, you can consider making changes in interactivity based on the event and audience.

At PaperplaneCo, we believe that audience engagement extends beyond the presentation itself. It’s about creating moments that invite reflection, discussion and action. Encourage your audience to share their thoughts, questions or experiences related to your presentation. You might even give the audience a memorable quote, e-book or physical item related to the story in your presentation to take home. This not only enriches the discussion but also makes your keynote more memorable by personalising the experience for each attendee.

Create Keynotes That Drive Connections and Discussions

Creating more memorable keynotes is an art that requires thought, preparation and a touch of creativity. By crafting compelling stories, incorporating captivating visuals and engaging your audience, you can elevate your presentations from good to unforgettable.

The PaperplaneCo team of strategists, copywriters and designers is dedicated to helping professionals like you harness the power of effective communication to make a lasting impact. Embrace these strategies, and watch your keynotes transform into memorable experiences that inspire, inform and captivate your audience.

Our goal is to create keynotes that your audience will refer to—on LinkedIn and in your meetings—for weeks to come.

Planning a keynote or presentation soon? Contact us for support in building a compelling story and deck design.

The Great Content Marketing Reframe

Welcome to “The Great Content Marketing Reframe” – a comprehensive report by PaperplaneCo that transcends surface-level tech trends and delves into the fundamental shifts reshaping B2B marketing in 2024. In our report, we propose that true innovation in B2B marketing lies in nurturing a new mindset.

This report guides you in navigating a new technological landscape and buyer mindset with clarity and purpose — ensuring you stay ahead of the curve and outperform your competition.

Three reframes, in a nutshell:

1. Innovation is about skills, not tools:

Generative AI, predictive analytics, and voice search are undoubtedly enticing, but their true value lies in the hands of skilled professionals. Instead of fixating solely on adopting the latest tools, invest in empowering your team with the expertise to leverage them effectively. Think of technological skills as the seatbelt of your marketing strategy – they may feel restrictive at times, but they ultimately enable you to accelerate safely towards your goals.

2. Personalisation is about relevance, not identity:

Gone are the days of superficial personalisation that merely scratches the surface in understanding the buyer as an individual. Today’s buyers crave content that resonates deeply with their professional aspirations, not just personal details like the product they last bought. Shift your focus from identity-based customisation to crafting insightful, valuable content that addresses your audience’s specific challenges and aspirations. 2024 presents the perfect opportunity to move beyond surface-level engagement and create genuine connections that leave a mark on the hearts and minds of your audience.

3. Expectations are more important than facts:

“Best practices” have been done and are unlikely to entice a “wow” from your buyers. Not to mention, we found that the majority of B2B gated content is leaving its audience disappointed. Today’s B2B marketing goal should be about exceeding your audience’s expectations. Let us challenge the status quo, push the boundaries of what’s possible, and redefine the very notion of success.

Marketing at large is in the midst of major shifts in marketing technology and in the way customers think. So let us not be bound by “the way we’ve always done it” and, instead, work toward defying expectations, challenging norms, and reframing the way we approach B2B marketing.

Dive into the data behind these reframes:

It’s World Storytelling Day, and today we’re celebrating by sharing a story we recently helped bring to life on the big stage.

As a creative team, one of our greatest joys is seeing our clients bring our visual designs to life on the big stage.

We love to create standalone assets that tell stories, like ebooks and videos. But it’s an even greater joy to produce formats that speakers breathe life into, like keynotes and webinars. Lucky for us, we have had the opportunity to work on many thought leadership keynotes in 2023 and so far in 2024.

Although the creative process keeps us busy in the weeks leading up to an event, the most rewarding part of this work is helping thought leaders get their audience talking. That’s precisely what our latest project did! 

This year, we worked with Twilio Asia Pacific & Japan to build out a story and visually exciting deck for a keynote presentation at Power Retail in Melbourne.

The keynote explored the different applications of AI in retail marketing and service centres, and provided some personal insights and suggestions for making AI work on a personal level.

The speaker shared how he uses AI as an asset for personal productivity

The speaker also shared insights on how to approach the many, many possibilities of AI for unique retail businesses, based on how their team and organisation have approached new technology with a mindset of experimentation, yet with structured principles.

It was a conversation starter both at the event and online, and at the end of the day, that’s what storytelling is all about. Human connections.

If you run a retail organisation and would like to see some of the key takeaways from the talk, visit the Power Retail blog to join the conversation. 

Looking back at 2022 and the topics we wrote about made us wonder: What is there that is still relevant as the year ends and is worth re-emphasising? In this post, we once again bring to the surface the ideas that are both important and likely to stand the test of time.

Gather ’round the bonfire, tale-tellers

The B2B marketing industry has been heavily focused on generating leads and meeting short-term demand from buyers over the past 10 years. While lead generation is important, research indicates that building a strong brand can be even more beneficial. In order to build a successful B2B brand, it’s important to invest in high-quality creative work. If you need an example, think of Disney stories. 

In order for B2B brands to succeed in the long term, it’s important to use emotional appeal to connect with buyers. However, B2B marketing often focuses on short-term, rational campaigns that are designed to drive immediate revenue. This approach often lacks the use of high-quality creative work. To avoid being a boring business, B2B marketers should take a page from Disney’s book and use storytelling to engage and inspire their audiences.

B2B ads are less effective than B2C ads because B2B marketers often suffer from the ‘product delusion’—the belief that a company’s products are the most important factor in determining its success. 

However, research has shown that buyers don’t make purchasing decisions based on logic alone. 

Instead, they often want products that are good enough and come to mind easily, often as a result of memorable marketing stories. The typical B2B buyer will default to the brand they already know. 

The brand-first approach means that instead of focusing on product features, B2B marketers should develop high-quality creative assets with unique stories and characters.

Such facets can be found in the following examples of marketing campaigns that we covered on our blog this year.

The American Express campaign is a series of advertisements that tell stories about small business owners facing challenges during the pandemic. The stories, although entirely fictional, are relatable to many small business owners and highlight the struggles they may face. The campaign features a cast of characters, including a chef, a duo of architects, a food delivery service owner and a veterinarian. The humorous storytelling helps to portray American Express as a supportive and friendly company for small and medium-sized businesses.

Note that you don’t even have to invent new stories. Repurposing existing ones works equally well.

In its Super Bowl ad, Squarespace revived the legend of Mary Anning, an English fossil collector. This story inspired the lyrics to the song ‘She Sells Seashells’. In the company’s ad, ‘she’ becomes Sally, an entrepreneur who achieves success by opening an online store.

The commerce thrives on the Squarespace platform, of course, but that’s only a detail. What’s important is that the company brought a whole new character to life and created an imaginative and unique world for her to inhabit.

How is this going to be relevant in 2023?

The B2B Institute predicts that B2B marketers will be shifting their focus to building brands over the entire decade leading up to 2030. The next year should theoretically bring us closer to this goal; however, there are some challenges awaiting. Concerns about inflation, higher interest rates, and the potential for a recession may cause marketers to minimize risk. We believe that next year marketers will be focusing on time-tested, short-term activities that yield quick results, rather than spending on long-term brand building efforts. It’s a pity because 2023 is being handed on a plate by 2022 many topics on a plate by 2022 that are ripe for storytelling. Think of remote teams, quiet quitting, supply chain, energy and food shortages, mental health, AR vs. the Metaverse, electric vehicles, biomaterials, authenticity (‘being real’), and many more themes that are up for grabs.

Broader consumer horizons

We find Meta’s culture predictions for 2022 (which we wrote about here) quite on point. Of the four major trends identified by Meta at the year’s start, we were especially able to observe the one about the shift in consumer values.

The following were the most important insights:

• People are increasingly supporting businesses close to home and having a global outlook at the same time, with Millennials and Gen Z in particular feeling strongly about being global citizens.
• Shoppers are increasingly expecting fast delivery, blurring online and offline shopping boundaries, and quick access to websites. With the rise of retail apps, curbside pickup, and QR code scanning, consumers are more open to new shopping experiences. This is further underscored by shoppable surfaces, in-store live shopping, one-click mobile payments, layaway plans, flexible financing, free shipping and same-day delivery. Shopping has become effortless, allowing people to make impulse purchases quickly and easily.

• People are increasingly striving to take care of their mental and physical health. The pandemic has seen an increase in self-reflection, self-love and mindfulness, while alternative wellness approaches such as botanicals, acupuncture, meditation, energy healing, nature therapy and yoga are gaining popularity. People are embracing new omnidirectional fitness motivations, nontraditional healthcare and natural ingredients and giving back through volunteering or fundraising.
• With more people growing concerned about climate change, there is increasing awareness of the need to reduce carbon emissions. This has led to more electric vehicles being purchased, as well as extended smartphone lifecycles, trade-ins, recycling and upcycling. There is also a trend of secondhand clothing being viewed as desirable, marking a move away from the traditional ‘take, make and waste’ model.

As we wrote in this article, Asian countries have adopted various new digital habits such as live shopping during the pandemic. Shopping behaviours are more focused on frictionless commerce and increasing adoption of technology-fueled lifestyles. And consumers will be increasingly influenced by their personal values and connection to local culture.

There is a cultural shift across APAC, with Chinese television series gaining popularity in Indonesia, K-pop being preferred over western pop, and Vietnamese musicians gaining recognition abroad. Thus, to be successful in Asia, brands need to demonstrate authenticity and culturally relevant connection, leveraging the local pop culture.

APAC consumers are also more interested in spending on health-related products than before the pandemic.

Reasons for this shift include wanting to protect themselves from disease and ailments, live longer, avoid preventable diseases and look and feel healthier, as well as being influenced by family/ friends/ news/ social media, re-evaluating their lifestyle, worrying about unvaccinated people, and rising healthcare costs. 

Premium prices are accepted if consumers get nutritional benefits, healthier options, strong hygiene/protection qualities, and sustainable products.

Moreover, consumers in the Asia-Pacific region are increasingly embracing sustainability. This includes things such as environmental and social issues, health benefits, high-quality products, and local sourcing. Health benefits are the primary purchasing criteria across the region, with five times more consumers citing ‘the personal impact of environmental issues’ than ‘having a child’ as motivators to buy sustainable products.

However, there is a ‘say-do gap’, where people want to buy sustainable products but don’t due to lack of information, distrust of brand claims, lack of variety in products and gaps in availability. In order to reach the ‘sustainability tipping point’, companies should learn what this booming consumer segment wants and how best to serve it, in order to close the gap and benefit from customer loyalty.

How is this going to be relevant in 2023?

We expect most of these trends to continue into the near future. People will remain supportive of businesses close to home, while also having a global outlook. Shopping will become increasingly effortless. There will be a continued focus on mental and physical health, with alternative wellness approaches gaining in popularity. And people will keep wanting to buy sustainable products but will still find it sometimes difficult to do so because brands are unlikely to quickly fix their problems.

In order to make attendees’ experience satisfactory, virtual events should enable participants to gain the knowledge they are looking for and connect with other attendees.

As the world has shifted to virtual events, attendees have developed a personal taste and now have several expectations from their virtual experience, which creates new challenges for event planners.

Most virtual events—78%—offer attendance at no charge, according to a Bizzabo report. Those that are paid (22%) have an average price of $149 (based on aggregated Bizzabo user data).

Participants do not attend all event sessions—only a handful of them—and this is true not only of virtual events but of all event types. 

The majority of virtual live attendees witness no more than 20% of all sessions. While people attend a smaller share of the agenda online, they view more sessions than those who choose physical events. This is especially true when considering the ones who view on-demand content.

In fact, networking is a goal or a high interest to only about 18% of virtual event participants. 31% are open to the idea but not planning it for their virtual experience, while 51% are not interested in it altogether.

As approaching people is not possible, the nature of digital events makes conversations flow less naturally than in the physical world. They tend to depend more on event activities, which creates an opportunity gap for marketers, who should design events in a way that facilitates these connections (for those who desire them or are at least open to them).

They tend to depend more on event activities, which creates an opportunity gap for marketers, who should design events in a way that facilitates these connections (for those who desire them or are at least open to them).

Even though gaining professional knowledge is expressed to be the most important objective for virtual attendees, they nevertheless claim to be underwhelmed by their learning outcomes. Most (51%) do report having acquired some knowledge but not at the level they were expecting. 

Only 32% are entirely satisfied with their learning, which pales in comparison to 53% of in-person attendees gaining the knowledge they hoped for.

Another blow coming to marketers from attendees’ feedback is that virtual attendees simply have much less fun than in-person participants. A whopping 42% rate their event as not entertaining, compared to 18% whose experience in this regard is very positive. This is yet another area that event marketers should focus on improving.

In the eyes of the event organisers, the top challenges related to virtual events are engagement (35%), and networking (20%). With the second factor, we can observe some consistency with attendees’ responses. Both of these issues can be mitigated with event technology to some extent (but employing the right tactics is equally important).

Indeed, when asked about the most important feature when choosing a virtual event platform, marketers’ second most common answer is networking tools, and third is live polling and voting (for engagement)

Virtual event software users from Asia-Pacific see value in a lot of potential features an event platform can offer, such as the following ones:

Finally, engagement can and should continue after the event, with proper incentives in place for the attendees to share their experiences with their colleagues. It is an area that could be improved, as 18% of people do not share any insights taken from the event with others. 

But those who share do so mostly through face-to-face conversations (37%), which is much more engaging than giving a copy of materials (31%) or sending an email summary (14%).

Virtual events are here to stay—for the foreseeable future. To make a difference in this space, marketers must design them in a way that meets the expectations of participants and drives their own business results.

Read the full Bizzabo report here

Although in-person events are slowly making a comeback, virtual events are here to stay. Marketers should focus on making their virtual events more engaging and immersive to keep participants engaged. For hybrid events, marketers should weigh the potential benefits against the risks to avoid costly mistakes.

We still live in the aftermath of 2020 when many organisers of physical B2B events were abruptly forced to change plans. Two years later, in-person events have been slowly coming back and in the meantime, a new type of hybrid events has grown in importance. 

The majority of marketers are still focused on virtual events and other digital initiatives. The share of marketers whose physical events budget completely went away decreased from 23% in July 2021 to 15% in March 2022. The share of those who reduced their budgets and shifted to virtual events remained steady at around 42%.

A survey conducted by CMO Council and Cvent found signs of virtual event fatigue with 36% of marketers reporting a severe drop in registration rates and customer engagement.

A possible reason is that when the pandemic outbreak forced events to go online, marketers assumed virtual events needed to deliver the same outcomes as in-person events. But the reality is that virtual events are well-suited for presenting knowledge at scale (delivering higher reach), whereas physical events naturally allow for interactivity and nurturing of customer relationships that result in higher conversion rates, and are a better fit for occasions like executive briefings and product rollouts.

Mismanaged attempts to bring make events virtual have led marketers to get worse business results from virtual events than in-person events:

Still, as evidenced above, 64% of respondents are satisfied with their deployment of digital events and getting at least good value from them, if not better. Surely, events that are exclusively virtual are going to remain in the marketing mix of a vast majority of B2B companies.

However, two years of attending virtual events have heightened the expectations of B2B professionals. It will be crucial to adopt new practices to keep participants engaged and create an immersive experience—even for physical events—with several digital tactics.

However, two years of attending virtual events have heightened the expectations of B2B professionals. It will be crucial to adopt new practices to keep participants engaged and create an immersive experience—even for physical events—with several digital tactics.

When it comes to hybrid events, it is important to weigh the potential benefits against the risks. It is true that a hybrid format has the value of significantly boosting attendance and presenting one’s brand in the spirit of inclusiveness and openness towards those who are still unable to travel to an in-person event.

However, hybrid events are problematic. Not only do they score the lowest in terms of marketers’ ability to execute them effectively or very effectively (see above) but they are also expensive. A hybrid event is essentially double the cost of a regular event because, on top of organising the physical experience, marketers have to factor in the costs of producing the digital part.

Finally, there is a risk of cannibalisation of physical attendance. By promoting the virtual path too intensively, marketers risk having fewer attendees showing up at the event’s physical venue. A way to mitigate this is to select a part of the audience who has a higher likelihood of attending in person and send them invitations to the physical event. Those who are not likely to travel or have not responded to previous messages should be invited to the digital event.

The Metaverse will have a profound impact on marketing, with vast potential implications for how companies reach and engage customers. B2B marketers who now start to experiment with immersive virtual events will be well-versed in the opportunities the Metaverse presents as it evolves.

By 2026, one-quarter of humankind will be spending a minimum of one hour daily in the Metaverse for work, shopping, education, social interaction and/or entertainment. Additionally, 30% of the organisations in the world will offer products and services specifically for the Metaverse, according to Gartner.

The Metaverse has the potential to be worth $5 trillion by 2030. While it holds possible implications for all industries, it may have the greatest market impact on e-commerce (up to $2.6 trillion), academic virtual learning (up to $270 billion), advertising (up to $206 billion), and gaming (up to $125 billion).

These predictions might not seem so unreal if you consider that Metaverse has already seen numerous implementations. The top enterprise use cases for the Metaverse that companies have been working on are:

1. Marketing campaigns or initiatives.
2. Learning and development for employees.
3. Meetings in the Metaverse.
4. Events or conferences.
5. Product design or digital twinning (for product development and manufacturing).

And attending events, especially those that provide learning, is what people are already looking forward to doing in the virtual world:

Meetings and events organised as Metaverse experiences have seen most implementations from the healthcare and travel, transport, and logistics industries:

The following are only some examples of how companies are experimenting with hosting meetings and B2B events in the Metaverse:

• Flagship conference: the 2021 edition of SXSW, the annual event showcasing music, film and interactive media, was partially held in a virtual world that brought the conference’s location, Austin, to life, allowing attendees to meet, explore, and watch content created specifically for the VR.
• Education: University of California at San Diego’s Rady School of Management used a virtual campus for lectures that included breakout spaces and outdoor areas.
• Recruiting: Havas Group launched a virtual village to improve its recruitment and onboarding experiences.
• All-in: eXp Realty, a real estate brokerage company, operates entirely on a day-to-day basis in a virtual world. Used primarily for providing agents with business support, it is also a place that hosts meetings and conferences. It has an auditorium that has been used to organise training sessions with hundreds of participants and conferences with thousands of attendees enjoying presentations, breakout conversations and individual networking.

All this implies that B2B marketers can no longer dismiss immersive virtual worlds as exclusive to the B2C field.

Nearly 70% of all U.S. marketers work for an organisation that already has already an in-house team or external agency dedicated to the Metaverse.

Almost 60% of them have a marketing budget and 57% are executing a marketing strategy specifically for the Metaverse. On the other hand, a mere 18% of brand marketing and analytics executives claim to understand how the Metaverse will impact their brand.

However, the lack of understanding is no reason for dismissing the Metaverse altogether. McKinsey analysts think that not participating in the Metaverse may result in a significant competitive disadvantage. 

This is because customers are adopting the Metaverse and, regardless of its involvement, every company should consider how it may impact its business, positively or negatively, and devise a strategy.

The consultancy suggests a step-by-step approach to prepare a company for the Metaverse:

Executives willing to understand the possibilities and opportunities of the Metaverse could already start dipping their toes in the various solutions available to them by exploring an online gaming experience like Roblox, Fortnite, or Minecraft, visiting a 3D virtual world like The Sandbox or Decentraland, joining a Discord server, watching a Twitch channel, checking out an NFT marketplace, trying out a VR experience, or participating in a virtual event on a web-conferencing platform such as Gather Town.

While it is still in its very early stage, the Metaverse is currently going through intensive development and change, and marketers will be wise to keep themselves informed about its evolution and the emerging opportunities it presents.

Download McKinsey’s report here 

Promoting an environmental cause became the platform on which a unique marketing project was built, bringing long-gone animals back to life.

Getty Images, the online stock photography library, has amassed 496 million assets. With a vast archive like this, you would think it contains pictures of everything you could imagine. Well, you can’t have a photo of something that doesn’t exist. So no, you would not have found any pictures of extinct animals on Getty Images—until the company decided to change that.

Three extinct species that have never been captured in photographs were reconstructed based on photos of animals that are themselves currently on the brink of extinction. The ‘Living Images’ project made it possible for everyone to get to know in detail the American lion, the Rodrigues giant tortoise, and the great auk.

A dedicated website was created to offer an interactive experience to visitors, who can learn the stories of the animals, understand what happened to them throughout history, and—of course—view them in 360º. Getty Images was meticulous in showing all the stock imagery depicting today’s endangered animals that was used to reconstruct the creatures. 

The project was conducted with the help of two experts. The palaeontologist Lucas Inglez helped with the reconstruction. And Ami Vitale, award-winning wildlife and conservation photographer, was tasked with shooting the first image of an extinct animal in its natural habitat. The photographer’s expedition to California simulated what capturing a photo of the American lion might have looked like before it became extinct.

‘Living Images’ is a project created to raise awareness about sustainability, the importance of environmental responsibility, and the need for the protection of endangered animals. The collation of species that are extinct with those that are endangered implies a clear parallel. If we don’t start protecting these vulnerable animals soon, a photograph on Getty might be the only thing we’ll have left of them too.

This campaign was designed to act as a warning to people who can impact change. Nowadays, many companies take a stand to protect the environment and act sustainably. And Getty Images’ target audience is composed of advertisers, marketers, and communications professionals who are often the ones working on the actual messaging of such claims.

This project invites them to champion the change and brings inspiration to spread the idea and address environmental issues in their work. 

And what better way to do that than with the help of Getty Images’ endless imagery possibilities?

Links: 

https://www.oneclub.org/awards/theoneshow/-award/43525/living-images 

https://victoryves.com/Living-Images-Getty-Images