Ideation Session and Unstructured Networking
Client Company and Main Contact:
David Pietrobon, Optik Magazine
Given the COVID-19 pandemic, eyecare and eyewear business owners and professionals who are viewers and readers of their articles are not able to participate in trade networking. They were missing the opportunity to enhance their business solutions and connect with others in their line of business. David from Optik Magazine worked with NeOlé to offer a virtual ideation and networking alternative.
Participants and David of Optik Magazine were very happy with the workshop, the ideation and the networking that came out of it. Participants wanted to have more opportunities to do this.
David asked NeOlé to help him bring together independent eyecare and eyewear professionals from across Canada in a way that facilitated some of the same interactions they typically experience during trade shows and professional conferences.
These professionals are significantly challenged by the provincial government mandates affecting their businesses. One objective of the session was to come up with innovative ideas to bring business back and move forward in a sustainable fashion, while another was to allow space for discussing well-being during these challenging times.
The virtual ideation session was scheduled for June 2020 and approximately 30 people participated.
The virtual session was two hours in length, including ideation and ending with unstructured networking. We used Stormz as the digital ideation tool alongside Zoom. Participants appreciated the level of interaction and collaboration, which was different than other virtual events they had experienced—usually presentations and panel discussions on webinars.
“Genuine joy at seeing people they would normally see at trade shows and conferences. Through participating in the interactive digital workshop, eyecare professionals could be ‘the stars of the show and drive content.’ You also gave us the seeds of a strategy, when you gave us the raw data [from the session].”