Backup Marketing Hosts Successful USEFE Virtual Job Fairs Using vFairs

Backup Marketing, a creative agency, arranged the USEFE Virtual Job Fair to attract employees to companies in the Cavan, Longford, and Leitrim regions in Ireland. The team found the event quite beneficial, and had some good things to say about it.

What is Backup Marketing?

Backup Marketing is a creative marketing agency that specializes in experiential marketing and event management. It works to bring virtual, in-person, and hybrid events to life with the right tools at its disposal. It helps its clients manage everything from the initial planning to the end results of their events. 

What is USEFE?

The Upper Shannon Erne Future Economic Project (USEFE) is a joint organization with different regions of Ireland under its ambit. Local authorities from these regions have taken a collaborative approach to overall development, with a bevy of projects and programs. It focuses on economic development and job creation, to the overall benefit of the regions. It covers various sectors like tourism, job fairs, renewable energy, and diaspora engagement. 

Why vFairs?

The local enterprise offices under USEFE approached Backup Marketing for a virtual job fair. This was because various companies came to these offices, and asked them to create staffing opportunities to man their businesses. As the organization had not had any experience with such an event, it approached the creative agency. 

Backup Marketing had held various virtual events, but a virtual job fair platform was something new for them. So, they explored the market to find the right platform for them. After a number of demos and calls, they decided to go with vFairs. 

This decision was mainly because of the flexibility and customization options on the platform. The agency appreciated that the tool would let their visitors upload their CVs and make candidates visible via profile search and other such features. 

They also liked all the different features available and how user-friendly the platform was. This made it perfect for their purposes, because they needed to host a virtual event for people who did not have the technical expertise to set up their own. vFairs emerged as the easiest and most effective solution, especially due to its strong customer support. 

USEFE Virtual Job Fair Event Details

The USEFE Virtual Job fair was quite a unique experience for its hosts as well as the marketing agency. This was because the USEFE is more focused on career development and economic opportunities. So, when companies approached it and asked to generate more staff, it was stymied for a while. Then, it had a few talks with the agency, and decided to go with this virtual job fair. 

The event proved to be quite useful, as it gathered companies and job seekers from the Cavan, Leitrim, and Longford regions. Over 25 organizations participated in this event, which took place on the 23rd of February, 2022. The hosts made good use of the wide range of features vFairs provides, such as the following. 

Flexibility

The clients really enjoyed how flexible the platform is. They were able to pick and choose the features they wanted. For example, they wanted their visitors to be able to upload CVs and their exhibitors to find the right candidates through these profiles. So, they talked to the vFairs team about what they wanted, and got exactly what they needed. This way, they didn’t have to pay for extra features they wouldn’t really use either. 

Immersive 3D Designs

The immersive 3D designs played a major role in the client’s decision to opt for vFairs. They felt that the visual experience was excellent for engagement and was perfect for people who wanted to feel they were at a physical event. The 3D elements made the platform stand out among its competitors and add an extra dimension to the event. 

Chat & Networking Features

A virtual job fair means that exhibitors and potential employees need to have one-to-one communication opportunities. The vFairs chat and networking features provided these opportunities via text, video, and audio. This meant that companies could take interviews and potentially hire people on the spot. 

Booth Customization

The host and exhibitors could customize booths to a large extent. This generated brand visibility for the USEFE as well as the various exhibitors. So, they could market themselves, as well as man their businesses. They could also upload various resources for interested visitors to save and download using their swag bags. This customization was quite appealing for the exhibitors. 

In the Spotlight: Dedicated Customer Support

While the client enjoyed all of the features it availed, it was truly impressed by the dedicated customer support. Clodagh Griffin, Event Manager at Backup Marketing stated that the vFairs account manager, Zulfia, was extremely helpful and responsive. She would respond to the company’s queries and concerns within very short time periods, and was available to them at almost all hours. Griffin stated, “Everything was explained in layman terms. The platform itself wasn’t too cumbersome or hard to use or navigate.”

So, she was quite happy about the dedicated customer service, as well as the ease of the platform itself. She expressed that the experience was not as labor-intensive as its previous events, and that the USEFE team was interested in holding such a fair again. 

Results

The event proved to be a good learning experience for both the marketing agency as well as the organization. After an initial learning curve, the hosts felt that exhibitors would eventually get the hang of virtual events. They also appreciated how vFairs offered training manuals and a virtual training session for exhibitors, and that the ones who attended this session benefited from it. 

There were nearly 7,000 booth visits, and over 1,000 people registered. So, the event was a success for the clients, and they caught on that virtual job fairs are the way to go.