From the very start of the health crisis, many events had to be postponed or even cancelled, with the crisis hitting the events industry hard at the height of the season. Benoit Ramozzi, general delegate of the French association “LEVENEMENT”, estimates that turnover for companies in the sector fell by around 80% in 2020. This loss is linked to the various government restrictions, particularly lockdowns and limits on gatherings.

Every year, the Union Française des Métiers de l’Événement (UNIMEV, the French events industry association) carries out a study presenting the key figures and trends for this market.

According to this survey, 72% of French people would be more inclined to attend events provided that queue management was organised in line with the recommended health measures. (1)

These new challenges are pushing events companies, more than ever, to adopt innovative solutions to manage visitor reception as well as event rooms and venues.

Visitor management in the events industry

Since 9 June 2021, trade shows, festivals and seminars have once again been able to welcome visitors in France. Managing queues and physical contact has therefore become essential to provide visitors with the best possible health and safety conditions.

The many types of event each come with their own constraints that should not be overlooked. Visitors to a public trade show, professionals at a seminar and festival-goers will not be welcomed in the same way.

This type of innovative solution is used to manage events such as:
• Seminars
• Conferences and conventions
• Product launches
• Team-building events
• Festivals
• Fairs, trade shows and exhibitions
• Sporting events

For example, at a seminar, professionals can be welcomed in 2 ways.
The first is to welcome the visitor directly at the venue’s reception desk and register them from the receptionist’s computer.
The second is to welcome the visitor, with or without a reception team, directly from a kiosk at the venue entrance. Visitors can then register themselves completely independently or confirm their arrival if they already have an invitation with a QR code.

Event room management at France Galop

While visitor management is one of event organisers’ main concerns, room and venue management is increasingly proving to be a guarantee of efficiency as activity resumes.

At Hamilton Apps by Safeware, we are fortunate to count France Galop, the organisation that runs France’s national flat and jump horse races, among our customers.
France Galop plays an essential role in organising horse racing in France and has many activities. Its role is to:

  • Encourage breeding to improve the various breeds of racehorse,
  • Set prize money and bonuses,
  • Encourage training,
  • Ensure fair competition by enforcing the Code des Courses (the French rules of racing)
  • Organise anti-doping controls.

For almost 2 years, France Galop has been using Hamilton Meeting to manage its event rooms.

Karl Salmon Foucher, Operations & Event Coordination Project Manager at France Galop, shares his observations on the impact of the health crisis and tells us about his new challenges.

“To manage our various spaces across our 5 racecourses, we use the Hamilton Meeting application every day. Since the start of the health crisis, this tool has become a real ally in our organisation. It has given us greater visibility and responsiveness, and improved coordination between the various internal and external stakeholders.

All our teams quickly adopted the software because it is so easy to use.

Since we started using Hamilton Meeting, we have seen real progress in how we manage and anticipate our various events.”

With the recent resumption of activity, companies in this sector are realising how important these applications are.

If you are an events professional wondering whether these solutions are necessary or feasible for you, contact one of our experts.

Source
(1) https://www.unimev.fr/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/EventDataBook_2020_doublepage_VF.pdf