Digitizing Events for Improved Attendee Experience
Kat Dacusin
March 20, 2019
Digitizing events can enhance attendee experience. Most, if not all, event organizers want attendees to have a satisfying experience throughout the event. But this is not easy, as proven by the fact that 26.8% of event organizers cite attendee satisfaction as one of the biggest challenges they encounter in organizing events.
The question remains: Which incidents affect an event attendee’s experience? Below is a narrative run-through of the things that can possibly go wrong from an attendee’s perspective, and how going digital can prevent or solve these.
7:00 a.m.: Lack of Information
Non-digitized Events – The attendee is on their way to the event, but then gets lost because he left the print-out of the event details at home. He would strive to find the venue, but at this point he is tempted to ditch the event and just watch a movie (if only his boss didn’t require him to attend).
Digitized Events – By going paperless with event applications, simple troubles such as the one above will be prevented. Details such as the venue are readily checked anytime in the app. There can even be an online map to help attendees locate venues unfamiliar to them.
9:00 a.m.: Long Queue
Non-digitized Events – Finally, the attendee arrives. He is welcomed by the uninviting sight of a long queue at the registration area. After waiting in line for some precious minutes, he reaches the registration table and, alas, the pens run out of ink, and the registration forms are not enough. Also, the long queue might push the event start time at a later hour.
Digitized Events – Through event apps, the registration process is handled quickly. The QR code from the attendee’s app is scanned, and attendee’s details will be registered in the system. As a bonus, this process will also produce a summary of event attendee demographics, and organizers can know which age group, gender, etc. attended the event the most.
12:00 p.m.: Discomfort
Non-digitized Events – The attendee barely understood the first part of the event due to the bad quality of the sound system. Lunch break comes and he is famished, but the food is close to inedible. To add to this discomfort, his long-sleeved shirt is sticking to his back due to the heat. If the attendee can’t address this, he might take out his smartphone and turn to social media, as 38% of attendees use social media as a feedback mechanism. Event and company reputation may be damaged with bad social media feedback.
Digitized Events – In many cases when the attendees cannot personally relay their complaints to event organizers, they can use the event app to send their comments. The app will serve as an avenue for real-time feedback directly sent to the organizers, so that they can address these problems on the spot.
2:00 p.m.: Sudden Change
Non-digitized Events – The attendee remembers that Session 4 will be held at Room #11. Since he was looking forward to that session, he proceeds there. He enters the room and does not see any speaker, but sees a few people waiting for the session to start. He sits down and waits with them. Ten, twenty, thirty minutes in, and there are no signs of activity. He goes out of the room and roams around to investigate– only to find out that the session is in full swing at Room #14. The venue was changed! Why wasn’t he and the other attendees informed about any update on the location?!
Digitized Events – Using event apps help disseminate eleventh-hour changes in venue, session, speaker, and so on. Last minute changes can be reflected in the app without the need to download it again. Attendees can also be updated about the new details through push notifications.
4:00 p.m.: Boring Speaker
Non-digitized Events – The attendee’s eyelids get heavy. The uncharismatic speaker rambles on and on with a monotonous voice and presents without any visuals or activities for the audience, turning the session into nap time.
Digitized Events – It can help if attendees can utilize event apps with features for event engagement, such as live polls, question and answer, and even raffles. In this regard, 62% of event planners value event apps with features such as live polling and Q&A. With such features, attendees can interactively take part not just as passive audience members, but as engaged participants.
6:00 p.m.: Before Going Home
Non-digitized Events – The closing remarks have been delivered. Before going home, the attendee asks the organizers for a copy of the presentation materials which he needs ASAP, but was told that these will be sent within the week. He also does not get a chance to network because the other attendees are scrambling towards the exit doors. He will go home with a low opinion of the event and may even spread bad reviews. He might even swear never to attend any event associated with your company, ever again.
Digitized Events – The attendee instantly gets a copy of presentation materials and exchanges contact details with other attendees through QR codes. This enables him to review what he learned and expand his network. If the event app has camera filters, attendees can take photos with the event frames, and the pictures can be consolidated by the event organizer. The pics allow organizers to reach out to participants even after the event. Due to the good things that happened in the event, attendees will positively review the event, and may even recommend future events to other people.
The Decision to Go Digital
In the Fourth Industrial Revolution, there are more and more ways to go digital. Whether you belong in Banking and Finance, Healthcare, Airlines and Transportation, Retail, or other industries, you can definitely take advantage of digital solutions one way or another. This also applies to Events Management as well.
There are multiple benefits of using an events app. This may be why 75% of event professionals who don’t use event apps yet intend to adopt them.
But not all events apps are the same. 74% of event planners use different event technology providers rather than an all-in-one solution. 85% of event planners use event registration tools, 61% use event marketing tools, and 54% use survey tools.
Going digital is convenient, but what will make things even easier is having all these features in one app. Or better yet, the ability to customize and choose specific features for the exact needs of an event will be more effective.
For your next event, you might want to consider exploring digital solutions, so things don’t have to be stressful for you (as organizers) and attendees alike.
About Pointwest
Founded in 2003 by pioneers of the Philippine Global Sourcing industry, Pointwest creates value for its list of satisfied clients — including top Fortune 100 and local companies — with world-class digital innovation and IT modernization services backed by international-standard methodologies, and innovative practices.
