Cisco Global Sales Experience 2009
As Cisco prepared for its 2009 Global Sales event, it became clear the company wanted a more efficient alternative to flying thousands of employees to and from every corner of the world.
The solution? A virtual conference. And while virtual events are nothing new for Cisco, the challenge of addressing 19,000 busy sales people across 24 time zones and 89 countries would make this project particularly daunting.
To tackle this revolutionary virtual conference, Cisco turned to George P. Johnson, a longtime event partner boasting years of experience with Cisco's annual meetings. They, in turn, enlisted JUXT Interactive to help develop the engagement strategy and execute the project. The final piece of the puzzle turned out to be InXpo, a leading vendor in the world of virtual events.
And so, the Global Sales Experience – GSX – was born.
To help reflect Cisco's global nature, Juxt employed matte painters from the gaming industry to create stunning, geographically diverse environments for each section of the site, giving the event a decidedly international feel.
At the heart of GSX were the sessions, presented in video and interactive experiences. Over the course of four days, a full 88 hours worth of content was served online, and unlike live sessions, these virtual presentations allowed individuals to absorb material at their own pace. Meanwhile, a digital exhibit hall called GSX Solution Showcase delivered information about 60 key products and services through videos, downloadable documentation and direct chat with real product and solution experts.
To honor our top sales performers, an exclusive Sales Recognition environment was created. In this virtual Roman rooftop lounge, our top performers could chat with each other, interact with key executives and enjoy recognition for their accomplishments.
Of course, corporate events can't be all about attending sessions and learning new product features, so Juxt collaborated with game developer friends at Makai Media to produce three mini-games, with points tracked through a dynamic Leaderboard.
The trivia game Cisco Insider gave attendees a chance to test their session learnings. Strategy game Closer Wars challenged players to build their own virtual Cisco sales empires, while the fast-paced Resource Wrangler turned out to be quite an obsession for puzzle-loving gamers.
The GSX Leaderboard proved to be a great motivator, encouraging individuals, teams and regions to compete for prizes and recognition. In fact, the interactive display quickly became one of the most visited components of the site.
But the true centerpiece of the experience came in the form of Cisco's first ARG, or Alternate Reality Game. "The Threshold", an interactive espionage thriller, took the GSX to the next level by placing participants in a fully-immersive, real-time adventure. See the Threshold Case Study for more details and videos on this revolutionary experience.
In the end, the Global Sales Experience established a whole new standard within the virtual event industry. GSX was clearly a worldwide conference unlike any other, proving that a virtual event can be engaging, memorable, and most importantly, effective.
