MeetingPlay Virtual Engagement Platform [Review]

MeetingPlay’s Virtual Engagement Platform focuses on attendee engagement and aims to provide planners with tools to recreate the interactivity of a live event online. The platform can be adapted to meet specific event needs, so planners can choose to add or omit features as they see fit.

MeetingPlay is powered by AI and is designed to be used for both virtual and hybrid events as a way to engage online audiences. Its engagement features include several networking tools as well as opportunities to connect live with exhibitors and speakers.

The platform can be fully branded and customized for each event, and its built-in API allows for integrations with other event platforms and apps. MeetingPlay also provides usage data and analytics for planners to be able to measure the success of various engagement tools deployed during the event.

 

Main Feature Categories

Access and Integrations. MeetingPlay’s Virtual Engagement Platform integrates with hundreds of third-party registration providers, content management systems, and streaming services — some of which include plug and play support — as it doesn’t offer any of these inherently within its own platform. The platform also provides several access options depending on the event’s required level of security, including:

• simple (email and password)
• moderate (restricting login to only registered attendees via attendee list) 
• complex (single sign-on via a SAML 2.0 integration)

Event Details and Sessions. The platform’s main dashboard shows attendees all the information they’ll need throughout the event, including both the full event agenda that they can search through and their personalized agenda, as well as suggested sessions and people to connect with. The platform also sends attendees custom reminders for upcoming sessions and favorited tracks and makes content recommendations based on attendees’ participation in sessions.

Delivery Options. MeetingPlay provides various delivery formats for different types of sessions depending on the event needs. These can include large, live streamed sessions; small, collaborative breakouts with real-time screen sharing; or pre-recorded content. When it comes to pre-recorded content, it can either be on-demand or semi-live. With semi-live, the session is recorded in advance but starts and ends at a specific time so that it simulates the feel of a live session by ensuring that everyone watches at the same pace and time.

Networking. One of the main goals of the platform is to allow attendees to network and make connections like they would at a live event. The platform prompts attendees to answer certain questions about their experience and interests, either during onboarding or directly through the networking feature, and matches them with like-minded individuals, networking rooms, and other targeted event experiences using an AI algorithm.

Sponsors and Exhibitors. MeetingPlay includes a Virtual Exhibit Hall as well as various sponsorship opportunities such as push notifications and video interstitials during sessions.  This enables exhibitors and sponsors to connect with attendees and gain additional exposure during the event. Sponsors and exhibitors can schedule appointments with attendees, host live drop-in hours, provide special offers, downloadable content, and more.

Engagement Tools. In order to keep audiences engaged during sessions and throughout the event, the platform provides numerous tools and features to promote interactivity. These include attendee chat, live polls, the ability to rate sessions, gamification, and peer-to-peer conferencing, among others.

Analytics. MeetingPlay provides event organizers, as well as their sponsors and exhibitors, with key event analytics following each event. The available analytics are divided into basic and upgraded plans that planners can choose based on the specific analytics they’re interested in tracking. Possible data that planners are given access to includes number of chat messages sent, unique and total attendees by time period, content view time per person, most engaged sessions, total exhibitor page visits, and ad clicks.

 

Review

MeetingPlay’s Virtual Engagement Platform can be customized for each event depending on the specific features that planners need. It integrates with numerous registration tools and CRMs to allow event organizers to incorporate it into their tech stack alongside any platforms they may be using for other event management tasks.

As users log into the platform for the first time, they’re taken through an onboarding process that shows them around the platform functionalities and prompts them to perform actions such as accepting notifications, testing their video, and answering networking questions. From there, attendees land on the main “My Experience Dashboard” from which they can explore the rest of the event.

Planners have the option of implementing access control for certain sessions so that attendees are only able to view the sessions they have paid for and have access to. If attendees will be able to register for sessions up until the time they begin, MeetingPlay has the ability to recommend sessions based on attendee behavior and interests. During sessions, which may be pre-recorded, live streamed, or simulated live, participants can view session and speaker information, take notes, contribute to a live chat discussion, and download materials.

When it comes to networking, MeetingPlay provides AI-generated suggestions based on attendee information and responses to the networking questions. In the Networking area, attendees can view like-minded individuals, recommended networking sessions, and sessions of interest. Attendees can then start a chat or video call with their suggested connections, or any other attendee that they may want to connect with from the general attendee list. Participants have the option of keeping their profiles private if they do not wish to be found and contacted by others during the event.

In the Exhibit Hall, attendees can find exhibitor information, download brochure and other materials, and interact with exhibitors. Company representatives can designate periods in the schedule during which they are available to chat with attendees, and attendees can also schedule virtual meetings with exhibitors at a mutually convenient time. These are then automatically added to the attendee’s personalized agenda. MeetingPlay also provides detailed analytics following the event so that planners and stakeholders can evaluate their event data and make adjustments for the future.

 

Who’s it for?

MeetingPlay’s Virtual Engagement Platform is designed for meeting and event planners looking to plan a fully-virtual or hybrid event experience, and particularly those who need dedicated support throughout the process. It’s ideal for planners who already have an AV provider or video production partner that they can use to integrate with the platform to incorporate live streams and video calls.

 

Who’s it not for?

This tool’s area of focus is engagement, and is not ideal for planners looking for an all-in-one solution for organizing a virtual event as the platform is solely designed to host the event experience and doesn’t support event management tasks such as registration (although it does integrate with many other services you can acquire separately). On the flip side, the platform may not be a good fit for eventprofs who need a simple or low-cost webinar solution for their events.

 

Features

Personalized session recommendations: MeetingPlay’s AI algorithm tracks attendee session participation during the event and uses information they share about their interests to make targeted content recommendations for other sessions they may like to join or content they might find meaningful.

Collaborative workshops: Through the collaborative workshop session format, event organizers can hold smaller breakouts where participants can view who else is in the audience and interact more directly with the presenter and each other. Attendees can use the hand raising feature to indicate they have a question and are able to ask questions through audio and video as opposed to simply over text.

AI-generated networking suggestions: The platform’s algorithm also powers its networking suggestions, which matches attendees based on their titles, affiliations, and other information they provide through the networking questions. Attendees can then chat or video conference with each other one-on-one, as well as join “birds of a feather” networking rooms, which are open sessions for attendees with mutual interests to connect and collaborate with each other.

Gamification: Gamification elements, which are tracked in the platform’s “Game On!” tab, are optional and can be added to an event to enhance attendee engagement. Planners can choose to assign point values to different actions attendees can take during the event, such as visiting an exhibitor booth or joining breakout sessions, and points are then tracked in the leaderboard for everyone to view. MeetingPlay also offers the option of including a virtual swag store where attendees can redeem their points for event swag, which also adds further branding opportunities within the platform.

Live Q&A: During live sessions, attendees can utilize the question function to ask speakers either public or private questions, depending on the session settings. Public questions can be viewed by everyone in the session and can be voted up by other attendees to increase the likelihood that they will be seen by the speaker. On the other hand, private questions will only be visible to the person who asked the question and the speakers.

Viewing modes: MeetingPlay offers two options for session viewing: theater and engagement. Attendees can select their viewing mode based on their preferences, and they can change it at any time during a session. Theater mode displays content in a wide screen view so that attendees can focus on the speaker or presentation. Engagement mode, on the other hand, maximizes engagement by putting the available engagement tools, such as live chat and session ratings, front and center.

Social wall: The platform’s Social Feed tab includes a live feed where attendees and organizers can both share content and photos. The social wall also feeds directly to Twitter using an API integration.

Virtual appointment scheduling: Within the Exhibit Hall, attendees can schedule virtual appointments with exhibitors so they can come back later and avoid having to wait for a representative to be available. Any scheduled meeting is also automatically added to the attendee’s personal agenda, which they can view on the main dashboard.

Exhibitor availability: Exhibitors can enhance their exposure by holding drop-in or office hours throughout the event, during which company representatives will be available at the booth to hold presentations or answer questions for any attendees that join. These periods can be added to participants’ agendas so they are reminded to visit the booth at the right time.

Meeting concierge: The meeting concierge acts as the information and help desk during virtual events. Attendees can chat with the meeting concierge at any point during the event to ask questions about the platform or to get technical support.

Pricing and Plans

Pricing varies for each event and is based on the specific features required to meet the goals of the event.

 

Pros and Cons

 

In Conclusion

MeetingPlay’s Virtual Engagement Platform offers planners a virtual and hybrid event platform with robust engagement and networking features that aim to mirror the experience of a live event. It includes many opportunities for attendees, exhibitors, and speakers to interact and collaborate.

Planners looking to add engagement features to their current live streaming or video conferencing tools may find that MeetingPlay fits their needs. The platform is also a good option for eventprofs who need end-to-end support when planning and executing their virtual event.

Disclaimer: Reviews are paid for placements. While Event Manager Blog receives a fee to extensively look at the tool and review it in detail, the content of the review is independent and by no means influenced by the company. If you have any questions please use the contact us section.