Chris Matyszczyk shed some light on Shindig's new Watercoolr product this week and is as entertaining as always. He did miss the mark on one point - You cannot read the lips of other private chats (by design). You'll only see refreshing still images (not video) if not part of that private conversation. That said, we are flattered by the attention and appreciate the mention. 

https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-teams-and-zoom-have-a-brilliant-new-competitor-if-you-can-lip-read/

For more information on Watercoolr, or to sign up for a free trial, visit: https://watercoolr.shindig.com/

This quote is the core of what motivated us to build Watercoolr. It’s for organizations that recognize exactly as Tim does, that the best ideas, most important conversations, and most critical relationship building may not happen in large structured meetings or prearranged calls. Building into your colleagues workspaces natural moments for spontaneous and unplanned encounters is essential to organization’s productivity.

For more information, to schedule a demo, or for a free trial, go to:
https://watercoolr.shindig.com/

Frost & Sullivan: 2022 New product innovation

Best Practices Criteria for World-Class Performance

Frost & Sullivan applies a rigorous analytical process to evaluate multiple nominees for each award
category before determining the final award recipient. The process involves a detailed evaluation of best
practices criteria across two dimensions for each nominated company. Shindig excels in many of the
criteria in the virtual events space.

Match to Needs

Virtual events and hybrid events are highly complex to organize and execute. As a result, many virtual
event platforms are rigid and support largely formulaic events. Innumerable surveys on the web report
customer dissatisfaction with current choices in virtual event platforms. Sponsors and attendees want
true, quality networking, but many platforms are rife with functionalities that come up short.
Some platforms show all event registrants as attendees, with networking opportunities that
require participants to seek individual permission to connect to the other person as part of a
multistep process However, these platforms list anyone who has RSVP’d as a participant even
though they may not have actually joined the event. This wastes participants’ time in trying to
connect to others and gives them "false negatives" in which they believe the connection
request was rejected when it was never actually received. Even when successful, the result is that
such follow-on meetings are anything but the instantaneous spur-of-the-moment interactions that
might occur in person. More problematic still, these listings of people to potentially connect with also
are easily “scrapable”. This exposes one of the event hosts’ most valuable assets to being cut, pasted,
and inserted into any number of automated systems to yield a complete list of names, titles, and emails
to be sold to marketers. Certain other platforms also position participant avatars who must search
virtual worlds to find one another as engaging and compelling, but event participants often find such
interfaces distracting, and unproductive.
Breakout sessions, be they under the rubric of tables or “breakout rooms”, while great for general group
discussion are not themselves conducive to productive business conversation which by its nature
requires privacy amongst the parties of interest without overhearing by strangers to the conversation.
Breakouts inhibit real, substantive conduct of business by forcing such potential business discussions to
occur in front of others limits them from being anything but general and high-level. The opportunity to
speak candidly with just the right one or two people without being overheard by others; to pull
someone aside, as it were, to speak candidly with some assurance that the conversation is not for
general public consumption is a key feature missing from even some of the most widely used platforms.
“Speed dating” as a networking tactic is often equally problematic as it randomly or loosely matches
participants by general interest or topics, rather than on more essential criteria, potentially creating
unnecessary, awkward, and time-wasting conversations. Many who wish to network do not necessarily
wish to be locked into conversations of set duration with no graceful way to excuse oneself from the
conversation or to hang around through unproductive conversations in the hope that another pairing
might be more productive.
Unlike other virtual event platform providers, the New York-based Shindig remains steadfastly focused
on what matters most to both event audience and organizer: the ability to conduct ad-hoc, flexible
discussions that users can create themselves only with whom they want. The Shindig Video Chat, which
now supports up to 12 participants per chat session, enables participants to launch natural
conversations with those they want to network with and seamlessly add others to these conversations.
Networking Prompt automating pairs audience members into two-person private chats. Other features
that differentiate Shindig’s engagement and interaction functionality include Virtual Backstage and
Open Podium. Virtual Backstage allows admins to prepare speakers, checking their audio and video
before bringing them to the stage, thereby averting all on stage “can you hear me???” moments. It also
allows hosts to vet prospective audience contributors before bringing them up to the stage as well. A
new Picture in Picture feature enables presenters to remain visible while sharing their screen. The
exclusive Open Podium feature enables hosts to open the floor like a town hall and accept questions or
contributions from any audience participant of up to several thousand on a first-come-first-serve basis.
Frost & Sullivan praises Shindig for empowering real networking with its platform that enables people to
navigate conversations, scan the room, find people of interest easily, and seize the moment to make a
connection through messaging, video chat, and more.

Reliability

Shindig’s executive leadership takes pride in the company’s roster of clients and guests and continues to
serve as the platform organizations trust for high-value, high-stakes events. The company recently
enabled the first lady of the United States to address a hybrid conference and facilitated all ensuing
discussions among virtual participants. In summer 2021, Shindig enabled world-renowned pop star
Rihanna to invite 4,000 fans to a SavageX Pride Celebration with performances by multiple disc jockeys
(DJ) and other special guests.
Shindig supports creative event hosts to push the envelope of virtual experiences. From multi-day,
multi-session virtual conferences to one-off galas or marketing activations; from better client success trainings to all-hands meetings; and from remote office worker meeting places to virtual town halls, the
Shindig platform addresses a wide variety of use cases and formats. The platform’s ability to innovate
and execute events reliably attracts event hosts from government, enterprise, education,
entertainment, and non-profit sectors to stake their brands on the capabilities of the Shindig platform.
Shindig’s customers include SalesForce, Informa, Accenture, NOAA, the French Embassy to the United
States, SAP Pennsylvania State Education Association, Tracfone, Amazon, The Conference Board, Yale,
Netflix, Hearst, Booz Allen Hamilton and many others. With its ease of use, flexibility, customization, and
rich interaction capabilities, the Shindig platform represents the quintessential solution for organizations
to connect and build relationships with and for their core audiences.

Quality

Virtual events should be much more than the replication and transfer of physical events to online
sessions. Shindig continues to expand its platform’s functionality with unique and patented capabilities
that enhance the quality of event experiences. As demand to improve access to multi-session and hybrid
events increases, platforms must deliver efficient and inclusive events.
For example, Shindig introduced a customizable Virtual Lobby in summer 2021 to address multi-session
and hybrid events requirements. Specifically, the feature offers a venue between sessions that allow
audience participants to gather and network while simultaneously browsing an interactive program
guide to determine which session to attend next. It also enables hybrid event organizers to avoid losing
their online audiences to "dead air" in the live streams between in-person presentations and allows inperson audiences on their mobile phones to network with the virtual attendees on their home or office
computers.
Shindig is not attempting to replicate yesterday’s in-person or virtual events. Instead, the company aims
to improve and push the boundaries of both events as the world embraces the next normal.

Positioning

Shindig empowers event organizers to prioritize the event’s quality and audience engagement. Shindig
offers an end-to-end feature set of paywall (if desired), guest list, and a wealth of customization options
across RSVPs, consents, reminders, backgrounds, metadata fields, and splash pages in which
asynchronous materials reside. This breadth of capabilities is inconsistently supported across competing
alternatives.
The Shindig platform is lightweight and easily integrates with other components in an organization’s
event technology stack, allowing customers to effortlessly leverage a broader ecosystem of assets to
enrich their event content and data capture. The platform is compatible with components such as
registration application programming interfaces (API); single sign-on (SSO) services; Zapier for data
integration from customer relationship management (CRM), marketing, email, and other platforms;
web-based real-time messaging protocol (RTMP) feeds to incorporate high-performance streaming
audio, video, and data; and any application with an inline frame (IFrame) to bring in HyperText Markup
Language (HTML) documents from websites to easily enrich the virtual event experience. Additional
features to enrich the value of captured data include new Custom Conset Checkboxes that allow for specific permissions for remarketing and other audience opt-ins, and Zapier integration for data
migration to easily make event and attendee data accessible and usable within sales and marketing
workflows.

Design

Shindig designed its platform to deliver virtual event capabilities that people desire: highly engaging
experiences for participants and more business value for event organizers.
The platform facilitates hosts in creating memorable experiences for their brands, products, and services
with customizable backgrounds. Dynamic calls to action (CTA) on the platform encourage audience
participation and input while enabling hosts to learn more about their audience to improve the
experience continually. Shindig offers Dynamic Custom CTA for content downloads, purchases, surveys,
sponsor sign-ups, and more, with which participants can interact without disrupting their viewing or
listening experience.
The platform’s custom splash pages host all event information and maximize the event’s promotability
with one web link for audience RSVP and attendance. Users enjoy intuitive, friction-free access to events
instead of searching for the event link or password in different places.
Shindig enhances audience engagement by making the platform’s functionalities available on mobile
devices. Participants can join the event from wherever they choose to and interact with and consume
content in formats and layouts that work best for them with the platform’s multiple presentation views
with drag-and-drop controls. Frost & Sullivan commends Shindig for creating a flexible and robust
platform.

Conclusion

Shindig transforms the virtual events space by creating memorable online experiences based on its
sophisticated, long-term deep understanding of what customers want from in-person events. As virtual
experiences continue to replace physical events, competition in the market is intensifying. However,
many platforms are not flexible and present formulaic, rigid events. By focusing on making each event
uniquely engaging, Shindig stands out from the competition.
With its strong overall performance, Shindig earns Frost & Sullivan’s 2022 Global New Product
Innovation Award in the virtual events market.

What You Need to Know about the New Product Innovation

Recognition
Frost & Sullivan’s New Product Innovation Award recognizes the company that offers a new product or
the solution that uniquely addresses key customer challenges.

Best Practices Award Analysis

For the New Product Innovation Award, Frost & Sullivan analysts independently evaluated the criteria
listed below.

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan is the Growth Pipeline Company™. We power our clients to a future shaped by growth.
Our Growth Pipeline as a Service™ provides the CEO and the CEO's growth team with a continuous and
rigorous platform of growth opportunities, ensuring long-term success. To achieve positive outcomes,
our team leverages over 60 years of experience, coaching organizations of all types and sizes across 6
continents with our proven best practices. To power your Growth Pipeline future, visit Frost & Sullivan
at http://www.frost.com.

The Growth Pipeline Engine™

Frost & Sullivan’s proprietary model to systematically
create ongoing growth opportunities and strategies for our
clients are fuelled by the Innovation Generator™.
Learn more.

The Innovation Generator™

broadest range of innovative growth opportunities, most
of which occur at the points of these perspectives.

© Frost & Sullivan 2022

Thank you to Robert Enderle for his Shindig analysis posted on TG Daily. We appreciate his recognition that “Shindig stands out by finally addressing one of the most annoying problems historically with video conferencing: building and maintaining relationships.” 

We couldn’t agree more. Whether it’s our full virtual meeting & event platform or our newly released Watercoolr product, Shindig is bringing back the in-person collaborations that are critical to productivity and paramount to growth with virtual lounges where remote & hybrid teams can form multiple private video chats in the same room, fostering community, and supporting the casual, ad hoc conversations that helps companies grow.

Shindig Announces Launch of Watercoolr

March 24, 2022

New York, NY. – March 24, 2022 – In response to studies like Microsoft’s “The Effects of Remote Work on Collaboration among Information Workers,” which documents remote workers’ increasing feelings of disconnection and its negative impact on productivity, Shindig announced the release of Watercoolr, virtual lounges for hybrid workforces.

Watercoolr allows organizations to set up their own secure 24/7 virtual meeting space where teams can gather for coffee breaks, ad hoc meetups, and informal get-togethers to share in free form conversations that might otherwise previously have occurred in the hallways, elevator lobbies or common areas of their physical offices. 

“Pre-pandemic, managers could rely on informal networks created by their physical spaces to ensure that one corporate hand generally knew what the other was doing. That can no longer be taken for granted in today’s hybrid workplace,” said Steve Gottlieb, founder and CEO. 

Unlike standard video conferencing where all participate in a single conversation, the Shindig technology uniquely allows an array of private conversations to go on concurrently, with one able to view but not hear the other conversation groups. Co-workers can easily navigate groups, popping in and out of conversations and generally engaging in the same sort of ad hoc interactions that were commonplace at the physical office. 

In addition to 24/7 deployment, organizations may also organize specific meet-up times for departmental or interdepartmental get-togethers. The platform allows social occasions like new hire welcomes, personal or departmental milestones, celebrations of achieving goals, and of course after work letting loose, to resume their place in the fabric of virtual/hybrid organizational life.

“Video conferencing is an integral part of many people’s lives, and companies rushed to fill the need by relying on slight and simple variations of a product. This has created a host of providers with little market differentiation and persistent flaws,” said Rob Enderle, President and Principal Analyst with the Enderle Group. “Watercoolr has solved a key problem that no other company has addressed, and that is how to bring casual conversations and creativity back into the workplace, replicating the in-person experience in the closest way possible.” 

Watercoolr was designed to help organizations combat the increasing fragmentation, siloing of critical information, isolation of team members, and general deleterious effects of remote and hybrid work on innovation and operational efficiency. Microsoft’s study of 60,000-plus remote workers concluded “employees’ needs for informal contact and spontaneous interaction are not being met in a strictly work-from-home environment.” 

The Watercoolr virtual lounge supplements traditional institutional video conferencing solutions like Zoom or Teams, with informal, less structured virtual experiences; recognizing the essential importance of informal backchannels and feedback loops to organizations’ well-being and efficient operations.

Gottlieb added, “Watercoolr was devised because of key clients sharing with us their realization that those informal, unstructured communications were essential to their organization’s performance and their demands for a solution that would foster such interactions amongst the hybrid workforce.”

Please see here for a video showcasing Watercoolr. For more information, details on pricing or to request a demo, please visit the website here.

About Watercoolr

Watercoolr is a 24/7 virtual space where coworkers can check-in, strike up a conversation, or alternatively, organize specific meet-up times for departmental or interdepartmental get-togethers. Watercoolr is built upon the state of the virtual events technology pioneered by Shindig, known for their work with global companies such as Amazon, Hearst and Salesforce. High-profile events include Rihanna’s Fenty Brand Virtual Pride Celebration, Accenture Global Meetings and the Connecticut State Democratic Convention. Shindig’s proprietary event tech is underpinned by 28 US Patents for such features as “Work the Room” Networking, Virtual Backstage, TownHall Open Podiums, and Virtual Lobby. It operates with SOC 2 Type II security.

PRESS RELEASE: New York, June 28, 2021 - - Addressing the clamoring need for better virtual and hybrid event networking, Shindig today introduces a patented virtual lobby functionality; a virtual experience where event attendees can mingle, network and conduct private business on the platform.

The innovation is designed for both virtual events and hybrid events. 

• - For virtual events it allows a meeting place where all those attending individual sessions, panels, tracks or exhibit booths in a Shindig-enabled event, to navigate to a single shared experience and meet up, just as they might if the event were in person. One of the key additional differentiators of this feature is that all the private conversations can go on while the participants are also able to peruse and interact with the conference program directory, discussing with friends and colleagues what session, panel, track, or booth they might attend together next while jointly exploring the full conference guide..

• - For hybrid events the function adds two critical new elements. First, it provides a venue for in-person guests to engage with online participants freely on their mobile phones, critically uniting both audiences together for purposes of private conversation. Second, it helps event hosts avoid “dead air” in their livestreams and provides opportunities for the online audience to engage during breaks required between the in-person sessions, which otherwise would cause the online audience to be lost and otherwise leave the event. 

In the 2021 Event Tech Innovation Report, the EventMB publication cited ‘the biggest challenge for planners in virtual events is how to keep attendees engaged’. 

In response to this need, Steve Gottlieb, CEO & Founder of Shindig, Inc. said, “while many platforms claim that one-on-one appointments, speed dating or text interactions are the same as networking, those just don’t compare to real life behavior people want. Working the room, running into an old friend, being casually introduced to a mutual contact, or opportunistically pulling someone aside who has a free moment, are the types of in-person networking encounters that Shindig now recreates online.  With Shindig's Virtual Lobby we have brought all the spontaneity and serendipity of in-person networking to the virtual experience”.

Virtual events also promise to play a significant role in hybrid events, as they can allow in-person attendees to take advantage of the opportunity to engage with the potentially larger audience attending online, and vice versa. 

Shindig’s Virtual Lobby is completely unique in allowing free-form interactions just like those at any in-person event. Every participant in the Virtual Lobby can see who is talking to whom and who is free for conversation. Conversations can merge and individuals can easily move from conversation to conversation to work the room. And just like an in-person event lobby, the Shindig lobby is perfect for sponsor messaging, video displays, dynamic CTA’s and other activities that can be facilitated in a conference reception space. 

Shindig's Founder and CEO Steve Gottlieb joined the BizBash podcast alongside former advisor to President Obama and Meridian House's Natalie Jones (VP of External Affairs and Diplomatic Engagement) discuss ways to translate in-person events into active, multidimensional virtual gatherings.

The group discusses the challenges of—and best practices for—emulating high-touch events like the G-8 world leader summit virtually, and how other tools of diplomacy can work in the digital world. They also talk about the importance of making technology almost invisible during online events, as well as the future of hybrid, whether on-demand conversation hubs like Clubhouse will have an impact on traditional events, the future of collaboration and much more. 

Sponsored by Shindig. Running time 41:43.

Such an honor to have John Legend on Shindig as part of the Global Citizen Prize. Thank you for giving your time and giving Global Citizen members a chance to speak with you face to face through Shindig video chat!

So excited to have hosted the UN Foundation’s Elements of Change event on Shindig. What a fantastic opportunity to convene virtually and test wits in a game of diplomacy, conflict and climate change.

Proud to have enabled the Pennsylvania State Education Association to hold their annual House of Delegates on Shindig. Giving educators an opportunity to engage virtually with the same dynamics of an in person meeting is incredibly important as they move on from the clunky experience of ZoomU.

Ken Jennings hosted Jeopardy-style trivia at the TracFone Annual Employee Celebration on Shindig and that's just the beginning. The event also featured a live set from DJ Africa, only made better by dozens of TracFone employees joining the stage to show off their dance moves. Bravo to TracFone for throwing an amazing party and using Shindig tech to the max!

A big thank you to Adam Parry of Event Industry News for hosting Shindig's founder & CEO Steve Gottlieb on his podcast. This hour long conversation on the state of the events industry and how Shindig fits into its future is a must listen.

What’s better than having your Mom accompany you to an awards ceremony where Senators and Congressmen all sing your praises? Jon Meacham, Rep. Jim Clyburn, Speaker Pelosi and many more were among the hundreds of invited guests attending to voice their appreciation and congratulations for Dr. Carla Hayden, this year’s recipient of the US Capitol Historical Society Freedom Award.

So pleased to have enabled this holiday gathering for YPO Gold. Seeing a world class mixologist lead this celebration with an engaging hands on class was a thrill!

The New York Times recognizes Shindig enabled theater company prevailing over Covid. So proud to have helped This is Not A Theatre Company pioneer new online theater experiences that are more than simple livestreams.  Congrats to Erin Mee and her creative team in turning crisis into artistic opportunity.

Thank you to the Washington Post and Roxanne Roberts for recognizing Shindig’s unique ability to facilitate memorable virtual events. So pleased to have enabled this sensational virtual convening of dignitaries, ambassadors and business leaders. Congrats to Meridian on your flawless execution and the stellar 850k raise. Diplomacy and international cooperation could certainly not be more important at this time.

Find out what Shindig can do for your organization today: click here to schedule a demo.

So pleased to have enabled WSHU to produce this brilliant discussion about media and communications in the context of the 2020 election. Hearing from experts like Eric Deggans, Laura Lindenfeld, Gary Rose and Dr. Meena Bose through the medium of Shindig’s live video chat experience was even better than typical radio or talking head TV, adding more interactivity, spontaneity and engagement. Thrilled to have assisted WSHU to create a wonderful event to help raise funds for the station.

It was a thrill to host the wonderful podcasting community at Podcast Movement Virtual’s welcome reception. Seeing the community engage with each other through video chat conversations and compete in a no holds barred game of podcasting trivia on Shindig was a pleasure. There are so many fantastic ways to use Shindig technology to create the ultimate virtual experience -- kudos to the Podcast Movement team for thinking outside the box and providing an engaging gamified Shindig experience to their community.

It was our pleasure to host this wonderful discussion on the history of the Black Lives Matter movement in the UK for Oxford University’s Wolfson College. By utilizing Shindig’s open podium feature, inquisitive students were able to interact face to face with experienced historians and it was fantastic to see such excellent discourse around such a prescient topic. Kudos to the folks at Oxford for choosing Shindig to optimize this discussion through unparalleled technology.

Congrats to all the winners at the Online Journalism Awards and kudos to Hanna, Jess and the ONA team for producing such a superb gala. It was an honor to help enable the conference with you from the Welcome Reception, to networking session and panel discussions to the OJAs. So proud to have enabled this community of pioneering journalists to share, collaborate and progress the best practices of their profession through this tumultuous time.

So excited to be assisting Podcast Movement with their annual convening of the podcasting community and to add all the socialization, networking and opportunities to deepen relationships amongst fellow community members that have made all prior in person Podcast Movement conferences so critically valuable. As more conferences go virtual in these tough times, it’s so important to incorporate socialization among attendees to recreate the dynamics of an in person event.

Bryan Alexander and the ever growing Future Trends Forum community got a chance to talk with Jeff Selingo about his profoundly important new work, Who Gets In.  And the community did not disappoint, bringing out from Jeff fresh insights that we had not heard on many of his other speaking engagements.

Seeing Jeff not just address face to face questions from other educators, but get into real discussions with other knowledgeable professionals was so much more refreshing than the tired old webinar format where a moderator reads questions aloud.  Hats off to Bryan for cultivating an amazing community and congratulations to Jeff on what all say is such an exceptional, not to miss, book. Know what we are reading next.

Delighted to have helped 200 members of the Harvard’s Class of 75 to share their thoughts, memories and respects to those departed in an absolutely beautiful ceremony this past Saturday. Bill Hughes and the Class of 75 chairs’ shared vision in creating this extraordinary online experience is inspiring in its own right. They demonstrated a model of how a community under COVID might best virtually memorialize the deceased, while also underscoring their own commitment to enriching their class members' connections to one another. Bravo.

So excited to have Shindig enable the recent VIP promo event for Netflix and Amazon with over 700 Amazon Goodreads members celebrating the release of the new Netflix film ‘Enola Holmes’. It was inspiring to hear from Jenny Han, Roshani Chokski, Angie Thomas and, the author of the Enola Holmes series herself, Nancy Springer as they regaled the audience with stories of how their careers came to be and dispensed invaluable advice to the up and coming writers in the audience.

Fascinating article in Fast Company from September regarding Zoom’s failings for virtual learning asks the question: why does [Zoom] still feel like a corporate meeting app that has been MacGyvered into an education platform?

Because it is. Zoom was never designed to enable the dynamics of a classroom experience.

Shindig, on the other hand, was designed from the ground up for flexible interactivity. With Shindig, teachers can address the whole class, cold call or take student’s video chat questions. They can also circulate through the class to provide individualized private attention to students who need it, all without having to worry about Zoom-bombing (Shindig was designed to prevent that too).

And beyond better classrooms, Shindig enables the full 360 of online education. In K-12 this includes parents meetings, where parents in different locations can attend together to discuss in real time; professional development, where active participation is critical; departmental and district meetings where the floor might be opened and or video chat contributions solicited from any of 1000 attendees; and more.

Don't wait for Zoom to try and add incremental improvements. Start with something designed to address educators' needs from the get go. Shindig.

It has been an honor to watch Fandom becoming a pioneering force using Shindig’s revolutionary technology. In their groundbreaking Fandom 5: Trivia series, Fandom’s producers have utilized Shindig’s technology to create an entirely new form of digital content and entertainment by designing a broadcast quality trivia game show where contestants and viewers can tune in from all over the world to be a part of the show as it’s happening. We look forward to seeing more excellent content from Fandom and applaud their creative and forward thinking approach to content creation in the time of COVID

So pleased to have enabled the great folks at Morehouse College to host their 2020 fall semester Parents and  Freshman Sendoff, Welcome to the House, on Shindig. Fantastic to hear from recent graduates as well as the parents of incoming students about their thoughts on the occasion as well as what makes Morehouse a special institution. Hoping that Shindig’s technology can continue to allow Morehouse to engage their students in the warm and collegial manner that informed this event.

Rah Rah ... so pleased to help West Point’s glorious alums to come together in support of the Army Football Team on opening day. It was an awesome sight to see alums leading the Army fight song and partaking in the traditional post-touchdown pushups. We love to see the strong school spirit manifest on Shindig and we look forward to many more Army Football tailgate parties this season.

It was our pleasure to enable Georgetown University to host their CAB Club Fair online using Shindig. The student organizers faced quite a challenge in hosting sessions for over 270 clubs simultaneously, but by working with Shindig, they were able to successfully convene almost the entire incoming freshman class with upperclassmen student leaders. Cheers to Georgetown for providing their student body with the opportunity to socialize and engage virtually; we hope our technology will be used to create an entire virtual campus environment for students this fall.

It was our great pleasure to enable the Johnson County Dems to host their annual Gala on Shindig. A thrill to enable Reps Adam Schiff, Rep Sharice Davids and others to engage in video chat Q&A with this special audience and for the preceding VIP reception. 

“Our gala this year went digital but we were still able to set a new fundraising record. Through Shindig, our attendees were able to enjoy all of the mingling and socializing of an in-person event while also getting to hear from our special guests Representatives Adam Schiff and Sharice Davids.” - Cole Robinson, Gala Director, Johnson County Democrats

Happy Birthday Kevin, and thanks for the lesson in gratitude. So pleased that Kevin Smith liked the Shindig experience of engaging with fans so much that he returned on occasion of his 50th with an extra special fan treat, 50 years, 50 questions. As always Kevin gave back to the fans far more than they ever bargained for sustaining himself for a 5 hour session of Q&A with almost 1,000 birthday well wishers. No wonder he maintains one of the most devoted fans audiences around the world.

1,900 Anthropologists attended the digital conference with virtual keynotes from top experts in the field.

Shindig is glad to have hosted day 3 of the EASA2020 conference with virtual keynotes from some of the foremost anthropologists in the world. The conference included all the components that their planned in-person Lisbon event including virtual keynote addresses, plenary sessions, meet & greets and structured presentations with virtual Q&A.

Learn more about Shindig's virtual keynote and Q&A features HERE!

Shindig is proud to be hosting several large virtual events on our platform this week. 

Events by Fandom, VidCon and Innovation for Equity are all happening right now. 

We love to see the diversity of communities that have been utilizing Shindig to convene virtually and we are constantly working to bring Shindig to everyone looking to hold top notch virtual events in this trying time.

Director Kevin Smith stopped by to engage with members of That Kevin Smith Club last Saturday morning. The private meet and greets were previously done via text chat, so we were thrilled to provide the opportunity for everyone to chat face to face. We’re looking forward to hosting more events with Kevin, but we’ll let him speak for himself:

On Wednesday, Microsoft introduced a “revolutionary” new enhancement to Teams that they claim will solve the problem of Zoom fatigue.

Zoom fatigue is real, but it’s not caused entirely by the grid or solved by a prettier background.

It comes from the loss of autonomy and being forced to submit to an online experience that doesn't give participants the freedom to interact naturally; to sidebar, socialize, network, collaborate, and have ad hoc conversations with fellow attendees. Every time one has to suppress one's desire to speak privately to a fellow attendee or one wonders why they only get to ask questions in text and can't address the speaker themselves one gets a little more frustrated. Only Shindig addresses this by allowing all the freedom to meaningfully participate on their own terms.

Yes! In today’s age of “engagement automation” we will need to build trust and authenticity more than ever and AI will help us understand where and when to provide that. The trick is providing live face-to-face communication “at-scale” to match the automated text and voice communication that comes from Artificial Intelligence. More on the importance of live interaction below...

(P.S. I will be speaking on a panel, “Real AI for Real Sales” in San Francisco at the Sales 3.0 Conference on March 12-13. Additional featured speakers are Keith Krach, Nancy Nardin, Gerhard Gschwandtner, Alice Heiman, Elay Cohen and more.)

Bravo! Communities need the freedom to organically connect live, learn socially, and bond over shared experiences, just like they would at in-person events. It should be in every brand’s customer engagement strategy to provide an online forum that represents those in-person dynamics at internet scale. Social media is not going away anytime soon, and communities will continue to learn “on-demand”. The video that comes from those authentic interactions can be both a powerful social media and social learning content asset. More on social learning below....

As a professional who has built a career out of selling webinars, this one really hits home. Social Learning may be one of humankind’s oldest forms of learning but somehow hasn’t translated completely to webinars, which are predominately used for employee and customer engagement. Let’s face it, webinar technologies like Webex or GoToMeeting can actually make your audience feel more isolated and lonely. If we barely tolerate “death by powerpoint” why are we still stuck in an online version of it? Your online community is gravitating towards more engaging ways to learn. As they start to experience social learning online, it’s the face-to-face interactions with experts and peers they will seek more than your ppt slide deck.

I hate to say it, but it is finally time to say “Death to Webinars”?  

Amen! Live video is a critical component to connect to today’s online audience because that is the way they want to engage. Even as we aim to personalize content to the right audience at the right time, your customers and employees are still seeking “real connections, with real people” in their “critical moments of truth” with your brand.

There you have it. As we begin to depend on a troop of “bots” or “intelligent agents” to personalize and distribute content aimed at advancing a buyer through a buying journey, our human effort will shift towards producing the brand trust and loyalty that will strengthen our entire online community, so that when they are ready, they will look to us as a trusted resource to solve their problem.

The businesses that will thrive in 2018 and beyond will be those that can balance personalized engagement from artificial intelligence with online platforms that deliver the community pillars of human-to-human, in-person event and social learning dynamics at internet scale.

• Innovations that can expand female or underrepresented minority student participation and success in STEM undergraduate education


• Effective evidence-based STEM teaching practices commonly adopted at research universities


• Unique institutional and cultural challenges to achieving STEM diversity


• What difference at scale looks like

• Perspectives on Institutional Change, November 08, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EST


• Learning Spaces, January 10, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EST


• Introductory Undergraduate Courses in STEM, February 14, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EST