Online Registration Starts with Assessment
Online registration can greatly enhance your program, but how do you decide what kind of system you need?
By Sarah McNeely
In most situations, online registration makes event information management a much easier task, as online registration services create a database of every registrant and each one’s information. Within the database, reports can be created that organize or isolate practically any combination of information, as well as track any changes to a registrant’s record. This means the planner can spend less time tediously entering data into a spreadsheet and focus on the more important and time-consuming aspects of planning the event.
The registration website created for your meeting will contain all of the important information your registrants will need, which reduces calls and e-mails from registrants requesting information. Moreover, most people prefer online registration, which allows attendees to quickly register for an event and receive a confirmation immediately. They can also instantly pay registration fees with a credit card, and may also be given the option to mail in a check.
Although most registrants will find online registration preferable, you must consider who will be registering for your meeting. Elderly registrants and those who don’t regularly use a computer might not benefit from online registration. Unless you are confident that the majority of your attendees will be able to register online, you should also offer a paper-based alternative.
Cost Considerations
Some important points to consider are: how much an organization is willing to spend on online registration and the management of registrants’ information; how many will attend the meeting or event; and how involved the planner wants to be in the registration process. Some organizations and planners prefer to be very involved in the online registration process and to have access to the database. Depending on the level of involvement, this may require learning how to navigate the online registration system.
Though it might require a little training time up front, planners and organizations who learn how to use the registration system often are very happy with the outcome of their events, as they have more control over the information they see. Learning to use the registration system also reduces the cost of the online service, as the registration service provider does not spend as much time doing tasks that could very well be handled by planners themselves, such as running reports and checking numbers and other information.
Tailored to Needs
If a planner or organization likes to stay relatively hands-off when it comes to the registration process, online registration services can accommodate that, too! Registration services can provide regular updates and reports via e-mail for those who would prefer to leave the details to someone else. Online registration especially benefits and is most cost effective for larger events, as more registrants simply means more information to manage.
Online registration is a service that can be tailored to fit practically every meeting and event, no matter how large or small. The best way to make an informed decision about providing online registration for your meetings and events is to try it. Offer online registration for your next event and see how your registrants respond. Though registrants may initially be wary of the change from paper-based registration, most often the convenience (both to the registrant and the planner) will negate any initial resistance.
Sarah McNeely is an Information Architect for Attendee Management Inc., Wimberley, Texas, where she builds websites and registration sites. Contact her at sarah@ attendeenet.com.
