The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society dramatically reduced the price and content of its online event this year with a goal of generating more participation. The changes paid off: the 2013 online program saw nearly 3,000 registrations, up from about 850 in 2012. “I think there is an art and a science to making this right. I think we finally figured that out,” said JoAnn Klinedinst, vice president of professional development of H.I.M.S.S.
The organization dropped the price for online attendees to a flat fee of $39, a simpler and more affordable price than the 2012 registration that ranged from $295 to $549, with two additional price points in between. For the lower cost, online registrants had access to 26 hours of programming, including a live presentation of former President Bill Clinton’s keynote address, four additional keynotes recorded for on-demand access, and 10 one-hour education sessions that were shared live and also recorded. “I think the $39 is a really nice fee for the value that has been received. It’s not free; it’s not a giveaway,” Klinedinst said. “Folks are paying for the privilege of attending a hybrid event, and we think it represents a good value. We could charge $10 or $20 more next year, but I’m going to recommend against that. I wouldn’t change a thing.”
In response to comments from prior years that the in-person conference—with nearly 35,000 attendees, 1,600 exhibitors, and more than 300 education sessions and networking events—was too overwhelming to navigate, H.I.M.S.S. developed a system to help attendees create a custom registration online. “When they logged on, there was a pop-up box that would ask a few basic Âquestions,” said Karen Malone, H.I.M.S.S. vice president of meeting services. “Then information would populate the Web site that would be directed to them based on their demographics, telling them what sessions to go to. These were all programs and services that were selected by their peers that had the same Âdemographics.”
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The in-person event has maintained an attendance of more than 30,000, despite the addition of the online program. “People attend virtual events for different reasons and we are not seeing and do not anticipate a cannibalization of the live event over the virtual,” Klinedinst said.
Organizers provided a live stream of former President Clinton’s keynote address, but his contract prohibited them from sharing it on-demand after the event.
More than 2,800 people signed up to access the online content, and about 1,000 of those registrations came from people who also attended the in-person conference.
