How BMG proved that virtual events can be fun, and totally on-brand!

About the event

BMG is a new kind of music company for a new world. They have a strong brand identity and a reputation based on fairness and transparency in the music industry, serving artists and writers worldwide.

BMG needed an interactive virtual platform to host their Christmas party, which due to the covid-19 pandemic, would include employees from across Europe and various departments for the very first time!

The challenges

The platform needed to allow for interaction and connection, an opportunity to catch up with familiar as well as new faces but on top of that, it couldn’t feel like a typical internal meeting. It needed to provide that escapism to a fun Christmas party, even though they would all be joining from their own homes during a pandemic.

As well as the event needing to be fun, BMG wanted to make sure that it represented them. Not only in its branding but also in its set-up and what the platform could do.

BMG knew exactly what tools they needed for their event to be a success, the live stream, the breakout rooms, the gamification, and so on. But they also needed a platform that would allow them to make use of those tools in a way that suited them, whilst also having the technical support, event expertise, and a fully customizable platform to deliver that.

“We wanted to allow groups to chat, hang out, listen to music or take part in games and quizzes without having restrictions in place on how long they had to join each room or activity.”

Jess Dowling

Office Manager, BMG

The solutions

The live stream session was a great place to start the party as it allowed for that mass connection, all attendees hearing the Company end-of-year updates and announcements together. Awards and recognitions were shared and celebrated together via instant emotive reactions, and live chat.

BMG made full use of the breakout rooms and content options available, with various activities such as live cooking lessons and quizzes to participate in or hang out rooms for those who just wanted to chat or enjoy music. Additionally, they had video on demand music playlists as well as a Fundraiser, all within the platform walls.

The Canapii team provided BMG with the freedom to include activities and sessions perfect for their attendees. They weren’t restricted to a set number of activities and were able to create multiple hangouts to cater to all tastes. Rehearsal and tests for the more intricate sessions and activities made sure that everything ran smoothly on the night.

“It had to be a BMG event, hosted by a virtual platform, not a virtual event that BMG booked, and Canapii gave us exactly that.”

Paul Schafer

Office Manager, BMG

The results

The freedom that attendees had during the event was a highlight and the engagement seen across the platform was great. Live polls and quizzes were extremely popular, with 52 attendees fully immersed in a challenging music quiz!

A really special element of the party was the live DJ sets which not only allowed attendees to get in the much-needed party vibe but allowed BMG DJs to play their music to real live audiences for the first time in a long time. There were still 100+ active on the platform well into the after-party hours!

“300 BMG employees joined the Christmas Party and the feedback has been fantastic. Even now, a month later I’m still receiving messages to thank us for what we created”.

Paul Schafer

Office Manager, BMG