Spotlight 34: Handle event engagement in one space

Spotlight 34: Handle event engagement in one space



Having one place where you can run sessions, promote networking, and drive attention to exhibitor booths can help increase engagement at events.

In Zoho Backstage's Virtual Space, you can provide event participants with a unified experience to join sessions, participate in discussions using networking tables, and interact with exhibitors, all from one place.

Set up the Virtual Space

Every time you open a session, visit a booth, or join a networking table, you will be redirected to the Virtual Space. Once you have entered the Virtual Space through any of the above options, you can easily switch between these options inside the Virtual Space itself. Event participants also get to experience the same thing when they do this from the event microsite.
 

 
You can customize the Virtual Space to reflect your brand or event's theme by choosing a logo, a background, and the ambience. The logo you've set for the event will be chosen for the Virtual Space by default, but you can select a different one if needed. For the background, the option that you choose will be applied for all sessions, tables, and meeting rooms in exhibitor booths. You can even modify the background scheme at a granular level by selecting a different background for individual booths, sessions, or tables. The Virtual Space ambience can either be set to Dark or Light.

Set the stage for sessions

When hosting a session, you can go to the event microsite and visit the Agenda page. There you can click the Start session button. Alternatively, you can also do this from Backstage. Go to the Conduct Dashboard and click the Present sessions tab. Next, click a session in the timeline on the left and click the Start session button. You can then broadcast the session with the help of the webcasting service that you've selected.
 

 
The session area will be designed based on the Virtual Space settings you've chosen. To change the background color for a specific session, click the Session stage background icon [] at the right and choose a background option from the list.
 

Facilitate communication with networking tables

Networking tables can be an opportunity for event participants to make important connections. Think of them as similar to round table discussions that take place at a physical event. Attendees can take a seat at a virtual networking table and interact with others there. Networking tables can be used by anyone who is a part of the event such as speakers, attendees, sponsors, or event exhibitors.
 

 
To create a networking table, go to the Manage Dashboard and click the Virtual tab, then click the Networking tab. Here you can say how many seats must be available and  enable options such as chat, video stream, polls, or screen sharing for everyone at the table, if necessary. You could also choose to make tables exclusive so that they will be available only to certain participants. To do this, select the Open for a specific group radio button, and select the group you want to make them available to.


 
Event team members can join networking tables to take part in the discussion or just observe the conversation. Event members who join networking tables can manage ongoing interactions by muting or unmuting the mics or pausing the video stream of participants.

Each table can have a background of its own too. You can do this by clicking the Networking tab in the Virtual Space and clicking the Table background icon [].

Showcase exhibitors to interest attendees

The Virtual Space also includes the Exhibitors tab, which lists all the exhibitors who are associated with your event. Exhibitors can send a request to the event team through the event microsite. Once the request is approved, they can conduct meetings with interested booth visitors during the virtual event.


 
Exhibitors can use the rehearsal option before the event to practice meeting flow with test participants. During the event, the My Booth tab in the Virtual Space gives an overview of the exhibitor's information and also the members who are available in the booth. The number of ongoing meetings and visitors who are in the waiting room will be visible here. An exhibitor's booth background scheme can also be modified in the Virtual Space using the Expo meeting background icon [].


 
Exhibitors can also use the chat and questions option to interact with visitors when meeting with them. When viewing information for other exhibitors in the Exhibitors tab, you can do this without leaving an ongoing meeting, if you're a part of one.

After the event is over, exhibitors can export chat messages from the event microsite and, based on the permission given, they can also view and export the lead list from the Leads tab.

In Backstage, you can see an overview for details regarding exhibitors and their booths. To view this, go to the Overview tab in the Manage Dashboard and click the Exhibitors tile. Here you can keep track of booth purchases, view the sales overview for booths, and also examine analytics for meetings in booths.

Engage event participants in the Virtual Space and customize it to match your event's style. You can also start a discussion about this in our community or write to us at support@zohobackstage.com with your thoughts or questions.

Happy organizing!

      Zoho Campaigns Resources


        • Desk Community Learning Series


        • Digest


        • Functions


        • Meetups


        • Kbase


        • Resources


        • Glossary


        • Desk Marketplace


        • MVP Corner


        • Word of the Day


        • Ask the Experts


          Zoho CRM Plus Resources

            Zoho Books Resources


              Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                Zoho Projects Resources


                  Zoho Sprints Resources


                    Zoho Orchestly Resources


                      Zoho Creator Resources


                        Zoho WorkDrive Resources



                          Zoho CRM Resources

                          • CRM Community Learning Series

                            CRM Community Learning Series


                          • Tips

                            Tips

                          • Functions

                            Functions

                          • Meetups

                            Meetups

                          • Kbase

                            Kbase

                          • Resources

                            Resources

                          • Digest

                            Digest

                          • CRM Marketplace

                            CRM Marketplace

                          • MVP Corner

                            MVP Corner




                            Zoho Writer Writer

                            Get Started. Write Away!

                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ






                                ご検討中の方

                                  • Recent Topics

                                  • Best way to share/download presentation files in Zoho without losing formatting?

                                    Hello Zoho Community, I often work with PPT/PDF files in Zoho Docs and share them with colleagues. While PDFs usually give a direct download option, I’ve noticed that PPT/PPTX files sometimes only open in the viewer without a clear download link. Is there
                                  • Workflow Failure - Notifications

                                    Good afternoon, I have just experienced an error whereby a Workflow failed, for a reason currently unknown. The problem is that one of my users had to flag this manually (thankfully he's very thorough) and this otherwise would have flown under the radar.
                                  • Introducing Bin Locations In Zoho Inventory

                                    Hello users, We are excited to let you know that your wait for the Bin Locations feature has now come to an end! Yes, you heard us right! We are here to introduce the much-awaited Bin Locations now in Zoho Inventory. But before we dive into the feature
                                  • Error "Invalid client task found corresponding properties" only when triggered from workflow ?

                                    Hi All, I am facing an error message I never encountered previously: Error in executing On Add - On Load script Error in executing thisapp.get_all_projects_api_call function. Line:(2) Error in executing thisapp.getAccessTokenFromRefreshToken function.
                                  • How to interpret Campaign report statistics - definitions/explanation

                                    I am trying to make sure I understand the Campaign report correctly Do you have a list of definitions for: Delivered - it has reached the recipient's inbox Campaign reach - is this the number that have opened the campaign email? Unique Opens Clicks/Open
                                  • Feature request - pin or flag note

                                    Hi, It would be great if you could either pin or flag one or more notes so that they remain visible when there are a bunch of notes and some get hidden in the list. Sometimes you are looking for a particular name that gets lost in a bunch of less important
                                  • Schedule a Call by Date and Time when a specific lead status is selected

                                    Hi Wanting to create a workflow where a call can be scheduled by date & time when a specific lead status is selected. Can only currently set the date by Due Date - Trigger Date - Plus 'x' day(s) Thanks
                                  • Zoho CRM's Copy Customization functionality now works across DCs, for customized accounts, and more

                                    Availability This feature is available in Standard, Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions. These changes have been rolled out to all users in all DCs. For more information, please refer to these help documents: Overview | Instructions Hello
                                  • How can I bold text on Zoho Forms submit buttons?

                                    In the old theme builder, I could bold the text on a form's submit button. With the new theme builder, I can only change the text of the header or fields in the form, and not the button itself.
                                  • 5名限定 課題解決型ワークショップイベント Zoho ワークアウト開催のお知らせ (10/31)

                                    ユーザーの皆さま、こんにちは。Zoho ユーザーコミュニティチームの中野です。 10月開催のZoho ワークアウトについてお知らせします。 今回はZoomにて、オンライン開催します。 参加登録はこちら(無料):https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/BGYTysOnSqa9LA9eY2IKww ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Zoho ワークアウトとは? Zoho ユーザー同士で交流しながら、サービスに関する疑問や不明点の解消を目的とした
                                  • Hiding Pre-defined Views

                                    You can enhance Zoho with custom views - but you cannot hide the pre-defined views. Most users focus on 4 or 5 views. Right now for EVERY user EVERY time they want to move to one of their 4 or 5 views - they have to scroll down past a long list of pre-defined views - we don't use ANY of the pre-defined views. Adding the feature to allow a predefined view to be hidden completely or only visible to certain users would be a big improvement in usability for Zoho CRM. This feature is already available
                                  • Rich-text fields in Zoho CRM

                                    Hello everyone, We're thrilled to announce an important enhancement that will significantly enhance the readability and formatting capabilities of your information: rich text options for multi-line fields. With this update, you can now enjoy a more versatile
                                  • [Integration Edition] Deluge Learning Series – Third-Party Integrations with Deluge | October 2025

                                    We’re excited to continue this three-month edition of the Deluge Learning Series: Session 1 – Integrating Zoho Apps with Deluge Using Built-In Integration Tasks Session 2 – Integrating Zoho Apps with Deluge Using invokeURL and invokeAPI Session 3 – Third-Party
                                  • Feature Request: Tag, Search, and Report on Individual Private Comments

                                    Zoho Desk Team, First, I want to say that we are extensive users of Zoho Desk and it is a core part of our support operations. We rely heavily on the private comments feature for internal communication, knowledge sharing, and maintaining a clear history
                                  • Zoho CRM Community Digest - August 2025 | Part 2

                                    Hello Everyone! Here's a quick round-up of handy tips, clever workarounds, and product updates from late August. Product Updates: Meeting Enhancements in Zoho CRM! Track whether a meeting is online, in-office, or at the client’s location using the new
                                  • Assistance Needed: Ticket Status Not Updating and Sorting by Last Customer Reply in Zoho Desk

                                    Hello, I’m facing two issues in Zoho Desk that I’d like your guidance on: Ticket Status Not Updating: When a customer replies to a ticket, the status does not change to Reopened. Instead, it remains in Waiting on Customer, even after the customer’s response
                                  • Round robin

                                    Hi, I'm trying to set up a round robin to automatically distribute tickets between agents in my team but only those tickets that are not otherwise distributed by other workflows or direct assignments. Is that possible and if so which criteria should I
                                  • Time Entry Notifications

                                    Hi All - I have support staff who place notes of their work in the time entry section of Zoho Desk. Is there a specific workflow or setting I need to enable to have the ticket holder updated via email when an entry is saved?
                                  • Change text in help desk

                                    Hi, Please let me know how can i change the this text, see screenshot.
                                  • Customer happiness customisation

                                    Hi, I was wondering if it's possible to somehow customise to whom and when customer happiness request is sent? Can you enable it only for selected tickets for example based on workflow or any other criteria (customer name, tag or anything else)? Also
                                  • No Zoho Support Response in Months

                                    I want to say that I love Zoho FSM, Books, and CRM, but the support is scary bad. About 2-3 months ago, I emailed Zoho FSM support with two specific issues I needed help with, and I have still not received one single response. I also submitted a support
                                  • Has anyone built a custom AI support agent inside Zoho (SalesIQ/Zobot)?

                                    Hi all, I’ve been experimenting with building my own AI support assistant and wanted to see if anyone here has tackled something similar within Zoho. Right now, I’ve set up a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipeline outside of Zoho using FAISS. It
                                  • Null

                                    If a result is null how do I make it so that a custom error pops up instead of the default error? Can someone write an example as if I were using the script builder?
                                  • Format a "return" message

                                    Good day, Is there a way to format the message of the "return" function in CRM deluge script?
                                  • Change Last Name to not required in Leads

                                    I would like to upload 500 target companies as leads but I don't yet have contact people for them. Can you enable the option for me to turn this requirement off to need a Second Name? Moderation update (10-Jun-23): As we explore potential solutions for
                                  • Having Trouble Opening The Candidate Portal

                                    Recently am having trouble opening the Candidate Portal. It keeps loading but cannot display any widgets. Tried Safari, Chrome and Edge. Non of them work. Please solve the problem ASAP.
                                  • Tip of the Week - Spot Risky Sales with Conditional Formatting

                                    In Zoho Analytics, small tweaks can lead to big insights. One such feature is Conditional formatting based on other columns, your key to instantly spotting where sales success is overshadowed by product returns. Our tip this week shows you how to apply
                                  • How do I duplicate / copy a campaign

                                    I am evaluation Zoho Campaigns and sent an email to one of my personal email accounts from Zoho Campaigns.  It went into my junk file in Hotmail. I want to duplicate that same (1-page) campaign and send it to another of my personal accounts to try to
                                  • For a Bill, can "Pay via Check" - Can we also "Pay via Check" when documenting refund for payment?

                                    We really like when we have a Bill in Zoho Books that we can record payment by selecting "Pay via Check" and that will cut the check for us from Zoho Books. However, when we have to write checks as a result of invoice overpayment, we can not select "Pay
                                  • Creator Change History: Ways to improve

                                    Hi Everyone, Recently been working in developing this change history(an idea from Zoho Forms) - unlike forms that you can this with a click but using Creator, we can use "old" keyword. The concept I come up with is to put the result in a table however,
                                  • Suitability of Zoho One (Single User License) for Multi-State GST Compliance & Cost Analysis

                                    Hello Zoho Team, I am an e-commerce business owner selling on platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, and Meesho, and I'm currently using their fulfillment warehouses. I have two GSTIN registrations and am planning to register for an additional 2-3 to expand
                                  • add employees and customiz

                                    I want a Zoho software to track employees record. I logged in a demo so now I tried adding employee, first thing when I click on add employee it takes me to a page where it says add user maximum 10 users, my first doubt why users I don't want employees
                                  • Inactive User Auto Response

                                    We use Zoho One, and we have a couple employees that are no longer with us, but people are still attempting to email them. I'd like an autoresponder to let them no the person is no longer here, and how they can reach us going forward. I saw a similar
                                  • Zoho People Attendance Module - Split Shifts

                                    Hello, Our business employs a number of college students who often split their workdays between work hours and class schedules, resulting in split shifts. For example: Employee 1 works 9am to 11:30am and then leaves for class, returning to work at 3pm
                                  • Zoho One subscription

                                    we have got Zoho CRM for 3 users and we paid for the app , and we have still 9 months to go , but if we join Zoho one , does it mean the payment for that subscription would be a waste? Please help. Thanks.
                                  • How Zoho CRM Can Enhance Your Faucets Accessories Business Operations?

                                    In today's competitive market, having a reliable CRM system is crucial for managing customer relationships and streamlining business operations. For businesses in the faucets accessories niche, Zoho CRM offers powerful tools to help manage everything
                                  • Dashboard

                                    I’m currently working on a project using the Zoho IoT Cloud with an ESP32 and MQTT. I’ve successfully connected the ESP32 to Wi-Fi and MQTT, and the data from the ESP32 is displayed in the telemetry section of the cloud. However, when I try to create
                                  • Can i connect 2 instagram accounts to 1 brand?

                                    Can i connect 2 instagram accounts to 1 brand? Or Do i need to create 2 brands for that? also under what subscription package will this apply?
                                  • Zoho Forms - Improved Sub-Forms

                                    Hi Forms team, I'm helping a client move from JotForms to Zoho Forms and I've found another opportunity for improvement. In the below screenshot, JotForm left and Zoho Forms right. The Zoho Forms Sub-Form is quite a poor visually. There is no way to make
                                  • What's New in Zoho Billing | Q3 2025

                                    Hello everyone, We are excited to share the latest set of updates and enhancements made to Zoho Billing in Q3 2025. From the latest GST updates to multi-level discounting, Zia-powered report summaries, and customizable web forms, these updates are designed
                                  • Next Page