Event organizers are eager to bring people back together safely. To help attendees feel comfortable and confident about the event experience, put yourself in their shoes so you can understand the event journey from their point of view. Attendees naturally have different expectations now. You must placate their anxieties, answer their questions, and get them excited.
Your job as an event experience technologist is to map out and consider the intention of each attendee touchpoint from start to finish. Think about what you’re trying to convey and what you hope the attendee experiences at each touchpoint. We’ll take you through 20 touchpoints here, but there are many more—this is just a start to prime your planning.
Registration Touchpoints
The biggest change in registration is the type of information you provide attendees so they know what to expect.
#1: Code of conduct. An agreement on how you expect people—attendees, staff, speakers, exhibitors, etc.—to treat each other is not new. The code of conduct explains how everyone should behave and what happens when they’re non-compliant, for example, not wearing a mask. This code lets attendees know “we’re all in this together.” It gives them the confidence that you’re doing your best to provide a safe environment.
#2: Event FAQ. Attendees expect to see up-to-date information on your safety policies and your plan to deal with the situation as it unfolds. This information helps them to decide whether to attend.
#3: Safety marketing. By marketing your safety tactics in your FAQ, emails, and social posts, you alleviate concerns and give attendees the confidence that the event is safe to attend.
#4: Refund policy. Refunds are a dealbreaker. If conditions change, people want assurance that they can get a refund.
#5: Pricing. Attendees balance a desire to participate in your event with the inconvenience of being away from home and the inherent risk of crowded environments while traveling and attending your event. Do you counter with a lower price? Or do you increase the price and reduce the size of the crowd?
#6: Value. Consider whether your event still offers what attendees used to value about your pre-pandemic event. Or do they value something different now? Is a socially distanced networking experience with fewer people still valuable?
Pre-event Touchpoints
#7: Vaccination verification, COVID test verification, and health screening. To ensure everyone’s safety, more and more organizers are performing vaccination/test verifications at in-person events. This process must be as simple as possible for attendees. Now that Event Farm is integrated with CLEAR Health Pass, you can use our app to validate vaccinations and negative COVID tests, and ask health screening questions before the event.
#8: Event preparation emails. As the event gets closer, remind attendees about safety policies and urge them to review the FAQ so they know what to do before they arrive and what to expect when they get there.
Check-In Touchpoints
#9: Vaccination verification, COVID test verification, and health screening. Yes, we’re repeating ourselves because some attendees won’t take care of this beforehand, so you’ll have to go through this process at the door. You don’t want the first touchpoint of the day to be burdensome, so leverage technology like Event Farm to streamline the experience.
#10: Waivers. Consider the type of event you are hosting and whether you want to require a waiver. Even though many lawyers believe it’s not defensible, we recommend asking your legal counsel if it is necessary.
Event Touchpoints
#11: Pandemic Safety Compliance Advisor. The employee or contractor who is certified for this role is in charge of compliance with state and local regulations and any compliance requirements established by your organization, venue, or insurance carrier. The Advisor establishes the safety policies and procedures for the event but leaves the enforcement to your security team.
#12: Contact tracing. If, after the event, an attendee tests positive for COVID, you want to know where they went and whom they interacted with during the event so you can notify the relevant people instead of every attendee. NFC-powered wearable technology, such as wristbands and badges, can track an attendee’s movement in and out of event checkpoints.
#13: Real-time text messaging. You need an immediate way to communicate with all (or a subset of) attendees about special announcements, safety information, and changes to the program.
#14: Queuing tool. You can use an app like Event Farm to control crowds and stagger queuing anywhere a line forms, like registration/check-in, meet-and-greets, product demos, and food/beverage stations.
#15: Programming tweaks. Let attendees know how you’ve changed various aspects of the event experience because of safety concerns, for example, smaller general sessions and breakouts, or more time for breaks.
#16: Networking comfort levels. When designing the event experience, take into consideration the different comfort levels people have toward networking. Think about creative ways they can signal their willingness for closeness to others. For example, we’ve seen different wristbands or badge colors being used.
#17: Signage. Post signs in appropriate spots as a reminder for attendees to follow social distancing protocol when positioning themselves in line or taking a seat.
#18: Entertainment/F&B. If you’ve changed a program or catering feature that attendees valued in the past, fill that void in a different way. Let attendees know what they can expect this time.
Post-Event Touchpoints
#19: Emergency messaging. Put a system in place that allows you to notify attendees that, according to your contract tracing tool, they were in the vicinity of someone who tested positive for COVID.
#20: Compliance reporting. If your organization has to document vaccination/test verifications and health screenings, use a tool like Event Farm Check-In and CLEAR Health Pass as a reporting system.
We’re stopping at 20, but there are many more touchpoints in the attendee journey—meal packing, seating arrangements, table locations, exhibit booths, ventilation mapping—the list could go on and on. The sweet spot is finding the balance between providing an enjoyable attendee experience and giving them the confidence that you’re looking out for their safety.
Learn how Event Farm safety tools can take care of many of these essential touchpoints before, during, and after your event.