MDVIP operates a network of physicians who practice preventative and personalized primary-care medicine. The event team supports MDVIP’s biennial national meeting and four annual recruitment programs, in addition to countless recruitment dinners, mid-size corporate events, an incentive trip, and annual holiday party. The small team helps support vital KPI’s tied to recruitment efforts, networking opportunities, and much more.
Scaling Expectations with a Small Team
With an expanding suite of events, the team knew they needed to scale without adding additional resources. Homegrown solutions included insufficient registration software that was supported with Excel sheets and other manual processes. “We have very small team, so using spreadsheets only made our job a lot more stressful and inaccurate,” notes Elizabeth Young, Event Manager. With their team stretched to the limit, the marquee event could only scale so far. They sought to bolster their marketing efforts, streamline registration, enhance reporting, and expand their mobile app use with an integrated technology solution.
As their smaller events depended heavily on providing white glove service, the team was hesitant to replace personalized experiences with automated technology. For their National Meeting in 2018, they needed to manage high expectations from executive management and the board of directors. The previous year’s meeting featured an event app that did not meet those expectations, as it was difficult to use, had an underdeveloped user interface, and failed to function as intended. Challenged to create a premier onsite experience, the team turned to event technology. “We were worried the technology had more features than we would ever use,” explains Elizabeth. “However, in the end, Cvent turned out to be the perfect match.”
Upgrading the Registration Experience with Cvent Solutions
Delving into the Cvent platform meant the entire team received hands-on training from their Cvent account team. By partnering with product experts, they leveraged the integrated platform to better support their 2018 National Meeting. Using Cvent’s Event Marketing and Management solution, they streamlined their registration process with a modern, intuitive website. By eliminating Excel documents and pulling key data into the backend, they were able to eliminate inaccuracies and countless hours of manual labor. The intuitive registration process impressed attendees while reducing frustrations and inquiries. The result was a 50% reduction staff requirements for registration management.
To create an even more impressive onsite experience, MDVIP adopted Cvent’s Onsite Engagement solutions. “When we started to use Cvent, we saw that there were many other tools within the product line that appealed to us. We ended up using OnArrival as a result,” notes Elizabeth. The team processed attendees at a record pace. Both attendees and staff were thrilled with reduced wait times and the elimination of a chaotic check-in experience. “I think it really changed the appearance of our meeting,” adds Elizabeth. “People felt like they were coming to an impressive, high tech conference where it really helped our company and our brand.”
A rapid check-in experience granted employees additional networking time with attendees, supporting goals for retention, higher renewal rates, and additional lead generation opportunities. “We literally cut our staff in half for that front desk, and we were able to get people through the lines quicker,” Elizabeth adds. As a value-add, the additional time created more opportunities for attendees to engage with sponsors and exhibitors as well.
An Unexpected Mobile App Success
By integrating the CrowdCompass mobile event app into their technology stack, the MDVIP team saw immense returns on their investment. Due to the older demographics of their attendees, they fielded concerns about potentially-low adoption rates. With a strategic adoption plan in place, those fears were quickly assuaged. They achieved a 72% adoption rate with high levels of engagement within the app. MDVIP could seamlessly communicate with attendees before, during, and after the event, providing important materials from breakouts and keynotes via the app. Printing costs for their program were drastically reduced from $4,000 to $300 as a result, a 92% reduction.
Most impressively, the events team was able to manage the entire app build. With an intuitive interface and backend, they created a powerful mobile user experience that included key icons, a schedule builder, interactive maps, Q&A, and gamification. The activity feed allowed attendees to post to social media platforms, providing additional organic social marketing for the event. With a dedicated app sponsor, they were able to generate unexpected revenue to further support the event. Attendees were also impressed with the self-networking feature, allowing them to virtually connect with peers.
Showcasing Event ROI through Custom Reporting
By integrating the dataflow between the various tools, MDVIP could sync key data points through on-demand reports for stakeholders. These could be customized to fit specific use cases, streamlining decision making and the overall planning process. The dynamic nature of this data allowed the team to examine key metrics in various formats to create actionable insights. “The level of detail in the reports and the many configurations of data that Cvent offered is more than we ever had access to with previous registration programs,” notes Elizabeth.
By providing data-backed reporting, the team has been able to reinforce the value of their events within MDVIP. “I think by incorporating the technology from Cvent and having the reporting on the backend, it allows us to show our management team how many people have registered, are using the app, or have checked-in at any given moment,” says Elizabeth. “I think it elevates how they see us and how they view this profession.”
Finding Value for Events of All Sizes
After seeing Cvent in action at the National Meeting, the team’s initial concerns about event technology were eliminated. “We realize that Cvent can benefit any size company,” explains Elizabeth. “When you compare the benefits from using the technology to the cost of the technology, it’s been a great investment for us.” The success of their National Meeting has encouraged the team to leverage onsite solutions for their smaller events as they seek to replicate the smooth check-in process. “I don’t think it matters the size of your event. Technology is always going to make things easier and better for you,” Elizabeth adds. The team was even recognized by senior leadership in front of the organization for the success of the National Meeting.
The events team looks forward to continuing their relationship with Cvent as they expand the success of their events. With a Salesforce integration in progress, the team calculated they would save one-and-a-half employee’s time and associated cost as a result. They would like to eventually add tools to their tech stack that support staff management, exhibitor appointments, room block management, and budgeting. “We may be unique in that we’re small, but we’ve embraced all that Cvent has to offer. Our team and our events are better for it,” Elizabeth insists.
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