Event apps have created a huge market for themselves in the past few years and they are constantly expanding in the event industry. Event apps elevate and bring that technological edge to the events. But there are risks and limitations too. When not designed in a professional manner and without due quality of service (QoS), an app becomes just another programmed tech which might crash at any moment and it does not come for free, it costs hundreds of dollars. To have an idea about the bigger picture, the benefits and risks, we are in conversation with Mr Hussain Fakhruddin - the CEO of Teksmobile, the company that has developed Eventify - a 360° digital platform for B2B event management.
How important is pre-event marketing for event apps?
Here, in the event industry, it’s not the scenario like “if you build it, they will come”. Event planners will need to talk about their event apps, they will need to get the idea and the product to their attendees. It is necessary to promote the app in order to get the users and make the event and the app a success.
Many companies offer event apps at a huge price, is it worth spending thousands of dollars on event apps?
Sometimes money gets you quality and sometime it does not. And it differs with every company. Like at Eventify, in our one of the two plans, we provide the app for free. The event planners can get an event app without having to invest anything. Whether spending big money on event apps is worth or not totally depends on the event, organizer and the product they are choosing.
Do event apps obey all the GDPR compliances?
They do. In fact, we all have to - as the law and privacy of the users is always the primary concern. And this is the very first question event organizers have, so anyways builders will have to be very strict about it to acquire and retain their clients.
Many event planners have seen failure with event apps, what are the plausible reasons for this?
Well, there are many. But one of the common mistakes which leads to such type of results is poor marketing. Event planners sometimes intentionally or unintentionally neglect the need to market the app. Sometimes, it’s the complicated UX/UI. No one likes complicated stuff and event apps are supposed to make things easy, right? They need to have user-friendly interfaces rather than complicated.
How much time does it take to build an event app?
Every individual has his or her own speed and capacity. In the same way, every company has its own ways and processes to carry out things. Time depends on the company, programmers and the infrastructure they are having. But if I take the example of Eventify, it’s just a matter of hours. The organizer themselves can make the app on our platform without any coding.
What are your opinions about over-reliance on event apps?
Frankly, over-reliance is bad in anything...not just in the case of event apps. People will need to understand and get this very straight that event app is a part of the event, they just can’t totally depend on it for everything. Event app is there to complement the event, not to concentrate the event in it. There are other key elements, like event websites, social media marketing, live activities, onsite services and even event gamification that have to be considered.
According to you what are the best ways to make the attendees aware of event apps?
What better way than social media? I find it the best way to promote and communicate. Event planners can easily use social media and market the app with their tweets, insta posts, fb posts and of course with their own websites. They can also drop in a mail with the link of the app or they can provide the link when someone books a ticket for the event, if that works for them.
Event app is just a technology, which might crash at any moment. Why should event planners take the risk?
As I say “it is either a daring adventure or nothing.'' But seriously, it again depends on the builders and the company. To avoid such risks event planners should have a proper discussion with the builders regarding all their doubts, they must take a look at their previous products and the experiences of the users with the company.
Many event app platforms offer ticketing services. Is the purchaser’s data safe ? Moreover, is it safe to have monetary transactions at the first place?
Personally, I feel availing the tickets online is a great feature which now a days event app platforms are offering. Privacy is an important concern and when a company plans to host such features, their primary concern is the purchaser’s privacy. Companies need to be vigilant and transparent, and users should go through the privacy policy statements once.
What is your take on the evolving tech and the increasing competition along with it?
I love technology and am very happy to see how the industry is evolving with the ever-evolving technologies. And competitions are good, they motivate you to experiment. They give you that extra push to do more with your ideas and products.
What is an ideal event app according to you?
I personally don’t believe in the concept of ideal. And it differs from person-to-person. But what I can tell you is what is a good app according to me. I think an event app which is easy to use, has a friendly interface and fits to the needs of every event works best. The point is not to clamour the app with loads of necessary and unnecessary information but to keep it defined, engaging, and easy to use.**Click here to connect with Hussain Fakhruddin.**Download the Eventify app here: https://apps.apple.com/in/app/myhub-by-eventify/id1615728019
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