Many tech tools have improved the quality of our personal and working lives. From helping us save money with apps integrated with our home electricity or improving safety with mobile accessible security systems to technology and apps that help organise our workloads or connect with colleagues around the globe. The event industry is no exception to the tech takeover. Technology that improves or assists in keeping the industry innovative have made huge gains in recent years.

Event tech for large events and exhibitions in particular has been utilized to improve the attendee experience, and the newer tech has provided the added ‘wow’ factor at events. Specifically event tech that harnesses Near Field Communication or Radio-Frequency Identification (NFC or RFID). Here’s a few of our favourite applications;

Proximity marketing was set to the be the next big event trend for 2015 and the Grammy Awards kicked things off nicely this month with their ‘contactless’ RFDI badges.

Loopd, who we’ve mentioned before on our LinkedIn page, is a wearable piece of tech that event attendees receive on arrival. Attendees can log into the Loopd app to view their interactions and even receive digital materials from exhibitors that they have visited. By tapping the device with another, attendees can share contact information or if the proximity of the badges are beside each other for a predetermined amount of time, this information is shared automatically. Acting almost like a new-age business card!

iBeacons placed around an event space provide attendees with an enhanced event experience and event planners with a new level of data that can be utilised to improve future events. iBeacons can be used to wake up an attendees phone when in a set range with content, such as offers, marketing materials, videos or surveys. The content shown to each attendee can also be tailored based on their job title or preferences and be used to help guide their experience of the event. Although many of the uses cases reported have been retail based, it’s easy to see the potential for the events industry.

What event tech are you keeping a close eye on or even thinking about using at your events this year? We’re always on the look out for fellow event tech innovators, so share your shining stars or experiences in the comments below or tweet us!

Image Credit:

iBeacon

©Jonathan Nalder via Flickr

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