More than half of printed materials at events are wasted, reveals Noodle Live research

A survey of senior event organisers conducted by Noodle Live, the new technology for collecting and sharing information at exhibitions and conferences, reveals that 50 per cent see the majority of their printed materials left behind after events. This is an area of ongoing frustration for event organisers, especially as the vast majority spend up to a fifth of their total event budget on printing.

The survey conducted at the 2013 AEO Conference in London, among CEOs, vice presidents, directors and marketing managers of large and medium-sized events companies, showed that event professionals firmly believe that the right technology is crucial to enhancing visitor experience and exhibitor effectiveness as well as achieving a competitive advantage. Of the senior event professionals surveyed, eight out of ten agreed that events could be greatly enhanced through adoption of the right technology.

According to the survey, there were three key areas where tech could help events most:

Changing schedules – A grievance among just over 80 per cent of respondents was that event schedules often changed after having printed the relevant materials, resulting in out-of-date information.
Social media – Almost all event organisers surveyed said they use social media to generate buzz around their events online, emphasising the need for event apps that integrate social media tools, allowing for networking to begin in advance and collected documents to be shared post event.
Post event – There is a clear need for the right technology to provide information post event, as 79 per cent of organisers ensure presentations are available online to delegates after the event.
With Noodle Live, any documents, presentations, brochures and contact details collected via swipe cards are all stored in the cloud, ready for attendees to log in via their mobile, tablet or computer to access and share everything they’ve collected. With social media integration, attendees are able to follow others, monitor buzz around events and send their own updates from within the Noodle Live app.

“The events industry is clearly ready and keen to incorporate technology and move away from paper to digital,” commented Clemi Hardie, Founder and MD of Noodle Live. “Practically everyone we spoke to at the AEO Conference think that the right technology would bring huge benefits to visitors, exhibitors and organisers of events. As event app specialists we know we Noodle Live can fulfil that need without being disruptive to the overall event experience.”

“Using Noodle Live to distribute information digitally and in real time means organisers can provide in-depth information about their event far more cost effectively than by using print. Not only are events wasting printed materials, the programs and brochures are often quickly out of date, showing the wrong information by the time the event starts. This is another problem that could be solved by hosting the schedule online where it can be changed in real time and viewable via an app like Noodle Live.”

Methodology

The survey of 36 senior event professionals was conducted at the 2013 AEO Conference in London on 31 January 2013.

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