Joshua Galyon
Technology growth knows no bounds in any arena. The world is seeing technological change and advancement unlike any we’ve seen before, and people’s day-to-day lives are transitioning more and more to digital communities. What does this mean for large-scale conferences, summits, trade shows, and the like? Many individuals would just as soon as stay home to attend an event digitally, comfy in their own home, as they would put in the effort to show up in person.
Connecting people to events, both real-world and online, is a new and exciting challenge that has arisen in recent years. With the rise of hand-held smart technologies, event coordinators are turning ever more frequently to an event app to organize, plan, and distribute content for their events. Whether they are running a completely in-person, virtual, or hybrid event, having a way to streamline the data, and keep it in one place, has become an essential need for any extensive experience.
Event App Popularity
When event apps were created they were meant to simplify processes and data collection at face-to-face gatherings. They were growing to include engagement with speakers’ presentations and sessions, as well. With the recent, massive swing into digital events, many of these apps’ reasons for existence were rapidly dying. However, it has now become clear there is still a place for physically-present events while also allowing space for those who wish to remain virtual to attend as well. These hybrid events are pushing app developers into new directions– such as creating a digital community where attendees both in-person and online can engage one another before, during, and after the conference. So, the swing in app popularity begins to rise again.
Event App Functionality
The way an app operates will depend on the needs of an event, and the possibilities are nearly endless. Here are a few essential functions you might be interested in for your event.
1. Event Ticketing and Registration
Critical for any event, no matter its layout or topics, is to collect registrations and distribute tickets. With the rapid movement into a digital world, people expect to be able to do all of this online. The most stressful part of the event can be setting up check-in, but with the touch of a screen and a quick scan, a guest’s information will pull up on your device instantly. No more hunting through lists of thousands of names to find the one you are looking for.
2. Stacking Compatibility of Organizer and Attendee Apps
Your organization app is going to be much more comprehensive than the attendees’ app as they don’t need access to all the things your organizers do. However, the apps should be able to interact seamlessly for updates, content distribution, check-ins, and the like. Finding a company that makes a stack of apps that are intended to work together saves you the hassles of hunting down an app for each purpose.
3. To Community and Beyond
Events used to be one-and-done kinds of deals. Once it was over, it was over, and rarely did a sense of community grow out of them. But, with all things virtual taking people’s lives by storm, it is not unheard of for digital societies to be thriving ecosystems where people interact with and support one another from afar. Your app could have the ability for you to create a community out of your event where you can continue to drop bits of content for them to share with another and thus keeping the conversation, and your event, alive in the public mind.
Event App Necessity
If you aren’t growing, you are dying, and event apps are a way to continue to move with the flow of progress in your industry. With hybrid events becoming more popular, apps are an important way to offer a similar experience to both virtual and in-person guests. Welcome to the rebirth and rise of event apps.
