Since Virtual Events, virtual conferences, & virtual job fairs are a mainstay these days, it’s only natural to assume that virtual trade shows will be next.
However, physical trade shows were a lot slower to transition into their virtual counterparts, & for a variety of reasons.
At the heart of any physical trade show, is the ability to:
- showcase products,
- give the audiences an engaging demo,
- & encourage questions about the product
- interaction & networking opportunities for attendees.
Since a while ago, all this was quite difficult for the existing virtual event platforms to achieve.
However, with the innovative virtual event platforms of today, businesses can readily bring their trade shows into the virtual domain. They can do so simply by utilizing the variety of interactive, engaging, & intuitive features of the virtual event platforms.
You really have to do a bit of research & understand the exact offerings of each virtual trade show platform. This helps you make an informed decision about which one to choose for your next virtual trade show.
In this article, we tell you the best virtual trade show platforms for your next trade show.
Mixhubb
Mixhubb is a new-age, innovative, & highly customizable virtual event platform that allows organizers to host:
- virtual events,
- virtual conferences,
- virtual trade shows,
- virtual career fairs,
- & so much more.
Among the many awe-worthy features of Mixhubb, are:
- Fully customizable event design. From registration kiosk to booth, lobby & auditorium, to a branded event environment. Mixhubb offers event organizers complete power to create their virtual trade show their own way.
- Interactive, engaging features like live chats, live polling, Q&As. 1:1 video conferencing, one-on-one meetings & chats. Group networking tables, & AI matchmaking. These help attendees with similar interests meet other attendees/exhibitors & chat with them.
- Branded & customizable event environment. The organizers can design their own themed booths, brand them, & design the virtual event according to a theme.
- Simple to use & easy to setup intuitive backend. Helps event organizers get a handle on their event. Manage the different aspects of their event all through the simple dashboard. Also to run multi-stage sessions & manage their attendees
- Access control features that help event organizers limit or provide access to certain attendees.
- Fully secure ISO 27001 certified virtual event platform. GDPR compliant to keep all the event information safe & secure from external scrutiny.
The strongpoint of any trade show is custom designed booths, & the ability to showcase products/services & demos. Mixhubb offers event organizers an excellent way to plan & host virtual trade shows & events just the way they want to.
Simply visit their website, choose the subscription plan that suits your needs & requirements, & design your virtual trade show, your own way!
INXPO
Inxpo is one of the virtual trade show platforms that have been around for quite a while now.
It is primarily a live-streaming platform whose strong suits include presentation elements like keynote sessions & breakout discussions that can be made available as live-streamed sessions that can be watched by attendees on-demand.
The platform helps virtual trade shows take off by including various high-end virtual booth features. Each booth contains a brief description of the company, along with all the other relevant materials like case studies, etc. Attendees can easily visit each of the booths & linger around to check it out.
The attendees have the option to click on any of these booths & visit the relevant company booth(which is usually a webpage containing the products/services/demos of that particular company) & check out all that the company has to offer.
To help make the virtual trade show more exciting & to give the attendees the look & feel of an actual trade show, INXPO also provides them with a lobby & a theatre to add the dynamic, lifelike quality to the virtual trade show.
It also provides attendees with a chat function to enable them to chat with the booth organizers over their products, & ask any questions they might have.
They also have the option to schedule a product demo with the booth organizers by visiting their exhibition site.
vFairs
vFairs is a virtual event platform that is designed to facilitate virtual conferences, virtual trade shows, & virtual job fairs.
It provides attendees with customized booths designed to look like actual, real-life physical trade show booths.
The virtual booths are situated on a virtual trade show floor that enables attendees to visit each of the booths & view the offerings therein.
Each exhibitor booth consists of on-demand content like videos & presentations that attendees can easily view & download.
The vFairs virtual trade show platform also provides attendees with various chat functionalities to enable them to connect & network with the booth organizers as well as each other. They can do so via text, audio, or video.
Attendees also have the option to connect with multiple buyers simultaneously via group chats.
After all, networking stands out as one of the primary reasons people attend trade shows, so these features are quite useful & meaningful to the virtual trade show.
vFairs also provides attendees with an e-commerce integration & a ‘click-and-buy’ model that allows them to add the product being demonstrated or shown directly to their carts & either check it out right away or save it for later.
This feature makes the buyer-customer relationship a lot easier & removes any unnecessary middlemen or complications between them.
6Connex
6Connex is a virtual event platform that is designed specifically for virtual trade shows, virtual job fairs, & virtual summits.
Its primary strongpoint is an almost ‘Sims’ like event environment where the attendees feel like they are walking & experiencing a convention centre with different environments integrated into it.
Each exhibitor booth appears as a customizable image of the actual booth on the attendees’ screen. It consists of branded materials for the affiliated company/organization.
Exhibitors have the option to include pre-recorded materials like video product demos & brochures etc. in their booths for the attendees to view & download.
However, the platform provides only limited on-demand interactions between the exhibitors & the attendees.
6Connex provides chat functionality to attendees to enable them to chat with booth organizers & ask them questions about their product/services.
However, it does not provide them the option to interact with the booth organizers via video chats.
In order to increase attendee engagement during virtual trade shows, 6Connex has a leader functionality that incentivizes the attendees by offering them prizes in lieu of performing certain in-event actions like visiting booths, interacting with booth organizers & other attendees, & participating in other activities.
Other attendees can view the dynamic leaderboard & follow along to get a chance to win special prizes.
Hexafair
Hexafair is a virtual event platform that is marketed specifically as a virtual trade show platform, & offers a lot of good, high-rated features that we have already discussed above.
It offers customizable virtual trade show booths packed with features. Hexafair also provides the attendees with the opportunity to review & give their feedback about the booths to booth organizers should they love the design or not quite like it.
It also offers lifelike avatars for enhanced attendee interaction along with a scoped-out 3D event environment. This gives the entire virtual trade show a lifelike feeling.
Each exhibitor booth contains company-related information like information leaflets, brochures, images, & videos that the exhibitor decides to include with the booth.
Attendees eager to view product demos can watch pre-recorded video product demos that the exhibitors have already uploaded to their booths, or chat with them in real-time to get more information & updates about the products/services.
However, Hexafair doesn’t allow attendees to request live product demos from the booth organizers.
On the networking front, Hexafair provides attendees with the option to view a dynamic attendee directory from where they can view each attendee & their information, deciding which ones they wish to network with.
The attendee directory also shows which attendees are online at the time of viewing, a valuable piece of information which can be used by interested attendees to schedule one-on-one chats, set up video conferencing with them, or request & exchange business cards.
Just like vFairs above, Hexafair also provides attendees with an integrated e-commerce platform. It allows for direct buying after viewing a product demo.
