Technology offers a digital alternative for the event industry

SCOOCS offers a unique technology for digital and hybrid events

In 2020, the event scene faced unexpected major challenges due to the Covid-19 virus. Trade fairs and events were cancelled. Many event hosts had great losses. Out of necessity, digital alternatives were sought. The difficulty lay mostly in not trying to copy the physical event into digital, but to work out the strengths of an online event instead.

Using technology to bring people together

Prof. Dr René Bohnsack has taken up this challenge together with his team and founded SCOOCS (Smart Customizable Online Offline Conferences for Sustainability). SCOOCS stands for a digital events platform that has valued sustainability from the very beginning. The aim is to enable event hosts, for example from science, the trade fair business or the communications industry, to design virtual and hybrid events of all kinds. Whether it’s an online course for 30 people or a virtual conference with up to 1,000 participants – the events can be implemented individually and easily, according to your needs, and in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Technology makes it possible to create valuable meetings and to create a sense of belonging among online participants. Through a variety of networking options, such as chat rooms, social media or private video meetings, an exchange is always possible among the participants, as well as with the speakers and hosts. This turns the digital event into a virtual community, promoting networking and exchanges information.

A successful virtual or hybrid event without much effort

The platform’s user interface is easy to use and makes it easy to set up an individual online or hybrid event in just a few minutes. Participants can be integrated quickly and easily. Embedded video rooms make it possible to hold both many-to-many and one-to-many sessions. For example, the customizable virtual 3D exhibition stands make it easy for the partners and sponsors involved to present themselves visibly and profitably.

At the request of the hosts, open events and user groups can be created and lectures and discussions can be either live-streamed or through pre-recorded videos in various video rooms. The timeline function makes it particularly easy to keep track of the individual highlights of the event: Participants can track which events are taking place in the different video rooms and participate in them with one click. 

The success of hybrid events supported by SCOOCS has already been proven in the realisation of the Reeperbahn Festival 2020 and events for companies such as Liferay, Prodyna and Sigs Datacom. The Reeperbahn Festival was awarded the GERMAN SILVER MULTI-MEDIA AWARD 2020 for its smooth implementation.

How much does SCOOCS cost?

Hosts have the option of taking out a monthly subscription starting at 100 euros to flexibly host as many events as they wish over a year. There are three different types of events to choose from Basic, Self-Service or Full-Service. When selecting the packages, it is mainly the number of participants that counts. The Basic package, for example, is suitable for a one-day event with less than one hundred participants. In this case, the cost would be one euro per participant plus the cost of the subscription. With a self-service package, the host can access all the features and set up an event that lasts up to three days. Of course, it is also possible to host individual events with SCOOCS without a subscription.

Analytics Dashboard

SCOOCS also offers hosts the possibility to check and analyze the data of their event in real-time with the Analytics Dashboard. This way, the clicks and the behaviour of the users are tracked, allowing hosts to take immediate decisions or changes for all events or stands – of course, everything is GDPR-compliant.

To ensure a successful event, our team is always available if you have any queries. Before, throughout and after your event!