Almost everyone has it, almost daily: procrastination. It doesn’t have to be negative, but it can be quite annoying when you organize an event. It is a strongly increasing trend; registering for an event as late as possible. With all the consequences. In this article I will dive into a number of practical tips to counteract this.
In the past if you wanted to go to an event, you would immediately
buy a ticket and put it in your agenda. Since corona, that has really changed. As an event organizer, moderator and speaker, I literally see it at every event I can contribute to. Where you used to be able to confidently determine a guest list with a fixed number of participants weeks or even months in advance, the majority of participants now only register at the last minute .
This really applies to all types of events ; corporate events, commercial events and networking events. From meet-ups to mega multi-day events, on really all types of topics. Months of intensive marketing aside; I have had multiple events where more than half of the visitors registered in the week before the event itself. Whichever fellow event organizer I speak to, everyone shares the same concern.
Last minute registration figures
Research shows that 48% of event organizers cite cancellation and flexibility policies as their top concern when planning events in 2024. This is because last-minute registrations make it necessary to build flexibility into contracts to avoid unexpected budget and staffing implications.
A recent survey of 360,000 event registrations by whatsapp data Maritz confirms this. Almost one in four participants (22%) waited until the last week before the event to register. 9% of participants only registered upon arrival at the venue. In addition, 45% of participants postponed their registration until less than four weeks before the event.
Also read: Organizing business events? Use data [7 steps]
Unfortunately here to stay
According to the aforementioned reports, late registration is now a result of cultural shifts and not just a trend. It’s just life in 2024. Online registration has made it much easier to sign up for events, leading to procrastination.
The need to make early travel and accommodation plans has been reduced by the quick and easy online bookings, even at the last minute. The uncertain economy also makes people more cautious about their spending, causing them to wait until the last minute to decide whether they can attend an event. In addition, young people prefer flexibility over early bird discounts and will only register if they are sure the event is worth it.
The lockdown already gave event organizers a big test in Fa’avae mo le puipuiga their ability to be flexible and creative. This ever-increasing trend does not make this test any less. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to reduce the number of late registrations. These are five ways that I have successfully applied to the events that I have had the opportunity to organize in the past six months:
1. Different birds
Most events now have different categories of tickets by lists that are available in different periods. Early birds and regular tickets. A category that is often forgotten is the ‘late bird’. For example, for tickets that are purchased in the last two weeks before an event. Because many events do not have these, there is no incentive for visitors not to register a day in advance. So always set a much more expensive ‘late bird’, to really give people a financial incentive to register earlier.
What also works very well, is to be very clear and transparent about the periods and prices from the start. A price table where people can see what the difference in price is, if they book in a certain period. I hear this clear comparison more often, that it made people decide to register on time, because a ticket cost half, for example, if people just book on time.
