GlobalMeet Webcast vs. Webex Events (formerly Socio) vs. Whova

Their team was very hands-on and helpful in the set-up and execution of our meeting. I would recommend them, especially for first-time virtual meeting planners. They were thorough and thoughtful in the planning process, which made the execution smoother.

Incentivized

WebEx Events is a great tool for hosting both an event website and an onsite event app. If you are looking to integrate an on onsite and online event, they have this capability, as well. The staff is always very helpful and I am able to get answers to my questions in a timely manner

Incentivized

I think it works really well as a way to organize yourself while at a conference. As well, to network with said attendees I found it very valuable to remember names. Having an automatic rolodex with everyone I met and ensure I had their info to connect later

• It's very helpful to have a point of contact to manage communication and the event. We've worked with a few event managers over the years and they have all been great.
• We've also had great experience during the production (e.g., pre-recording sessions for simlive events). All the production team members we've worked with have been professional and efficient.
• Our main account contact has been an absolute pleasure to work with. He is detail oriented and responsive. And we particularly appreciate his thoughtful follow-ups after the events to confirm everything met our expectations.

Incentivized

• It has quite a few optional and customizable features that can be utilized.
• It's easy to integrate your existing tools like Zoom, YouTube, Vimeo, and streaming services.
• It's flexible in the way that you upload content in that you can enter things one at a time on the website, or use a spreadsheet to upload a larger amount of content.

Incentivized

• facilitated the sharing of research, perspectives, and resources on topics of interest
• enabled easier connection to new and existing relationships with conference delegates and speakers
• allowed me to catch up on content I missed due to time conflicts for concurrent sessions

• Although I love the polling feature, there are a few kinks that could be worked out, as the dialogue box at times interferes with the presentation.
• Have the "guest" and "host" bubbles bigger when logging in, sometimes guests get confused and log in as a host accidentally thinking they need a password to join.
• A kink I've noticed lately, is not being able to upload presentations forcing me to use screenshare. I'm not sure if it's a naming convention or why this error occurs.
• I have limited use in the webcam feature as when using it in the past there was a serious lag time making it difficult to communicate, but, it could've been my internet speed as well... I'll have to give it another shot.

Incentivized

• Sometimes I feel like it uses too many resources and makes my computer go slower
• Chats of the webinar dissappear by default, but sometimes important info is shared and could be nice to have the option to save it
• The quality of the video gets chosen by webex by default, sometimes maybe it would be nice to get the option to fix manually what's the minimum quality you want. Just to not talk with pixels

Incentivized

• Literature and pictures uploaded but no easy way to download the collection.
• No easy way to access information after the period after the conference ended.
• No easy way to access the list of participants and contact information - could be pdf'd.
• There was a little connectivity issues but not much.
• Some of the meetings were scheduled while we slept.
• The cost of using Whova for small meetings.

Incentivized

Of course something could happen to our orgs ability to put on a conference or Socio could fundamentally change their product or their customer service - but barring any magor shift there is nothing that is even close to competing for our attention here.

Incentivized

We already registered with Whova for our 2024 event and we will continue to use Whova for the foreseeable future as long as the price doesn't rise too high. It was a bit of a shock to see the difference between last year's price and this year's price - nearly 2k increase! We were able to negotiate, thankfully, to lower the price.

Generally, I find it relatively easy to use, but I'm a techie, so I understand that a certain amount of training is required for most other business users. The counterpoint here is, of course, that GM provides excellent knowledge articles and training material. The barrier of entry is a bit high due to customer hesitation to "just try it". Training is necessary, but well done and available. Knowledge is a Self-Service after all.

Incentivized

Some Android users could not get the app to work, so they had to use the web-based version of our conference guide. Most functionality was still there, but they could not pull up the QR code, which impeded the registration process. The presence of the log in with Apple ID button caused issues because most work emails were not attached to Apple ID, which caused access issues.

Incentivized

Most of Whova's functions are intuitive and you can self-teach about 80% of it with ease. I really was impressive with the messaging, follow up meet-up capabilities and sharing of contact information. My only few concerns were about the lack of an archive or back up, [perhaps cloud-based?] of the meeting room and round-table's presentations

We had no availability issues!

We had no performance issues with our event delivery. We did have some meet-ups that had some glitches for some attendees, but I believe they were quickly resolved and were more on the part of user error than anything. Once they got the hang of it, their meet-ups went more smoothly.

Socio (now WebexEvents) is one of two products I use that gets customer service right. Not only can you get an answer from an actual person quickly during business hours - but if you are asking after hours, you know the response will be waiting for you in the morning. Not only are they fast, but they are also smart about their products and customers. There is very little back and forth trying to explain the problem I am having, or the new way I am trying to use their product, that may even be novel for them.

Incentivized

I only had a single issue regarding a photograph that was handled immediately and a colleague somehow ended up with two profiles which was also handled right away. Those two instances are all I have to go by. Other than that it was smooth but I did have ample information regarding who to contact if I experienced an issue

I found Whova to be similar to many social media apps that I already use. It was easy to navigate. This was my second experience using Whova in my presenter role. I liked the icebreaker section to connect with other participants before the event started. I look forward to next year’s event.

GlobalMeet is much superior in service and attention to detail for their client's events. Repeat business is a gauge of success and they have much repeat business.

Incentivized

We have used multiple virtual event platforms in the past, as well as trialed several. We ultimately decided on Webex due to the aesthetics of the website, the incredibly easy build-out process, the 24/5 support, the user-friendly front-end interface, the multiple ways to monetize sponsorships, and ultimately... the price. The value for what you get is incredible compared to other platforms.

We selected Whova for price, and ease of use. We would have chosen GoToWebinar but they did not have as many options for sponsor recognition. We will most likely use Event Rebels in the future for our needs. Tracking time and sessions viewed is a must for our industry as attendees rely on us to earn CEs to renew their licensing.

I especially liked the ease of communication, the ability to ask hard questions easily, and afterward the ability to survey all participants to see what we (and/or Whova) could do better going forward.

Everyone on our team had their assigned tasks to complete in Whova on a weekly basis and did so with ease and confidence.

• GlobalMeet Webcast has allowed us to provide our training to a large audience at a price point suited for a non-profit

Incentivized

• By Webex Events (formerly Socio) supporting virtual events, a lot of resources are saved and chances of physical interruptions eliminated.
• The virtual events supported by Webex Events (formerly Socio) accommodates a multitude or huge audience, which makes the company known globally.
• The live streaming of the conducted event ensure a wide coverage and minimal resources are required.

Incentivized

• Whova made our virtual and hybrid events possible! Our virtual attendees loved the ability to interact and engage with each other, the exhibitors, the speakers and organizers of the event. It also allowed our in-person attendees to do the same, and navigate the conference on-site.
• Whova made organizing the conference possible for our small staffed organization! We only have 1.25 FTEs and were able to pull off a hybrid conference in 2022. It wouldn’t have been possible without Whova!

Incentivized