Two months ago we still hoped the event industry would recover from the Covid-19 crisis in a similar way as SARS in 2002/3. But history seldom repeats itself and also in this case it looks we have been too optimistic. While much of Europe is slowly opening up, and other parts of the world remain in crisis mode, the traditional events as we knew them might not return any time soon. Whether we will go through a second wave of the corona crisis is still an open question: major disruption is here to stay.
That is bad news for those event companies who relied on physical conferences including massive flights, hotel bookings, and entertainment for their business model. Much of our business disappeared initially, leaving our speakers often empty-handed. Now a miraculous revival of the event industry might not come fast, at the CSB we can focus on our core business: connecting established China experts to companies and organizations eager to pick their brains, now in online seminars.
While there are still many details to discover, we are beginning to figure out with potential clients, our speakers, and other stakeholders how to develop an online life. Issues we are discussing right now: what format do work for this setup, what technology is best, and what is a decent remuneration scheme? We have been watching carefully what others are doing online right now and got already good input from different sides. Nothing is set anything in stone yet, as we are starting to learn to deal with this new business model.
We have already a basic structure of China-related speakers for a range of subjects. Depending on the wishes of our clients, we can offer insights in a wide range of subjects, like China in post-corona, finance, the Belt&Road program, innovation, marketing, fintech, strategy, and many other subjects. If you have an interest in discussing available formats, technologies, moderation plans, and costs, we are happy to offer you a tailormade offer.
Speakers can be retained individually, but we can also offer a range of speakers on specific subjects. Speakers have started to offer discounts on their regular fees, as they save much traveling time when they participate in online seminars. Also, group discussions and shorter speeches are easier to do in an online setting.
Are you interested in discussing options for our speakers? Do get in touch.
