The Challenges
The National Urban League pivoted to hybrid events in 2022, and got immense success with vFairs. They wanted to continue the same, but improve attendee experiences even further and provide more engagement opportunities.
Increase Engagement and Accessibility
The main goal for the virtual part of the conference this year was to increase engagement and make it more accessible for all audiences. They were looking for a platform that would help them increase their audience reach and make the virtual event more engaging and fun as well.
Hosting a Multifaceted Event
Another big challenge was hosting a career fair, a trade show, and a conference, all at the same time – and through the same platform. So the virtual part of the event needed to have features to support their multifaceted event goals.
Create a New Revenue Stream Through Sponsors
They were hoping to attract more sponsors and corporate partners for the event. Sponsorship proposals and visibility opportunities was a new revenue model for them. So, they also wanted a platform that could help provide branding space for sponsors. They wanted fully customizable exhibit halls, booths, and lobbies. Sponsors should be able to add their company branding and connect with their audience through networking lounges and chat options.
Event Gallery
The Solution
To increase their reach, they decided to opt for a fully customized virtual event happening at the same time as the in-person event. vFairs was able to bring the NUL Conference to a larger audience that surpassed all of their previous events. The virtual platform was able to reach international audiences and underrepresented urban communities at a national and international level.
The virtual exhibit halls and lobbies also provided a new platform for their partners to host more content. The virtual booths allowed them to use their company branding and impart more information through videos, graphics, documents, and external links. The virtual swag bag made it possible for attendees to take away the resources they were most interested in to refer to later on. They were also able to add networking options like a lounge and live chat capabilities.
There were ample opportunities for engagement for attendees with interesting gamification features including a leaderboard, photo booth, and scavenger hunt for both virtual & In-person attendees.
Why vFairs?
NUL had hosted a hybrid event with vFairs in 2022. They had a great experience and wanted to take that further by adding more advanced features to capture an even wider audience this year. The vFairs platform offered great opportunities for sponsor visibility that was one of their main objectives and they were extremely satisfied with the white glove service and exceptional customer success and project management experience with vFairs.
In the Spotlight: Mobile App
The NUL Conference 2024 included a white-labeled mobile app that had engaging on-site notifications, detailed agenda, interactive exhibit floor plan, and a live event feed. The networking options like chat and contact shares through the mobile app made the attendee engagement levels shoot through the roof for NUL.
The Results
The NUL Virtual Conference 2022 received twice as many registrations and attendees from around the world, as compared to previous in-person events. With their 2024 event, they were able to achieve 4 times as many registrations!
The virtual conference platform mirrored the look and feel of the in-person conference and attendees were able to take advantage of it the same way. vFairs played a pivotal role in making sure that the bridge between the two audiences was seamless and well-managed.
They were able to discuss solutions for Black America and open a discourse on equality and equity in the opportunities for growth, education, and employment through multiple live webinars. Attendees were also able to apply for jobs with leading organizations like Toyota, FedEx, Nestle, Delta, MasterCard, Verizon, and many more through the virtual career fair. The engagement around the content hosted at the conference had the following key statistics:
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- More than 11,000 attendees registered for the event which is 4x more than their last event.
- There were 5800+ mobile app users for the NUL Conference.
- 800+ job applications were received at the NUL Career Fair.
- 2600+ onsite check-ins were recorded for the conference.
