Is conference software really a good investment? If the work that is supposedly saved in one place is actually just shifted a few steps down the line, it is not a real help. You may be able to manage your events without any issues, but unfortunately, you cannot go beyond the boundaries of the system. As soon as the information is needed elsewhere, you usually hit a dead end.
The lock-in effect and no way out
Very few people want to be completely dependent on a single provider. Purchasing software always creates a certain level of dependency. If you decide to manage your events using software in the future, it needs to be well thought out. Once money has been invested in a system, everything has been set up, and everyone has been trained, you don't want major flaws to suddenly appear. Backing out is no longer that easy. The typical lock-in scenario – switching to another software would be too expensive and too complicated in every respect.
One of these problems is often the cross-platform use of data, which is still not part of the service range of many providers. So what can you do? Either you have to take the hard road and transcribe everything yourself, or you have to resort to copying and pasting line by line. Both are time-consuming and involve a lot of effort. And you always end up with multiple datasets that contain the same information and become inconsistent as soon as one is updated. Changes must always be made in all places, otherwise the information will contradict itself. So, back to square one? Compared to that, maybe Excel and self-made registration forms weren't so bad after all.
A link between systems
This is not a general problem with software-supported conference management. Rather, the cause lies with the software provider. Unfortunately, some providers are primarily interested in selling customers a complete package as quickly as possible without even asking about their needs. It is only much later, when asked, that they point out that it is technically impossible to use the data outside of the software. That is not fair to the customers.
Viewed in isolation, the problem is actually quite simple: every piece of software you work with is a self-contained system that, at best, does exactly what you want it to do. A connection to the outside world is not initially important by default. The program simply fulfills its tasks and does not care whether the data it works with will be needed elsewhere later on.
However, sharing information is not impossible, and the solution is obvious: you would need to build a bridge between the programs – also quite simple.
And because it is so simple, such a link can be implemented in the form of a programming interface, the so-called API (application programming interface). The API opens doors, so to speak, and ensures that individual modules of a program, which are responsible for a very specific task, can exchange data with modules of another program. The API specifies, for example, which data is transferred and in what format. To visualize this better, think of Google Maps. If you embed a map section on your website to show visitors the way to you, this is done with the help of a Google Maps API that connects your website to Google Maps. Services like AIS Marine Traffic or planefinder use APIs to display global shipping and air traffic in real time on Google Maps. No one has to design their own map material; they simply access what is already available. APIs therefore do a great deal to make applications extremely flexible.
How does an API support your conference preparation?
The possibilities that arise from using an API for your event are almost limitless. We provide your event data via the Converia API. Then you get to decide what you want to do with it. Need a little inspiration?
The most recent example of the use of our API is also one of the most creative. The conference and world's largest trade fair for the digital economy, dmexco, which takes place once a year in Cologne and recorded more than 40,000 participants in 2017, offers its visitors a dmexco app. In addition to the program schedule, this contains extensive information on individual program items, speakers, exhibitors, and a hall plan. Unlike Converia—for us, this year was our dmexco premiere—the app has been accompanying the event for several years. The challenge was therefore to populate the app with data from Converia. The perfect task for the API, which ensured that app users could access all information about the dmexco speakers on their mobile devices. The data is transferred directly from the Converia Speaker Portal. This allows new software to be used without any problems, without the existing infrastructure having to be completely rethought or abandoned entirely.
An API should delight visualization-loving organizers just as much as those who enjoy building statistics or prefer working with numbers. Use the data from Converia to create custom reports. Show on which days a particularly large number of abstracts were submitted, when the most participant registrations were recorded, or which payment methods participants used during registration. Anyone using data visualization software can even package the whole thing in a sophisticated design—all the better. This not only looks good, but also helps you bundle all data in one place and derive strategies for marketing future events from it.
Less visual, but at least as practical, is the connection of Converia with our customers' CRM system. The advantage is that participant data can be adopted from existing contacts. Conversely, this also works the other way around, when the data of new participants can be immediately added to the central address database of the CRM system.
Never again without an API
Once you have enjoyed the benefits of an API, you certainly won't want to miss the advantages of the interface again. This point should definitely be on the must-have list when choosing suitable conference software. Especially if you use other applications to manage your data, the entire range of possibilities is open to you thanks to the API.
Feel free to contact us if you would like to learn more about the topic or our previous projects.
