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The Next Generation of Event Registration

Remember when planning an event involved a Rolodex and many, MANY legal pads filled with checklists and notes, questions, and number tallies for future use? No? Well, believe it or not, before advances in technology, forms were filled out by hand and mailed to each event coordinator to be registered by an actual person! Forms were lost, information misread, and numbers miscalculated. It was the dark ages of event planning and registration and thank heavens its behind us!

Since practically everyone on the planet now has a tiny computer on hand at all times of day or night, it makes perfect sense to utilize this technology to simplify the whole registration process in such a way as to make it a better experience for event planners, clients hosting these events, and attendees.

PNV Enterprises, through PNVRegistration,  provides our clients and registrants with online registration. By eliminating the need for paper forms that can get lost, you can be assured that the registration application has been received, in real time, by the event coordinators, AND that you can check and recheck it whenever you need to make sure your plans are confirmed and in order. Yesterday’s conference setups used to include brochures of nearby hotels and sightseeing, as well as schematics for the conference location…all in all, a large manila envelope filled with different papers for different purposes. Lose one, and you must scramble to contact the Conference host or planner to recover that information!

A good event website will include registration plug ins or integrate registration widgets from the event management’s software. There will also be links to all other pertinent information, that which used to be included in that big envelope. Registration, travel arrangements, choice of events and sessions can all be done at once, sometimes months before the conference takes place. By offering an all-in-one platform that seamlessly integrates all that data, attendees can make all arrangements in one sitting.

The most revolutionary aspect of event planning in the new Millennium must be the introduction of phone applications. Think about it, if you download the registration app to your phone, you are provided with full access to every aspect of the conference you have paid money to attend. From checking in upon arrival, locating different sessions, to providing customized name tags, the ap is basically a pass to the event that you take with you everywhere.

The App can also afford the attendees the opportunity to create their own personal agendas, research other attendees and speakers for networking purposes, participate in polls and receive real time event updates via push notifications. The recent introduction of the smart watch by many tech giants has added to the convenience factor of utilizing event software during the actual event. It is reasonable to forecast that “wearable tech” will be the next step in this evolution of event planning.

During the event, the data compiled using these technological advances can be crucial to judging the success of an event and use that data to improve the process for any future events proposed. Who signs up for which sessions, which speakers are the most popular, and how the sessions rate according to post -event surveys can provide valuable insights into what works and what doesn’t. Both event and on-site management software can help here.

This modern iteration of event planning and registration is extremely beneficial to the client/host in that it allows all data to be compiled and utilized for precise analysis of the conference being given and use that information to improve any similar events planned in the future. By collecting emails, monitoring ticket sales, and providing pre and post-event surveys, the client can build a network of contacts and ultimately, create leads for future business opportunities.