MarTech Edge Interview with Greg Cruikshank, Chief Executive Officer, Chati

Welcome, Greg! How does your extensive 20-year experience empower your role as the CEO at Chati?

Having spent two decades in the webinar and virtual event business, using many different virtual event platforms, I’ve gained an intricate understanding of what features make a virtual event platform unique, top-tier audience engagement and the tools to increase it, evolving market needs, and technological trends. This experience naturally informed my decisions when creating the team to develop Chati, ensuring we deliver solutions that resonate with our clients, are technologically advanced, and are always a step ahead.

What are some of the biggest challenges and opportunities you face as the CEO of a virtual event platform in the post-pandemic era?

In the post-pandemic landscape, while many are keen to return to in-person events, there’s a recognized value in virtual platforms. The challenge is in striking the right balance between virtual and physical experiences. The opportunity, however, lies in refining and innovating our hybrid offerings to ensure they offer the intimacy of in-person events while retaining the accessibility and convenience of virtual platforms.

How do you foster a culture of innovation and collaboration among your team members at Chati?

At Chati, we prioritize open communication and celebrate diverse perspectives. We also value the “virtual” aspect, and all have worked remotely since Chati’s inception. We have an open-door policy to ensure that every voice is heard and every idea is added to the drawing board. We encourage team collaboration across marketing, design, and development teams, which provides unique perspectives, broadening the creative pool.

What are some unique features and benefits that Chati offers its clients and partners?

Chati provides a high-quality video chat feature called ChatiConnect, which allows event hosts to include video breakout sessions within the event environment, mimicking the face-to-face feel of physical events. Chati also has many interactive tools to keep attendees engaged as they navigate the virtual event and watch presentations, responsive templates with 3D customizable options, and, finally, advanced analytics tools to empower clients to make informed decisions, enhancing their event outcomes. Chati supports multi-format content, from webinars to workshops to interactive remote team building.

How does Chati differentiate itself from other virtual event builders in the market?

Chati’s uniqueness lies in its deep-rooted understanding of audience engagement and building virtual environments to optimize it, backed by two decades of industry insight. Our platform goes beyond just hosting an event; we provide an experience that’s immersive, intuitive, and insightful, ensuring both hosts and attendees derive maximum value.

What are the key values and principles that guide your leadership style at Chati?

Transparency, integrity, and adaptability are my guiding principles. I encourage the team to consistently push creative boundaries and think outside the box, whether it be for the platform development itself or for creative and marketing campaigns. Although we do have a chain of managerial structure, I encourage project ownership and make sure that individuals are heard, valued, and empowered to contribute.

How does Chati help organizations with their marketing and sales purposes through its event technology?

Chati’s event technology is designed to provide actionable insights. From attendee behavior analytics to feedback mechanisms, organizations can gauge audience interest, tailor their marketing strategies, identify potential leads, and nurture relationships more effectively.

What primary factors contributed to Chati’s rapid growth and success in the event tech industry?

Chati’s success can be attributed to our commitment to innovation, deep understanding of market needs, and relentless focus on client satisfaction. Our robust platform, coupled with exceptional customer support and unique features like ChatiConnect, has made us a preferred choice in the industry.

What are the current trends and challenges that you see in the event tech space?

The event tech space is evolving rapidly with a growing emphasis on hybrid events, AI-driven personalization, and sustainability. Challenges include navigating the changing attendee expectations, integrating new technologies, and ensuring the human touch isn’t lost amidst the digital transformation.

Tell us more about your passion for reptiles and how you started Snake Country.

I’ve been fascinated with reptiles (primarily snakes) since I was a little kid. My parents didn’t allow me to have snakes in the house, so as soon as I moved out and went to college, I bought my first boa constrictor. Over the following number of years, I was able to collect a few more reptiles I always wanted as a child. A couple of years later, life got in the way of my reptile passion; I fell in love, got married, and had three sons. Years down the road, one of my boys became interested in snakes. We went out and bought a king snake, which turned into two, then three more snakes over the next few months. That quickly ignited my passion for reptiles all over again. It snowballed from there. I began purchasing some high-end genetics of both boa constrictors and ball pythons. We went from five snakes to over 100 within the next year. We had snake racks in almost every room in our house, so I decided to make a breeding business out of it, then moved our snakes into a facility and created the company Snake Country LLC.

Snake Country now has over 1,000 animals; we breed over 100 females and have roughly 400-500 babies every year. We have four employees and are now turning a profit. After working all day at Labroots and Chati, I go down to our facility and spend another 2-3 hours there every night of the week. I love it!