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Today it is about prevention in the workplace. We welcome Dorothea Kraft of the Berufsgenossenschaft Handel und Warenlogistik (BGHW) to our blog. Through symposia, the BGHW regularly informs about research projects in the area of occupational safety and health protection.
And what is one of the best preventions for bad participant communication at events? Right, the use of an event app! Dorothea shares with us her experiences with LineUpr and why an event app is a useful tool for subscriber communication. A great customer story for organizers of symposia. Have fun while reading. ?
LineUpr: Hello Dorothea. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the BGHW.
Dorothea: We work for safe and healthy jobs for approximately 5.3 million insured in approximately 378 000 companies in the retail and logistics sector. The employers’ liability insurance association for trade and goods logistics (BGHW) is a carrier of legal accident insurance. Through targeted prevention, we support entrepreneurs in the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases. In the event of damage, we ensure the best possible rehabilitation and ensure the livelihood of the insured and their families through cash benefits. My field of activity is in prevention; in the trade and logistics department, I advise companies that, for example, want to implement a novel work process in their intralogistics, also in close cooperation with the respective manufacturer, so that safe work equipment and workplaces are in operation.
LineUpr: What events do you organize for the BGHW? What added value do you offer participants at these events?
Dorothea: The symposium “Safety and Health in Commodity Logistics” provide information on innovations and current research projects in the area of occupational safety and health protection. Expert lectures – in plenary and in specialist forums – answer questions from the participants and a marketplace with an exhibition invites you to participate. The public – entrepreneurs, occupational safety specialists, works councils, company doctors, and also manufacturers of logistics products – gets into conversation, discusses and exchanges experiences. For example, the BGHW also offers this type of symposium to health managers or company doctors.
LineUpr: Do you also use printed products to market the event or distribute information on-site? If so, for which information and which areas and why?
Dorothea: We also use printed flyers to promote the symposium “Safety and Health in Commodity Logistics”. If colleagues out in the field of prevention or at a trade fair find themselves in a personal conversation, then handing over a flyer is a gesture that, in my opinion, underlines the warm invitation towards the interested party. We have also made the event programme available as a printed version on one page; some participants like to leave their smartphones in their pockets for the duration of the event.
LineUpr: You have already used LineUpr for several events. What was the decisive argument for you to use an event app?
Dorothea: The programme of our event consists of lectures in plenary, several forums in different rooms and an exhibition, which in turn is displayed in a separate location. The whole thing takes place sometimes simultaneously, so we want to support the participants in the best possible way in putting together their individual programmes based on their favorites. And the event app comfortably offers precisely this function.
Therefore, the idea of offering an event app in the role of the organizer was not far away.
LineUpr: Have you used event apps in the past? If so, what are your experiences with it? If not, why not?
Dorothea: For our department, it was the first time using an event app. At a similar event, I had seen an event app for the first time and also used it as a participant. I was immediately thrilled with the idea and the possibilities offered by an event app. Therefore, the idea of providing an event app in the role of the organizer was not far away.
LineUpr: Back to the last event. How did you use the app before, during and after the symposium?
Dorothea: We made the participants aware of the app upon arrival. In particular, we campaigned for the function that allows everyone to put together their personal professional programme. The entire organization team was there – everyone had already downloaded the app in advance and were well-prepared – to help with the questions and problems of the participants. We reminded participants of the evening event or drew attention to changes in the programme through posts. We also posted that another forum would be offered because of the great demand and the additional offer was booked out in an instant.
LineUpr: How did your visitors react to the app?
Dorothea: The response of the participants to the app was consistently positive. There was still a classically printed questionnaire for the participants. But already in the course of the event, individual participants repeatedly came to colleagues from our organizing team and praised the app in personal conversations.
With an event app, the contents of the event are always at hand on your smartphone, even after the end of the symposium.
LineUpr: How and at which events can employers’ liability insurance associations benefit in general from an event app?
Dorothea: The symposium is over, the conference folders are in the closet or disposed of. With an event app, the contents of the event are always at hand on your smartphone, even after the end of the symposium. What was the name of the speaker from Forum XY or the exhibitor with the interesting product XY? A quick glance at the app quickly provides the answer.
Sharing the lectures through links in the app is a feature which we have not used this time. But we really want to use it next time. Because, I also see an added value in this function when compared to the classic method – and paper is also reduced.
LineUpr: Which three top tips would you like to give other organizers for the use of LineUpr?
Dorothea: 1. You do not need skills in programming or other specialized IT skills to fill the app with content and get it up and running. 2. If a question should arise, the chat function is a great function and always promptly helped me. 3. Making changes to the content is also possible if the event is already running because they go live immediately; a smartphone is all you need.
LineUpr: Thank you, Dorothea, for the great interview. It is always very exciting to get directly into the practical experience of our organizers. At the same time, we can still learn a lot. To learn more, information about the BGHW can be found on their website and on social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
We are already looking forward to the next symposia and your experiences with LineUpr.
