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Every year thousands of people need a bone marrow donation. Without central organizations such as bone marrow registries, these people would probably have no chance to survive. Therefore, we are very proud that the LineUpr app is also used by such organizations.
Today we have Martine Schuit from the World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA) as a guest. She used LineUpr for the WMDA Anniversary Conference. In the interview, Martine tells us which printed products she used, how she shared the app with the participants and what other organizers should consider. Really worth reading. 😊
LineUpr: Hello Martine. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the World Marrow Donor Association.
Martine: Hi there, my name is Martine and I am WMDA’s office manager and executive assistant. The World Marrow Donor Association is the international association for all stem cell and bone marrow donor registries, where volunteers can sign up to become a donor for patients with diseases that compromise the blood-forming system and/or immune system (like leukemia and other forms of blood cancer). Many Public Cord Blood Banks (for stem cells from umbilical cords) and transplant centers are also members of our association. Together we strive to ensure patients worldwide have equal access to high-quality cells for transplantation from donors whose rights and safety are protected.
LineUpr: You’ve used LineUpr for the WMDA Anniversary Conference. Tell us more about that event? Which target group did you want to address?
Martine: Every year a WMDA member hosts a conference for all members, so we can connect to share best practices and collaborate to improve our work. Because we celebrated our 25th anniversary this year, WMDA decided to host the conference herself. We had a wonderful gathering with over 220 attendees from 55 countries in the beautiful beach town of Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
LineUpr: What strategies and tools do you use when addressing this target group? Do you attach particular importance to something special?
Martine: We communicated about the conference on multiple platforms: our website, our newsletter Stem Cell Matters and through social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
LineUpr: Do you also use printed products for marketing the event or distributing information on-site? If so, which and why?
Martine: We printed a flyer that was distributed during the conferences prior to our anniversary conference to create more awareness and to make it more visible and easier to scan the QR-code. This was an addition to all our online and digital activities.
We only received positive feedback: the app was easy to use and the information was clear.
LineUpr: How much in advance do you publish the app? What information do you already communicate via the app before the event?
Martine: We published the app two weeks before the conference to give the participants and speakers the time to install the app and give feedback before the event started. Also, we communicated all the information we already had at that time through the app: our programme, the speakers, information about the surroundings of the conference venue and our sponsors.
LineUpr: When and how do you inform the participants of the event about the event app?
Martine: We informed the participants through a special newsletter for attendees only. We added the QR-code for scanning. We also had pictures of the QR-code with a short instruction on all the conference tables and at the reception desk.
We would definitely use LineUpr for future meetings.
LineUpr: How did your visitors react to the app?
Martine: We only received positive feedback: the app was easy to use and the information was clear.
LineUpr: We want to grow daily and offer our customers a better experience, what features would you like for the app and why?
Martine: A feature we missed was the ability to see how many people had installed or viewed the app and when most people installed the app. This makes it hard for us to see whether the app was used and how much is was used This would have been an addition to determine the usefulness of the app.
LineUpr: Which top three tips would you like to give to other organizers when using LineUpr?
Martine: 1. Send the app to your speakers first. They can then confirm whether the information about them is correct so you can adjust things before the big public sees it.
2. Make sure the speakers send you information about themselves beforehand, including a picture of themselves. This saves you a lot of time looking for it yourself and also ensures all the information in the app is correct.
3. Make sure you have QR-codes visible everywhere, as you can’t scan a QR-code from your phone screen.
LineUpr: Thank you, Martine, for the great interview. Your mission is indescribably valuable. Thanks to you, human lives are saved daily. It makes us proud that we were allowed to contribute a small part to the conference with our event app. There is also a lot of information about the WMDA online. They are also active on Facebook and if you would like to get in touch with Martine directly, you are welcome to contact her on LinkedIn.
We are already looking forward to your next events.
