The events industry has faced a tumultuous period in the last 18 months, with the core in-person element of many shows replaced by a digital component.
Adopting a hybrid event approach has been crucial in allowing us to continue working with our partners, customers, and the wider industry. However, returning to a format where we can speak face-to-face has always been the end goal.
Fortunately, and particularly in the UAE, live and in-person events are gaining pace again – need we look any further than the world’s greatest show, Expo 2020 Dubai? This incredible spectacle will shine a bright light on Dubai and the wider region and showcase how we can run an event of this scale successfully and safely.
Thanks to the measures introduced by the UAE Government, most notably the world-leading vaccination programme, the country was one of the first in the world to return to a live event format with Arab Health and Medlab Middle East, some of the first in the region to welcome visitors back through their doors.
Despite the willingness to return to a live and in-person format by many of our loyal partners and visitors, circumstances out of our control, such as flight and corporate travel bans, border closures, and long quarantine periods, made it impossible to attend.
In-person events are one of the most effective ways to do business, however, it became clear that high-quality virtual events allowing professionals from across the globe to connect were imperative in overcoming the challenges of Covid-19 and have continued to add value to the events sector throughout 2021.
During the co-located Arab Health and Medlab events, held in June earlier this year, we virtually welcomed 19,699 online attendees. The event was a notable success scoring a Net Promoter Score (a mechanism to gauge customer satisfaction with a company’s product or service and customer loyalty to a brand) of +37, an industry benchmark for virtual events is +21.5.
A total of 31 countries were represented at Arab Health and Medlab Middle East that otherwise would not have been able to attend had it not been for the online element of the show. They included Chile, Congo, Mauritius, Zambia, Bolivia, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic – 47 percent of online attendees surveyed had never attended the live event formats, while the event facilitated over 46,000 unique connections between healthcare and trade professionals.
Arab Health and Medlab Middle East in 2022 are expecting over 69,528 attendees from 160 countries.
There are several key takeaways for the event industry because of Covid-19. We found the hybrid model created a good balance between online offerings while preparing for the live, in-person show, both for our customers and us. The onus was also on exhibitors to reach out to new leads while exhibitors at the live show could pre-qualify contacts to maximise their presence. It was clear that those who actively engaged in the platform reaped the benefits.
As we return to a live, in-person event format and focus our energy on an event that resonates once again with our visitors, we will continue to introduce new elements to our shows.
The health and safety of customers, visitors, and staff is of paramount importance and continues to be our number one priority, as such we implemented Informa AllSecure. The initiative includes 35 guidelines covering all aspects of cleaning and hygiene, emphasising deep cleaning events before, during, and after, and providing additional sanitising stations throughout the venue.
This has been fundamental in supporting our return to live events and ensured everyone involved in our physical events can connect, learn and do business effectively and safely.
Exhibitions have a huge impact on the local economy and play a significant role in supporting their respective industries and markets; therefore, we are determined to support our communities’ as we move forward.
Networking ensures a deeper level of trust and understanding.
At Arab Health and Medlab Middle East in 2022 we are expecting over 69,528 attendees from 160 countries, 6,577 delegates, 3,840 exhibiting companies 62 exhibiting countries and 29 country pavilions – in-person is well and truly back!
There is nothing like meeting face-to-face, particularly in an industry like ours. The healthcare industry is about human contact and there are things you simply cannot do virtually. Meeting someone in person also ensures a deeper level of trust and understanding.
We’ve been in this industry for a long time, and the power of face-to-face meetings and the ability to do business in person has never been more important.
Solenne Singer, group director for Informa Markets.
By Solenne Singer
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Securing the future of live, in-person events
We’ve been in this industry for a long time, and the power of face-to-face meetings and the ability to do business in person has never been more important
Solenne Singer, group director for Informa Markets.
The events industry has faced a tumultuous period in the last 18 months, with the core in-person element of many shows replaced by a digital component.
Adopting a hybrid event approach has been crucial in allowing us to continue working with our partners, customers, and the wider industry. However, returning to a format where we can speak face-to-face has always been the end goal.
Fortunately, and particularly in the UAE, live and in-person events are gaining pace again – need we look any further than the world’s greatest show, Expo 2020 Dubai? This incredible spectacle will shine a bright light on Dubai and the wider region and showcase how we can run an event of this scale successfully and safely.
Thanks to the measures introduced by the UAE Government, most notably the world-leading vaccination programme, the country was one of the first in the world to return to a live event format with Arab Health and Medlab Middle East, some of the first in the region to welcome visitors back through their doors.
Despite the willingness to return to a live and in-person format by many of our loyal partners and visitors, circumstances out of our control, such as flight and corporate travel bans, border closures, and long quarantine periods, made it impossible to attend.
In-person events are one of the most effective ways to do business, however, it became clear that high-quality virtual events allowing professionals from across the globe to connect were imperative in overcoming the challenges of Covid-19 and have continued to add value to the events sector throughout 2021.
During the co-located Arab Health and Medlab events, held in June earlier this year, we virtually welcomed 19,699 online attendees. The event was a notable success scoring a Net Promoter Score (a mechanism to gauge customer satisfaction with a company’s product or service and customer loyalty to a brand) of +37, an industry benchmark for virtual events is +21.5.
A total of 31 countries were represented at Arab Health and Medlab Middle East that otherwise would not have been able to attend had it not been for the online element of the show. They included Chile, Congo, Mauritius, Zambia, Bolivia, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic – 47 percent of online attendees surveyed had never attended the live event formats, while the event facilitated over 46,000 unique connections between healthcare and trade professionals.
There are several key takeaways for the event industry because of Covid-19. We found the hybrid model created a good balance between online offerings while preparing for the live, in-person show, both for our customers and us. The onus was also on exhibitors to reach out to new leads while exhibitors at the live show could pre-qualify contacts to maximise their presence. It was clear that those who actively engaged in the platform reaped the benefits.
As we return to a live, in-person event format and focus our energy on an event that resonates once again with our visitors, we will continue to introduce new elements to our shows.
The health and safety of customers, visitors, and staff is of paramount importance and continues to be our number one priority, as such we implemented Informa AllSecure. The initiative includes 35 guidelines covering all aspects of cleaning and hygiene, emphasising deep cleaning events before, during, and after, and providing additional sanitising stations throughout the venue.
This has been fundamental in supporting our return to live events and ensured everyone involved in our physical events can connect, learn and do business effectively and safely.
Exhibitions have a huge impact on the local economy and play a significant role in supporting their respective industries and markets; therefore, we are determined to support our communities’ as we move forward.
At Arab Health and Medlab Middle East in 2022 we are expecting over 69,528 attendees from 160 countries, 6,577 delegates, 3,840 exhibiting companies 62 exhibiting countries and 29 country pavilions – in-person is well and truly back!
There is nothing like meeting face-to-face, particularly in an industry like ours. The healthcare industry is about human contact and there are things you simply cannot do virtually. Meeting someone in person also ensures a deeper level of trust and understanding.
We’ve been in this industry for a long time, and the power of face-to-face meetings and the ability to do business in person has never been more important.
Solenne Singer, group director for Informa Markets.
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