By Claire at Slayte
You’ve built the schedule, confirmed the speakers, color-coded the session blocks, and double-checked the room assignments. But here’s the hard truth: what you planned, and what attendees actually experience… are not always the same thing.
At Slayte, we’ve seen how attendees move through events in real time—what they tap, what they skip, and what they remember weeks later. And after watching thousands of mobile app interactions across events large and small, some patterns are hard to ignore. Here’s what we’ve learned.
1. Attendees Don’t Browse—They Search
The first thing most attendees do when they open the event app?
Search.
Not scroll. Not browse. Search.
They’re looking for a specific speaker. A topic. A keyword that matters to them. Which means if your session titles are vague or your filters are clunky, you’ve already lost them.
Tip: Clear labels > clever titles. Save the creativity for the session content itself.
2. Agendas Aren’t Just for Planning, They’re for Decision-Making
You might assume attendees build their schedule weeks in advance. Some do. Most don’t.
A huge portion make final decisions on the fly—sometimes just minutes before the session starts. That means:
- Mobile apps must load fast
- Room locations need to be front and center
- Conflict resolution (two sessions at the same time) should feel manageable, not paralyzing
The best apps let people build, revise, and rebuild their agenda without frustration.
3. Multispeaker Sessions Need a Better Interface
Panels and group sessions are often the most dynamic. They’re also the most confusing in a static format.
Attendees want to know:
- Who’s speaking and when
- What each person brings to the conversation
- Whether they should attend live or wait for the recording
We’ve helped organizations design session pages that break this info down clearly—especially when panels include both big-name speakers and emerging voices.
4. Attendees Care About Room Changes More Than You Think
Even if it’s in the app, even if it’s on the signage—if a room changes and it’s not pushed out via a notification, confusion reigns.
We’ve seen attendance drops of over 40% when this happens with no alert. Push notifications, real-time updates, and floor plan access help a lot here.
Your content is only as good as your signage strategy. And in 2025, that means your mobile app too.
5. What Gets Rated, Gets Remembered
Surveys aren’t just for feedback. They shape memory. Attendees who rate sessions right after attending are more likely to recall those sessions positively. They also give you real, usable data while it’s still fresh.
Build a 15-second feedback loop into your app, and you’ll thank yourself later—especially when sponsors ask for engagement stats.
Final Thought
You’re already putting in the work to make your program excellent. But a great schedule isn’t enough—it has to be easy to experience. That means cutting friction. Helping people find what matters to them. And making sure your mobile app doesn’t just show the event, but helps them feel it.
We’d love to help with that part.
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Want to learn more about how real attendees use mobile apps? Let’s walk through the data together.
