Info Salons’ Konduko NFC Engagement Platform has been named Best Innovation in Event Tech in a new category at the Exhibition and Event Association of Australasia’s (EEAA) 25th annual Awards for Excellence which honours the industry’s highest achieving shows, venues, suppliers, teams and individuals.

Info Salons’ CEO, Jo-Anne Kelleway, was also honoured as the recipient of the Trevor Riddell President’s Award. EEAA President, Spiro Anemogiannis, said it was an important achievement for Ms Kelleway to be recognised for this prestigious honour.

“Jo-Anne is an outstanding door-opener for the EEAA, always on the lookout for opportunities to build our reputation and connections. She proactively pursues what is in the best interests of the Association and its members, and comes to the Board table wearing an industry hat – always.” He said.

EEAA Chief Executive, Joyce DiMascio, said it was also an important achievement for Info Salons to be recognised for the prestigious honour of Innovation in Event Tech.

“Seeing the opportunity to supercharge attendee engagement, Info Salons forged a partnership with Konduko to initiate the first “Near Field Communication” (NFC) engagement platform for Australia.” She said.

“Launched at AIME in February 2017, the product seamlessly connected attendee name badges with the platform and provided improved end-to-end customer experiences. Since then, Info Salons has achieved attendee engagement levels of more than triple the average engagement of other event technology solutions.

“The judges remarked that the submission provided clear Return on Investment results. Working with global providers will ensure the reputation of the Australian exhibition industry is both enhanced and competitive.

“They said the technology is super impressive with its current and future capabilities to grow our industry! Flipping the responsibility back to the attendees is a really innovative solution to this challenge. Out of the box thinking – fantastic! Following up leads is a perennial issue – so to empower the visitor to bypass this and do in a seamless way is laudable!”

Chair of Judges, John Trevillian AM, said the quality of entries was once again very high and the judging was the closest it has been to date. He said this is a testament to the success, vitality and excellence of the sector here in Australasia.

“I believe in competitive awards judged by industry peers and so I commend this awards program to you. I encourage you to continue to put your best achievements and people forward by entering these awards.”

There were 64 finalists and nominees and the entries put the spotlight on the outstanding achievements of our industry colleagues.

View a complete list of all Award winners.