In this episode of the Thoughtful Entrepreneur, your host Josh Elledge speaks to the CEO of Social27, Ike Kehal. Social27 helps host virtual and hybrid events that make an impact. Ike shares that when they went to market in early 2020, once COVID-19 hit, they experienced a boom in business. Their solution was new but grew rapidly during the age of the pandemic. Josh and Ike explore the new future of events. One thing is for certain, hybrid and virtual event experiences are here to stay. But why do we even go to events in the first place? For one thing, we want to hear the brilliant ideas of thought leaders and we want to network with our peers. Understanding why people actually go to events is very important, Ike explains. The reason their customers choose Social27 is because they offered a dialed-in and prescribed, curated event experience. Events should always feel like a curated experience for everyone in attendance. Do all of your networking in advance, Ike says. The time you spend during the event should be used methodically and optimally. Networking before an event is the best way to forge those connections without missing the real value of the event itself. Ike also talks about how long it took him and his team to get Social27 to market. He shares that back in 2012 when he first started trying to strategize building the company, he found that streaming was too expensive for any major players to want to hold virtual events regularly. The age of the pandemic during 2020 is what paved the way for Social27’s fast and successful growth. Now, people need to be virtually connected the majority of the time. This changed the game when it comes to events, and as Josh and Ike agree, this is the new normal. Ike also explains that when the market changed to favor primarily virtual training, we also adopted a newer way of consuming media that was totally curated and easily accessible (now more than ever with streaming prices lower than they were). Ike and his team saw this shift and knew that a boon for virtual events was on the horizon. Social27 wanted to make sure they helped their clients execute hybrid and virtual events correctly. Especially with hybrid events, you have to make sure your mindset is focused on providing an amazing virtual experience along with whatever events you host in person. Social27 doesn’t just deliver effective, curated virtual and hybrid events, but they look to the future so they’re always on the cutting edge. Want to learn more? Check out Social27’s website at https://www.social27.com/. Check out Social27 on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/social27/. Check out Ike Kehal on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ikekehal/. Don’t forget to subscribe to The Thoughtful Entrepreneur and thank you for listening. Tune in next time! More from UpMyInfluence: ✅ We are actively booking guests for our DAILY Entrepreneur Success Podcast. Schedule HERE. ✅ Are you a 6-figure consultant? Let us fill your sales schedule and move you to 7-figures. Learn more here. ✅ Check out our free Authority Transformation Masterclass.