The World Business Council for Sustainable Development evolve the conference world with a full hybrid experience.

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) is a global community of leading businesses driving systems transformation for a better world in which 9+ billion people can live well, within planetary boundaries, by mid-century. Together with its members, WBCSD seeks to accelerate the required transformation of businesses, their value chains, and the systems in which they operate to tackle the three pressing, interconnected challenges of climate emergency, the loss of nature and mounting inequality.

To drive this transformative agenda, WBCSD’s community of sustainable leaders come together at the organization’s flagship events, one of which takes place in Montreux every year.

The Brief | Changing Up Conferences

2Heads was delighted to be invited to create WBCSD’s first-ever hybrid Liaison Delegate (LD) Meeting in 2022. The award-winning forum held a series of live and virtual sessions over three days.

In 2023, WBCSD wanted to forge forward with the inclusive format and briefed 2Heads to push the boundaries with a content-rich and hybrid-experienced conference that attracted senior decision-makers from the world’s leading businesses and created the best possible platform for them to address the ever-pressing sustainability challenges.

The Liaison Delegate Meeting served as the launch pad for WBCSD’s new brand framework and all engagement needed to place their new look front and central.

The Solution | A Fully Hybrid Experience

Whether delegates were in Montreux or attending from elsewhere in the world, WBCSD and 2Heads created a meeting experience that offered the same benefits to discover, debate and solve challenges collectively.

The WBCSD conference featured top sustainability experts who spoke over three days. The schedule was carefully crafted to deliver a seamless, informative, and captivating program.

The daily plan prioritized delegate enjoyment and interaction through hybrid breakout sessions. These sessions were designed to guide guests to the most suitable session for their business needs. The plan also included networking and hospitality opportunities to bring the conference together. Mindfulness was also placed on the agenda, with a morning session of meditation and yoga offered to all guests and a conference structure that encouraged participation and interaction to stop event fatigue.

We partnered with award-winning virtual platform Gther to build a ‘twinned’ event that was 100% embedded in the DNA of the Liaison Delegate Meeting. As opposed to just streaming a live conference, special consideration was given to roundtable structures so online audiences could interact with live audiences. Mentimeter polling and live chat systems were used for engagement and were managed by real-time curators.

The Gther-powered event App created a fully branded micro-verse that immersed audiences in the refreshed look and feel, whether registering in person or online.

Across the hybrid three days, 2Heads partnered with WBCSD on all aspects of the conference, from experience design, production, broadcasting, motion-graphics, streaming, networking, video and editing content creation to:

The Results | The Numbers Speak for Themselves

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Belden lead the way in immersive brand experiences that embrace a cutting edge approach to product demonstration.

Belden, the global leader in transmission solutions, partnered with us to build a series of key Customer Innovation Centers worldwide, the first of which opened in Stuttgart, Germany. Following the very successful launch of the concept with the hybrid Grand Opening event in May 2021, work commenced to bring the rest of the vision to life.

Belden have a comprehensive product portfolio and have seen huge success in communicating the breadth of their offering through experiential marketing. Breaking down barriers through innovation is Belden’s ethos, and with 2Head’s help, the Stuttgart CIC used intelligent design, content and cutting-edge technology to showcase that ethos.

The Brief | Bring Innovation to Life

Belden briefed us to craft an experiential space that could showcase their innovative solutions; encourage collaboration and discussion, and host demostrations and talks with studio-quality surrondings. A beautiful space that resonated with brand style, the Customer Innovation Center (CIC) needed to be the backdrop for internationally streamed events; a showpiece that echoed the new direction of the brand and invited the whole world in to witness Belden’s technological advancements. Having created a virtual rendition of the CIC for the Grand Opening, Belden challenged us to ensure their physical CIC was just as inspirational and visually arresting.

The Solution | Product Immersion and Understanding

The Stuttgart Customer Innovation Center is an award-winning ergonomic environment that could be both intimate and private, and invitingly open for visitors to explore.

Each area of the CIC takes a varying approach to illustrate the benefits of the Belden network; how they are the experts on transmitting growing amounts of data, audio and video needed for today’s applications. 2Heads created film and digital sequences to visually immerse visitors in the possibilities.

The validation lab showcased technical expertise, the Inovation discovery wall showcases the Belden solution journey and the Belden cube showcased digital transformation. From technical consulting, project management to education and events, Belden now have a space that befits their cutting-edge approach.

A message from the CIC Leader: Belden’s portfolio of network products and the granular knowledge of disparate applications have been honed over more than a 100 years and we have brought these together in our new Customer Innovation Centers (CICs) where we engage with users and a variety of industry experts to provide customized solutions and services supporting future-ready networks. All the expertise you need in one place.

Ashish Chand | Executive Vice President, Industrial Automation | Belden
The Belden Cube

Element Biosciences launch their next-gen product the Element AVITI™ System to a global virtual audience.

Element Biosciences is a start-up with a difference. A multi-disciplinary biotech company focused on innovating genetic analysis tools, this Californian visionary have been developing their modular and high-performing DNA sequencing platform since 2017.

A highly important platform for the biochemistry and sequencing industry, Element Biosciences wanted to launch the Element AVITI™ System to an international audience of industry professionals.

The Elembio product launch had to convey the innovation and sophistication of the AVITI™ System and provide a suitable platform for experts to present, meet and discuss five years of important research.

Elements Bioscience ElemBio Launch of  Aviti Platform

The Brief | Launching the Element AVITI™ System

Element Biosciences briefed 2Heads to create a virtual event worthy of the public debut of their first DNA sequencing product.

Element Biosciences wanted to make a splash in a competitive market with its benchtop-sized Element AVITI™ System, designed to provide flexible genomic analyses from cost and performance standpoints. The key USP’s of the product needed to be commercially rolled-out through a series of brand videos and expert discussions.

With an audience including industry giants and business partners, Agilent Technologies, Google DeepVariant, Qiagen, Roche and 10x Genomics, every nuance of the event needed to be sophisticated, seamless and focused.

The Solution | The Elembio Event on EventHive VX

We created and hosted a virtual conference experience that included experience design, ticketing, broadcasting, streaming, networking and content communication to launch Element AVITI™ System to market. Hosted on our proprietary EventHive VX platform tool, the Elembio Event was delivered via two global sessions and attracted over 3000 attendees to learn about the revolutionary and cost-saving effect of the Element AVITI™ System upon the industry.

We created a film-production experience with multiple arenas that played host to the different experts. The virtual content hub showcased the Element Biosciences road to patents and the live timeline facilitated panel sessions with interactive audience Q&A. A rich daily experience schedule in collaboration with scientists worldwide included a range of activations, debates, talks and interviews.

The Results | A Product Launch with Global Reach

Guests from over forty-three countries were able to join Element Biosciences for their important launch of Element AVITI™ System, regardless of time-zone and scheduling differences. With 24,000 direct engagements over the event from 2300+ industry professionals, Element Biosciences benefited from a substantial increase in conversations leading to product sales and the whole team considered their first launch event a huge success.

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The World Business Council for Sustainable Development lead the way with their first hybrid Liasion Delegate Meeting.

WBCSD is the premier global, CEO-led community of over 200 of the world’s leading sustainable businesses working collectively to accelerate the system transformations needed for a net zero, nature positive, and more equitable future.

They do this by engaging executives and sustainability leaders from business and elsewhere to share practical insights on the obstacles and opportunities currently being faced in tackling the integrated climate, nature and inequality sustainability challenge.

The Brief | A Conference for the Modern Age

A key annual forum for WBCSD to deliver its agenda and enable its members to collaborate on solutions is the Liaison Delegate meeting held in Montreux, Switzerland. Held over 3 days, the LD meeting was delivered both live and virtually, and attracted senior decision makers from many of the world’s leading businesses to tackle the planet’s ever pressing sustainability challenges.

The Solution | A Hybrid Immersion

Focusing on a intensive schedule of plenary sessions and breakout roundtables, we worked closely with WBCSD to ensure every delegate journey was smooth, informative and engaging.

We also built a ‘twinned’ event on our proprietary software EventHive VX for all of WBCSD’s international delegates unable to travel. Across the hybrid three days, we hosted an online conference with experience design, production, broadcasting, motion-graphics, streaming, networking and video content creation to:

The Results | An International Community Engaged

Guests from over forty countries were able to join WBCSD and their expert speakers at the Liasion Delegate meeting regardless of time-zone and scheduling differences. The WBCSD vision was creatively delivered to delegates via break out rooms and plenary experiences experienced both physically and digitally. Conversations, debate and discussion between WBCSD and guests hugely increased understanding and helped form plans for the future. The Conference App and virtual twin event hosted on EventHive VX allowed a seamless immersion into the content and livestream for international visitors. The Liason Delegate Meeting enjoyed 400 attendees in Montreaux and 30,000 online engagements over 15 sessions with almost 20,000 unique views of content and sessions.

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Staff gathering in front of the conference sign.

QinetiQ set the bar high at DSEI with a multi-layered delegate experience.

DSEI at the ExCel London is the UK’s premier defence event, connecting governments, thought leaders and the entire security supply chain on a global scale. For QinetiQ, a world leading centre of excellence for industry research and development, their presence at this event was highly important. As developers of cutting-edge technology and integrated solutions, discussion and demonstration of their innovative approaches was critical to the success of their presence at DSEI.

The Brief | Hybrid Interaction Available for All

DSEI presents a range of valuable opportunities for networking and QinetiQ wanted a suitable platform for business in both the physical and online space. The team challenged 2Heads to create a fresh, unique look to their global show programme which would be launched at DSEI and evolved into 2022. All guests, from virtual to live needed access to relevant content & in-action demonstrations so to feel part of the QinetiQ community. Interactive elements needed to be considered and intuitive so to strengthen relationships, share knowledge and allow guests to engage in QinetiQ’s latest capabilities.

The Solution | A Hybrid Product Immersion

To launch QinetiQ’s forward-looking approach, we developed a physical space focused on flow and shape. User journeys were planned around ergonomic shapes to channel guests towards six zones reflective of QinetiQ’s core offerings. Engagement awaited in interactive totems and physical models with the seamless touch to content approach working well. A software screen innovation, guests were able to seamlessly launch video assets as they dove deeper into a products capabilities.

We also built a ‘DSEI-twinned’ event on our proprietary software EventHive VX. Across the hybrid three days, we hosted QinetiQ’s online conference with experience design, production, broadcasting, motion-graphics, streaming, networking and video content creation to:

The Results | A Deeper Hybrid Connection.

Guests from over ten countries were able to join QinetiQ and their experts at DSEI regardless of time-zone and scheduling differences. The QinetiQ vision and range of capabilities was creatively delivered to stakeholders who experienced the event both physically and digitally. Conversations and interactions between team and guests hugely increased understanding and connections for the future. The touch to content application allowed a seamless deep dive into product offerings that represented a step change in how QinetiQ promote their capabilities and online, QinetiQ at DSEI also enjoyed 6000 engagements over 350 sessions with almost 1800 individual views of content and demonstrations

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The Brief | A Showcase with Meaning

As a digitally led business Airbus wanted to connect with potential new employees at international eSports event Gamescom in Cologne.  At a show well-known for highly competitive engagement innovation, Airbus chose 2Heads as their agency to merge experiential marketing with digital solutions. Inclusivity and diversity were a crucial message and 2Heads designed an event that centered around the Airbus all-female gaming team, Out of the Blue and the crowd’s interaction with them. Using the hybrid event tech setup, we  invited participants into a physical space to take part in a virtual tournament of ‘League of Legends,’ against the OOB team with the opportunity, once engaged, to learn more about Airbus via other digital solutions.

The Solution | A Non-stop Streaming Hybrid Event

Airbus Social media wanted to use the campaign to promote worldwide visibility of the Airbus brand and career opportunities. We created the campaign #LEVELUP in support of the event as it spoke to both worlds, career progression and gaming; both fueled by the drive to reach the next goal. #LEVELUP was supported by press releases, a three-week social media campaign to engage key influencers and in-show promotional giveaways with all sign-ups to the tournament engaged online.

 The physical space we created was pure gamer architecture with the focus on the digital immersion once entered. We even put the full setup on show with full light and sound decs, 90” screens, live stream setup and caster control monitors. From engagement through VR showcases and Hololens Airbus demonstrations, we used digital aspects to create content opportunities for the audience to populate their own social media feed. Within the full packed agenda, we merged physical events such as live robotics programming experience with the digital such as the Airbus coding competition. To create real energy around the space, our team also developed a series of Event Hacks; takeover moments with screens, sound and lighting being ‘hacked’ to run a tight crowd interaction sequence, ending with giveaways of exclusive branded swag from Airbus and the OOB team. These moments only lasted 2-3 minutes but resulted in crowd surges of 180-200%.

The Results | A Focus on Guest Interactions

A key part of the strategy was to highlight diversity and inclusivity in tech careers. By opening up challenge matches with the OOB team to anyone from the audience, Airbus celebrated the diversity of people at GamesCom and the wider gaming community. Dwell time as a result was considerable, we recorded a big increase in brand awareness, and visitors came back day after day to continue the experience.

What we liked about the 2Heads concept was the way it told a full comprehensive story about our presence at gaming events as Airbus, and the partnership Airbus is building with eSports.

Airbus Employment Marketing
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10x Genomics deliver their inaugural global virtual event.

For 10x Genomics, a leader in biological research technology, the international conference scene is of huge importance. With a global shutdown in 2021, 10x Genomics challenged 2Heads to design and deliver their first global virtual event.                                                                                                                                                                                                                Launching the 10x Genomics event program for the coming year, Xperience 2021 also needed to encourage product engagement and illustrate the knowledge of 10x research scientists, providing equal credentials in an online pharmaceutical world that is busy, competitive, and where innovation is hard to illustrate.

10x Genomics Experience ’21 Topline Statistics

The Brief | Illustrating Leadership in Innovation

We created and hosted a virtual conference experience that included experience design, ticketing, broadcasting, streaming, networking and content communication to launch 10x Genomics into the online conference scene as leaders in technological development. Launched on our proprietary EventHive VX platform tool, Xperience ’21 was delivered via two global sessions and attracted over 5000+ attendees to network, learn about the latest scientific strides made at 10x Genomics, and experience how 10x is expediting the future of bioscience. 

The Solution | Showcasing Product Roadmaps

We created a film-quality experience with multiple arenas that played host to the different threads of the 10x Genomics product series. The virtual content hub showcased the 10x Genomics 2021 product roadmap and facilitated live panel sessions with audience Q&A focusing on the company’s Chromium single cell, Visium spatial and In Situ platform. A rich daily experience schedule in collaboration with scientists worldwide included a range of activations, debates, talks and interviews.

The Solution | Illustrating Expertise

Touchpoints informed visitors about 10x Genomics technology and shone a light on internal projects and development efforts. Immersive engagement through AR product launches highlighted unique scientific success stories. These highly anticipated experiences featured new and exclusively streamed content discussed via multiple live breakout panels with interactive Q&A encouraged by experts.

We are incredibly proud of our first Xperience event and have received amazing feedback from across the industry. The 2Heads team provided invaluable expertise and the EventHive VX platform has set a new bar in the life science sector when it comes to producing virtual events. We’re already looking forward to 2022.

Edwin Huaw | VP Marketing | 10x Genomics

The Results | Encouraging long-term community connection

We captured connections and conversations leading to product sales via the Marketo API integration with EventHive VX so that KPI data could be analyzed and used for future marketing/outreach. Xperience ‘21 was supported by press releases, a pre and during event social media call-to-action and a series of invite campaigns to keep key stakeholders engaged.

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Guests from over eight-seven countries were able to join Xperience ’21, regardless of time-zone and scheduling differences. The 10x Genomics product map was creatively delivered to stakeholders with buy-in for the future product launches baked in. 10x Genomics benefited from a substantial increase in conversations leading to product sales and the whole team considered this campaign an unqualified success.

Belden’s hybrid CIC launch signals bright future for experiential marketing.

With the advent of the pandemic and a growing need for sustainable alternatives to air travel, consumer innovation centres are growing in popularity again. We were commissioned by Belden to build their physical centre in Stuttgart, Germany. Belden Inc, a global leader in high quality signal transmission solutions, have a comprehensive product portfolio they needed to market and we proposed a hybrid solution of digital and physical CIC spaces to allow their visitors experience a near parallel immersion into this portfolio and ethos.

Belden CEC Virtual Innovation Centre

The Brief | A Multilayered Approach

The Solution | A Virtual Grand Opening

We created and hosted a hybrid grand opening on our proprietary software EventHive VX that included experience design, production, augmented-reality, broadcasting, motion-graphics, streaming, networking and video content creation to:

The Results | A Tangible Return

Through game engine technology, 2Heads designed a version of the CIC that excited and enticed with creative elements not possible in real life. With delays to the launch of the physical CIC, Belden were able to launch their online version to a much wider audience via a grand opening ceremony held online via EventHive VX.

Our internal stakeholders were blown away by the new format and are already looking forward to the next one! The virtual event enabled us to access our key customers around the globe and kept them engaged throughout. The platform is really strong and complimented the Belden content and speakers perfectly, also allowing our audience to interact in a meaningful way

Ghislaine Burmeister | Marketing & Communications Manager | Belden

The Belden CIC launch enjoyed over 1000 VIP guests from sixty-one countries and hosted over 2,700 sessions. From this there was 13,000 direct interactions and the virtual CIC continues to receive an average of 200 visitors per day.

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WBCSD transition for the future.

The Brief | A sustainability driven virtual program

WBCSD wanted to transition a well-established program of live events to a sustainable-first virtual program without losing any of the equity their program has with its high-level membership. Wrapped around the planning and delivery of the events program was a communications strategy and various digital marketing and content deliverables, making for a wholly integrated program.

The largest events in the program and the ones with the highest expectations were Vision 2050 – the launch of WBCSD’s action plan for a world in which 9 billion people can live within planetary boundaries – and Liaison Delegate Meeting – a 4-day conference and council networking event.

Ultimately, with the transition to a sustainably driven virtual program, our key objective was to keep the energy and engagement of the live events and maximise the additional benefits of this model around increased reach, flexibility and cost efficiencies.

WBCSD Stats

The Solution | Creative Content

2Heads were onboarded as WBCSD’s retained creative agency partner in January 2020 with the remit of event strategy, communications, digital marketing and virtual events and content production.  At the heart of the program was a bespoke WBCSD virtual events platform built upon the framework of 2Heads’ EventHive VX. We began the relationship with a consultancy phase, then worked with the client to collaboratively establish what was effective, what wasn’t and what should evolve to fit our new sustainable-first virtual format.  The output was a new look set of requirements for event communications and a reshaped brief for a TV-style approach to the format and content of flagship events.

Based on this revised comms brief, our creative team set to work building a new visual identity for WBCSD events that would be translated through email comms and the event website.  A more colloquial tone of voice was also developed which would help modernise the way they speak to their membership.  Our content team crafted a new style guide for branded content, stings and films and immediately began developing a hero film asset that would launch the first event – Vision 2050.

Virtual Platforms

A key driver for success was a unique online event experience.  Through a series of bespoke custom developments including multiple livestream players, amended breakout functionality and adapted platform branding, labelling and fonts, the WBCSD VX platform became a completely bespoke tool that would surprise and delight members.

Since our first encounter, 2Heads has felt like an extension of our events team. Their creativity and flexibility have been instrumental to our quest for continuous improvement in a world where virtual has become the new norm. Not only do they help us stand out with our events, but they never fall short of solutions in the most demanding of circumstances.

Marine Huter | Manager, Global Events | WBCSD

Results | Carbon Measurement

We measured the would-be carbon impact of the former live event program via the Stockholm Environment carbon offset calculator and donated the equivalent to one of Earthly’s green projects and are currently in planning for the 2021 program to deliver further comms and content work for the next series of events. 

Eight hundred plus guests from every one of the two hundred member companies and six hundred members of the public were invited from over seventy-seven countries to enjoy the three thousand, two hundred live sessions hosted. A resounding success, Vision 2020 enabled WBCSD to truly deliver against its sustainability agenda worldwide.

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Belden lead the way in immersive brand experiences that embrace a cutting edge approach to product demonstration.

Over the past four years, Belden and 2Heads have cultivated an exceptional partnership characterised by understanding, trust, and a shared commitment to excellence. This collaboration has centred around the creation and implementation of five Belden Customer Innovation Center (CIC), each strategically located to reflect Belden’s global influence and commitment to innovation.

Want to learn about experiential technology led experiences? Follow our journey with Belden and how it’s evolved over the years.

The Brief

Account Director Tom talks about Belden and how they wanted to create a experiential space that could showcase their innovative solutions and technology leadership; encourage collaboration and discussion, and host demonstrations and talks with studio-quality surroundings.

Creative Reaction

The creative team at 2Heads brought Belden’s vision to life by developing a dynamic array of innovation spaces. Our Creative Director Paul Skinner explains the thought process behind Belden’s CIC’s.

Immersive Experience

What makes Belden’s CIC so unique is the immersive experience that comes with it. Our Head of Digital & Content Matthew Jarman explains the content behind Belden’s latest Bangalore Infinity.

Tech Solutions

We explore the intricate blend of connectivity and innovation embedded in every aspect of Belden’s Customer Innovation Centres (CICs). At the heart of each CIC is an immersive hero piece, designed to dissolve the barriers between user and content, creating an unforgettable journey. Hear from our Head of Creative Technology Sam.

Strength in Partnership

We celebrate the extraordinary journey of 2Heads and Belden’s partnership, which spans four continents and includes five globally connected Customer Innovation Centres (CICs). These hubs have welcomed thousands of visitors from around the world, fostering joy, meaningful conversations, and a renewed confidence in building solution prowess for the future.

The recent inauguration of the Bangalore CIC marked a significant moment for 2Heads, reflecting on the success of a truly collaborative client-agency relationship. The journey of discovery and transformation embarked upon since 2020 has not only been inspiringly contagious but has also paved the way for a future characterised by innovation, excellence, and continued success for both Belden and 2Heads.