L’Etudiant - a media group specialising in guidance information for 15–25-year-olds - sets up various mechanisms each year to support young people and their families in their career choices (trade fairs - print - digital). With the health crisis and the ban on the organisation of physical fairs, L’Etudiant chose to organise virtual fairs. If initially, the virtual was only used as a temporary alternative linked to the health situation, it should, over time, be considered as a complement to physical fairs.
Virginie Sureau, Director of Operations at l’Etudiant
has held more than 20 virtual fairs since June 2020
has on average: between 80 and 380 exhibitors (training organisations, academies, local authorities, companies)
“When it comes to careers orientation information, you can't put an event back a year or two. We can't tell young people: this year will be a blank year; we'll see you next year! We therefore had to continue - despite the health crisis - to provide information to high school and college students, who, whatever happened, had to express their wishes for the following year - notably via Parcoursup. The virtual fair was well suited to the exercise, and the format offered by ExpoPolis was particularly appropriate, as the platform visually resembled a physical fair with sector-based villages. So, it was easier for our audience and for our exhibitors, who found themselves switching from the physical to the virtual in a matter of weeks. The platform was extremely easy to use: in a few clicks, we could understand what was on offer.
The advantages of a virtual fair
Having a broader coverage, even nationwide. On the visitor side, it opens up a new field of possibilities and allows access to exhibitors who, for strategic or economic reasons, could not have been physically present locally. And it is just as interesting for our exhibitors who can benefit from a wider recruitment effort. It is also a real opportunity in terms of the attractiveness of an area: the virtual fair makes it possible to show all the assets of a geographical area to populations who, spontaneously, would not have been interested. With just a single click, students can discover a region and what it has to offer, listen to lectures live or in replay, discover exhibitors etc.
ExpoPolis, a reliable solution with all the functionalities one might expect
The ExpoPolis platform offers one the opportunity to chat with the right person thanks to individual identity cards that present the people connected to each booth, as well as the chat and "direct message” features. Being able to exchange directly with the right person - the one who is in total coherence with the interests of the visitor - and ask them all the questions about their subjects, choices, and future studies, is a great opportunity!”
ExpoPolis SAS