OnAIR to replace ‘junk food’ webinars

This is an excerpt from an interview with EventsAir CEO Trevor Gardiner in Exhibition World (EW), Issue 3, June-July 2020, pg 24-25

Australia-based event tech brand EventsAir has launched its new OnAIR virtual/ hybrid event platform for exhibitions and events following a turbocharged period of development.

CEO Trevor Gardiner told EW the platform had been built in a matter of weeks with staff working 24/7, as the company reacted to demand from five of its largest customers who had been in contact in “distressed tones” to see if a virtual/hybrid solution could save their events against the background of the Covid-19 outbreak.

“There was an incredible amount of product development,” Gardiner said. “We were motivated by getting the product into the hands of our customers, but we have built it for the long term.

“It will enable planners to develop new skill sets and create content and personalise it. It is not just firing up Zoom! People doing virtual meetings to date have tended to be marketers rather than event planners. Now the skilled planners can get involved with OnAIR.”

Trevor Gardiner

And Gardiner believes that hybrid events are very much the new normal. “Virtual events can stand up quickly and cost effectively.” He also believes webinars will die out and calls them the ‘junk food’ of the events industry.

OnAIR offers a four-week boot camp training programme of online learning and the product offers session scanning for CPD credits for users.

“OnAIR is modelled on the real events world,” said Gardiner who cautions buyers to be wary of e-products that offer virtual exhibitions ‘open all hours’.

“They need to mirror the real exhibition world. Don’t go for technology that has been dusted down and recycled for use in a Covid world. You need to smell under the hood!”

The OnAIR program includes virtual exhibitions, where exhibitors can meet at pre-selected times; synchronised video streaming, on demand video and live broadcast. There are also concurrent session options and ePoster session features.

EventsAir’s 6th Gen, meanwhile, was recently named the best Event Technology Solution of 2020 at the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) CODiE Awards.

The mobile, cloud-based system offers event planners the power to create successful events anywhere, anytime and on any device.

The product includes a WYSIWYG Website Builder with a range of pre-defined templates, and a Mobile Attendee app that can be custom-branded. There are also communication tools for invitations and marketing emails, and a Registration Form Builder with a drag and drop interface.

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EventsAir has been at the forefront of Event Technology and Innovation for over 30 years, continually pushing the boundaries of what an event management platform can do. Built by event planners for event planners, EventsAir is a secure, scalable, cloud-based solution that can manage everything from in-person, virtual to hybrid conferences, meetings and events in a single online platform – anywhere, anytime and on any device. In use in over 50 countries by multi-national corporations, professional conference organizers, government departments and tertiary education institutions, EventsAir is also used in global congresses such as G20, APEC, CHOGM and ASEAN, as well as sporting events like The Olympic Games, World Rugby, Commonwealth Games and Pan Am Games. EventsAir is trusted by event professionals around the globe. For further information, visit www.eventsair.com