Technology

Event Industry Battling the Covid Wave

Every business felt the effects of COVID-19 in nearly every aspect of one’s life. The virus had spread to over a hundred nations by March 2019, prompting the WHO to call it a worldwide pandemic. Unimaginable lockdowns, stringent travel limits, and “social separation” measures quickly followed.

Many formerly booming sectors have had significant revenue losses and growth contractions as a result of the epidemic. Several businesses in a variety of industries have already filed for bankruptcy or had to make substantial layoffs.

Uncertainty still looms, and it’s unclear when things will return to normal. However, the harsh fact is those vast public meetings are unlikely in the immediate future, leaving people in a state of uncertainty!

The fast spread of COVID-19 influences the live events sector because of the worldwide pandemic’s difficulties, live and physical events have been entirely suspended. Feasts, conferences, social gatherings, live displays, trade show events, and expos are all becoming a pipe dream.

Since the increasing levels, the event sector has experienced several problems, ranging from event cancellation to surviving on a minimal revenue. The issue became significantly worse when the global lockdown restrictions were enforced. Physical events, as well as hybrid events, were discontinued. However, this hasn’t prevented the event business from coming up with new, inventive, and intelligent concepts to keep the wheel of fortune turning. The event business devised more clever and new approaches to drive successful events through digital media.

While the pandemic has significantly impacted conventional event planning firms’ profits, the number of “virtual event” entrepreneurs entering the market has steadily increased. Virtex is an example of one of these businesses. Virtex is a “virtual event platform” giving customers access to many services, including virtual rooms that guests may enter and exit.

Event professionals have geared up to battle the outrage of the covid-19 pandemic 2nd wave. Here is what our co-founder has to say about his plans to deal with this challenging situation:

Abhinav Jain, Co-Founder Almond Virtex:

As the world started to normalize in early 2021, we were planning to pedal back to hybrid events along with virtual events. But, the rooted second wave of the pandemic has changed our perspective entirely, and trust me when I say that the response from businesses was incredible. Amid the confusion, companies want to launch their goods and reach their target audiences, and organizations wish to have Exhibitions, conferences, and town halls. And it was then that we proposed the most practical option for keeping the ball rolling: an all-in-one virtual event platform.

Organizations and companies have accepted virtual events all around the world. The notion was first met with skepticism by businesses. However, with time, they mastered the potential of virtual events and could stage large-scale events alongside us with ease. Virtual is unquestionably the event industry’s future because of their limitless potential, increased reach, cost-effectiveness, and high return on investment.

At Almond Virtex, we provide our clients with every possible solution to ensure that they do not miss the essence of physical events. We’ve structured our planning for the following years, and we’re ready to take on any challenge. Even when things return to normal in this game-changing age, one thing is sure, the virtual component will not fade from view. Mr. Abhinav Jain, Co-founder of the Almond Solution virtual event platform, adds, “We take steps every day and aim to develop a platform that fulfills all of the criteria of customers despite this turmoil.”

Here are the few common questions asked by event experts during these challenging times:

  • What measure did the event industry adopt during this pandemic crisis? 
  • Will virtual events become mainstream in times to come?
  • What innovative steps the event industry is accepting to keep the events going?
  • What will be the path the experiential industry adopts?

Innovation, creativity, and technological advancements are the answers to all of these questions. The shift in dynamics in 2020 has resulted in a rapid drop in physical event company revenues. With time, the event business did not stand still and turned to provide a viable answer to companies and industries worldwide. A virtual event isn’t a novel notion. However, the emergence of a worldwide epidemic triggered an increase in virtual events. Last year, there was an exponential increase in the percentage of virtual events, and it shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Many companies have used virtual event solutions to avoid losing money during the pandemic’s pause and generate money. Virtual event platforms proved handy for many people when the world came to a halt and imposed lockdown.

Every day, virtual event platforms improve to provide the most excellent possible solutions to brands and organizations. To offer real-life event experiences to participants, virtual platforms have been embedded with the spirit of live physical events, from networking to engagement tools. Gamification features have been added to virtual event platforms to increase enthusiasm and participation, keeping participants engaged throughout. Tech professionals created various creative concepts, including social walls, picture booths, and leaderboard challenges, to break up the monotony of extended virtual meetings.

With the second wave of COVID-19, the event industry is ready to fight back and provide more creative solutions to the globe that can be enjoyed straight from the comfort of one’s own home while maintaining the highest level of security.

What is PPC Budgeting? Pay-Per-Click Explained in Simple Steps

PPC advertising is a sophisticated digital marketing channel. It offers digital marketers a huge opportunity to increase their traffic and conversion metrics. On the other hand, pay-per-click can be a big headache if not approached with caution and a well-thought-out plan.

PPC marketing is a form of advertisement in which advertisers do not pay per impression or solely for ad placement. While the bid sum impacts placement, the advertiser is only charged when an online customer clicks their ad.

The most popular PPC budgeting ad format appears on search engines like Google or Bing’s result pages. Advertisers can use a keyword or action-based ad to place their brand, product, or service in front of a specific audience. While the bid sum impacts placement, the advertiser is only charged when an online customer clicks their ad.

PPC Ads: What Do They Look Like?

Most, but not all, PPC advertisements appear in search results. Pay-per-click marketing advertisements are divided into three categories;

·         Text Adverts:

A text is made up of the advertiser’s written copy. The format and character limits you can use are determined by the PPC platform you’re using. The Search Network is most likely to cause text ads as users search on Google or Bing for a keyword used in your PPC budgeting campaign.

·         Display Adverts:

The most common format for a show ad is a picture or a motion graphic. When designing visual creative for PPC platforms that deliver display ads, marketers must adhere to size and content specifications. Display advertisements can be found on websites all over the internet and are commercially viable. Advertisements are contextually placed on websites visited by the advertiser’s target market.

·         Shopping Adverts:

After a searcher submits a question to a search engine or a shopping engine, a shopping ad is usually shown. Shopping advertisements usually provide a picture of the product, price, and relevant details such as size, color, and measurements.

PPC is used to achieve a variety of campaign objectives, including:

·         Boosting profits

·         Obtaining leads

·         Increasing brand recognition

It’s all about relevancy in PPC. At any given time, users are looking for specific products, services, and facts. Advertisers will display a targeted ad at the exact moment this search is taking place. Advertisers can run active PPC campaigns using both targeting settings and account structure as long as relevance is prioritized.

How Does Pay-Per-Click Work?

The method can be explained in easy steps as follows:

1.   A brand discovers important, familiar words that its audience searches for regularly through keyword discovery.

2.   A company produces a search result ad that users can see while searching for the target keywords.

3.   A user types in one of the keywords, finds the ad on the SERP and clicks on it.

4.   The brand pays the consumer who clicks on the ad.

Campaign forms are the various choices you have for displaying your advertising. Display network, shopping campaign, and video campaign are just a few of the campaign forms available. A search network campaign is the campaign form that you will use for PPC lead generation.

In the SERP’s, advertisements generated in a search network campaign appear as text ads. You may choose which type of devices would be able to see your advertisements using mobile targeting. You may choose to target desktops, laptops, or mobile devices, or a personalized mix of the three.

The budget for your campaign is the sum of money you plan to spend. This is where you decide how much money you’d like to spend daily on average. You should know how to pick a budget and set bids for your ads.

What Are The Benefits Of PPC Marketing?

Some of the benefits of PPC ads are:

  • Instant Traffic:  One of the major and most important things advertisers get from PPC is speed! It’s one of the fastest and efficient strategies to manage conversations and increase traffic. With paid ads, they can quickly attract lots of traffic to their website.

  • Precision: PPC will help you create a highly targeted group audience to show your ad relevance, especially on the Search and shopping sites.

  • Agility: With PPC, you can review the performance of your ads instantly and immediately. This will help you make quick adjustments so that you can improve your campaign success.

  • Easy Measurements: With effective and easy conversation tracking, you can see the ROI of your ads.

  • Cost Control: Unlike other marketing strategies, PPC budgeting ads let you control your budget; you can tweak, stop or do any alterations in the ad campaign that are not performing well. Also, there’s no pre-set amount or any long-term obligations with these ads. You can run ads the way you want and according to your duration.

  • It Increases Brand Awareness: Let’s assume that a shopper has to see a product multiple times before buying; that’s when remarketing comes in. It shows relevant visitors that come to your page from other pages. 

The Main Platforms for PPC Budgeting Ads:

Google Ads: Google ads let you run various search and shopping ads on Google, YouTube, Gmail, and Display ads on the Google Display Network. It is one of the most popular platforms that offer a wealth of opportunities to bring success.

Bing Ads: Also, popular as Microsoft Advertising, Bing ads can drive traffic and conversions and increase ROI. You can run ads on Bing as you run on Google and other platforms.

Some Other Ad Platforms Are:

  • RevContent

  • AdRoll

  • Bidvertiser

  • LinkedIn Ads

  • Facebook Ads

  • Twitter Ads

  • Amazon Ads

Conclusion:

Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing is an on-demand method of increasing your digital exposure, website traffic, and sales. It’s also one of the excellent lead generation methods. However, to get the best results from PPC, you must set up your campaigns strategically. Ilmibook says to strengthen your campaigns and get the most out of your budget, you must target the right keywords and keep your plan updated. You’re now better prepared to set up strategic PPC campaigns. If you’re planning to begin your first PPC campaign, get started right away to ensure a successful campaign.

 

 

How to teach seniors that how to use touchscreens

One of the most common complaints from seniors about touchscreen devices is they can’t use them. This has been a problem for some time now, with many people in their 50s and 60s not figuring out how to turn on a smart TV or log into Facebook.

 

It’s worth noting that this doesn’t seem to be an issue for younger generations as much as it is for those who have lived through decades without touchscreens. In order to help these seniors learn how to use these new technologies, there are several things educators need to do differently than they would when teaching students from other age groups.

However, if your seniors use touchscreen devices like the best chromebook for seniors then this article will guide you how you can teach your seniors to use touchscreen easily. 

Watch how seniors use touchscreens – they are slower, less accurate, and more tentative.

It would be best if you observed seniors for a few minutes to see how they use touchscreens. They are slower, less accurate, and more tentative than other users.

Provide extra time for seniors to figure things out. Increased time can help them overcome some of the challenges they may be facing when using touchscreen devices.

In order to help seniors get comfortable with their devices, teachers should allow them space in class to work on these skills outside of what is expected in the lesson plan.

 

Use the “tap to select” method instead of dragging with your finger.

Seniors often struggle with dragging and dropping, especially if the element they’re trying to move is close to other factors on the screen.

 

According to user testing conducted by Nicole Krueger, a study funded by Google’s RISE program, it’s best for users who are using their fingers – both seniors and non-seniors – to use the tapping method instead of the dragging, which helps reduce errors.

 

Please resist the urge to tell seniors they’re doing something wrong when you see them struggle. When older adults fail at a task on smart devices, many of them feel like they are failing in front of their instructor

Practice using touchscreen devices in a real-world setting.

In order to teach seniors how to use touchscreens, teachers and trainers need to encourage them to practice outside of the classroom. Users have a better chance at success if they have practiced in a real-world setting similar to what they will be using their devices for.

 

Even if you’ve provided seniors with some practice time outside of class, they will still need guidance once they are in the real world. Instructing students how to use smart devices is one thing, but teaching them where to go and how to use them is another. 

 

Educators need to provide students with guidance on where they can practice using their new touchscreen skills and use these devices for relevant activities. For example, older adults might want to learn more about smartphones to know what their grandkids are doing with the devices.

Provide access to a wide variety of touchscreens.

According to research conducted by the University of Toronto, one of the most important factors in older adults’ ability to learn how to use intelligent devices is providing access to a wide variety of touchscreen tools.

 

Seniors need to experiment with many different types of touchscreens and interfaces before they can find what works for them.

While it might be hard for teachers to provide all of the different types of technology seniors need access to, there are certainly options that will help. For example, Intuition Machines has developed a touch-enabled projector to convert any physical surface into a touchscreen.

Provide hands-on activities and real-world examples.

Setting up an in-class activity in which students build vocabulary words or prepare a presentation is an easy and effective way to teach seniors how to use touchscreens.

Teachers can encourage them to put the skills they’ve learned into practice by providing hands-on, real-world activities for their users.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

As with any new task, it’s not unusual for users to become flustered when learning how to work smart devices.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you’re struggling; other teachers and trainers are there to support you!

 

Teachers who are working with seniors should remember that patience is key. Learning how to use new touchscreen devices can be overwhelming.

 

By understanding that it takes time to navigate innovative technology successfully, teachers will better support their students through the learning process. Patience is key when teaching seniors how to work with touchscreens!

As more and more educators begin integrating educational technologies into their classroom lessons, it’s important to remember that not everyone will feel comfortable using these devices. When working with seniors, it’s their skills — not their age — that should be considered.

Make sure that screens are large enough so that people can see what’s on them.

Conclusion

 

Touchscreens may be the future of education, but they’re certainly not for everyone. Older adults often have difficulty learning how to use these devices because their skills are being taken into account instead of just their age.