Easier Event Planning Is Yours to Enjoy: Registration, C4P, Networking and more!

There’s no need to struggle with free tools like Google Forms and spreadsheets when planning a critical event! 

Our tireless engineers have been busy building new software upgrades into Sched. These are helpful new features that our customers have suggested — and we guarantee you’ll like.

Now, it’s even simpler to bring great people together to do and learn amazing things. Please read on!

If you have an idea for how Sched could be better, please let us know. If you’d like an in-person demo to refresh your knowledge of Sched, jump into our calendar here.

Registration Done the Way Your Attendees Prefer

The event registration process is usually the first direct interaction attendees have with your event. It sets the tone for their entire experience, so it has to be good! 

A smooth, intuitive user path builds excitement and confidence, while a confusing or frustrating one can create bad feelings before the event even begins.

With that in mind, here’s some new options you have in Sched for a smooth, easy registration process.

Add Certifications, Waivers and More with File Uploads

Now available in your registration forms… file uploads!  Permission slips, certifications, waivers – you name it.

This will streamline the process of gathering required documentation ahead of your event, ensuring a smoother check-in and more personalized experience.

Click to Registration>Registration Form in the web app to see your new options. A File Upload field can now be added as a Field Type using the form builder in the editor. 

Required field or not? Your choice.

Any user filling out the registration form will see a box prompting them to click to upload or drag a file over to the box. They’ll be able to download and view the file they uploaded. 

If a file is uploaded successfully, it will still be available even if the page is reloaded.

After a user registers, your event planners can view the uploaded file. Just view a registrant’s Registration entry in the editor or download the registered attendees export and you’ll see the info included.

Learn More From Your Attendees With Multi-Select Drop-Down Menus (Google Forms doesn’t have this!)

In Google Forms, there is no support for multi-selection in drop down menus, which can make for some very long, confusing forms.

Luckily, you have Sched for your event, and we now have multi-select!

A multi-select dropdown menu streamlines your forms by enabling event registrants to choose multiple options in a compact, organized interface. This improves accuracy and convenience by reducing the need for separate fields or lengthy checklists. Attendees can quickly and clearly indicate all relevant choices without cluttering your form layout.

Under Registration>Registration Form, hit “+ New Field” at the bottom of the page. Now, you’ll see some great new options for checkboxes and single select or multi-select dropdown menus.

Once you’ve added your new field, it’s a snap to add all the options you’d like for that menu or set of checkboxes.

In the form, attendees will now have the option of checking multiple boxes at once or selecting multiple options from a drop menu. 

More flexibility and less stress! Now it’s easier for everyone to submit and collect the information in the simplest way possible.

Once your attendees have entered their information, their multiple selections will now appear in their record separated by a colon for easy reference.

You’ll see this information also in spreadsheet exports from Sched.

Capture Early Bird Registrations with a Stand-Alone Registration Page

Many popular events see demand for registration and ticket sales even before the organizers are ready to finalize an event schedule. With Sched, there’s no need to wait!

Your events can now sell tickets (or take registration) without publishing an event schedule at all.

To set up your stand-alone registration page, just navigate to Settings>Pages.

Pull the Registration option from the “Hidden” area into the “Active” area to activate it. Make sure “Registration” is listed as the Landing Page up above, and it will be the new Home Page of your event site all by itself.

You can configure this and the other standard pages by hitting “Edit” at the far right on each tab.

This stand alone page can be the entirety of your web presence for your event, or it can be supplemented later with other pages. Your choice!

When/if you are ready, you can begin pulling over the other page tabs to show “About” information or share “Speakers” that will be participating.

Users can register/purchase tickets from your event site under these page configurations:

• Any page deemed as “landing page” (i.e. regardless whether the page is schedule page or registration page)
• Schedule page
• Registration page

Save Time By Copying Previous Settings/Fields into New Registration Forms

When you have a proven event registration page structure for your event that attendees love, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. You’ll save lots of time and ensure consistency by “cloning” a winner and reusing it for your next event.

Now in Sched, it’s easy to copy settings and fields from a previous form and use it in a new event.

Then, just edit any sections as needed to update the content for your latest event.

Options for International Currencies

Sched has hosted over 25,000 events worldwide, so currency flexibility is a priority for our customers. 

You have the option to accept other currencies besides US Dollars in Sched. To see the options, click Registration>Payments and look under “Ticket Fee Currency.”

Besides the US Dollar (USD), you’ll see options for British Pounds (GBP), Canadian Dollars (CAD), Euros (EUR), Japanese Yen (JPY), Mexican Pesos (MXN), New Zealand Dollars (NZD) and Swiss Francs (SWF).

New Call for Papers / Call for Speakers Form and Field Options to Ease Submissions

A seamless call for papers /call for speakers process sets the foundation for your event’s content quality, participant engagement, and overall reputation. 

When contributors experience an easy, transparent, and well-structured submission process, they’re more likely to provide high-quality proposals. This directly elevates your event’s value for every attendee.

Read on to learn more about the latest enhancements to Sched’s popular Call for Papers (CFP) tool…

New Form Description Field

Now your Call for Papers forms can include an introductory description area to fill however you need. You can explain the purpose of the form, describe who it is meant for, or anything else you’d like.

To give it a try, navigate to Speakers>Call for Papers (CFP) and hit the Call For Papers Portal button.

Then hit “Create New Form” to create a new speaker request form. The Form Description field is available under Step 1 and can be edited at any time..

Useful Conditional Questions for Speaker Entries

The more choices you offer your potential speakers, the more they can personalize their experience.

With that in mind, conditional questions are now available for Call for Papers for all important field types in Sched: Checkboxes, Multiple choice (Radios), Dropdown (Single Select), and Dropdown (Multi-Select)!

To give it a try, navigate to Speakers>Call for Papers (CFP) and hit the Call For Papers Portal button.

Then hit “Create New Form” to create a new speaker request form. Conditional speaker fields are available under Step 2 and can be edited at any time.

This function is a great way to learn the preferences of your potential speakers and collect information in a way that would be cumbersome or even impossible without multi-select.

Personalization is important to the success of your event, and we’re confident this will help you provide that to your speakers.

Upgrade Your Call for Papers Process with Committee Review (coming soon…)

You’ve asked for it, and it will be here very soon!

Sched’s engineers are putting the finishing touches on a Committee Review tool that will allow your trusted reviewers to see and comment on all submissions. Then, you can decide as a group who to select and invite for your event.

Networking Just Got Easier

Networking opportunities transform your events from mere information exchanges into dynamic hubs of connection, collaboration, and growth. 

Sched was built to foster meaningful interactions among attendees, exhibitors, and sponsors. We want you to create new partnerships, spark innovative ideas, and add lasting value way beyond the event’s agenda!

Here’s some new ways we make that happen:

My Contacts: The Helpful Networking and Engagement Module

One important way to upgrade your events is by encouraging everyone to exchange information and keep notes on their interactions with other attendees. QR codes on your Sched badges make this process way easier than fumbling with LinkedIn’s clunky interface.

Sched’s My Contacts area is the easiest way to do this.

To collect a new contact, just scan another attendee’s Sched profile QR Code. This code can be found on their profile page (or possibly on their badge, depending on your event badge design). 
 

Once the scan is made, the contact’s record will open and show you a field where you can add any note details you wish (and freely edit later too). Then hit the “Add to Contact List” button to add them to your list.

Now you have their profile, you can add notes (what did you discuss, what followups there are, etc) and send them a message on any communications/social media platforms they’ve connected to the app. You can even chat with them inside the Sched app if desired.

You can look at your Contact List anytime by clicking on the Sched icon at top right and clicking “View Contacts List.” This information stays available even after the event is finished, for easy reference later.

The Contact list can be searched using a helpful open search field box and/or tags.

To use this feature, just click the magnifying glass at top right on the Contacts screen.

To edit a contact or add tags, just click on their name anytime.

Easy Lead Retrieval for Exhibitors, Sponsors and Attendees

Sched has new export and security measures that allow you – if you permit – to designate attendees that can export their list of contacts they met at the event to a CSV.

Exhibitors, sponsors and speakers will value the chance to keep tabs on who they spoke to and download the list of audience members they networked with and/or booth visit leads they collected.

Lead retrieval is always just a click away in Sched!

However, it always stays under your complete control. 

You can decide, as the event organizer, whether or not you want to allow attendees to download their contact list. You can also give out download permission to just one or two specific users, like a sponsor, exhibitor or a speaker. 

To do this, just go to Attendees>Attendees and click on a Contact name to administer their profile. Then set the “Enable Contacts List Export” radio button at the bottom of the form.

To perform this export, all they need to do is go to Reports>Directory and hit the “Contacts” area to download a CSV.

Powerful Security Made Simple

Sched keeps your event digitally secure with Single Sign-On (SSO). 

That means attendees, speakers, and organizers can safely access event resources without the risk of credential theft or unauthorized access. 

SSO enhances trust by reducing password fatigue and makes it easier for your organizers to work fast. Sched’s secure user experience protects both your event’s reputation and sensitive data, even with zero technical knowledge.

Microsoft Entra Single Sign-On (SSO) now available

We are now proud to add Microsoft Entra Single Sign-On (SSO) to Sched’s single-signon roster, which has long included Google SSO and Apple SSO.

Microsoft’s SSO incorporates robust, enterprise-grade protections such as advanced threat detection, conditional access policies, and continuous monitoring for suspicious activity. 

Additionally, Microsoft leverages its global identity network and machine learning capabilities to identify and mitigate emerging security threats in real-time, ensuring a more resilient and trustworthy authentication process.

One more way that Sched makes it easy for you to keep you and your attendees data perfectly safe.

Coming next… ClassLink SignOn! 

Domain Whitelist for Account Creation Using SSO

Not all domains are the same when it comes to SSO. 

That’s why we’ve got an account creation domain whitelist for you so you can restrict SSO to specific domains.

By default, e-mail accounts from all domains can create accounts on Sched. You can restrict account creation to your domain(s) by entering them under Settings>General.

Event Privacy settings are in effect regardless of this whitelist.

Important note: If your event has Eventbrite connected, whitelisted domains will not be enforced.

Help Sched Do More of What Your Attendees Love

We’re thrilled to share these enhancements with you and can’t wait to see how they help you achieve your event planning goals.

As always, we value your input—if you have any suggestions or feedback, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team. 

Keep an eye out for our next quarterly update, and thank you for continuing to grow with us!

Why struggle with events when you can simplify everything with Sched?

Elaine Cervantez, with the Associate of California School Administrators, recently shared why her organization uses Sched… “We have been using Sched for so many years and it is very user friendly for anyone using the back end and as an attendee. Working with you has been a really easy process. We are excited to continue using Sched.”

There’s no better time to upgrade to the best event management software and set your next event up for success.

Consider what a simpler workflow with the right tools all in one place could mean for your next event. That’s the beauty of using Sched!