When you’re building a list of registrants for your upcoming event, it can seem like there’s an elusive magic formula for getting everything just right. You have to make your ads visually appealing with copy that’s short enough to be engaging but long enough to be informative. You have to make your event sound attractive and enticing—and by the way, have you found the perfect venue for a reasonable price in a central location?
With so many elements to consider, it can be easy to let your registration form questions slip through the cracks. After all, you might think, I’m only gathering information. How important can it be?
The answer, as it turns out: more important than you’d think.
Why Focus on Registration Questions?
Attracting potential registrants with great copy and visuals is one thing, but keeping them engaged through the registration process is crucial. If you ask too many questions, many registrants will decide that signing up for your event isn’t worth the hassle.
Additionally, if you’re asking a lot of questions that don’t pertain to several registrants or don’t seem relevant to their interests, they’ll be turned off from coming altogether. They’ll start to wonder how important your event could possibly be if even the registration questions seem generic or overly specific.
Another good reason for asking the perfect questions is that you’ll need to gather information on registrants’ preferences and any special needs to incorporate them into your event planning. A perfectly tailored event will increase guest satisfaction and future return attendee rates.
What Questions Should I Ask?
Regardless of your event goals, the first questions you ask should regard contact information, including name, email address, physical address, and phone number. You should also request emergency contact information.
Next, you’ll need to determine what information you’re looking for. Do you want information on demographics? If so, what kind of demographics? They can include things like gender, age, job positions, associated companies, or personal interests.
Once you have a good idea of the information you’ll need, you can start forming your questions. It’s a good idea to ask between five and 10 questions. You can always ask more or fewer questions if you’d like, but those numbers are generally sufficient for getting enough information without losing registrants’ interest.
With that in mind, here are some examples of questions you might want to ask registrants.
- What is your industry?
- What is your job title?
- What is your age?
- What is your gender?
- How did you hear about this event?
- What’s your main goal in attending this event?
- What are you most looking forward to at this event?
- What topics are you most interested in?
- What kinds of sessions are you most interested in? (This can be a multiple-choice question, with options like “Ask an Expert,” “networking luncheon,” “group brainstorming,” etc.)
- Have you attended an event of ours before?
- What is the biggest challenge you’re currently facing in your professional life?
- How would you like to receive updates before this event?
- What is the best way to follow up with you after this event?
Other miscellaneous questions include:
- Sizing preferences (if you’re handing out swag)
- Special accommodations (including dietary restrictions, wheelchair access, and sign language interpreters)
- Photo and video consent and media release
- Liability waivers
Again, the important thing to remember when forming your questions is that you want to get the necessary information without registrants losing interest. If any of these questions aren’t relevant to your event planning process, leave them out.
It may take some tweaking to figure out which questions give you the best results in terms of both valuable data and low drop-off rates. You can always try making some questions optional to see what attendees view as useful information for you to know.
Analyze and Sort the Data
Once you’ve collected your data, you’ll need to sort and analyze it.
First, let’s focus on using the data to improve your event. Perfecting your event based on responses is vital to giving guests a top-notch experience. For example, if many registrants state they want to learn more about a certain topic, make sure to have several sessions dedicated to helping your registrants in that area.
This can extend to every aspect of your event. Even if it’s too late to change details like your venue or caterer, make adjustments where you can and consider their feedback for future events.
Another essential part of sorting your data involves using a sophisticated event registration platform. This software program should allow you to sort registrants according to the demographics you’re interested in viewing (age range, job position, etc.). From there, you can view the types of people your ads are converting.
You can then use your demographic information to optimize your marketing strategy. You’ll want to pay special attention to whether there are any patterns or trends in answers. If you see a number of registrants saying they’re interested in your “Ask an Expert” session held by a special keynote speaker, you can ramp up your marketing of that session to attract more registrants.
Similarly, if you see registrants in one certain demographic giving similar answers—say they’re interested in a certain topic or are facing similar professional-life problems—you can fine-tune your marketing strategy by focusing on those similar answers.
For example, let’s say you receive answers from many minorities saying they struggle to find their voice and feel that their opinions matter in the workplace. Not only can you create or enhance a session specifically helping those who feel underrepresented or unheard in the workplace, but you can craft an ad about this session and target it to more members of that minority.
An Engaging Event Starts at Registration
The best event managers are able to prepare an event that’s tailored right from the get-go—and that doesn’t mean when guests walk in the door. An engaging event starts when potential attendees open the registration form.
If those questions don’t keep their attention, you’ll not only lose out on registrants but also the vital information they would have given you. To effectively design a truly engaging event and keep guests returning, make sure your convention registration software gives you the tools to develop a successful registration form.