Event Management & Data

How to Have an Event Page that Boosts Registrations

Esteban Ochoa
November 17, 2016

Table of Contents

In part I of our Event Web Page Series, we have learned why it is so important to have an event web page – no matter the size, the purpose or the audience of your event. Also we already know, which elements to include in our event web page in order to enjoy all of its benefits. If you want to tap the whole potential of your event web page and get as many registrations for your event as possible, keep on reading and you’ll turn your event page into an attendee magnet.

Sure, having the right elements that make up your event web page is already half the battle. Often, however, your event page’s success depends on the details. One word, the title you choose, one field you include in your form or the phrasing you go for – all of it makes a huge difference and in the end decides whether you lose or win the battle.

Sometimes it is all the small things that bring the big guns in. That’s the reason why, in this post I will walk you through all the details you have to consider in order to turn your event web page into an attendee registration machine.

Top 6 tips to boost your registration number

  1. Create conquering CTA:

If I had to choose one single most important element of your event page, I’d say it is your CTA. Why? The success of your event page comes down to your CTA. Will visitors bounce off your page or will they convert into leads or registered attendees?

The good thing is: That’s not up to destiny. There are strategies to create an effective CTA that have proven to work:

  • If you are still using a CTA that says “subscribe” or “submit”, you should get rid of it right away.
  • Make the CTA as clear as possible.
  • Don’t distract your visitors with too many CTA. Choose one main CTA that lines up with the main goal of your event page.
  • Highlight the main CTA.
  • Be unique. If you come up with an unusual CTA, chances are you’ll capture more visitors.

In terms of semantics, your wording has a great impact on your conversion rate as well. As Neil Patel states in his article with tips for a flood of conversions, there are certain trigger words that lead to more conversions.

He urges us to use the word “GET” in your CTA and proves its effect with the results of the following A/B testing.

  1. CTA: Order information and prices
  1. CTA: Get information and prices

The second CTA achieved 14.79% more conversions. This is due to a psychological effect triggered by the connotation of the word “get”, which become clear looking at its synonyms that are associated with positive actions that lead to success. Furthermore, “get” implies a focus on the user instead of a brand or a product.

Order, on the contrary, is rather linked with having to pay for something and is more product-oriented.

Using the voice of the user is another way of influencing your conversion rate in a positive way. Include pronouns like “I, my, me”. They have a greater effect, since they address the visitor directly.

Words like “you, easy, save, now, and immediately” are also more likely to trigger a required action, since they are associated with benefits and/or create urgency.

As always, try things out, measure your results and adapt.

Just because one word worked great for one page, it doesn’t have to work for yours. Have a look at the word “again”. The word itself doesn’t have a great psychological impact, but looking at Donald Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America Great Again” it really does. It implies that America (he actually refers to the U.S.) was great once, but isn’t anymore now. The plain word “again” triggers the uncomfortable feeling of living in a country that has changed for the worse. It plays with people’s fears and worries.

  1. Play with the power of pain:

Speaking of psychological triggers, Neil Patel also explains that there are three types of pain that, if applied right, will increase your conversion rate.

  1. Anticipatory pain: is a pain that refers to concerns regarding the future. For instance: There will not be enough sponsors for your next event.
  2. Actual pain: is a pain they are currently experiencing. For instance: You are struggling with too many incompatible tech tools for your event management.
  3. Loss aversion pain: is the pain that comes along with loss, which is twice as powerful as the positive emotion of gaining something of equal value. For instance: Losing attendees due to bad event organization.

Now, go ahead and apply these examples so that they work for your event. It will pay off.

Neil backs up his theory with a practical example. Instapage was able to increase their CTR by 68% using a loss aversion headline.

Take account of your potential attendees’ pain and make sure you let them know that your event will relieve it.

  1. Have a heroic headline

Let’s dig a little deeper into the headline issue. First of all, if you are promoting your event through ads, the headline has to line up with the CTA of your ad. If it doesn’t, you will lose their trust before you’ve had the chance to win it. Bye, bye pretty little dollars spent on the ad clicks.

Be aware of the fact that digital copy has to be different than printed one. In printed media you have to fight for the reader’s attention. Headlines that stir up curiosity and that leave questions unanswered work well.

Digital media is played by different rules. People end up in front of your text, because they were already looking for it. They need to know right away, if they found what they wanted. Therefore, the headline needs to tell them. If it doesn’t: easy come, easy go.

Have an informative and clear headline and apply the tips above.

Examples:

  • International Business Meeting

Register now and stop missing out on the latest news and powerful tips

  • The Biggest Event Marketing Conference 2017

There are already xxxx event profs that will be doing it right in 2017. Will you be one of them?

  • Paris Book Fair 2016

Get the World’s Best Travel Deal: 17.328 Universes for only 19

  1. Put up a powerful proposition:

In the first article of the Event Web Page Series, I’ve already talked about which kind of information your event page has to include. Want to refresh your memory? Click here to get to the post.

Is a simple description of your event enough? Not quite. You should clearly state the value it offers and add an incentive to register. Instead of talking about a “Conference about new event technologies”, why not ask them to “Join our event tech conference and increase your ROI by XY%”?

Think about a way to show that you know what challenge they are facing, what needs and interests they have and draw the attention to the solution you offer.

Your offer can also be a discount. If you are offering discounts for your event, set a deadline for it and let your visitors know. Creating urgency drives them to register quicker.

E.g.: “Get registered today and save $50 on your ticket” or “Two days left! Get -30% on your ticket”

  1. Stay simple:

The more options you offer, the harder it is for your visitors to make a decision. Want to them to decide fast? Make it as simple as possible and lead them right up to the action you want them to take.

Keep your language simple as well. Don’t try to brag with technical terms, rather show them that you speak their language. Focus on their benefits and not on how great your organization is.

Be aware of the following aspects:

  • An event page doesn’t need a navigation bar. It will only derive people from getting to the registration part.
  • Only talk about the most essential information (no, that doesn’t include your company’s or event’s history)
  • The same goes for your registration form. Keep it as simple and short as possible. Only ask for the information you really need. The longer the form, the less conversions. Sometimes your form can drive away people only because it looks longer. Get rid of too much white space. Whenever possible add smart fields that autocomplete the rest of the fields if the visitor has already filled out a form on one of your pages.

Extra take away: Also test the position of your registration form. Does it generate more conversions if you put it at the top or at the bottom of your page? Is it more effective on the right or the left side? Or is the centered one the best option? Check which position gets the best results and go with it.

  1. Count on social proof:

If your visitors notice that a lot of people have registered for your event, they are more likely to register themselves. Don’t underestimate the power of social proof. In order to use it to boost your event, provide evidence:

  • display a list of registered attendees
  • include press releases
  • have convincing testimonials

Conclusion:

As you see, in many cases it’s the small details that make the difference. Keep that in mind as you go along creating your event page. The great thing about the digital world is the data it generates. If you don’t know which exact word to choose, run an A/B test and see which one works best. This goes for pretty much anything.

Only change one element when running an A/B test. Otherwise, it’ll be hard for you to figure out which aspect is responsible for the outcome.

Having an event web page is necessary to run a successful event. But as you know now, there are certain standards you have to live up to in order to actually benefit from your event page. If you do it, do it right.

Sarah Fichtinger ­ – Digital Marketing strategist

Discover how Eventtia helps world-leading brands digitize and scale their events

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Discover how Eventtia helps world-leading brands digitize and scale their events

Esteban Ochoa
CTO – Chief technology officer of Eventtia

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