BTOG Conference tweaks agenda and uses digital signage for a 50% rise in session attendance

The British Thoracic Oncology Group (BTOG), the multi-disciplinary group for healthcare professionals, delivered its 22nd annual three-day conference, the BTOG Conference, at ICC Belfast, which saw an increased attendance and a 50% increase in the uptake of the sponsored symposium sessions from the previous year.

The BTOG Conference delivers state-of-the-art information to healthcare professionals working in thoracic cancer through core content sessions. It brings essential content from international congresses to UK specialists who cannot travel to larger international events.

Dawn Mckinley, senior executive officer (SEO) of the British Thoracic Oncology Group (BTOG), explains, “The CPD-accredited content chosen for the BTOG Conference has to be delivered across a variety of specialist sessions and must be relevant to the multi-disciplinary teams that attend. Equally important is the benefit delegates receive from the networking and peer-to-peer discussions between the content delivery.”

Mckinley continued, “There are new healthcare professionals entering the thoracic oncology specialist field all the time. Therefore, thanks to our sponsors’ continued support, we can promote the conference widely and target new delegates. For some of our sponsors, Satellite Symposia are a key component of the conference. They were a focus for improvement from last year’s event, so we amended the timings this year to eliminate any ‘graveyard’ sessions and decided to run three parallel sessions instead. The concept was a total success – with a 50% increase in uptake. I had seen digital signage and posters used to good effect at ESMO Congress and asked our production partner, First Sight Media if it would be possible to deliver something similar for BTOG, which they did, and more! The digital screens carried session info to remind delegates to visit the sponsors’ symposium sessions and the core content. This was supported by our event app, which was downloaded by 74% of delegates.”

First Sight Media was, for the 5th time, appointed as the production partner for the event, providing the core service of filming and preparing the footage for use after the conference. However, its role encompassed much more, the benefits of which dovetailed into changes made by the conference running order. In addition to filming all of the content and sessions, First Sight Media created a highlights video and edited it for all to view on-demand on the BTOG website. Working closely with the team at BTOG, the team at First Sight Media liaised with sponsors to create content guides for sponsors and faculty presenters alike, provided the digital signage solution and installed the hardware – 4m x 2m LED screens.

Mckinley explains, “BTOG commissioned First Sight Media as production partner in 2020 and immediately built our trust by delivering exactly what they agreed. For 2024, we were confident enough to hand over the sponsorship liaison related to production and content, which is not an easy task when working within the challenging approval process of the pharma industry. Sponsors in the pharma sector have strict and sometimes lengthy approval processes, but First Sight Media took it all on board and managed the entire process. The team worked with sponsors to identify and improve opportunities to present them and their messages within the conference format. First Sight Media offered a wider scope of support and an extra level of professionalism, filming, and creating post-event content. The whole process was wrapped in open and easy communication, which made everyone at BTOG and the sponsors feel looked after. The outputs from the main sessions were shared immediately after the conference with BTOG members who attended and will be shared with other members after 6 months, including more than 3,000 healthcare professional members, to share knowledge, information and encourage them to attend the conference in person in 2025.

Rich Belcher, managing director of First Sight Media, explains what was delivered, “The Satellite Symposia offers the conference sponsors the opportunity to present and promote themselves to the delegates. At last year’s show, attendance was limited, so this year, we wanted to ensure that the sessions were promoted more efficiently. Dawn had seen digital signage and posters directing traffic into sessions at a large international congress. When she came to us with the idea, we suggested using screens with dynamic signage. This, combined with a slight reorganisation of the timing for the symposium sessions, made the results spectacular.”

“Sponsors could submit three digital items—a trailer video (teaser), a poster, and an ‘on-now’ video—to promote their symposium session. This integrated their content into the show and helped them become an extension of the main conference programme. By showing detail on the digital signage, delegates could identify the subject matter and understand the benefits of attending the session,” added Belcher.