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2021 in Review

12 Jan, 2022 | Labroots

As an industry leader in the virtual event space for over a decade, it’s important for Labroots to continually grow in a way that supports the needs and changes of the scientific virtual space. 2021 was truly a year of growth on all levels. From Labroots-produced Custom Virtual Events, Webinars, Hybrid Events, and an array of digital products, our client-focused approach has always remained front-of-mind at all times. As we embraced the new challenges that 2021 brought us, we continuously came out on top, resulting in the success of our company, and of course, our clients.

2021 COMPANY GROWTH

As we entered 2021 with a new digital mindset that came about in 2020, it’s clear that the world will continue the shift to the virtual world. Labroots, having already been positioned for success in the virtual space, brought in new business across all of our product offerings. We are excited to have hosted 127 Virtual Events this year, compared to 92 in 2020 and just 23 in 2019. As for webinars, we produced 3,189 this year, a record for Labroots.

With this continuous transition to the virtual space, the Labroots team had to grow to fulfill the product demand. Onboarding a Scientific Editor to manage our growing team of writers, we’ve never been positioned so well to provide quality content to our website users. Working remotely since the company’s inception in 2008, we are grateful to be able to grow our Labroots team in an economic environment that is constantly changing. We are excited to now have a team of 68 employees here at Labroots.

PRODUCT OF THE YEAR: HYBRID EVENTS

In an ever-changing virtual space, it’s clear that hybrid events are the wave of the future. Incorporating both in-person and virtual components, we are confident in stating that hybrid events were Labroots product of the year. If these past couple of years have taught us anything, it’s that having a virtual presence is worth its weight in gold, even if an in-person event is your primary focus.

When it comes to hybrid events, the options truly are endless. Luckily for our clients, when they decide to work with Labroots, they are given a team whose collective goal is to execute their hybrid event’s vision seamlessly.

As many companies’ product of choice in 2021, Labroots’ hybrid events successfully offered an innovative, customizable solution that combined elements of virtual audiences, posters, webinars, physical attendees, booths, and more. For a deeper look into hosting a hybrid event with Labroots, visit our 2022 media kit here.

NEW PRODUCT OFFERING: MINI CUSTOM VIRTUAL EVENTS

2021 was filled with much more than just a growing team at Labroots. This past year we were pleased to introduce three new products to our variety of advertising opportunities for companies in the life sciences industries. Our Mini Custom Virtual Event Options were designed for our clients that may not be ready to commit to an entire Custom Virtual Event.

Webinar Event

Hosted on a powerful virtual platform in HTML5 like all of our events, the new Webinar Event offers the beginnings of a virtual event venue (microsite/registration page, resource center or media wall, auditorium), one webinar, a 60-90 minute event, and will remain on-demand for 24 months. It even includes a marketing package to ensure you have the specially targeted registrants that you want.

Webinar Event Plus

Similar to our new Webinar Event, the Webinar Event Plus offers a little bit more. Already including everything in the Webinar Event, this product also includes a lobby/entry point and virtual booth. It also runs for 2 hours (a bit longer than the Webinar Event). The added virtual venue components make it great for a more interactive attendee experience.

Virtual Lab Event

Another product new to Labroots this past year, the Virtual Lab Event is perfect for those looking to incorporate a lab into their mini-event. This product includes a webinar, a 2-hour event window, a marketing package, and a virtual venue consisting of the laboratory. You will also receive a microsite/registration page for prospective attendees to register with ease.

NEW EVENT FEATURES

As the digital world continuously evolves, so does Labroots. Keeping our clients front-of-mind at all times, we were excited to offer clients new and improved event features in 2021, fulfilling needs as they came about. 2021’s new event features include;

Spatial.Chat

Spatial.Chat is an app integration that incorporates virtual networking in events like you’ve never seen before through the use of unique virtual rooms. With the ability to add background imagery, music, and more, the functionality of the embedded feature is endless!

Walls.IO

This event feature incorporates a social media wall to keep your event’s conversation going! By providing social handles, keywords, hashtags, or user profiles, you can see what people are saying about your event in real-time. Walls.IO has proven to be a hit in many Labroots events this past year, and we are excited to continue to offer it in 2022.

Poster Competition

With the goal of raising more awareness for the novel research studies being presented in the Labroots virtual event poster halls, Labroots introduced the Poster Competition in 2021, where the posters for each Labroots virtual event are reviewed and one is chosen to be the winner. The winning author(s) and their research are featured in a Labroots Trending Science News article written by a specialist in the field. The article is distributed to over 30,000 Labroots Newsletter subscribers and highlighted on our social media pages to provide increased global reach.

NOTABLE SPEAKERS

This year, Labroots was excited to welcome world-renowned scientists across a range of genres as keynote and featured speakers at Labroots hosted virtual events. Varying in specialty and area of expertise, below we have highlighted a few of the 382 speakers that joined us this past year.

Coronavirus, April 14, 2021
Matthew J. Memoli, MD, MS - Director, LID Clinical Studies Unit, Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health
Keynote Presentation: “What the NIH Serosurvey Tells Us So Far and Why We Should Try to Develop a Broadly Protective/Universal Beta-Coronavirus Vaccine”

Coronavirus, April 14, 2021 & Microbiology Virtual Week, September 8. 2021
Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, PhD - Professor, Departments of Microbiology and Medicine, Tisch Cancer Center Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Keynote Presentations: “New Vaccine and Antiviral Strategies for COVID-19” & “Development of an Affordable COVID-19 Vaccine Based on a Newcastle Disease Virus Platform”

Coronavirus, April 14, 2021 & October 13, 2021
Ali H. Mokdad, PhD - Chief Strategy Officer, Population Health, University of Washington
Keynote Presentation: “The impact of the New COVID-19 Variants and Vaccine Rollout on the pandemic” & “Impact of New Escape Variants and Waning Immunity on the Covid-19 Pandemic”

Genetics Virtual Week, April 22, 2021
Dr. Howard L. McLeod, FASCO, FCCP - Medical Director, Precision Medicine, Geriatric Oncology Consortium, Professor of Pharmacy and Medicine, University of South Florida Taneja College of Pharmacy
Keynote Presentation: “Moving Precision Medicine from 'Exotic' to 'Normal'”

Immuno-Oncology, June 2, 2021
Gordon J. Freeman, PhD - Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Keynote Presentation: “New Checkpoints and Biomarkers”

Neuroscience, August 25, 2021
John J. Ngai, PhD - Director, NIH BRAIN Initiative
Keynote Presentation: “Current and Future Directions of the NIH BRAIN Initiative”

Microbiology Virtual Week, September 9, 2021
Daniel Griffin, MD, PhD - Chief, Division of Infectious Disease -ProHEALTH, an OPTUM Company; Senior Fellow for Infectious Disease - UHG Research and Development; Clinical Instructor of Medicine - Columbia University
Keynote Presentation: “COVID-19 Point of Care Diagnostics: The Importance of Timing and RNA Levels”

CRISPR, September 29, 2021
Can Dincer - FIT & IMTEK, University of Freiburg, Germany
Keynote Presentation: “CRISPR Powered Biosensors”

Cancer Research & Oncology, October 7, 2021
Nadine Barrett, PhD, MA, MS - Assistant Professor, Family Medicine and Community Health; Director, Center for Equity in Research, Duke Clinical Translational Science Institute (CTSI)
Keynote Presentation: “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Cancer Research: The Promise of Stakeholder Engagement”

Coronavirus, October 13, 2021
James Crowe, MD - Director of the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center, Ann Scott Carell Professor of Pediatrics, Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology
Keynote Presentation: “Discovery and Biology of Protective SARS-CoV-2 Human Monoclonal Antibodies”

Clinical Diagnostics & Research, November 10, 2021
Alexander Wong, Ph.D., P.Eng., SMIEEE - Canada Research Chair in Artificial Intelligence and Medical Imaging Member, College of the Royal Society of Canada
Keynote Presentation: “AI in Times of COVID-19: the COVID-Net Open Source Initiative”

NOTABLE EVENT TOPICS

Drug Discovery & Development, Feb. 24, 2021
- New Practices in Early Phase Drug Discovery
- Modern Approaches to Discovery, Preclinical, and Clinical Lab Operations in the COVID-19 Age
- Innovative Biomarkers in Drug Development

Neuroscience, August 25, 2021
- Integrating Theories of the Brain
  - Data-Driven (AI) Approaches
  - Debate: Can we Generate an Organized Theory of the Brain? (For understanding cognition/memory, perception, behavior)
- Neurodegenerative Disorders - Impacts and Progress
- Mental Health in the Age of COVID-19

Microbiology Virtual Week, September 7-9, 2021
- Immunology
  - Plant Response to Disease
  - Innate Immunity and Epigenetics
- Infectious Disease
  - Antimicrobial Resistance and Novel Antimicrobial Strategies
  - Point of Care Diagnostics: Lessons Learned from COVID-19
- Respiratory Viruses:
  - Novel Respiratory Virus Vaccines
  - Genomics of Respiratory Viruses
  - Immunity to Respiratory Viruses
- Microbial Communities:
  - The Microbiome in Precision Medicine
  - Viromes
- Modeling Approaches:
  - Genomic Epidemiology

Cannabis Sciences, March 24, 2021
- Medical Cannabis: Therapeutic Updates
  - Quality Control and Methodologies
  - Evolving Laboratory Landscape and Testing
  - Advancements in Cultivation and Extraction Methods and Technologies

CRISPR, September 29, 2021
- CRISPR Biology
  - Discovery and Classification of CRISPR base editors
- Ethics and Perspectives on CRISPR Medical Applications
- CRISPR in Disease

Cancer Research & Oncology, October 6-7, 2021
- The Role of Evolution and Evolutionary Medicine in Understanding Drug and Radiation Resistance of Cancer
- Health Disparities: How Cancer Impacts the Underrepresented and Underserved
- The Role of the Tumor Stromal Microenvironment in Tumor Dormancy and Resistance to Therapy

Analytical Chemistry & Separation Sciences, October 20, 2021
- Approaches in Small Molecule Separation Analysis
- Food and Environmental Analysis
- Biopharmaceutical Analytical Technologies
  - COVID-19 Vaccines and/or other RNA Therapeutics

Clinical Diagnostics & Research, Nov. 10, 2021
- Emerging Diagnostic Technologies
  - COVID-19 Impact in the Laboratory
  - Artificial Intelligence
  - Molecular Diagnostics
- COVID-19 - Screening and Diagnosis
- The Labs Role in Advancing Equity
  - Equity in a Pandemic
  - Considerations for Specific Patient Populations

TESTIMONIALS

The best days in 2021 came with positive feedback from our attendees, speakers, and customers. We’ve compiled some of the testimonial highlights in this review and look forward to continued success in 2022.

Pretty cool event! I haven't ever attended an online virtual event but I am actually quite impressed with how it is set up.
2021 Genetics Virtual Week Attendee

I've seen some interesting content. Really enjoying this platform and virtual event.
2021 Genetics Virtual Week Attendee

I am enjoying this event a lot. It’s really a great experience participating in a virtual conference amid this pandemic. Kudos to Labroots, for providing the great platform
2021 Neuroscience Virtual Event Attendee

We are excited to highlight and showcase in this year’s BRAIN Initiative track the research of our grantees, who have worked hard to integrate – with impressive results – brain circuit theories using quantitative, data-driven (AI/ML), and/or theory-driven (mechanistic) approaches,” commented Dr. John Ngai, Director of the NIH BRAIN Initiative. “In addition, the Labroots virtual format will allow for our sessions to culminate in a live debate that will leave room for audience engagement and feedback, which will help us uncover existing challenges and future opportunities in this space.
John J. Ngai, Ph.D., Director, NIH BRAIN Initiative, 2021 Neuroscience Virtual Event Speaker

Everything was taken care of. Labroots covers all aspects of an event and it’s fantastic and it makes it easier for us! The attendee numbers were great and the content was awesome. Looking forward to receiving the survey results! The constant communication, weekly planning meetings, having the comfort of knowing the event is being handled well, and of course the hard work from your team (Tracy, Brett, Myles, and everyone else)!
Shamaila Shah, Market Development Specialist III- Events, Thermo Fisher Scientific

We chose to work with Labroots because of their reputation. Before working with Labroots we were new to webinars. First webinar was with Labroots followed by 2 virtual events. The most rewarding part of working with LabRoots was Jessica Ashbrook (our Production Manager). She is beyond amazing. Her knowledge and collaboration coupled with her 'can do' attitude made the entire process not only rewarding but enjoyable. Jessica and team have always been extremely responsive, quick to shift priorities when needed, and ALWAYS delivered. I would tell someone considering working with Labroots about their great turn-key solutions.
Bill Anliker, Market Development Manager at Thermo Fisher Scientific

It seems to be another successful event, and it’s always a pleasure working with Labroots.
Tiffany Pan, NA Regional Marketing Specialist, Genscript

AWARDS

Here at Labroots, we were thrilled to win multiple awards in 2021. Each award emphasized a different aspect of our company’s mission. The first award, Company of the Year Internet & New Media, aligns with Labroots goal to amplify scientific global networks and communities, virtually. The second award, Most Customer-Friendly Company of the Year, highlights our interest as a company to provide the best quality experience to our clients, pushing the limits to make sure webinar, custom event, and product goals are met.

Gold Company of the Year Internet & New Media in the Stevie Awards 2021
Bronze Most Customer-Friendly Company of the Year in the Best in Biz Awards 2021

TOP 3 INFOGRAPHICS

Labroots infographics provide an informative, scientific story of hot topics, helping to inform a broad audience visually. We produce new infographics monthly, below are the top 3 most viewed infographics of 2021.

All You Need to Know about COVID-19 Vaccines

Cryptocurrencies 101

Ketamine's Effects on Pain and Mental Health

SCHOLARSHIPS

This past year, Labroots introduced the Summer Tournament Scholarship, and along with the conventional Spring and Fall scholarships, we awarded $5,000 total in 2021. Below are the three recipients of the 2021 Labroots scholarships, along with their winning statements.

Beauty Kolade
$2000 - SPRING 2021 LABROOTS SCHOLARSHIP WINNER
I am very grateful and honored to be a recipient of this scholarship. This scholarship will bring me one step closer to my goals of becoming a pharmacist and researcher. Thank you labroots for your assistance towards my career path and also for being a part of my educational journey. I hope to inspire and serve as a role model to younger generations interested in STEM.

Stone Yang
$1000 - SUMMER 2021 TOURNAMENT SCHOLARSHIP WINNER
I was very proud of both my teams for all their hard work, however, none of this would have been possible without all of the support from the Labroots team. It was only with their help that my team and I were able to have such an amazing experience conducting our research and experiments, and it was with their help that we were able to achieve such high rankings in the Canadian Young Physicists' tournament. My team and I are eternally grateful for all of Labroots' contributions.

Lilian Liu
$2000 - FALL 2021 LABROOTS SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT
Dream bigger, go higher, and remember that it takes grit to embark on the journeys that are rewarding but full of obstacles. Look for that silver-lining in the difficulties, learn from the mistakes, and be a better person so that we can help others in need. The only way that we can become "stronger" is by "lifting" others and don't forget to show gratitude to people and things that shape us who we are.