>>Overnight 2020 forced us to get digital video, right? For the first 90 days, it was pretty awkward to say the least, but as people became more comfortable with home setups and lighting and just the weirdness of being locked down and shut in the frequency, the quality, and I think the watch ability of virtual conversations improved quite dramatically welcome to the cube. My name is Dave Vellante. And with me to talk about what we learned and can take away from producing video content during the isolation economy is event expert conference facilitator and MC extraordinary Sam Allen, Sam, come inside the cube. Welcome. >>Thank you so much for having me really lovely to be here with you. >>Pleasure. So I gotta ask you, you know, am I right? Do we actually have more watchable video online or now, or are we all sort of zoom fatigued out? >>I think if people watch the cube, I think you've got some incredible content online. You guys are the pros. I think we are still in this change format right now. Uh, we've got people who are doing it well, who started really early, tried failed, pick themselves back up, try it again, and are producing some really good pieces of content looking outside of perhaps the norm to create some great visual, some great conferences and events. I think on the whole, sadly, I think we still have a way to go, which is great for the likes of us in terms of helping those professionals become more professional and just trying to differentiate between what's just a zoom meeting. And actually what's an experience for communications for our audiences. >>I want to get into some of the best practice and maybe some of the do's and don'ts, but, but let's roll back a little bit. Tell us about yourself and how you got into this business. >>I'd love to say I've been a virtual event designer and MC moderator for years, but as we know, the world has turned itself on its head in the past 14, 15 months. Prior to that, I've been in the event and conference industry for about 20 years. Most recently, traveling the world, uh, onstage presenting moderating, hosting conferences, across various different industries from pharmaceuticals to finance, through to industry associations, telecoms, et cetera. Um, my world fell apart just about February 23rd, 2020, as many people did. I was excitingly booked to work with a lot of clients through Nova, uh, through to November, 2020. That didn't happen. And we have a couple of choices as an entrepreneur, uh, pick ourselves up or stay down on the ground. So I chose that first option. I studied online event design. I was a meeting and event designer already, but there are big nuances. When we work in the world of online, I've picked myself up, started studying online event design. I was fortunate. My clients trusted me. So we managed to pivot, uh, several of their events early on during the pandemic into the world of virtual. We've had some incredible feedback from our participants and we have gone from strength to strength. I now work with several other associate MCs experienced in this digital field, working with new and existing clients in terms of designing a better experience for those who are watching us on our screens. Now >>That's awesome. I love the reinvention story. I, Sam, I didn't know. You could take a class in this stuff. So tell me about that. And what was that like? >>I think one of the things when, you know, when we are in, and I'm sure many of our viewers today have said in the wonderful conference theaters and we'll be back in those rooms soon, uh, everything is done with experienced a V and technical and event producers and venue people. Whereas in the online world, I'm here, uh, in sunny London on my own, making sure that I have the right sound, the right connectivity, the rights, uh, visuals, all of these things are things that we just didn't have to do. And we have to do that for every single content contributors. So studying an online event design course back at the very beginning of lockdown really helped me understand the checklist that we need to have for our clients, the things that we need to assume. And most importantly, the things that can go wrong so that we can pick up on those as quickly as we can and try and create these seamless and engaging experiences for our audiences. So I would say to anyone, who's sort of looking into this and really don't know where to start. It's probably good to go and have a look at an online event design course. >>Thank you for that. So, so tell me what, what were some of the things as you look back on 2020, and you think about the work that you did with your clients and maybe even observing some, some of your non-clients, what were the, some of the, some of the mistakes that people made and we can get into some of the best practice. >>Well, as all good people who are being interviewed say, well, you're going to have to wait for my book to be published later on in the year with all the things that have gone wrong and all the ways we've rectified it. But I think one of the major things that we've we've had is obviously this world of distraction, we've all seen it with the cat lawyer. We've seen it with the kids coming in and we've humanized. I think the world of events, which I think is a really positive experience for us all, we are all humans and events are about bringing humans together, human connection. So I think there's a positive side to that, but equally by the same token, we we've seen people, maybe not really getting under the skin of, you know, what's the difference between a zoom meeting and an event experience in terms of what people have been wearing. >>Um, I've had an awkward conversation when we've taken a zoom background away from a speaker and you don't want to know what was hanging on the door. We also had a situation where we lost, um, we've, we've lost speakers and we've had to jump in due to connectivity issues that, you know, we've tested them, but then they've ended up broadcasting from somewhere else. So I think some of that seamless technology, and I would say to anyone, uh, to try and not suffer those challenges, I would say, test, test, rehearse, test, and rehearse again, and make sure you've got that team of people around you. I think a lot of people think that it's very easy to do this, Dave, as I know you and your team will know it is not a, you wouldn't just because I happen to like flying. You wouldn't want me to fly your aircraft. And I think there's the same analogy in terms of running your online event, um, and digital communication experiences. >>Oh, you think, I mean, I w I think we found it that running virtual events is, is harder because there's, first of all, there's so much unknown. You can't really call a late, late stage audible. I mean, things are locked in when you're doing a simulive. I presume you found the same thing and your clients have, have learned a lot in that regard. >>I think it's, um, a lot more work. I think there's a lot more work pre event. Pre-conference pre-meeting that, um, people are still trying to get their, their minds around when we hosted an event in person where you'll get there the day or two before during set-up, we then have a very, very long two, three, four days, depending on how long that event is, where we've got our speakers of the same room, they've all flown in. We know that they've arrived. We know they've checked into the hotel. What we don't have are any of those variables in this world. So we need to make sure that we're working with all of those content providers. And if like me, you work in the association world where you can have up to 90 or a hundred different speakers over a course of a Congress, we've got to fit in the time to make sure that we've tech checked. >>We've worked with panels so that we can make sure that they're dynamic and we've got people looking as well as sounding good. So I think one of those things is that is exceptionally, uh, huge amounts of pre-planning that people need to factor in. I think the second thing is people need to not underestimate how exhausting it is when you don't have the vibe of a live audience. Uh, especially as they'd be considerate of your keynote speakers, especially if they're not professionals, they haven't been doing this. They're not comfortable with a green light. It is tiring, um, trying to visualize 1,004 and a half thousand 25 people, one person in the same room as you would be quite nice. And we haven't had that for the past 12 months. So I think we've learned a lot from that. And we've got some good tips and tricks now that we can, we can use, but, um, I'm pretty sure a lot of our content providers and speakers are looking forward to seeing people back in a really, yeah, fantastic. Well, >>That brings me to my next question. Let's make this the last one, just as we begin to get a little bit more comfortable with, with virtual now we're getting vaccinated. People are, there's huge up demand for face to face. So now we have this new thing of hybrid, uh, which is going to be really interesting to see how that plays out. What are you seeing? What's your expectation for that sort of new abnormal? >>That's an incredibly good question. And we have to start with the new C word is the H word, which is hybrid. I think we have a lot of people getting worried about what hybrid looks like, but I think if, if you think with a design thinking mind, when you're looking at event planning, the virtual or the in-person audience adjust another stakeholder. So if you're spending that time to plan out your meeting or event, the way you should be, then you can factor those people in. I am excited about this world. I think it becomes so much more inclusive for organizations moving forward. And DNI is something that has often been forgotten in the world of conferences and events. And I think the hybrid role gives us all the opportunity to, to have that choice. I think people especially event organizers because it's their job believe that everybody wants to be in a room and not everybody does and not everybody can. And now this is a really, really exciting opportunity to do things differently, to do things, to become more inclusive. And of course, to be more sustainable. >>Sam, you're really an inspiration. I mean, a lot of people out there have to reinvent themselves. You've, you've done it. You retrained you, you started a new type of business that drew on your existing passion, but it's really fantastic to have you on. Thanks for sharing your expertise best of luck in the future. It's great having you. >>Thanks, Dave. >>All right. Thanks for watching everybody. This is Dave Volante for the cube. We'll see you next time.

(upbeat music) >> The next normal is upon us. And the way we run corporate communications, brand accelerators and events has changed inextricably from 12 months ago. Will this last? Welcome to theCUBE. My name is Samme Allen. It's great to have you with us. Joining me today to discuss what looks like success for us all in terms of communications and events, we have long time industry analyst, TV host, entrepreneur and of course, many other accolades, please welcome co-founder and CEO of theCUBE, Dave Vellante. Dave, welcome to theCUBE. >> Hey Samme, thank you very much. I've been in theCUBE a lot, but really not often in this format, so thanks for having me. >> It is a pleasure to be interviewing you today. How does it feel being in the hot seat about to be grilled about the future of events? >> A little weird, little uncomfortable. But bring it on. >> So we talk about this next normal. Some people called it the new normal. We're coming out of the world of pandemic. Thank God. We are seeing returning to live events. We are seeing returning to travel. But what do you think this looks like for the big brands in terms of how they start building out their communications strategy, including events for, say, the next 12 months, the immediate strategy for the future? >> Well, that's a great question. And it's interesting when you look back in the last 12, 13, 14 months, and you compare, let's say, last April to this April in terms of the quality of the events that not only the production value, but also the content and the formats and the intensive attempt to engage with people, you're seeing people, big organizations especially, really raised the bar quite dramatically. And now just as they've sort of become comfortable with virtual events, they're trying to figure out, okay, what's next? So we've seen with theCUBE, we're getting demand now for hybrid events. We're going to be at Mobile World Congress. We're seeing other events that people are asking us to attend. We've got some events in the fall. Smatterings, you know. It's not huge. But when you talk to people, pretty much everybody now is planning on some type of physical activity in 2021. So there's huge pent-up demand. We would expect, Samme, to have these, let's call'em VIP events, where you might have an audience of, local audience, maybe it's 20, maybe it's 25 people, selected audience of CEOs or CTOs or business executives, and then broadcast that to a much wider audience. I personally think this notion of virtual events, which nobody really wanted, you know, a couple of years ago, everybody wanted belly-to-belly, I think it's here to stay, because the long tail of consumption post-event is actually paying dividens, even though it's taking much, much longer to see those results. >> And we're seeing here in the UK. As you know, I'm based in our London studio. We are, you know, we're hearing from Sir David Attenborough who pretty much everyone around the globe knows as the global voice of sustainability saying that actually what we do in the next 5 to 10 years could potentially have a much bigger impact on the world than Corona virus has done so far. Do you think brands are taking this seriously in terms of the evolution of how they communicate, how they attend events, where things like theCUBE will be placed in the future? Are you seeing that from your clients, Dave? >> You know, that's a really tough question. Because on the one hand, and I often joke that, you know, it used to be the case that, you know, the only goal of a public company was to make profit. And now, you're seeing companies from IBM and Cisco and Salesforce, name a company, a large company, they're standing up and saying ESG, diversity, inclusion, these are not only the right thing to do, but they're good business. And so tie that into your question, which is, you know, can we affect the environment, for example, maybe by, you know, being more productive with travel? And the reason I think it's such a tough question is because I think the sales people who are under such pressure to perform, and the companies are under pressure to perform, clearly can be more productive face-to-face, and they can accelerate time to close, for example. At the same time, nobody's really excited to get back on a plane on a Sunday night every week and fly back on a Friday and see their family, maybe, you know, for a day or two. So I think we've got to figure that out. And I think to answer your question specifically, I think there's no question that we can do much more virtually. And I think we will, over the next 10 years, learn how to do that in a much more productive way. >> You hit quite a true point from the brands that we've been speaking with in terms of the desire to see people, to hug people, to be in a room. I think the one thing we hear all the time is that you can't network. Well, we know you can network, because we have algorithms, we have AI and big data. But actually, that socialization. Do you think once we've all got to that first conference and then actually, we have maybe, exactly as you said, that fatigue of not being with our families when the world has changed so much, so after this initial rush, do you think that then that blend of the world of hybrid will remain stable? >> Another really tough question. I think, you know, having, for myself, I'm not fully baked. I've had my second vaccine. And so when I see people, I'm really confident. I'm kind of a, you know, chest pumper, a handshaker, a hugger, whatever. So I'm much more comfortable doing that. But we don't know what we don't know. You know, do we need a booster shot in six months? You know, what is the data telling us? The science, I mean. Everybody says follow the science. But the Alzheimer, the science doesn't know what's happening. I would say this. I think unquestionably, from a business standpoint, that this notion of being able to expose your brand to many, many more, a much, much larger audience, is going to continue. That has legs. And I think people are very comfortable that, if you do that, you're not going to limit the number of people who actually, you know, show up live. It's like when TED decided to actually broadcast, the brand went through the roof. I think the same thing will happen here that you're going to see a slow return of the face-to-face. And I think the virtual will stay. And I think they'll be related, but different teams. I mean, we've talked about this, you and I. There's different skillsets for virtual. So I can see organizations, at least I think smart ones, will invest in both. And I think we're going to see a new era of events that are going to combine virtual and physical. >> Talking about theCUBE, you know. We talked about theCUBE being, you know, they're front and center at an event to offer those expert insights. Can you see in that, well, give us your crystal ball, where's theCUBE going to be in five years time? Do you hope? And do you, where do you think it's going to be strategically wise? >> You know, the awesome thing for theCUBE is that we started in virtual events and hybrid events back in 2015. And so, but it was interesting is we sort of try to push that on our clients, and nobody wanted it. It's like I was saying before, everybody wanted physical. So when COVID hit, we were in a really good position to extend our portfolio into virtual. And that's exactly what we did with our two studios and our software stack. What was a little tricky for us was we had to retrain people. And it was like training by fire. So that took some time. And so you start to see, okay, who's, who really enjoys the virtual, who enjoys the physical. So where I see theCUBE in five years time is that hybrid combination. Very clearly, people want theCUBE at their events, because it's light. It's lights, camera, action. You know, the sports-center-like vibe with the live production, you know. But at the same time, we've got this great capability and team that can reach a much, much wider audience. And then what we've learned, the big learning or one of the big learnings from COVID in virtual was the post-event consumption, that long tail is actually quite amazing, especially if you keep nurturing it. And by the way, a lot of our clients still miss this, a lot of brands move on to the next one, move on to the next one, whereas you can see the consumption continuing. And so I think people are going to continue to fine tune that and really take advantage. So I see theCUBE in both places. And it's just, we're really excited, because it's just a great expansion of our business. >> And I think that strategy, as you said, that, you know, building out a 365 strategy when it comes down to communications and bringing people on a journey with you, which is what you're doing at theCUBE, I think that's the future. And it's an exciting future. My last question for you. You've been locked down like we all have here in the UK, You're in the US. What are you most looking forward to now you've had your second shot, the world is opening up? What's the first thing that you're going to be doing sort of post-lockdown? >> You know, I'll say this. I, again, I don't miss flying every week and dragging my big, heavy backpack through airports. What I have missed is that interaction post-event. So theCUBE is intense. You go to an event. You're doing 10 to 12 interviews a day. Sometimes three or four days. You're exhausted at the end of the day. But then you get to sit back. And that's when you go to the evening events. And you see people, for instance, that were on theCUBE. And people were pointing to you, "hey, you're theCUBE guys." And you build a really intimate relationship with them that is long lasting. And I really do miss that. We, John Furrier, my business partner and co-CEO, we've made some great business friendships that will last a lifetime. And you only form those with these face-to-face interactions. You just, as you know, Samme, you can't do it. You can't get that level of intimacy in a video call. You just can't. So I'm really looking forward to that. And maybe a little better life balance. That's what I'm most looking forward to. >> I think that's a wonderful way to close this out. So I'm looking forward to also seeing you in person, raising that glass, building those relationships. Thank you, Dave, so much for being with us today. Thank you all for watching. Stay tuned to theCUBE for breaking insights, expert insights front and center when you need them. Keep safe. And see you next time. (upbeat music)