Annual General Meetings are meetings that help all the members of the board of an organization come together & discuss matters of importance. These AGM meetings are usually annual in nature, hence the word annual in its name.
They usually deal with the most pressing issues facing the organization. Also, they aim to bring all the stakeholders in the business together to reach common goals.
AGMs are a great way to bring all the stakeholders & the board members up to speed on the direction of the organization. In addition, it focuses on discussing any new developments & any situations facing the organization, & other matters of concern to the board.
Since 2020 brought with it major upheaval to the way businesses conducted meetings & gatherings, most of the world turned towards virtual event solutions & platforms.
Similarly, most businesses around the world also took the virtual route when it came to hosting the all-important AGMs.
Virtual AGMs not only help businesses get in touch with their important stakeholders & board members, but they also help keep everybody up to date with the latest developments & happenings in the organization.
They also help acting directors & contemporary heads of the organization make informed decisions about the organization based on the valuable advice offered by the other stakeholders & business leaders.
Virtual AGMs require a lot of focus, good communication, and efficient information-exchange measures. Also, effective ways to manage any contingencies or network issues throughout the meeting.
A successful, effective, & productive virtual AGM is the key to the adequate functioning of any organization.
To ensure that your AGMs are also foolproof, productive, communicative, & beneficial for everyone involved, it’s vital to choose the right virtual conferencing platform.
The right virtual conferencing platform helps you relay relevant information, manage resources & any communication problems, as well as provide you with cutting-edge tools to ensure effective information exchange & overall productive discussions.
In this article, we bring you some of the best virtual AGM platforms to host your most productive, & efficient virtual AGM yet.
What Do You Need in a Virtual AGM Platform?
Let’s start from the beginning. You must know what features & capabilities you need in order to select the right virtual AGM & conferencing platform.
Take a look at the list of features we have rounded up, that we think are important for the virtual AGM platform you choose, to have:
- Ability to support both live & pre-recorded video streaming
- Accessibility across all types of devices; mobiles, tablets, & desktop computers
- Features to facilitate live chat, information exchange in the form of audio/video, & any other interactive format
- File sharing features
- Virtual whiteboard functionality
- Screen sharing capabilities
- Virtual waiting room functionality
- Breakout room functionality
- Presenter switching tools
- Engagement features like live polling, Q&As, broadcast messages, emoji reactions, virtual handouts, etc.
- Third-party business integration tools
- Audio & video recording features
- Integration with live social media tools & streaming platforms
- Live speaker view
- Creative background changes & beautification features
- AI & VR features
- Customization capabilities to create a branded virtual environment
The Best Virtual AGM Platforms of 2021
1. Dreamcast
Dreamcast is a leading virtual event platform that helps you host productive, efficient, & highly communicative virtual AGMs.
Additionally, it ensures to take care to personalize your virtual AGM, make it as dynamic as possible, & help you design a branded environment for the meeting.
With top-notch engagement features & immersive environments, Dreamcast helps you host your most productive & efficient virtual AGM yet.
Some of its most noteworthy features include:
- Briefcase, which allows your attendees to bookmark their favorite & important sessions during the AGM. They can virtually store this data in their ‘briefcase’ to utilize later.
- Document Downloader, which allows your attendees to download any information &/or resource in the form of PDFs, flyers, session information, & any other information pertaining to the virtual AGM.
- Dynamic lobby helps you put music & other immersive elements into the virtual AGM lobby to engage your attendees
- Document library, which gives all the attendees easy access to view & downloads each document shared during the AGM.
- Dynamic banners help you customize & brand your virtual AGM the way you want to.
- Document presentation, which allows the attendees to present their documents in the virtual AGM just like they would in a physical, in-person setting
- Customization features, which help you customize your environment according to your vision, brand message, etc. to make the attendees feel like they’re attending a completely professional virtual event
- Microsite creation features that help you build an event microsite that is fully adherent to your needs & requirements, as well as the likes & dislikes of your attendees
- Introduction guide video that helps your attendees get acquainted with the virtual AGM environment, tools, & features, etc. as well as help them understand how to use the various features included in the virtual AGM
- Touchpoints that help make your virtual event as customizable as possible to give your attendees a smooth, seamless virtual experience at your virtual AGM.
2. CiscoWebEx Events
CiscoWebEx is a browser-based virtual conferencing platform that can host up to 3000 simultaneous viewers & 200 video feeds.
Attendees can easily access the virtual AGM through email invites via any device they might have; Apple, Android, PC, tablet, etc.
In addition, attendees can join the virtual AGM through chrome, safari, firefox, or any other browsers, or watch the live stream on Facebook or YouTube.
CiscoWebEx integrates with popular CRM tools like Salesforce & Constant Contact, alongside important team collaboration tools like Google Drive, Slack, & Jira.
Some other notable features include:
- Live & pre-recorded conferences
- Active speaker view
- Screen sharing
- Event practice room
- Automated invitations, follow-ups, & reminders
- Event recording
- Live Poll and Q&A tool
- Survey tool
- Pass presenter capabilities
- Password protection & event security
- Public & private chat messaging
- File & video sharing
- Post-event surveys
- Event data & analytics
- Screen drawing tools
3. GoToWebinar
GoToWebinar is a virtual conference & virtual AGM platform created by LogMeIn, which is GoToMeeting’s parent company.
It is also one of the most popular virtual conferencing platforms, & allows users to host up to 3000 attendees from their web browsers, desktop app, Android & iPhone apps.
GoToWebinar also integrates easily with tools like Salesforce, Slack, HubSpot, etc.
Other noteworthy features include:
- Live & pre-recorded events
- Event analytics & source tracking
- Video & file sharing
- Webinar templates
- Custom registration page
- Conference recording
- Q&A, polls, & handout tools
- Virtual whiteboards
- Co-hosting
- Six simultaneous video streams
- One-time or on-demand conference
- Automated reminders & follow-up emails
- Shared & annotated screens
- Audience spotlight & view
- Branded conference pages & virtual backgrounds
4. WorkCast
WorkCast is another cloud-based, no-download virtual AGM platform on this list. It is accessible from both mobile & desktop devices, as well as tablets.
WorkCast can host up to 5000 participants & offers live, pre-recorded, on-demand digital conferences, with a total maximum of 3 simultaneous video feeds.
WorkCast also smoothly integrates with PowerPoint, Marketo, Salesforce, Hubspot, & other popular CRM tools.
Its efficient & timely AGM management features include online & email registrations & reminders, along with live event support.
Other notable features include:
- No upper cap on monthly webinars
- No upper cap on the number of panelists
- Event lock
- Q&A features
- Dial-in access
- Host bios
- File, presentation, & video sharing
- Attendance & registration reporting
- Webinar templates
- Live Poll
- Broadcast messaging
- Public & private chat messaging
- Conference recording
5. BigMarker
BigMarker is another no-download virtual AGM platform & virtual conferencing platform used by the likes of Google, Hootsuite, & Panasonic.
It comes with the ability to host up to 1000 people & 9 simultaneous video streams. BigMarker also seamlessly integrates with social media platforms like Facebook Live & YouTube, & provides users with the option to stream live events from a company website.
It is also compatible with plenty of browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, plus a lot more. Attendees can access BigMarker virtual AGMs & virtual meetings from their desktop or mobile devices, & supports both Apple & Android.
Some notable features include:
- Live & pre-recorded video
- Screen sharing abilities
- Recurrent webinar
- Whiteboard functionality
- Pre-prepared live polls with real-time results
- Google form surveys
- Automatic & manual pop-up offers & CTAs
- Webinar landing page templates
- Customizable email invitations
- Built-in translations
- Payment collection via PayPal & stripe
- The option to Embed registration forms on the website
- Integration with analytics, dropbox, MailChimp, Salesforce, & more
- Event recordings
- Password protection features
- Participant list
- Data & analytics
- Dial-in access
- Live chat messaging
- Presentation & file sharing
Virtual AGMs are constantly evolving with the introduction of brand new tools & technologies to make the experience more convenient & productive for everyone involved.
To know more about these latest developments & happenings in the world of event technology, keep following this space
