MOBILE PLAYBOOKA guide to mobile event apps:Strategy, tactics and best practices.

Table of Contents

Mobile is king …Outfitting events with mobile apps used to be a nice

to have. Now it’s a “must-have” strategy for better managing events, empowering attendees, building

loyalty and growing your revenue.>The purpose of this Playbook is to help you put together a mobile strategy that best fits your business goals and objectives.

Mobile Playbook 01

02 Introduction: Why Go Mobile

03 Strategy Tip: Know what you Want to Achieve

04 10 Key Benefits of Mobile Apps

05 Understanding Mobile: Web vs. Native Applications

06 Mobile App Features

07 Tips for Selecting a Mobile Solutions Provider

08 10 Best Practices for Going Mobile

09 Mobile in the Event Lifecycle

10 Key Plays for Going Mobile

1 1 Mobile App Adoption Play

12 The Social Mobile Connection Play

13 Gamification

14 Cost and Monetization Play

15 Mobile Analytics Play

16 Mobile Terminology

17 Conclusion

THINK ABOUT THIS:

Look for this symbol. This directive icon is used throughout this Playbook to point out helpful tips and other important information.

Depending on which report you read, the average U.S. smartphone user has between 32 and 65 apps on their mobile device.

Between December 2011 and December 2012, the average time spent per day inside mobile apps by a U.S. consumer grew 35 percent – from 94 minutes to 127 minutes. By comparison, the average time spent on browsing the Web declined 2.4 percent – from 72 minutes to 70 minutes. By this measure, U.S. consumers are spending 1.8 times more time in apps than on the Web.

Clearly, your attendees are not only comfortable with mobile apps, but are coming to rely on them as part of their daily lives. And few industries can fully utilize the breadth and depth of mobile technologies as well as the meetings and events industry. Think of it: From content and mapping to gamification,

contact exchange and even augmented reality, the industry can make use of nearly all mobile functionality in one application.

With this Playbook, we hope to provide you an understanding of the inner workings of mobile applications and platforms, from strategy and tactics to monetization and metrics.

The meetings and events industry has crossed the chasm from the early adopters to the early majority. If you don’t have an event app, now is definitely the time to get started. If you do have an event app, now is the time to ensure you’re using the mobile technology not as a “me too” tool, but as an integrated component of a larger business strategy.

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Introduction:Why Go Mobile?

“Studies have shown that people would rather misplace their purse or all their credit cards than lose their mobile phone. What event organization doesn’t want to ride around as part of such a closely guarded item?”MIChelle BrUNO, PreSIDeNT, BrUNO GrOUP SIGNATUre AND

PUBlISher OF eveNT TeCh BrIeF NeWSleTTer

Business Objectives:

Before you can write your mobile event strategy, you need a clear understanding of your business goals. What is your organization trying to accomplish this year? Are you launching a new product? hoping to gain 20 percent more market share? Do you want your association to be seen as the education leader in your field? Maybe you want 500 new customers/members this year.

These are the goals that will drive your mobile event strategy. And they’re important to identify in order to design and launch the mobile event app that will push you toward that goal.

Event Objectives:

Though you certainly may have separate event goals – increase attendance by 10 percent, grow sponsor revenue 20 percent, etc. – your event goals should also tie to your organization’s business strategy. For instance, if your business goal is to get 500 new customers/members this year, what will you do at the event to help make that happen? And how can mobile support those efforts?

remember, too, that your mobile app exists primarily to serve your attendees. Yes, exhibitors may get great use from it as a scheduling tool, and you will find the real-time reporting and content delivery capabilities more than useful. But your mobile strategy will almost always be, mostly, to enhance the attendee experience.

For example, to drive 500 new customers/members this year, you could hold a mobile game for attendees during all your events in which the winner receives an annual membership or free trial. The game itself will drive engagement with attendees, while the entries can be identified for the sales funnel as people interested in obtaining that free trial or annual membership.

Armed with business and event goals, you can now start to write your mobile strategy – but keep your objectives realistic and measurable. And don’t bite off more than you can chew – one or two goals will do it.

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STRATEGY TIP: KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE

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10 Key Benefits of Mobile Apps

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1. Engagement. Increases engagement for attendees with the event and each other.

2. Experience. enriches the overall experience for attendees.

3. Reports. Increases session evaluations and event survey return rates.

4. Communication. Improves communication and interaction with attendees.

5. Results. Attendees see tangible outputs from attending – content, contacts, etc.

6. Cost Savings. reduced cost from eliminating or minimizing event guide printing.

7. Green. environmentally friendly content delivery.

8. Real Time Updates. Allows for real-time updates to schedules, exhibitor listings, etc.

9. Immediate Action. real-time reporting for onsite corrections/post-event decisions.

10. Continued Engagement. Persistent engagement with attendees year-round.

“The beauty of mobile is that it can delight your attendees while also improving their whole experience with your event. It can add a lot to their ability to network and engage – both with the event and each other. It also helps the event owner measure and track onsite behaviors like never before.”SeNIOr PrODUCT MANAGer, LANYON

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UNDERSTANDING MOBILE:WEB VS. NATIVE APPLICATIONS

There are two primary types of mobile applications – Web & native. While native apps increasingly dominate in consumer applications, many event apps are Web-based. That may change, however, as event apps gain traction as persistent communities and the development costs can be spread over more years. Bottom line? There is no right or wrong choice here. Each has its place in the market.

Web Applications

A mobile Web app is not installed on your mobile device, but can be accessed over the Internet through a browser. It is not downloaded from an app store, but from a Url, Qr code or icon you provide to attendees. A Web app is written in hTMl5, JavaScript and CSS and runs in a mobile browser. Web apps produce a good user experience consistent across a broad range of platforms. Web apps are:

– Accessible with any Web-enabled mobile device or operatingsystem

– easily discovered by browsing

– less expensive to develop than native apps

– Much quicker to deploy and update than native apps

– require consistent (though not constant) Internet access

– Dependent upon the speed of the Internet connection

– have less sophisticated (more browser-like) search capabilities

– easily shared with attendees using a Url

Native Applications

Native applications are downloaded from an app store and installed on mobile devices. They’re usually very fast and polished, and create a better user experience than a Web app. But each platform you need to support (iOS, Android, Windows, etc.) requires a unique app, making them more expensive than Web apps – and more time-consuming to develop. Native apps are:

– Downloaded from an app store (and therefore must meetspecific requirements)

– Built around the functionality of each operating system(creating longer development times)

– More expensive to develop than mobile Web apps

– Allow in-app push notifications to deliver real-time information

– Able to handle more complex functions (advertising andtransactions) more efficiently

– Don’t (typically) require Internet access

– Faster and more responsive

– More sophisticated in their search capabilities

There is, in fact, a third type of mobile application – the hybrid app. hybrid apps combine elements of both Web and native apps. Think of it like a Web app inside a native wrapper. like native apps, this type of app is downloaded and installed on mobile devices through app stores. But the development time and budget are less than that of a native app – and only the techiest people can tell the difference.

HYBRID APPLICATIONS

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2Evaluate

– What’s the bandwidth and how good are the mobilecarriers?

– Test the upload and download speed yourself atwww.speedtest.net.

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Most event mobile solutions offer a core set of features. Based on your business and event objectives, select the features that make sense for your event. Be careful to avoid “Feature Creep,” where you become enamored with the bells and whistles of new features and forget your objectives.

here are common features for mobile event apps:

– Electronic agendas/programs (dates, locations, times,session descriptions, etc.)

– Networking/social media/friend finding (event and location-based)

– Group alerts and messaging (SMS, email, groupannouncements)

– Peer-to-peer communication

– Ticketing and access control

– Audience polling - automated session evaluations and post-event questionnaire

– Personal calendars

– Appointment scheduling

– Local area information (GPS-enabled)

– Exhibit guides with interactive floorplans

– Wayfinding and mapping (through exhibit hall, venue, nearbyattractions, city)

– Lead exchange/integration with contact managers

– Mobile registration

– Attendee directory

– Content distribution - paper replacement (session handouts,course notes, exhibitor literature)

– Content distribution - video (YouTube, conference streamingmedia)

– Evaluations of speakers, sessions, overall event and otheractivities/services

– Exhibitor management, including interface with exhibitservice contractor

– Favorites - collections of information or contacts from theevent

– Gaming - task lists, leaderboards, photos

– Housing management, including interface with housingprovider

– Marketing and advertising of events and sub-events

– Event logistics management (including attendeemanagement, housing management, budget tracking, eventspecs and spend tracking)

– Site inspection checklist

– Transit tracking (flight tracking, light rail times, etc.) and otherbusiness travel tools

– Ads - the ability to display ads to generate revenue

– News - event or industry updates

– Social media - built-in access to Twitter, Facebook, linkedInor an internal social network

GET STARTED!

1Assess your attendees’ mobile usage

– At what stage is your audience?

– What mobile devices are they using? (Tablets demandmore bandwidth than phones)

– how many attendees will simultaneously do what?

Mobile AppFeatures “Today, an attendee seeking information for an

event will first turn to mobile devices. This is a huge shift in the event space, and no event organizer can afford to overlook this trend.”JASON PAGANeSSI, vP OF BUSINeSS INNOvATION,

PrOFeSSIONAl CONveNTION MANAGeMeNT ASSOCIATION (PCMA)

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TIPS FOR SELECTING A MOBILE SOLUTIONS PROVIDERq Start with a list of industry mobile solutions providers. Though

you can certainly have an app custom-built by an app developer, it’s not usually necessary since there are so many event-specific apps already out there.

q Solicit input from key internal stakeholders.

q Get feedback from industry colleagues with mobile apps.

q Identify the solutions that have the features and functions you want.

q establish your selection criteria, e.g. price, timing, expertise, etc.

q You may choose to issue a request for Proposal (rFP) to mobile solution providers.

q Make a short list of three or four providers and begin comparing their solutions.

– Do they offer a native solution or Web-based app?

– Ask for links to other event apps and download them ontoyour mobile device and test the functionality and userexperience.

– how is the user interface? easy to navigate? Clearyunderstood?

– how are the graphics – visually appealing without losingfunctionality?

– Will the look and feel reflect well on your organization?

– What is their anticipated deployment time for release of theapp?

– Carefully review the back-end reporting and metrics theyprovide – will it meet your needs?

– have they handled events of your size and scope in thepast?

– What are all the costs?

– Do they have the ability to assist and makerecommendations for keeping the app running year-round?

– What ideas and assistance do they offer to aid in adoptionof the app?

q Call and check references:

– Did the vendor hit the agreed upon deployment schedule?

– Were there any unexpected charges?

– Was the onsite support sufficient?

– What was the adoption rate of the app?

Once you select a vendor and begin development, stay focused on your strategy and be wary of feature creep.

Selecting your mobile solutions provider is a critical step toward success. The vendor you select will not only build or customize a solution for your event, but their support and customer service will be invaluable – especially onsite. After you’ve defined your strategy and identified the features you’ll need, start with these items.

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1. Start with strategy. Approach a solution provider with event objectives rather thandesired features and functions. The technology changes quickly and there may be newerways to reach the same goals.

2. Know what you need. Select a mobile app as a solution to an existing problem oras part of an event strategy, rather than something “cool” that everyone else has.

3. Less is more. limit the number of features to 10 or less. Too many options canoverwhelm users, crowd the user interface and drain battery life.

4. Focus on the user experience. look for an intuitive, user-friendly,easy-to-navigate application with a simple user interface.

5. Consider your audience. know what types of devices attendees use, and select aprovider that can accommodate those specific platforms.

6. Adoption is key. Add a budget for promoting the event app to attendees. Adoptionwill suffer if users don’t know about it.

7. Think beyond the event. Select an application that provides value before, duringand after the event.

8. Provide onsite assistance for new users. Not everyone knows his or her wayaround a mobile app. Some need help.

9. Consider your venue. Not every conference center has free Wi-Fi or great mobilenetwork coverage in every room.

10. Plan your time. Give yourself ample time to select and configure a mobileapplication. Organizations that carefully think through strategy and implementationtypically experience better results. Start at least six months out.

10 Best Practices for Going Mobile

“We wanted a mobile solution to replace our printed program guide and allow attendees to view maps and the meeting agenda. last year, we began using the game features and this year we added the one-to-one meeting scheduler. We also use our mobile application to give our sponsors exposure and collect session evaluations and the event survey.” kAreN ZUNkOWSkI, DIreCTOr OF COrPOrATe eveNT MArkeTING, SYMANTeC

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While mobile technology is most noticeable during a live event when attendees are away from their desks and computers, mobile solutions can be useful throughout the event life cycle. Applications that function over an extended period of time—before, during and after the event—are more valuable to event stakeholders.

Attendees can start accessing event content (for registration, social media, communities) earlier, and continue using the application (for news, industry updates, peer-to-peer engagement) post event. And exhibitors and sponsors can receive prolonged brand exposure, while planners collect more data and analytics.

MOBILEBEFORE THE EVENT:Get people excited about your event by getting your speakers, attendees and exhibitors/sponsors involved.

– encourage attendees to view session andspeaker information online.

– Promote the mobile app often and early toencourage downloads and access.

– Provide updates on new speakers, sponsorsand exhibitors.

– launch a game that begins before theevent.

– Include links in email communications to amobile registration site.

– encourage attendees to set upappointments in advance.

– Upload 2-3 minute videos that are onlyavailable via the mobile event app.

MOBILEDURING THE EVENT:Integrate mobile to increase engagement for all event attendees.

– easily provide information in the palm oftheir hand – sessions, speakers, maps, personalized schedules, etc.

– Push real-time updates and announcements,e.g. changes in schedule, news, busschedules, etc.

– encourage attendees to like, share and tagcontent.

– Update a real-time dashboard for gameplay.

– Use mobile to schedule 1:1 meetings ornetwork with others.

– Send surveys after keynotes and sessionsto increase response rates.

– encourage social media use, such asuploading photos.

– Send coupons and special offers from localrestaurants.

MOBILEAFTER THE EVENT:Continue the conversations started at the event. Consider making your mobile app a year-round community, dealing with industry issues and helping to shape your next event – or even launch new ones.

– Post presentations, Q&A transcripts andother content from sessions.

– load more video snippets from sessions –or “behind the scenes” speaker interviews.

– Create and post a highlight reel of the event.

– Provide updates on plans and progress forthe next event.

– Invite attendees for feedback on proposedspeakers, topics and improvements to helpshape the next event.

Mobile in theEvent Lifecycle

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KEY PLAYSFOR GOINGMOBILE

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“On my flight to Cisco live, I went into the iPhone store at the airport and downloaded the CiscoLive App. It made it easy to figure out where I was going, with quick links to maps and so on. Way to go Cisco, nice job!”JereMY DUvAll, DIreCTOr OF IT ArChITeCTUre AND eNGINeerING, ST. JOSePh heAlTh SYSTeMS

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even the best mobile app will fail without widespread adoption. The good news is that adoption rates in the industry are soaring – sometimes as high as the 90th percentile. Your rate of adoption will depend upon your industry, your attendees and the effort you put forth. Think of it just as you would any other marketing campaign. remember, too, that downloading the app isn’t enough – you must continually give themreasons to use it before, during and after the event.

– Deploy your mobile app at least 30-60 days in advance andpromote it often. Though most attendees download the appwithin a week of the event, you should continuously remindusers the app exists as soon as it’s live.

– Place download information in a prominent location on theevent home page. Websites are the go-to resources for tradeshow and conference participants, and will likely be the firstplace attendees go to find the mobile app.

– Take advantage of any and all marketing channels, includingsocial media, to get the word out about the mobile app.Tweet reminders, post links or pin pictures to make it easy forusers to download and use the app.

– Use Qr codes on all printed materials in advance – and onsignage throughout the event. Alternatively, use a short, easyUrl.

– educate your speakers, exhibitors and attendees on themobile app. hold 10-minute webinars before the event.Create and promote a five-minute how-to video.

– Ask exhibitors and speakers to forward the Qr code or Urlto their customers and followers.

– Prepopulate content within the app to encourage adoptionand engagement. If the early content isn’t compelling youmay not get a second chance. Consider exclusive mobilecontent and promote it through social channels. As you get tothe 30-day window, push out new content two to three timesa week.

– Provide onsite assistance through signage, individuals orspecially designated areas (a mobile app “bar”) on the showfloor or in the meeting space to help users download and usethe app effectively.

– have the opening keynote speaker discuss – and perhapsshow – the mobile app.

– Offer attendees a compelling reason to use the app duringthe event. Include a game element.

– reduce the content in the printed guide to encourage peopleto use the app. Use abbreviated course descriptions in theprinted guide, for instance, saving full course descriptionsfor the mobile app – along with handouts, a video previewfrom the speakers, etc. (Caveat: Though their generationand industry is telling, only you know your audience and candetermine their reaction to a reduced printed program. Somedo resist the mobile apps and must be pulled in over a seriesof events.)

– Make passwords and login information easily accessible orrecoverable to reduce the number of inquiries to technicalsupport or event management.

– Promote usage of the app before, during and after the event.Offer new content at various times.

– For the remote or virtual audience, promote the mobile appas an effective method for following the onsite activities.

Mobile AppAdoption Play

Bizreport.com reports that social media use via mobile devices in on the rise. Forty-six percent of social users accessed social media from their smartphones in 2012 – up from 37 percent in 2011, while tablet use for accessing social networks increased from 3 percent to 16 percent in the same time. Take advantage of this social mobile connection in a number of ways:

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“The fundamental purpose of a mobile phone – to connect people – makes it a natural fit for social media.”JUSTIN rAMerS, DIreCTOr OF DIGITAl AND SOCIAl MeDIA, LANYON

The Social Mobile Connection Play

– request that attendees add their Facebook,Twitter and linkedIn accounts during theregistration process or as they check in to shareposts and information with their peers.

– ensure that your mobile event easily allowsattendees to automatically contribute to socialmedia conversations from within the app.

– Develop tactics for using the app to extend theevent brand on social media channels, such asembedding the event hashtag in tweets or placingthe event logo in Facebook posts made fromwithin the app.

– ensure the app provides users with a seamlessway to embed pictures—one of the most populartypes of social media posts from mobile devices—into tweets, Facebook posts, Instagram and othersocial platforms.

– Consider implementing game elements withmissions and tasks that require players to log intosocial networks from their mobile devices duringthe event.

– Make content in the app shareable (whenappropriate), including speaker bios, schedules,slides and blog posts using sharing tools thatallow users to easily post content to their socialmedia channels from the app.

– remind attendees to use their mobile devices totweet, post and share by including the requestin speaker housekeeping notes, embeddingTwitter hashtags on slides and placing signagethroughout the event.

Engaging attendees through gamified experiences has many benefits, including improved booth traffic and lead gen; connecting all the technology touch points of your event into a single recognition program; and motivating the behaviors you want while delivering a more meaningful experience for attendees.

But what is gamification? Quite simply, it’s the process of using game, social and reputation mechanics to drive desired behaviors. Members not posting enough in your community? Offer points for each post that can recognize them as “key influencers.” Buyers not visiting enough booths? Create a scavenger hunt on the show floor that drives them to specific booths for relevant information. virtual event attendees not participating during sessions? Create a leaderboard online that designates various titles for various levels of involvement.

Games can also work to extend the event’s life cycle to motivate behaviors before, during and after. Your game can even be designed with the aim of improving the adoption of the mobile app.

Here’s an example of an event with a goal of increasing activity in its online community, pre-event:

– The community had more than 250,000 members, but it wasa challenge to motivate them to post messages, completeprofiles, answer questions, etc.,

– A game was created that awarded points for various activities– 180 points for posting a blog, 160 points for starting adiscussion, 200 points for answering a question, and so on

– The event was tied in, as well. Checking in with your badge ata designated location earned community points.

– Next came a series of “missions.” Online it might be 50comments unlock a “Master Commentator” badge, while atthe event a group of relevant booths had to be visited to earnanother badge.

– As points rose, rewards were earned. Unlocking a badge,for instance, might enter the user into a raffle for a personalmeeting with a senior executive or subject matter expert.(You can certainly give away iPads or other prizes, butsocial recognition and special privileges can be even moreimpactful.)

– The results of the game?

• A 21 percent increase in overall community user activity – including a 19 percent increase in the number of filesdownloaded and a 41 percent increase in the number of videos viewed.

• On the show floor, about 1,000 people took part in the experience.

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Gamification“events are unique in that they have many technology touch points – mobile apps, the show website, maybe a community, multiple social media fronts, check-ins and other digital activities. Gamification can help tie all these pieces of the event experience, including offline behaviors, together into a single program.”TYler AlTrUP, SOlUTIONS ArChITeCT, BADGevIlle

2Define a specific mission that captures all your event technology touch points for those attending. – And use social technology so those who couldn’t attend

can follow along.

3Focus on your rewards– What will motivate your attendees?– Status?– recognition?– Access?– Privilege?

GAMIFICATION BEST PRACTICES

1Design first for simplicity. – Identify the four or five key event behaviors you want to

influence.

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“The cost for a mobile event app will depend upon the level of customization. Self-service tools are available that provide quick, easy WordPress-type templates for minimal expense. The more handholding you need beyond that, the more you’ll pay.”SeNIOr PrODUCT MANAGer, LANYON

Cost and Monetization Play

Costs for a mobile app can range from free (for do-it-yourself apps) to $50,000 (for custom-built native apps). In order to establish a budget, you’ll need to:

– revisit your strategy document and determine whatfeatures and functions you must have in order to meetyour goals and what “extras” you can forgo.

– Determine whether you’ll need a custom-built app or ifyou can use an event app already on the market.

– If you’re going to custom create, do you need a native appor a Web-enabled app?

– There are some developers that will charge based uponthe number of downloads. If you’re using that model, besure to factor in your projected downloads.

– Factor in the costs you will eliminate, as well, such asprinting and shipping event guides.

– Are you using this app for a single event or as a persistentcommunity solution? Not only will this impact your costsand resources, but it may allow you to spread thosedevelopment costs.

Sponsorships

The costs you can’t eliminate can be mitigated somewhat through the use of sponsorships or advertising within the app. Unfortunately, it can be impossible to demand the price for digital ads you once received for print ads in the guide. The stronger your mobile app adoption rate, the better for both demand and pricing.

The most common mobile app sponsorship opportunities are:

1. Title sponsor. Sponsor gets a logo on every page.

2. Rotating banner ads. These ads can rotate from the frontpage to various feature pages within the app.

3. Splash screens. Interstitial pages that appear when the userclicks an icon, but before their requested page comes up. Justlike the ads on YouTube. Be judicious in your use of these asthey can become very annoying.

4. Enhanced exhibitor listings. These can be highlighted listingswithin the exhibit directory; they can be listings with additionallinks and materials for download; or they can be listings thatare moved to the top of a page on an alphabetical list (likeGoogle ads).

5. Push notifications. let exhibitors send messages to all orselect groups of attendees. Again, however, be careful. Toomany “Stop by the XYZ booth for your chance to win ABC,”will get old quickly. help exhibitors make their notificationsmeaningful and limit the number per day.

6. Brand specific features. let exhibitors brand certain portionsof the mobile app, such as the agenda or scheduling tool.

7. Gamification. exhibitors are often included as parts of gamesand some pay for this inclusion. But make a consciousdecision about whether or not monetizing your game isright for you. You might prefer to plan your game aroundencouraging specific behaviors, and sponsors might not fit intothat model.

8. Exhibit surveys. Sell the right for an exhibitor to host a surveywithin your app. Maybe they’re looking for feedback on a newproduct or crowdsourcing new features. Most mobile appshave a polling or survey feature that can be used.

9. Bundling sponsorship opportunities. Some planners find itonerous to sell small mobile app sponsorship opportunitiesand would rather bundle the options within larger eventsponsorships.

10. Paid technical content. There are highly technicalconferences that actually charge attendees for the eventmobile app – but their conference proceedings wereoften sold as paper documents, as well, and their apps arefiled with enduring content. Think about any content yourorganization does sell. Could it be offered as an in-apppurchase at the event?

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Analyzing Your Plays

DRIVE ADOPTION ANDPARTICIPATION

PROVIDE MORE VALUE TO EXHIBITORS AND SPONSORS

ENHANCE THE PARTICIPANTEXPERIENCE

BUILD COMMUNITY

INCREASE DEMAND IN NEWAND EXISTING EVENTS

NUMBER OF ITEMS VIEWED/DOWNLOADED, FEATURES ACCESSED, TIME IN APP,

APPOINTMENTS, GAMES PLAYED,SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE, LIKES,

TAGS, SHARES. MESSAGING

REPEAT REGISTRATIONS

PUSH NOTIFICATION RESPONSES, BOOTH CHECK-INS, TAGS, GAMES,

APPOINTMENTS, LEADS

DOWNLOADS, MESSAGES, SHARES, GAMES, APPOINTMENTS, FEATURES

ACCESSED, SURVEYS COMPLETED

VISITS (ESPECIALLY AFTER EVENT), MESSAGES, CONNECTIONS

HOW TO MEASURE YOUR RESULTS:

Source: Lanyon

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”The information we collect in real-time has driven onsite rapid responses to make immediate event adjustments and has provided rich data to enhance future events.”FOrTUNe 100 TeChNOlOGY COMPANY

It really doesn’t matter which method you choose to measure your results. What matters is that you do.

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METRICSGOAL

Mobile Terminology16Mobile Playbook

Application or App: A self-contained program or piece of software that runs on smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices.

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device): refers to the policy of permitting employees to use their personal mobile devices to access company information.

Feature Creep: extra or unnecessary features that creep into products (especially software) because they are sexy or fun, but often has little to do with the original goal of the program.

Gamification: The process of using game, social and reputation mechanics to drive desired behaviors.

Geolocation: Detecting the physical location of an Internet-connected device.

HTML5: The newest version of the programming language that makes it possible for users to view Internet content through a Web browser.

Hybrid App: Combines the features and functionality of a native application with persistent access to the Mobile Web via a mobile browser.

Mobile Network: Uses radio signals, transceivers (cell towers) and unique frequencies to create a patchwork of connections (cells) that allow mobile devices to communicate.

Mobile Operating System or Platform: The software that allows mobile devices to work, such as iOS (Apple), Android, Blackberry and Windows.

Mobile Web: refers to Internet access via a mobile device that is connected to a cellular or wireless network.

Native App: An application that has been developed to operate on a particular platform or device and offers specific functionality for the user. It’s usually downloaded from an online store.

Smartphone: A mobile telephone, built on a mobile operating system, with computer capabilities and Internet connections.

SMS (Short Message Service): The term used to describe text messaging.

Web-Enabled App: An application that is accessible with any Web-enabled mobile device or operating system. Does not usually need to be downloaded from an online store.

Wi-Fi: A type of wireless Internet technology that uses radio waves and access points to broadcast a signal that smart devices can “tune” into in order to communicate.

Mobile applications have so quickly become omnipresent in our lives that it’s easy to forget they’re still a relatively new technology. Remarkable improvements are on the horizon, including:

Personalization and recommendations. Using algorithms much like Amazon, event apps will soon use attendee behaviors and responses to surface recommendations – for sessions, exhibitors, connections, etc.

Enhanced networking. The networking we’ve seen to date is just the beginning. Imagine walking into a session and knowing which attendees seek the same solution as you. Or scouting for new hires through your mobile app. even competitive analyses will take on new meaning with information stored in the mobile app.

Interactivity. Mobile apps will increase the ‘heads-down’ phenomena at events. Attendees are in the session physically, but also following and annotating the PPT on their mobile device, sharing comments on social media and answering polling questions from their phones.

Persistent communities. Why let a great mobile app sit dormant? The increase in the use of mobile apps through multiple events, year in and year out, is inevitable.

A mobile app is more than just a replacement for a paper guide. It’s a tool for engaging your audience with the event and with one another. It enriches the overall conference experience for your attendees and provides tangible outputs from the event – content, contacts, etc. – documenting its value. And it extends the reach of your event to a remote audience.

Whether you already have a mobile app or you’re just beginning development, it will quickly become an invaluable part of your event experience.

Learn more about how Lanyon’s suite of event management technology helps you bring the benefits of mobile event solutions to your organization, attendees, exhibitors and business partners.

Additional Resources: “5 Ways Mobile Technology is reshaping events.”

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For more information on how Lanyon can help you turbocharge your event marketing and mobile event solutions:

(US Toll free) 855ACTIVE8 / 855.228.4838 (Uk) +44 (0) 207.313.5701

sales@lanyon.com

www.lanyon.com

Conclusion

About Lanyon

Lanyon is the leading provider of cloud-based

software for the Meetings and Events industry and

Transient Hotel Programs. Leveraging more than 40

years of industry experience, Lanyon enables

thousands of associations, small to midsize

businesses, and enterprise organizations around the

world to drive efficiency, engagement, and growth

from their meetings, events, and travel investments.

Clients include 70 percent of the Fortune 500, 80

percent of the Business Travel News Corporate

Travel 100, and more than 100,000 hospitality

suppliers.

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