In 2020, the event industry responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with an unprecedented pivot to virtual events. The new strategies and technologies required to support this transformation resulted in a new category on G2 for virtual event platforms. Since its launch, that category has experienced exponential growth in products and reviews—and it continues to grow, with 174 products and more than 3,500 reviews as of this writing.

Now, continued investments in virtual and hybrid events technology have driven new innovations in event networking and B2B matchmaking. To help software buyers find and compare the best networking tools for their events, G2 is updating its taxonomy to include a category for event networking and matchmaking software.

Event networking in the era of hybrid events

One of the biggest benefits of attending a conference or trade show is the opportunity to forge new connections with people in your industry. For attendees, in-person events provide a unique chance to meet mentors or experts in a given field, build a professional network, and even generate new business leads. Before 2020, a majority of event professionals would likely tell you that an online event could never replace networking opportunities at an in-person event.

Although attendee networking is notoriously difficult to replicate for a virtual event, event technology providers often promote advanced networking features like a unique selling proposition. In fact, networking is so important for the event experience, it’s a required feature for inclusion in the Virtual Event Platforms category on G2. To be listed in the category, a product must “provide features for attendee engagement through Q&A, polls, and 1:1 networking”.

However, the complexity of networking tools can vary widely from product to product. While some platforms offer a simple attendee directory and private chat, others may include appointment scheduling, video meetings, or matchmaking powered by artificial intelligence. Where should software buyers go to discover and compare products based on these specific networking capabilities?

Creating G2’s category for event networking and matchmaking software

Before the shift to virtual events, many event networking solutions focused on helping business representatives discover potential customers and schedule meetings with prospects at in-person events. On G2, these products were listed in the Event Intelligence software category.

Suddenly, in 2020, reviews in the Event Intelligence category grew by 98%. This year reviews increased another 243%. One explanation for this monumental review growth is the entrance of new products in the category, especially hybrid event tech providers like Hopin, Hubilo, and Socio.

The term “event intelligence,” however, doesn’t fully describe what these products do.

To better represent the products within the category, event intelligence software has been renamed event networking and matchmaking software. In addition to a new name, the category’s definition, inclusion criteria, and feature questions have been updated to reflect new technologies and trends in event networking software. Some of the new features reviewers will be asked to rate when they leave a review for a product in the category include:

• Meeting scheduling
• Virtual networking
• Attendee profiles
• Communication tools
• AI-powered matchmaking

What’s next for the event software industry?

As businesses look ahead to another year of hybrid events, we expect continued growth and investment in event networking software. Allowing attendees to meet and interact with each other is a great way to boost engagement and, ultimately, improve an event’s return on investment (ROI). 

Virtual networking is only the latest in a long line of innovations within the event industry--what will be next? G2 will be following all the newest trends and helping buyers navigate the complex world of software buying.