Get Rid of Lines at Your Event

There are a lot of terrible things that can go wrong at events. In most cases, the problems can be resolved without attendees ever knowing about them. The one thing that’s definitely noticed? Lines. Otherwise known as bottlenecks. One of the most visible hiccups onsite, lines are the bane of a planner’s existence. Attendees hate waiting and lines can be difficult to break up once they form. How do you fix some of the most common lines from forming onsite? You guessed it. Event management technology. Doing things the manual way can lead to more bottlenecks onsite, aka more irritated attendees.

Where and Why Some Lines Form

Check-In + Badging

Everyone shows up about the same time for the event and it makes sense that a line will form. But if attendees are in line for more than a few minutes, their impression of the entire event can become soured by that single experience. First impressions are important. By using self-check-in kiosks and printing badges onsite, you can decrease lines. Attendees know how to check in on a screen – they’ve been conditioned at airports to do just that – and will make it through check-in much faster. And, if they find any errors in their registration information, they can fix it themselves.

Getting into Sessions

As a planner, you want to track who is attending what session. As an attendee, you want to get into that session without waiting in a line. Using quick scan in, RFID, and other technology options, attendees can get into sessions quickly and you’ll know where they are.

Food

Did you know you can track how many attendees visit a drink or food session? Understanding foot traffic allows you to rearrange where table or coffee is set up to accommodate busy areas. Or it will show you where to rush more food. When attendees are hangry, the last thing they want is to wait for food. Sometimes, even the best-designed food layouts don’t work. Use live attendee tracking data to adjust as necessary.

Maps

There are times when lines form for a reason, and then there are times lines form just because. A lot of crowded traffic ways are due to a poor understanding on the attendee’s part of the venue layout. There may be a whole different route they didn’t know existed, which is why they’re all crammed into the same hallway trying to get into the keynote. Use a mobile event app to send push notifications highlighting different paths on the in-app map.

Session changes/delays

Another great use for your mobile event app push notifications? Session changes or time delays. Alleviate a potential line or confusion by sending out a notification to attendees. The in-app map will come in handy for room changes.

Conclusion

No one likes waiting in line. Event management technology helps to decrease the number of onsite bottlenecks to make sure your attendees stay happy and enjoy the experience. No one wants the resounding theme of their post-event survey to be that lines were too long. Fix the problem before it forms using technology. Want more? Read A Beginner's Guide to Event Technology