In June, we hosted our proprietary immersive event, Inside Live at AIA24 to showcase what we’ve learned about audiences and what they want from events.

Our goal? Design a hands-on learning event that brings event planner attendees inside the experience and inspires them to elevate their own events.

So, we partnered with the American Institute for Architects (AIA) during its annual conference in Washington, D.C. to give our attendees exclusive, behind-the-scenes education centered on three themes: experiential learning, personalization, and thoughtful networking (with a few surprise and delight moments along the way).

Here’s how we brought these themes to life across the 1.5-day attendee journey:

1. Experiential learning

Immersive education pulls attendees out of the conference room and propels them into memorable, hands-on experiences that continue resonating long after the event ends. We did this by bringing attendees behind-the-planning scenes of AIA24 with two immersive sessions.

Floor tour

The expo at AIA featured five experiential zones covering trending topics in the architectural industry. On day one of our event (before the floor officially opened), we gave our attendees a behind-the-scenes tour of AIA’s expo that included strategizing the the show floor experience, revenue-generating sponsorship activations, and an in-depth overview of each experiential zone to understand the strategy and how it mapped to attendee goals.

Keynote call

A seamless and effective keynote kicks off your event and sets the tone for the entire experience.  But what all goes into orchestrating this carefully choreographed stage dance of speakers, video content, sets, and more?

We gave our attendees the best seat in the house with an exclusive, behind-the-stage experience to watch and listen as our production teams worked together to call the keynote (which involves multiple producers, microphones, cameras, and screens) in real time. Then, during a later session, attendees went behind the stage to hear more (through headsets!) about how the keynote came together.

2. Personalization

Getting personal means finding varied ways to fine-tune the experience within groups and/or topics. Customizing the journey for Inside Live at AIA24 began when attendees registered — we asked questions about preferences, pain points, and passions, then tailored the experience based on their answers. This allows you to understand who attends your events and what type of experience(s) they seek, so you can deliver the personalized value they’ve come to expect.

Bountiful breakouts

We know that attendees are interested in leveraging the experience of experts in a more conversational way. So, we developed Mentor Think Tanks — small trending topic discussion groups organized by attendee interests and demographics led by accessible subject matter experts. This approach led to more meaningful and relevant conversations.

AI on the fly

Our recent Trends Report indicated that attendees crave learning opportunities that evolve into hands-on experiences. Following our general session on artificial intelligence led by Connor Grennan, Head of Generative AI at NYU, we split into smaller working groups (based on demos and skill level) for a hands-on, innovation-meets-engagement AI learning activity. The result? Fun and (often hilarious!) AI-generated creations that brought attendees together.

3. Thoughtful Networking

Thoughtful networking involves designing unique and organic experiences based on your attendee data — understanding your audiences and their varied personality types, goals, and expectations. It means giving your guests dedicated time to connect on a personal level, as well as discussing specific pain-points and passions. We used our registration survey to pair like-minded attendees and mentors throughout the experience to initiate deeper conversations and connections.

Quick connections

We know Gen Y and Z want to connect earlier, so we got people connecting from the jump. On large, colorful LED monitors placed in different areas of the room, we posed fun questions about non-work-related activities such as vacations, binge-worthy TV, and movies. While congregating around their preferences, attendees connected quickly and easily.

Bright bites

Networking experiences don’t have to be complex. For our Dine & Dish lunch, we orchestrated a rainbow of plate options (yellow, blue, red, and green) for attendees to choose from that corresponded with similarly hued table arrangements. Each table featured conversation starters, which encouraged more colorful convos.

4. Surprise and delight moments

There’s nothing better than watching attendees light-up during an experience your team designed. An easy way to create something fresh and delightful (without breaking your budget) is take an existing element of your event and elevate it.

Sweet spot

Eye candy

Message makers

Now it’s your turn! Take this inspiration to elevate your next event by blending immersive learning, personalized elements, and intentional networking. And to ensure the best outcome start with the data — then design the experience based on attendee interests (and ladder those up to align with your goals) for the ultimate win.

Want more ideas to elevate the attendee experience at your event?

Let’s talk!