CASE STUDY po and an se to il be the are Chapter 13 Planning MEE Gathering 265 Using Virtual Technology to Enhance a Meeting The Governance Institute 13 a member organization serving health care system directors, executives, and physicians This organization offers annual conferences that provide declined in advance, and they would not start marating this able tools that greatly benefit their members Members event until after most members had registered and booked encouraged to attend, and in the past years these conten their travel arrangements. They started to promote the vita conference two weeks before the live conference took place at have been a suCCOSS. This year's conterence will take registration. These emails included an introduction to the vi invitations sent out that in place at the Mountain View Resort and Spa located in Boul dor, Colorado. Amy Foote, who is the head meeting planner tual conference concept, o program of the online sessions, for The Governance Institute, is experiencing a major decine donctions of the interactive forms, and a link to the website in attendance for this year's conference. With this challenge With all the planning and research, it was finally time to go live with the conference on the day of the event Amy and her toam monitored online activity through laptop the now wys to market the event and increase attendance With the conference being only two months away, Amy Boulder conference Her virtual team welcomed attendees avoided her team needed to come up with a solution to this provided feedback while moderating chat sessions. Alter announced session schedules, arvswered questions, and problem and increase attendance. The team researched mary reviewing ourveys and toedback from attendees, the virtual options and scenarios. With so many new technologies, Amy conference was considered a succens. It nearly doubled questions it a virtual component tied into the on-site event the total attendance with 300 virtual attendees attending could replicate the conference experience. With this in mind, the online conference, and 600 prospects registered to Amy and her team developed a virtual conference to be held attend. Amy and her team will continue to implement tual during the Boulder conference. This is the first virtual confer conference options when planning future conferences ence Amy has ever planned, and she wants it to be a suc 1. What do you think of the job Amy did? cess. The virtual conference would stream live presentations 2. What else could she have done? from all keynote speakers through webcasts and offer online 3. What could she have done better? networking with other virtual atter There would also 4. Was it fair to attendees who arranged for and paid to be panel discussions featuring and answers with attend in person NOT to be given the opportunity to per speakers, and virtual booths fronte a sponsors, A major concern Amy has is now market this event. She does not want to take away attendance from the actual sed to ng ce d d t ticipate virtually? Produced by George G. Fenich from East Carolina University event. Amy decides only to offer it to members that had Niestions waaringlevent professionals use registra- annuention