Most marketers would agree that satisfying their potential consumers have become a tougher quest than ever. Digital and live events, when appropriately executed, can help lessen the battle and provide the most sceptical attendees an experience that sticks to their mind once and for all. It’s all the more lasting when that experience includes a taste of some of the newest technologies on the block. Some technologies if prudently incorporated can result in immense customer engagement and cutting-edge tracking and measurement. EE lists out some technologies that that are poised to shape the future of events and experiences.
As our digital lives become more and more intertwined with our lives in the real world,technology has gained the potential of changing the face of events in times to come. May it be gesture recognition technology that allows users to manipulate an experience by waving their fingers or hands, or even their whole bodies, in front of a screen or virtual reality or display technology that begins from standard plasma screens to LCD panels and LED walls to laser phosphor displays, advancement in technology has no limits.
Speaking to one of the experts in the field of sound, here’s what Warren D’Souza, Founder & MD, Sound.comhas to say. Certain technologies that can change the face of live experiences in the coming future in the sound-events domain are:
Console technology will bring a lot of powerful features that were restricted to only expensive consoles now available in affordable models (not necessary the audio quality). Digital consoles usage in India is growing by the very minute and analog consoles will be obsolete in a few years from now even in satellite cities. There is continual improvement in features, speed and capabilities of the digital consoles.
Digital audio transport technology will be much easily available and people will willingly accept it in time to come. The current trend is the ability to send multichannel audio over fiber optics over very long distances as well as the ability to provide redundancy. There is also a growing use of digital audio being transported on regular CAT6 cables, this too is multichannel and since this cable is easily available it is being regularly adopted by many manufacturers.
Loudspeaker rigging and flying technology is going through a huge change in features, accuracy & safety standards. The first thing I see is that the rigging is nowadays designed to work very easily in the field and is integrated with the loudspeaker systems software to be able to give high degree of predictable coverage over large distances in stadiums and even to the smallest auditoriums. The rigging is also designed to be captive so the aesthetic look of the speaker is not destroyed.
Plug-Ins and Recording technology for live sound will keep getting better with each passing day. Earlier the hardware required to do live recordings were big, bulky and cumbersome to carry around, moreover they were unreliable most of the time. Nowadays every console manufacturer provides protocols for recording straight of their console and recording interfaces have compressed into very small sizes to become portable for travelling.
However the biggest change I would like to see in India is the quality of the ‘Human Application Engineering’ of all these technology products. Humans need to pace up with the technology trends and evolve as quickly as the products are being developed.
Commenting on the progress in use of technology in events & activation,
Atul S Nath, Managing Director, Candid Marketing says, “Progress in technology and digital have brought astonishing changes in the last one decade. The evolution in technology has opened a range of avenues for the Event & Activation industry. Technology allows brands to arrest the attention of the consumers and interact and engage with them. And that is at the core of any experiential marketing campaign – engagement.
Merging technology and on ground activation / events helps enhance the experience as well as boost consumer experience. Unfortunately, some agencies and brands are using technology for the sake of it rather than integrating it into the experience.
Certain technologies that can enhance events are Interactive floors which is a new age interactive medium that easily turn floor spaces or unnoticed areas into an ongoing experience of movement, action, fun & excitement, stopping people in their tracks as they play , walk by and interact, thereby making the experience engaging. Also, interactive floors are attractive & eye-catching adding to the fervour of the campaign. We have been using it for Hindustan Unilever Limited events time and again.
Another great technology that was used at Candid was 6 Axis IMU; Sensor based technology integrated with Kinect-based game development. The sensor based technology enabled a strong underlining of the features of the jeans thus enhancing the consumer experience.
Another basic technology that has continued to beautify events and will do in times ahead is Croma screens which are being massively used for launch events these days. We have recently used Croma screen for Godrej No. 1 launch event to enhance the overall experience. LED screens will be taking over the hoardings markets very soon. Soon will come a time when there shall be only digital hoardings around. Also in the event space we see a rise in Mobile & digital Signage technologies and they being extremely pervasive. I believe these technologies will play a prominent in providing a 360 degree event experience, as they will facilitate marketers to connect with the prospects & share information in real-time.”
