Stimulate participation with the help of interactive voting

Interactive voting systems are very versatile. Some companies use them to enliven their events, like a sort of game played with the audience rather than a means to obtain feedback. Other companies use the interactive voting keypads to stimulate debates and discussions that would be difficult to enter into without this tool.
This is the case for the property consulting firm of CB Richard Ellis, Spain that has used the PowerVote system since 2007 for its clients gathered together during events organized by its marketing department. “These are thematic seminars dealing with the property sector and during which we carry out an opinion survey among our clients with regard to certain important aspects of the sector,” explains Gorka Anitua Valluerca, Director of Marketing for the consulting firm.

How it works

The voting system set up by CB Richard Ellis for these events is very simple. During these meetings, a round table is set up, consisting of around five persons who propose concrete situations taken from this sector of the market. Questions are subsequently asked on the given subject, which the audience answers using the interactive voting keypads. Finally, the members of the round table evaluate the results highlighted by these answers.

Gorka Anitua recognizes that this system is doubly effective: “Firstly, it allows us to know the audience’s opinion; secondly, we can encourage participation in the debate aroused around each answer.” Compared to the traditional method of raising one’s hand, the Director of Marketing at Richard Ellis, Spain points out that the interactive voting keypads not only help the participants relax when it comes time to express their opinions, but “it is also easier for them to defend their opinions” after having voted.
In general, during events organized by this property consulting firm, the interactive voting systems are rather well received by the participants, “although there are always persons who prefer not to vote, perhaps because they would rather not express their opinion on the various subjects raised,” explains Anitua.

Preparatory work

Despite the user-friendliness of the technology designed by PowerVote, the Director of Marketing at CB Richard Ellis, Spain believes that it is essential, before each event, to carry out a pre-analysis of the questions to be asked the audience, in order to choose those most suited to each situation. “Clearly, interactive voting stimulates participation, but one must pay particularly close attention to one’s choice of subjects and the wording of one’s questions,” he recommends.

Following a dozen experiences with the interactive PowerVote voting keypads, Gorka Anitua underlines their ease-of-use and the facility for their users to memorize the results, thanks to the graphics used by the system, which can reproduce the voting results in Microsoft Excel.
So far, all events organized by CB Richard Ellis, Spain have relied upon the collaboration and assistance of the PowerVote team, and no hitch has occurred. “We have yet to try the system without technical assistance, even though, a priori, PowerVote is rather simple, not any more complicated than PowerPoint or a spreadsheet,” insists Anitua.

Furthermore, he believes that the interactive PowerVote voting keypads could be much more effective “if one were familiar with all of this tool’s possibilities”.
CB Richard Ellis, Spain uses, on average, 100 voting keypads for each seminar. Anitua recalls that the company’s first experience with the system was at the HSM Innovation Forum: “We were pleased with this system and decided to adopt it for our own events.”

About CBRE
CB Richard Ellis, Spain is a property consulting firm that celebrated thirtyfive years of activity in Spain in 2008.
The history of this company in our country mirrors the important years of the property sector, of its successes and its difficult periods. Among the various consulting services provided by the Spanish subsidiary, the firm is particularly active in the management of property assets, business services, financial markets, shopping centres, and residential services and agencies. The firm also benefits from a large research team, which occasionally produces reports on the market and its trends. Richard Ellis numbers 400 offices in 58 countries around the world.