5 Reasons to Have Separate WiFi Networks at Events
Event WiFi
  • by Elizabeth Glau
  • Aug 09, 2016
  • Event WiF, WiFi, Tradeshow Internet, Content Management, Livestreaming


Having a WiFi network for your staff and/or volunteers that is separate from your attendees might be a good idea if you are trying to capitalize on the content generation opportunities your event provides.


Uploading content immediately

Being able to share your content with attendees so they can share your content immediately is the best case scenario for maximizing your reach. Content capture is a big deal with keynote speakers (breakout speakers too for many groups)--something your AV/production company must deal with when your sessions are over. 

Some of our clients are excited to use our new 4G Mega Internet Kit backstage to upload content or broadcast videos. You might need a dedicated WiFi network to ensure that process happens smoothly and efficiently. And by using a virtual local area network (a VLAN), different groups of users can have different levels of access all from one device.


Speaker needs
Your speakers may want to play a video from YouTube during their presentation and it is possible they didn’t tell you in advance (even if you asked)! Many speakers finalize presentations at the last-minute or want to capitalize on "breaking content," so it's possible they came across a YouTube video the night before that would be perfect for your audience. Having a Mega Kit in place to ensure their presentation goes off without a hitch is a great idea.



Livestreaming

Maybe you have staff, volunteers or industry influencers who you have tapped to record and stream live video via Periscope or Facebook Live. The issue with these videos has been Internet connectivity. Streaming takes more bandwidth than other activities, and you want to make sure these videos coming from the host organization or your influencers are high quality. 

Bonus! Giving your influencers access to a separate WiFi network makes them feel appreciated.


More appreciation

If you have folks like social media influencers, board members, VIPs, volunteers, speakers, or any other group who might feel appreciated by receiving access to a special WiFi network, a Mega Kit makes sense for your event. Make sure it’s a small enough group that it doesn’t turn into the same thing as giving access to all attendees, and understand it won’t have coverage throughout the entire venue. 

You also should consider thinking through your process for encouraging them to not give out the network information to other attendees.


Event operations

Your team is increasingly managing production schedules, registration operations, and other logistics online and in the cloud. You’ll need to make sure you have consistent connectivity. Having a dedicated network for these critical tasks is a great idea!

Contact us today about the 4G Mega Kit to see if it’s a good fit for your meetings and events Internet connectivity needs--and your budget--you could reap some cost-saving benefits!