Any event will have people who register to attend and fail to show up. There are
many reasons for not attending, but it really comes down to priorities.

No shows create problems for event planners ranging from wasted meals and poor
event atmosphere to listening to excuses and deciding whether or not to charge
the posted cancellation fee.

Everyone, including the attendees would be better off if people would attend
events as planned. Here are some reminders about how you might minimize the
number of “no shows” to your event.

Get their money (if your event has a fee)

With online registration and real time credit card processing, this is easy.
Once you have full payment, people will be more likely to show up and if they
don’t you still have their money.

This is where you need a good refund and cancellation policy clearly stated on
the registration form. Your policy will need to reflect the type of event that
you are working on, but in general you don’t want to make the policy too lenient
as people may not take the registration seriously, nor do you want it to be too
strict as people may be discouraged from registering. See our article about
writing refund and cancellation policies.

Put on a great event

This really goes without saying, but if you can make attending your event the
best option available then people will be motivated to show up. Try coming up
with a list of benefits associated with your event such as who people will see,
what they will learn, what great food will be served, etc. Creating an element
of mystery may also help as curiosity can get the better of people and they will
attend to see the secret new product or hear the latest industry changing news.

Send a reminder

People get reminders about dentist and hair appointments so why not for events?
Sometimes people are busy and they simply forget about a commitment. A simple
reminder email or phone call prior to the event will help to keep people
committed.

Pick a good date and time

Do your research and select a date and time that will get you the highest
turnout. For example, if you are targeting accountants, the end of April would
be poor timing as most accountants are being overworked at that time. So with
best intentions they may initially commit to the event but many won’t end up
being there.

Have a giveaway for attendees

A giveaway, discount or special deal available only to those who are in
attendance can provide just enough extra incentive required to attend. Maybe you
can negotiate with a sponsor to provide the items/deals.

These few ideas may help reduce the number of no shows at your events, but there
is always more that can be done. Try calling the no shows after your next event
and ask them why they didn’t end up coming and what could be done differently to
make attending more of a priority in the future. You might gain some valuable
insight and be able to make a change that will help your event become even more
successful.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any
questions or comments about this article.

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