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In addition to B2B events, LineUpr is also ideal for scientific congresses and conferences. Someone who can judge that perfectly is Birgit Bujard. As the managing director of the German Society for Online Research, she hosts the General Online Research (GOR) Conference every year.
In this interview, she will tell us more about the GOR and how she could improve communication and organizational processes with an event app. As always, a great success story from the scientific sector. ?
LineUpr: Hello Birgit. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the DGOF.
Birgit: The German Society for Online Research is an association committed to the furthering of online research and the interests of online researchers in Germany since it was founded in 1998. Online research ranges from the use of online-based data collection methods (e. g., via web surveys in online panels), mobile research with smartphones, tablets, and wearables to the collection and analysis of social media data, administrative data, data from passive measurements and other big data sources.
The DGOF sees itself as a bridge between different the disciplines that use online research methods and promotes the transfer between science and practice.
I am the managing director of DGOF.
LineUpr: You have already used LineUpr now for the third time at the GOR. What is this event about?
Birgit: The General Online Research (GOR) conference is the annual conference of DGOF and is the only European conference dedicated to discussing and analyzing innovation and current developments in the ever-changing field of digital research as well as promoting the exchange of ideas between researchers from academia and business.
LineUpr: Who is the typical target audience of your event and how do you reach them? Which channels and tools do you use for marketing and presentation?
Birgit: Researchers from the academic field (universities and academic research institutions) as well as researchers from the practical field – in particular from market research – attend GOR. To promote the event, we use social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter, and we also do classic publicity – especially in the area of market research media.
LineUpr: Do you also use printed products to market the event or to distribute information on site? If so, which and why?
Birgit: We still have a printed programme which is distributed to the participants on site. In principle, this contains the same as the app. But it has the disadvantage that short-term changes during the conference cannot be taken into consideration.
We regularly do a follow-up survey, in which the app was always positively mentioned in recent years.
LineUpr: How did you use the app before, during and after the GOR?
Birgit: Since the programme can change until shortly before the conference – because a speaker gets sick or is otherwise hindered – we point to the possibility of using the App from about a week before the event to our conference visitors. Experience has shown that this is also enough time as most of the conference attendees familiarise themselves with the event details (i. e., which of our four conference tracks or conference sessions they want to attend, etc.) only shortly before the event. Our visitors use the app primarily to find out about the programme and the speakers – as well as organizational information.
LineUpr: How did your visitors react to the app?
Birgit: After the conference, we regularly conduct a follow-up survey among the conference visitors, in which the app was always positively mentioned in recent years.
LineUpr: How have your events changed by using an event app?
Birgit: We have been using the ConfTool for the conference scheduling for some time now. But this is primarily intended for PC use, so for us, the app is a valuable addition to give our conference visitors the opportunity to choose the format with which they want to inform themselves about the conference.
I think event apps always make sense at events.
LineUpr: Do you think other scientific conferences can benefit from using an event app? If yes how?
Birgit: I think event apps always make sense at events because a large part of the participants will use their smartphone to search for information during the event.
LineUpr: Which top three tips would you like to give other organizers for the use of LineUpr?
Birgit: Take a little time to get involved with LineUpr. You can do a lot with it and the handling is very easy.
LineUpr: Thank you, Birgit, for the great interview. Scientific conferences and meetings are always a special experience and since we have been able to accompany you for the third time with an event app, we attach great importance to your opinion. If you want to know more about the DGOF, then visit their homepage. Of course, there is also an individual website for the GOR.
We are very excited for the GOR 2019.
