The scientific community is increasingly using our apps for conferences and meetings. So it’s time to give these types of events a bit more room on the blog. That’s why we have invited Susanne Hennig from the Center for NanoScience (CeNS) at the LMU Munich.

In 2019 she organized an event for the “Physics of Living Systems Research Network” using LineUpr. Today, Susanne tells us why she replaced the printed “Book of Abstracts” with a digital version for the first time. She tells you also what she likes about LineUpr and what she would do differently next time. Have fun with this great customer story.

LineUpr: Hello Susanne. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the Center for NanoScience of the LMU Munich.

Susanne: The Center for NanoScience (CeNS) brings together scientists in the Munich area and promotes interdisciplinary cooperation in the field of Nanoscience. In addition to support for research collaborations, training of junior staff, and technology transfer, CeNS also organizes numerous scientific events.

LineUpr: You used an event app from LineUpr for the event “Physics of Living Systems”. Please tell us more about this event.

Susanne: The “Physics of Living Systems Research Network” was developed originally in the US with the aim to train and connect young scientists in the field of biophysics. CeNS is one of the international partners of the network and so this year, for the second time, we organized the annual international meeting with 260 participants.

LineUpr: What makes the event special? Which target group do you want to address and what added value do you offer the participants?

Susanne: The special thing is that a lot of young scientists are there and present a wide range of biophysical topics. The network includes some of the top international universities, such as Princeton, Yale, Harvard, etc. Nearly all junior scientists present their research projects with a lecture or a poster. So you can get an excellent overview of the “hot topics” and discuss them with the specialists.

LineUpr: Do you also use printed products to market the event or distribute information on-site? If so, which and why?

Susanne: So far for all of our larger meetings, we have created printed “Books of Abstracts”. This book contains the abstracts of all lectures and posters as well as other information, such as the list of participants, the program and organizational matters. This year, we broke new ground with LineUpr and for the first time, got rid of the “Book of Abstract”. Instead, we printed only a small program booklet for those people who like to hold something in their hands or for whatever reason could not or did not want to use their smartphone. The program was at the time of the event already no longer up to date – as always, there were last minute changes. But with the app, that’s no problem!

LineUpr: How long before the event did you start creating the event app? What do you think, how much time did it take to create the app?

Susanne: I started to work on the app half a year ago and created the first version, mainly to convince our professors of the concept. Importing the participants for the line-up was very easy and so was the creation of the program. I completed it in only a few hours. In addition, we put the abstracts for each of the 68 talks in the app; this we had to do individually. We also uploaded participant pictures from our sign up tool at Xing Events, which also took a lot of time. But this makes the app much more individual, so it was worth it! All in all, I spent a lot of time on the app.

LineUpr: How do you rate the creation of the event app with LineUpr? What do you like and what can we improve?

Susanne: I thought it was great that you can get started right away and the usage is so intuitive. The app is structured so clearly that you can have an eye on everything. For scientific purposes, I would like to have an additional function to import or link abstracts as a PDF. I also found the password protection to be perfect, so that only the participants could access the app!

We also used the post function several times, for example, to provide timely information about the public transport strike that had hit us during the conference.

I was also impressed by the survey tool. We did an “Unconference” session, which we planned during the conference. Through the app, we collected suggestions for themes and then put it to a vote. It worked very well and you could also visualize it very well! Then we could directly enter the topics and the rooms in the app.

LineUpr: When and how did you inform your participants about the event app?

Susanne: We informed the participants about the app for the first time about four weeks before the event and sent the password and the link by e-mail about a week in advance. At the event itself, we set up table displays with information about the app directly at registration (see picture). That worked very well.

LineUpr: How did your visitors react to the app?

Susanne: We received a lot of positive feedback. The fact that you do not have to install the app was particularly impressive! This praise was also reflected in the final feedback survey, which we, of course, also carried out in the app.

LineUpr: Now, the event is over. Would you use the app the same way the next time to communicate with your participants or is there something you would change?

Susanne: I will definitely use the app again. In fact, I would start later to import the content into the app. Now I know how fast it works! There were quite a lot of last-minute changes on the part of the participants – that would save me a lot of work.

LineUpr: If someone is thinking about using an event app for their event, what advice would you give them? When is an app useful and what are the disadvantages of an app?

Susanne: The app is really useful if there are last-minute changes to the program or if you offer parallel sessions. Actually, for everything where you have to be flexible. And besides, the app is an excellent way to connect participants and make your event more interactive!

LineUpr: Thank you, Susanne, for the great interview. I always find it enriching to talk to organizers about the use of LineUpr. More information about the Center for NanoScience of the LMU Munich can be found here.

We are already looking forward to more events with you.

The post LineUpr for Scientific Events – How Susanne Hennig Uses an Event App first appeared on LineUpr Blog.

More and more companies are using LineUpr apps for their executive meetings and conferences. One of the first people to use LineUpr for this type of event is Tobias Köhler from the Südwestdeutsche Medienholding (SWMH). As Head of Strategy & Innovation, he is also an expert on digitalization.

Today he will explain how he uses LineUpr for the Executive Conference, saving both paper and communication. Again, definitely worth reading. ?

LineUpr: Hello Tobias. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the SWMH.

Tobias: Certainly. Since 2015, I have been heading the Strategy & Innovation department at the Südwestdeutsche Medienholding, SWMH for short. It forms the roof of about 20 daily newspapers (including the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”, “Stuttgarter Zeitung”, “Stuttgarter Nachrichten”), more than 150 specialist information titles (including “Werben & Verkaufen”) and other media companies. There I am responsible for organizational development, innovation management, start-up scouting – and I enjoy being able to pursue my passion in the profession, to try out all sorts of technical gadgets. Previously, I held various management positions at the Stuttgarter Zeitung, most recently as department head of digital channels.

LineUpr: You used LineUpr for the Executive Meeting. Tell us something more about this event.

Tobias: The Executive Meeting is an annual event where the top 100 SWMH managers meet and discuss developments in the group. This year we were in Kleinwalsertal for three days, featuring keynote speeches from prominent US speakers, strategy workshops and best practice presentations.

LineUpr: Do you also use printed products to distribute information locally? If so, which and why?

Tobias: We were able to reduce the number of printed products through the app greatly. The participants used to receive conference folders from us, but now we use only the app to share information. On-site, we have limited ourselves to single printed flyers, greeting cards and signs for the rooms.

LineUpr: You’ve used LineUpr for the first time. How did you learn about LineUpr and what was the decisive argument for you to use an event app?

Tobias: We learned about LineUpr at the “Digital Media Camp” – this is a Barcamp with 250 participants that the Media Lab Bayern hosted in the high-rise building of the Süddeutsche Zeitung. There we were partners – and I liked the app because it looked good and was easy to use.

LineUpr: Have you already used event apps? If so, what are your experiences and why did you select LineUpr for this event?

Tobias: We have several companies within the company that organizes commercial events – mostly native apps are used there. But we chose LineUpr because we prefer a web app and because we find the backend intuitive and immediately ready for use.

LineUpr: How did you use the app before, during and after the Management Meeting?

Tobias: The participants received a reminder about the event by mail about three weeks before the start of the event. In the mail, the app was pointed out and the link was shared. We published the program, the participants, the locations and other information, e. g. for directions, in the app. During the event, we used live surveys and were able to present, for example, questions from the group and the atmosphere during the panel discussion. Afterward, the participants received a link to the event photos via the app.

LineUpr: How did your participants react to the app?

Tobias: Afterwards, the participants always receive a survey asking how they liked the event. There we also ask about the app. The feedback was extremely positive.

LineUpr: Which tips would you like to give other organizers when using LineUpr?

Tobias: With a large number of participants, the import function for inserting the participants is very convenient. It’s also great to be able to include live surveys in discussions or presentations.

LineUpr: Thank you for the interesting interview Thomas. In 2017, you were one of the first people to use LineUpr for a management event. These events are now part of our solid mix. It was therefore very enriching to learn more from you about using an event app in this event environment.

More useful information about SWMH can be found on their homepage or on their profiles on Twitter and Facebook.

We look forward to the next events with you. ?

The post Event Apps for Executive Events – Experiences of the SWMH first appeared on LineUpr Blog.

In this interview, we again welcome an interesting customer. Stefan Brechler from the H. Gautzsch Group has already used LineUpr for three events- twice for his E-Tech in-house exhibition and also for an internal meeting.

He will tell you how they structured the use of an event app in parallel with printed materials and what the participant feedback looks like. Have fun while reading. ?

LineUpr: Hello Stefan. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the H. Gautzsch Group. What are your goals and what roles do events play in achieving them?

Stefan: The H. Gautzsch Group is a network of leading medium-sized specialist wholesalers with more than 40 locations nationwide and more than 1,100 employees. With our operatively independent wholesalers, we have been working in three fields of business for 160 years.

As the e-commerce manager, I accompany different digitalization projects in the company group. Events are an essential means of communication and training due to decentralization.

LineUpr: Who is the typical target group of your events and how do you reach them? Which channels and tools do you use for marketing and presentation?

Stefan: There are internal events such as regional meetings or conferences. Since the participants come from the most diverse areas, a central app for control is ideal. There are also customer training courses and in-house trade fairs which are advertised via our e-commerce systems and newsletters.

LineUpr: Do you also use printed products to market the events or to distribute information on site? If so, which and why?

Stefan: We continue to use analog media, as some of our customers still want it. Our printed training calendar, for example, should be on the table of each of our customers. Of course, at the same time, we also offer this information digitally.

LineUpr: You already used LineUpr for the second time for your exhibitions. How did you learn about LineUpr and what was the decisive argument for you to use an event app?

Stefan: We happened to see LineUpr at another event and thought it was good. On closer examination, we were convinced by the ease of use and the fair prices.

LineUpr: Have you already used event apps? If so, what are your experiences and why did you choose LineUpr for this event? If not, what has been against it so far?

Stefan: We only know about LineUpr, but one does not need to know about others.

LineUpr: Thank you, thank you. ? How did you use the app before, during and after the two fairs?

Stefan: In the app, you could find every stand with its profile, stand number, etc. Besides, there was an overview of the lectures on site. Here we misused some functions a bit, to be honest. But it worked great!

The app was advertised via QR code at the trade fair directly and in advance via mailing.

LineUpr: How did your visitors react to the app?

Stefan: The app was very well received, I’m afraid we will have to use it for every event.

LineUpr: Well, we would not mind. ? You also used the app for your board meeting. Why and how did you come up with this idea?

Stefan: Again, we are very decentralized. The number of managing directors of our connecting houses has now reached 50. The app offered that all colleagues could know when they should be where and which agenda items are there.

Above all, such events are prone to changes in the schedule on the previous day or speakers falling ill, etc. But here, the app can respond flexibly to change the times or rooms. With printed media, it is impossible to do so at this speed.

LineUpr: Which top three tips would you like to give other organizers for the use of LineUpr?

Stefan: 1. Take some time to understand all the functions of the app. The application possibilities are enormous. 2. Remember that not everyone has a QR code reader on their phone. 3. Make use of their support if you are stuck. They help directly and without complications.

LineUpr: Thank you, Stefan, for the great interview and the many compliments. Satisfied customers are the best rewards. More about the H. Gautzsch Group can be found on their homepage. And if you want to talk to Stefan directly, then visit his profile on XING.

We are already looking forward to the many events with you that are yet to come. ?

The post Event Apps for In-House Exhibitions – Experiences of the H. Gautzsch Group first appeared on LineUpr Blog.