Players and other stakeholders in the event planning industry have advocated the adoption of technology to deepen the craft of the industry which is estimated at $20 billion.
This assertion was made during the masterclass sessions of the 2023 BusyBee Event Business Summit in Lagos themed: ‘Tech in Event Business- The new narrative, which was delivered by, Ibrahim Bashir, show director, Experiential Planner Expo (EPEX) Dubai.
Other speakers at the summit include Bayo Adedeji, Group CEO, Wakanow; Tobi Olanihun, chief experience officer, WOW Connect Services/TEPS; Arese Osakwe, Senior Growth Associate, TIX. Africa; Kunmi Ariyo, founder/CEO, Mirus Events; Adeife Adeyemi, founder/CEO, Ife’ctiv Touch; and Maria Nwonu, CEO Nwandos Signature Events.
In his remark, Bashir said, “Without technology, there is no future in anybody’s life” and business, including the event industry,” adding that “the world is dependent on so many things and most of them are tied to technology.”
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“The event industry has witnessed a remarkable transformation due to rapid advancement in technology. One of the most evident impacts of technology on the event industry is the enhancement of engagement and interaction.”
According to him, technology enhances how delegates experience events and secondly, it is how organisers curate events using technology.
He said with technology, event organisers can engage more people for information such as feedback through Apps and tech platforms in real-time
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Bashir who shared his experience in organizing events, especially destination marketing, says data has become instrumental to the success of their shows. “When everybody registers for shows, you can listen to what the crowd says and use it to organise the next event”.
“We get expectations from would-be participants ahead of what they want to achieve from the summit or conference; during the event, people are asked to give insight into the quality of their engagement and at the end of the event, we use an app to get feedback to ascertain whether people’s expectations were met. It could be about food, lectures and engagements”, he said.
He also told the audience that technology can be expensive in the short term but beneficial in the long run as Chat GPT can be deployed for press releases, and speech writing rather than hiring more people.
He however warned that while technology is beneficial, users need to be cautious about some challenges such as privacy concerns, ethical considerations and data security because some people are sensitive to how their information is shared.
Speaking on the importance of leveraging tech to grow business, Group CEO of Wakanow, Adedeji said, “In every business, data guides you to know what to build on tech, what you need on tech and your ability to leverage tech to grow your business. “Data allows you to know where to go and what you are building”.
