As the need for toting around stacks of business cards and other print materials continues to fade, business solutions like Poken are gaining momentum. Poken is a digital, green event suite that provides networking and engagement solutions to the events industry. The company is based in Palo Alto, Calif., and Lausanne, Switzerland.
Poken’s suite of software and digital devices supports a growing desire among event planners to use a single software platform that supports the green agenda, avoiding the need to print content. Powered by digital touch points and USB Poken devices that enable digital content collection and facilitate networking, Poken’s suite of software has expanded since its founding in 2007, and now includes lead generation, pre- and post-event communications and analytics, registration, event apps, digital content collection and sharing and networking tools for delegates.
Poken’s Web portal allows organizers to customize the event experience, and enables features such as meeting scheduling and tracking, advanced matchmaking and gamification, along with tools to enhance engagement such as social media and event information. For business cards, it can collect digital cards by touching a Poken to that of other visitors. Each device is attached to the owner’s account and when they meet someone or collect digital documents with their Poken, it is stored for them on their account.
For content, Poken works in conjunction with Touchpoints. Touchpoints are digital stickers that can be located throughout an exhibition or an event, and contain digital documents such as marketing and sales literature, abstracts, slide decks and any information in which organisers or exhibitors wish to share. Touch the Poken to the Touchpoint to collect content. Touchpoints can store any type of digital information up to 30MB; the content is hosted in the cloud. Poken can also distribute a variety of multimedia content offline. The cost depends on the number of attendees and other variables.