Managing Registration

Registration is often the first experience attendees have with your conference. Think of this as an attendee-management strategy with a plan for managing this process that is budget conscious, secure, quick, thorough, and easy to manage, and that navigates and utilizes technology to attract.

Whether you are managing your conference registration activities or hiring a registration company, the main tasks for registration are:

• set registration fees;
• hire a registration-management service;
• offer advance registration;
• manage on-site registration;
• provide a letter for visa applications.

The finance committee or treasurer sets registration fees when preparing the budget and should cover the cost of running the conference based on the anticipated attendance.

IEEE conferences set varying registration fees for members, non-members, Life members, students, and members of associated organizations. Advance registration fees or "early bird" registration fees are also established to encourage early registration at discounted pricing. It is important that you clearly define in advance the fees for each group attending the conference.

Learn more about setting registration fees

Many conferences hire a registration service or select an online event-management tool. A full-service registration or event-management contractor can manage the entire registration process and be the first line of communication to address attendee questions. Online event-management tools provide registration forms, database-management tools, reports, and other services to help you manage your registration.

Learn more about selecting a registration service or tool

Set up advance registration four to six months before the conference begins. Early registration helps attendees avoid long lines at the conference and guarantees tickets to sold-out events. Most attendees prefer to register before they make their travel and hotel arrangements.

When offering advance registration:

• create the registration form;
• set up online registration;
• set up credit card processing;
• provide instructions on how to register;
• monitor online registration;
• answer attendee questions and resolve issues.

Learn more about setting up advance registration

The registration staff provides on-site support during the conference. The conference registration chair works closely with the on-site management committee to plan and manage on-site registration. The goal is to process on-site registration as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Responsibilities for on-site registration include:

• train and supervise registration staff;
• prepare the registration space;
• accept on-site registrations.

Learn more about managing on-site registration

Some participants may need to provide a letter from the IEEE conference as part of their application for a visa. You can help by providing information on how to apply for a visa and reminding them to start the process early. Applicants should apply no later than three months prior to the conference

Learn more about offering a visa letter

IEEE is ready to help. If you have questions about managing registration, please contact IEEE Meeting and Conference Management (MCM).

If you have other questions about organizing a conference, please contact the IEEE Meetings, Conferences and Events Customer Relationship Management (CRM) team.

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