Best practice: Registration / Ticketing

Q: What is best practice now?

A: For events companies delivering major events, many of which will see thousands of visitors and exhibitors walk through the doors, there are key aspects which, if addressed, will result in a smooth and seamless event, enhance the attendee experience and, from my perspective at least, constitute best practice.

Registration is critical to success. It’s the threshold at which the general public become your guests. And, as they say, first impressions are everything.

Registration plays a key role in setting the tone for the event. A smooth and frictionless registration builds positive attendee sentiment, whilst a slow and fractured registration can demolish it.

When it comes to registration, here are the three elements that we feel are the most important.

• Know where you’re going (and who you’d like to come with you). As publishers we know our audience and what motivates them. The registration process provides the opportunity to reinforce this. An in-depth registration form will help you to get under the skin of each and every attendee. Knowing your audience provides the foundations from which you can deliver aligned content and drive personalised marketing. And targeted marketing and good appropriate content is what delivers good attendance.
• Pick your registration platform — and platform provider — wisely. If attendees are the fuel required for a successful event, then the registration platform is the engine. And without an efficient engine, the registration process is at risk of breaking down. As a company that specialises in this area, we understand that budget typically dictates this process. However, regardless of budget, our advice is to ask yourself three questions. Can the platform handle the number of people you’re expecting to attend? Can the platform’s architects easily (and economically) reskin their infrastructure in order for it to incorporate your company’s branding? Attendees want to feel as though they’re dealing with you all the way, and not being bounced onto a third-party company. Does the platform seamlessly integrate with other tools you use, such as your CRM system? If the answer is ‘no’ to any of those questions, continue exploring your options.
• Keep it personal. The days of blanket communication are over. Attendees are individuals and want to be communicated with as such. From personalised communication in the run-up to an event to providing customised agendas or recommended seminars based on pre-established interests and preferences, a personal touch goes a long way. And, with the right system, it’s not difficult to achieve. Make sure your registration form’s questions go beyond the basics. Establish attendees’ goals and incorporate fields that enable you to segment your audience in multiple ways.

Q: How do you see it changing in the future?

A: The notion of best practice is continually changing. As a company that’s witnessed the events landscape change over more than 25 years, we know that what is deemed best practice today will be very different in as little as six months from now.

I believe that there are three things that are likely to reshape best practice over the coming months.

Firstly, as personalisation provides a sure-fire route to higher engagement, I expect to see levels of personalisation significantly increase. We’re already seeing Rich Communication Services (RCS) messaging play a wider role. Platforms such as WhatsApp have grown from simple messaging tools to mechanisms for delivering personalised campaigns. In the not-too-distant future, individual elements of an upcoming event — such as a specific seminar — will be promoted via WhatsApp as standalone campaigns to those who’ve already shown an interest in the themes and topics that they cover.

Secondly, embedded payments will become more commonplace as event organisers look to reduce transaction friction — whether that covers ticket purchases, booking event space at the following year’s event or simply buying products over the course of the event.

Finally, as organisers continue to explore ways in which to reduce the carbon footprint of their events, the development and incorporation of sustainable solutions will become a focal point. Cloud-based registration platforms, which negate the need for physical infrastructure, will become a standard feature just as digital badge mailers have grown in popularity in recent years. The same applies to downloadable CPD certificates, which remove the environmental — and cost — implications associated with printing them on-site.

Of course, there’s one major change on the horizon that will not only affect these three points, but potentially every element of event delivery: artificial intelligence (AI). Given the pace at which it’s being rolled into every walk of life, it’s only a matter of time before AI becomes a standard feature amongst organisers looking to maximise their events at every stage of an event’s lifecycle.

Much of what comprises best practice today can also be achieved today. Perhaps the biggest challenge for organisers is keeping abreast of what’s available, particularly in the context of AI, and choosing the most effective, economical and sustainable solutions to achieve — and then maintain — best practice.

Three top tips

1. Know your audience and validate it on registration.

2. Keep the registration journey simple and relevant.

3. Ensure that you have a fast and effective badge-printing and / or ticket validation solution at the entrance to your event. Nobody likes queues.

Fusion is the go-to technology platform for publishers that are also event organisers. Our award-winning Fusion software enables clients to manage subscriptions and event registration data via one access point, giving a single customer view of every transaction and engagement across a portfolio of multiple publications and events.

Email: hello@fusion-events.co.uk

Web: www.fusion-events.co.uk

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fusionbyclearcourse