4 Tips to Ensure Your Event App is Successful
Not to toot our own horn, but we at Cvent like to think we’re event tech experts – especially when it comes to event apps. We’ve worked with many planners on their events and have seen pretty much everything you can think of! Because of this, we really know what it takes to have a successful event app. An event app may seem like a small part of the overall event in the grand scheme of things, but according to our 2018 Edelman Attendee Research Report, a mobile event app is the third most important factor that contributes positively to an attendee’s overall event experience. With that in mind, we’ve put together some tips and tricks to ensure you set yourself up for event app success at your next event.
Make sure attendees know you have an app
First and foremost, in order for your app to be successful, attendees have to know about it! It’s imperative to promote your event app in all pre-event communications. Let attendees know that ALL information pertaining to the event will be found in the app. Include step-by-step instructions on where to find the app and how to download it on various devices. Make it as easy as possible. During the event, it’s important to continually mention and reference the app. That way, attendees really get the impression they need it.
Keep attendees in-the-know
Some of the most highly used event app features are schedules, presenters, attendee lists and exhibitor lists. What each of these features has in common is that they keep attendees in the loop on the comings and goings of your event. To improve your overall event experience and ensure your event app is successful you must utilize these features properly. If attendees aren’t in-the-know, it creates unnecessary stress and guesswork for them at your event, ultimately leading to a poor experience.
Promote involvement and socializing
According to our Attendee Research Report, allowing attendees ample opportunity to network is the most important factor in their positive event experience. However, not all attendees are comfortable with face-to-face networking right away, so using an event app to facilitate networking and socializing is a great way to overcome that. Your event app is also a great avenue for social media usage. Attendees can post to their favorite social media channels directly from the event app. This is also a good way for attendees to network if they are following the event hashtag. And as an added bonus, it’s great free promo for your event!
Ensure your app is easy to use and navigate
This relates back to our first point. It’s one thing to get attendees to download your app, but are they using it? A good way to ensure that they are using it is to make it easy to navigate and use. Nothing stunts the success of an event app more than it being disorganized, unintuitive and full of useless information. Ultimately, in order for your event app to be successful, it needs to cater to the wants and needs of your attendees. Tip: to best tailor your app to fit your attendee's needs, use surveys to see what is important to them.
