Reltio Kickoff22 Virtual Event

OVERVIEW

Reltio disrupted the master data management (MDM) software market nearly a decade ago when it launched the Reltio Connected Data Platform – the first cloud-native MDM software-as-a-service platform. The solution manages massive data volumes in real-time and at scale, using Connected Graph technology to unlock the value of customer relationships by connecting customer data and experiences across all touchpoints.

Reltio kicks off each fiscal year with a sales conference that brings their teams together to celebrate successes, present annual priorities, and communicate how each individual’s contributions will help the company reach its goals.

CHALLENGE

Less Than Two Months to Plan, Produce Four-Day Global Virtual Event

Pre-pandemic, the company gathered in person for their sales kickoff (SKO). As 2021 approached, the company knew they had to make the switch to a global virtual event but lacked the staff and internal resources to produce it themselves. Lightspeed, who had already delivered several successful projects for Reltio’s demand generation team, was one of three vendors invited to bid.

Lightspeed’s ability to deliver wow-worthy production value and a seamless audience experience won the bid and secured a statement of work in place the first week of January. With the February 22-25 event only weeks away, the short planning cycle matched the event theme of “Accelerate!”

SOLUTION

Full-Scale Event Production Includes Interactive Virtual Meeting Platform

Lightspeed led the charge from start to finish, producing everything from the event branding, website, presentation templates, CEO and employee videos, and email communications, to registration, multiple Zoom backgrounds, audience-specific kits, and breakout sessions spread across four-to-five hours each of the four days for a global audience.

“The driving factor that shaped this program was the client’s desire for the event to be especially interactive and allow people to join the conversation whenever they wanted,” says Briana Fahmie, Lightspeed Event and Logistics Lead.

The most critical decision? Which virtual event platform to use. Reltio hadn’t used Webex Meeting Center before, and the application in this scenario would mean more work for the production team behind the scenes. But Lightspeed determined the platform was the right choice because it would deliver all the functionality and user experience the client wanted.

Lightspeed partnered with Reltio’s IT team to roll out Webex Meeting Center and ensure a high-quality virtual experience. Meanwhile, the pandemic hampered the virtual event planning with a new twist: a surprising shortage of boxes. Lightspeed managed to procure and brand the boxes needed to ship engagement and mixology kits to more than 300 invitees in North America and Europe, as well as kits customized for presenters.

Curated Engagement Kits Create Sense of Community

A big challenge with virtual events is how to offer the same level of engagement and social opportunities as an in-person gathering.

One way Lightspeed solved this was to create and ship mixology kits for each attendee to use in their designated Social Mixer session. The kits provided everything needed to mix a refreshing cocktail – glass, spirits, juice, swizzle stick, and garnishes.

Not wanting attendees to go hungry or miss their caffeine boost, Lightspeed shipped Uber Eats lunch vouchers and Bulletproof coffee in the audience engagement kits. For comfortable listening on hours of virtual sessions, attendees found wireless bone-conduction headphones stashed in their kits.

Bottom line: no useless, throwaway stuff. Each kit held thoughtfully selected items to enhance the meet-from-home experience.

As for serving up content, Lightspeed designed the event website to provide seamless entry and exit from one session to the next, which eliminated the need for calendar holds for each session. Lightspeed provided tips-and-tricks on the website to help virtual attendees get comfortable with using the Webex meeting platform, and posted all session recordings, slide decks, and related resources within 24 hours so attendees could download on demand.

“The website truly became the daily hub for attendees,” says Bryan Meyer, Lightspeed Event Operations. “Our production, registration, and design teams all closely collaborated to create this experience and make it work seamlessly for event attendees. This might have required more behind-the-scenes coordination and effort for Lightspeed, but it was worth it to make the experience almost effortless for Reltio employees.”

RESULTS

‘I Liked It Better Than An In-Person Kickoff’

A client saying she couldn’t have done the event without you? Great to hear.

Consistently high event survey scores? Awesome.

Attendees saying this virtual kickoff was even better than last year’s in-person event? Priceless.

This event received all that feedback and more. Survey and Slack comments from Reltio employees sang the praises of the event experience, attendee kits, session flow, and organization.

Those comments come after more than a year into the pandemic, when Zoom and Webex fatigue had set in. “Trying to mitigate that, especially for a four-day meeting, is really where we bring value,” says Billy Matiernan, Lightspeed Events Director. “We bring little touches and details that up-level the overall experience from a regular virtual event production to an awesome one. And no one wanted to claw their eyes out at the end of it.”

Virtual Event Delivered All Success-Defining Outcomes

Lightspeed has proven you can provide a virtual meeting experience every bit as good or even better than an in-person one. Your attendees can learn and digest the content in the comfort of their own home, still have time in the day to catch up on their actual job, and be able to have dinner with their families then tuck the kids into bed. Win-win-win.

“The biggest success factor of your event is, did your audience learn everything they were supposed to learn, such as company solutions and messaging, while still being able to keep up with their jobs and their lives?” says Fahmie.

Reltio Virtual Kickoff22 succeeded in that, while delivering an attendee experience consistent and cohesive across all event elements from start to finish.