The Event Tech Bible 2017 is the latest e-book offering from Julius Solaris, editor of the popular EventManagerBlog.com. The free 151-page opus aims to give an encyclopedic knowledge of the latest trends and issues in event tech.

According to Solaris, event technology is now on a fourth wave of development, which focuses on virtual reality (VR), alternative reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI). The first three waves were online registration and ticketing, event mobile apps, and engagement technology. The first three waves are over, says Solaris.

“The market is saturated with providers. The products are starting to look the same. AR, VR and AI are creating a new ecosystem where new players will be born,” he says in the introductory section of the book. “Possibly they will re-invigorate some of the previous waves, but the action is on these three technologies right now. Based on the previous waves, we can anticipate a three-to-five-year period where new startups will build almost exclusively in this vertical.”

The e-book’s content ranges from how to develop a strategy and budget for event tech to how to evaluate vendors and the success of your technology programs. Solaris goes on to say that the most important tip in the book is this: “Whenever facing event technology decisions or evaluating a tool, ask yourself: Am I bringing value to attendees, my team or stakeholders? If the answer is no, move on. No need to believe the hype, try the latest cool thing, trust that charming salesperson, be tech savvy. If there is no value, there is no need to engage. That’s it.”

The final chapter offers 1,001 tips on how to get the most out of everything from event management software to mobile apps, touchable tech, appointment scheduling software, virtual reality and other event technology. Here is a sample of tips from the section on event marketing and social media tools:

1. No one likes to wait for an event. If you have people assembling before a program or event, use tech to broadcast their tweets on a screen. They’ll be entertained, and vanity will give attendees an increased interest in tweeting.

2. Provide interactive displays to enable attendees to seek the information they need using familiar touch-screen technology.

3. With always-changing room configurations and potential for itinerary changes during an event, ensure digital signage can be updated regularly and on the fly with minimal effort.

4. Interactive signage can provide information on local attractions, flight information, weather updates and event details, to name just a few categories.

5. If you are using a free live-streaming tool, you probably want to limit these live engagements to 20-30 minutes at the longest, due to audience attention spans and time limitations within the tools themselves. Facebook Live only allows up to 30 minutes of streaming at a time.

6. Create a digital file that your event attendees can contribute to. Collaboration tools can allow text, images, videos, links, documents and more to be added and explored.

7. Drone footage can give an exciting and fresh angle to your event to make people sit up and take notice. Consider creating drone footage over the area around your event venue, capturing sunrise and sunset shots.

8. You can now use technology as a matchmaking service to find event sponsors that fit your event and demographic. Platforms take a cut of any confirmed, successful sponsorship, but if this approach introduces you to a brand-new sponsor, it could still be worthwhile.

9. Digital sponsorship enables you to measure the number of views, clicks and possibly purchases as a direct result of the event.

10. Buy a smartphone printer to generate and distribute some snapshots from the event floor.

11. Charging points can be in high demand at your event and an appealing idea for sponsors. Consider renting branded charging solutions.

12. Use projection mapping to create stunning table centerpieces that don’t block guests from seeing one another, or to create an elaborate projection-mapped cake.

13. Projection mapping onto the outside of your venue is a surprise welcome for your guests and also captures the attention of passers-by. — Regina McGee