There are numerous ways to go about doing registration for events. You could always go old school and use paper forms or jump into the future and do everything digitally. Depending on the size and audience of your event, either could work smoothly. But it’s not just about getting someone to the registration page. Just like directions on a map, guests have to get to the end of the process to be registered and actually come to your event. Here are 4 key ways to ensure guests get signed up (completely).
- Keep it short and simple – If the registration form is too complicated and/or long, it will detract people from registering. According to SurveyMonkey, forms that take more than 7-8 minutes to complete saw an abandon rate increase from 5% to 20%[1]. Here’s some things you need: first and last name, gender (if a kids/youth camp), phone number, email, emergency contact, shirt size (if applicable), payment information.
- Make it mobile friendly – Since everyone uses their phones these days, it only stands to reason that your registration form should be accessible through the same means. In 2018, 52.2% of website traffic was generated through mobile phones[2]. If your form can be filled out through a phone easily, then people are much more likely to do so right when they hear about it, instead of having to wait until they get home to their computer. That is, if they remember to do so. Remember what we said about short and simple. Non-mobile friendly webpages can be just as deterring, because they may not work correctly.
- Put the link EVERYWHERE – Make sure that no matter what potential guests are looking at, they have the capability to sign up then and there. This means every digital ad, post, banner, website, etc. has the link to the registration form. Marketing is all about guiding people to where you want them to go. Take them straight to the spot to register, just like showing them the “X” on the treasure map. Even if you are using print materials, you should still put the link on there, whether typed out or as a QR code. The latter is better if you can, since it works the same way as a link. Again, your link doesn’t have to have event information or flashy images, because that is what the promotion pieces are for. Send them directly to the registration form!
- Send a confirmation – Guests need to know that it all went through. Bad internet connections, stubby fingers, and missed submit buttons can all contribute to a user believing something worked that didn’t. A confirmation text or email that not only says “hey you’re signed up”, but also lists the registration details, avoids all confusion. Plus, if there is any debate later, this confirmation can be revisited to reconfirm the information.
The thing to remember is that this is NOT what gets guests registered. Your promotion materials should do that. But having the proper registration form is what gets them from initial interest to event attendance.
[1] How much time are respondents willing to spend on your survey? – SurveyMonkey https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/survey_completion_times/
[2] Percentage of all global web pages served to mobile phones from 2009 to 2018 - Statista https://www.statista.com/statistics/241462/global-mobile-phone-website-traffic-share/