People, people as far as the eye can see.
I wouldn’t mind having such a turn out at my next event. Who would?
For some of us, we have had the great experience of a full turnout. 100%.
For the rest of us, getting even 50% of our registered attendees to show up at the event can be difficult at times! Talk about event management.
Here are 3 tips on increasing attendance at your next event.
1. Make your RSVP easy to decline
“Wait, what?”
“Make my RSVP easy to decline? Are you kidding?”
No, I am not. This might seem counterintuitive, but I assure you it’s better.
When you allow people to decline, you free up spots for people on your waiting list. Let interested people attend your event! This will result in more realistic attendance numbers for your analysis.
One of the ways to do this would be including a link to an online personalised form that allows an attendee to opt out.
This form can act as an opportunity to check an attendee’s interest for future events.
2. Include Calendar Invite & QR Code Ticket in your Confirmation Email
Some of your attendees might have many things planned in the weeks leading up to your event. Make it simple for them to remember your event details.
In your confirmation email, include:
1. Calendar Invite
When people get your confirmation email, they can put it in their calendars immediately. That way, they will not have to go searching for the event details at a much later date.
Worst still, they might forget about it completely.
2. QR Code Ticket
To simplify your event on-site process further, include a QR Code ticket. This will make on-site check ins much quicker and easier for attendees.
3. Remind Pre-Registered People
Having followed the two tips above, there is one last important tip.
Remind your pre-registered attendees. This is crucial.
The 3 main channels you can remind them through are:
- Phone Calls
- SMS/Messaging
Through reminders, you can reignite the interest for your event and confirm their attendance. This also helps with attendance data accuracy for your event management.
Conclusion
With these basic tips, you’ll be well on your way to increasing attendance at your events. Make the process seamless and easy to navigate.
I’ll leave you with an example of what we’ve created for our talk on Cloud-Based Event Management for Governments and Enterprises previously.
