VRDays' Immersive Tech Week will be held physically and virtually.
Crédits photos : VRDays 2020
Virtual and hybrid events are the new normal. To grow its audience and allow everyone from all around the world to attend, VRDays Europe will take place both physically and virtually this year. Part of the online programme will happen in the Laval Virtual World, an interactive platform. For the newbies or the experts, here is a guide to good practices for this and other virtual events.
Get ahead of technical challenges
Online events, conferences and meetings are part of our everyday lives. Unfortunately aspirines don’t solve bad internet connection or a microphone that cuts out. Those technical issues can be inconveniences when you are trying to follow a talk, doing a pitch or having a conversation with someone.
For this reason, before any virtual event, it’s essential to: verify your internet connection, check if the application you are using works well, test your computer microphone and camera, and look at the condition of your headset (remember that time when you couldn’t listen secretly to Taylor Swift’s last album…). For VRDays’ Immersive Tech Week (November 13-17, 2021), you need to download the Laval Virtual World platform on your computer. Another tip: on the big day, launch the application 10 minutes before the beginning of the event, in case there are software updates to install.
Take a look around the virtual world
The virtual world is working. Great! Now it’s time to take a look around. You don’t want to come to the event and not know where to go. A virtual world can be unfamiliar for some people. Besides, it can be quite large and vast. Therefore, before the big day, take an hour of your time to visit the virtual world. For exhibitors, identifying and locating the presentation venues beforehand is crucial.
During VRDays’ Immersive Tech Week, there will be many areas at the disposal of visitors and exhibitors in the Laval Virtual World. An early visit of the platform is a good way to spot all the spaces to mark all of those you want to visit (and to make sure you don’t get lost during the event). During your visit in the virtual world, take five minutes to learn how to walk and interact with your avatar. You can run, wave, clap, send private messages and even dance the samba!
Check the event programme
All right! Your microphone is working, the application is launching, you know every corner of the virtual world by heart, you’ve learned all the keyboard shortcuts to make your avatar move. But, have you looked at the event programme yet?
Conferences, panels, roundtables, breakout sessions, exhibitors pitching, Citizens’ Think Tank, creative XR experiences with Church of VR, Immersive Funding Market… The programme of VRDays’ Immersive Tech Week is full and vibrant! Make sure you look at the schedule before the event and set a reminder in your phone to not miss the best conferences about immersive tech!
Get your avatar ready
It’s almost time. Suit up and go! Fashion has now conquered the metaverse. Just like in the real world, choose your outfit and dress up your avatar. You can either be a shirt-tie kind of user, or be bolder with a cowboy hat or flip-flops. It’s your time to shine!
Yet, appearance alone is not enough. Be sure to fill in your personal and professional information in your public profile. There, you can indicate your name, your company, which will be displayed above your avatar to the eyes of everybody. In your profile section, you can also add your position, your professional interests, your LinkedIn profile, your company email address… So many opportunities to be contacted after the event or to collect contact details from other participants you are interested in.
Network, network and network again!
The key to virtual events is interaction. In fact, the top biggest challenges for virtual events are audience engagement and interaction. In the Laval Virtual World, private chat areas marked with dotted blue circles are at the visitors’ disposal to network with others. For VRDays’ Immersive Tech week virtual event, the priority is to connect participants. To do so, many programme items are planned.
Virtual breakout areas will be available so that visitors and exhibitors can meet in the most optimised way possible. Each exhibitor will benefit from a private office in which he will do daily presentations about its latest XR product or innovation. After each pitch, the visitors will have the time to meet the exhibitors and exchange. Apart from that, the roundtables programme leaves plenty of room for discussions.
Don’t be afraid to ask
Even with all those tips in mind, there are still things that can sleep out of your hands. And it’s always annoying when there is a dysfunction. Don’t panic! You are not alone. A team is at your service to make your virtual experience the best possible. If you have a technical issue during the event, if you are lost in the virtual world or if you have a question about the programme, don’t hesitate to ask.
Several staff members will be spread out in all areas of the Laval Virtual World. If you don’t find one, go to the desk reception, someone will always be present to answer your needs. Or just ask your question directly in the public chat and a moderator will contact you. Now that you know everything… Want to be part of something bigger in 2021?
