When people refer more generally to the idea of an “event app“, on the other hand, they usually mean tools aimed at attendees and built to enrich the experience of the event.
These offer services and tools over and above the physical ones, designed to help people get the most out of the event: online agendas, interactive maps, personalised programmes, live surveys, networking tools and entertainment.
Two different tools, then, for different audiences and different jobs. But how do you choose the right one for what you need? We are asked this often, which is why we decided to put together a short three-step guide to help you work out how to choose and make the most of each.
1. Focus on: guest management and attendee experience
Event management apps are designed to help organisers plan and handle the logistical side. Their main functions include managing invitations and building attendee lists, so you keep precise control over who is coming and can communicate with them easily.
Event apps aimed at attendees, by contrast, are focused on improving the guest experience during the event. They offer a set of tools for finding your way around and connecting with other attendees efficiently, for expressing yourself and being heard and — why not — for having a bit of fun along the way.
2. Focus on logistics and engagement
Event management apps help you plan activities, manage venues and assign tasks, making it easier to keep everything in view and ensure every detail is properly looked after. Access control by scanning attendees’ QR codes, for instance, is a key function for handling entry safely and in an orderly way, and at the same time it dematerialises entries and exits, making every process smoother and more pleasant.
Event apps, by contrast, put the emphasis on interaction between attendees and the event itself. Features such as live surveys, Q&A sessions and real-time voting encourage active participation, making the event more dynamic and more engaging — and also helping gather feedback that is extremely valuable to organisers.
3. Focus on communication and updates
Event management apps lean heavily on communication and information, letting organisers send updates and notifications to attendees efficiently and immediately as the need arises. They also keep all the most important event data in view at all times, so changes or corrections can be made, including in real time.
Event apps, for their part, are the other end of that communication system, since they have to be able to receive all useful information as promptly and efficiently as possible and, above all, notifications and updates in real time. Alongside that, they need to allow booking and quick, easy access to event materials (updated in real time), to speaker biographies and contacts, and to the sponsor area or appointments with consultants and suppliers.
In short? Event management apps and event apps are two sides of the same coin, two halves that complete each other and that extend the functions and effectiveness of that complex ecosystem which every event is. They are agile, powerful, fast tools, at the same time practical and — when well designed — intuitive enough that whoever uses them can draw the maximum benefit straight away. They are therefore excellent allies for strengthening both the organisational and management side of an event and the side more concerned with taking part and experiencing it — which can be enriched enormously and extended well beyond the boundaries of any single event. As almost always, what matters is knowing which questions and needs they are being asked to answer, so that they can answer them as well as possible, including through bespoke design that creates exactly the right tool for the requirement.