A good event registration page answers four questions in the first screen: what is it, when and where, what does it cost, and how do I sign up. Everything else, the agenda, speakers, sponsors and the fine print, sits below. The page should be quick on a phone, ask only the questions you’ll actually use, and look exactly like the emails and posts that sent people there.
Every promotion you run ends at this page. You can write the perfect email and post the perfect graphic, and still lose people because the registration page is confusing, slow or asks for too much. Below is the checklist I use before any event goes live.
Above the fold: the first screen
The first screen, before anyone scrolls, should have:
- The event name, written exactly the way it appears in your emails and social posts
- The date, time and city or venue, in plain text, not buried in a graphic
- One line on why to come
- The price, or “Free”
- A register button that’s easy to tap with a thumb
That’s it. If a visitor sees only that first screen and leaves, they should still know what the event is and how to come.
A common mistake is a big header image with the date and time baked into it. It looks nice, but phones shrink it, screen readers can’t read it and search engines can’t either. Put the essentials in real text.
Pricing people can understand at a glance
Pricing confusion stops more registrations than high prices do. When someone has to work out which ticket applies to them, a few will give up.
- List each ticket type with its price in a simple list or table: member, non-member, student, guest.
- Show the early-bird deadline next to the price, with the date. “Early bird $149 through March 1, then $189.”
- Say what’s included. Lunch, parking, a drink ticket, the evening reception. If something costs extra, say so here.
- Explain how members get member pricing. A code, a login or “use the email address on your membership.” Don’t make them guess.
- Put the refund and transfer policy in one or two sentences, near the button.
If you’re setting early-bird pricing for the first time, our article on early-bird pricing that actually fills seats covers the discount and the deadline.
Ask only the questions you’ll use
Every extra question on a form is a reason to stop filling it out. Before you add a field, ask: who’s going to use this answer, and for what?
Usually worth asking:
- Name and email (required)
- Organization and title, if you print name badges with them
- Dietary needs or allergies, if you’re serving food
- Accessibility needs, as an open question
- Which sessions or tracks they plan to attend, if you need headcounts per room
- Golfer handicap or foursome names, for a golf outing
Usually not worth asking:
- Mailing address, unless you’re shipping something
- Phone number, unless someone will actually call
- “How did you hear about us?” on every event (ask it once a year instead, or use tracking links)
- Anything you collected last year and never looked at
Name badges deserve a special note. Ask for the name the way they want it printed, and preview the badge fields. Fixing a badge at the registration table is a line nobody needs.
Different events need different forms
One registration form for everything rarely fits. A free networking evening only needs a name and email. A paid conference needs ticket types, a checkout and a few custom questions. A golf outing needs player names, and sometimes those come weeks after the sponsor pays.
This was one of the problems I wanted to fix when we built Purple Pushpin, our member website platform. Registration there changes with the event: free events just collect names and emails, and paid events get a checkout with their own questions, like dietary needs or a quick poll. Whatever you use, make sure the form fits the event rather than the other way around.
Below the fold: the details
Once someone scrolls, give them what they need to decide and to plan:
- Agenda or schedule, even a simple one
- Speakers or hosts, with photos and one line each
- Venue and parking, with a map link
- Who it’s for, in a sentence or two
- Sponsors, in the order your sponsor package promised
- A second register button at the bottom, so nobody has to scroll back up
- A contact email for questions
Keep it scannable. Short headings, short paragraphs. Nobody reads a registration page top to bottom; they hunt for the one thing they’re unsure about.
The confirmation email
The moment after someone registers is when they’re paying the most attention. Use it.
A good confirmation email includes:
- “You’re registered” in the subject line, with the event name
- The date, time and address again
- An “add to calendar” link (this one matters most)
- What they bought, with a receipt if they paid
- How to change or cancel
- Who to contact with questions
Make it look like the rest of the event: same header graphic, same colors. If it arrives in a plain default template from your registration system, it’s the first piece of your event that doesn’t look like your event.
Make it work on a phone
Many of your registrations will come from people tapping a link in an email on their phone. Test the whole path on your own phone before you send anything:
- Does the page load quickly?
- Can you read the date without zooming?
- Is the register button big enough to tap?
- Does the form have the right keyboards (email keyboard for email, number pad for numbers)?
- Can you finish payment without switching to a computer?
If you have to pinch, zoom or retype anything, fix it before you launch.
One look, from the first email to the name badge
The registration page is the middle of the chain. The save-the-date, the social posts and the emails lead to it; the confirmation, the reminders and the signage come after. All of them should share one name, one set of colors and one hero graphic.
That consistency is what makes an event feel organized before anyone arrives. Our event marketing plan template has an asset list for building that look once and reusing it everywhere.
The checklist
Copy this and run through it before you open registration.
- Event name matches every email and post
- Date, time and place are in real text in the first screen
- One-line reason to come
- Price or “Free” visible without scrolling
- Ticket types listed clearly, with early-bird deadline dates
- What’s included, and what costs extra
- How members get member pricing
- Refund and transfer policy near the button
- Form asks only questions someone will use
- Badge name field, if you print badges
- Dietary and accessibility questions, if relevant
- Agenda, speakers, venue and parking below the fold
- Second register button at the bottom
- Confirmation email with calendar link and receipt
- Whole path tested on a phone
- Header graphic matches the emails and social posts
Frequently asked questions
What should an event registration page include?
The event name, date, time, location, price and a register button in the first screen, followed by the agenda, speakers, venue details, sponsors and a second register button below. Add the refund policy near the button and keep the form to the questions you’ll actually use.
How many questions should a registration form have?
As few as possible. Name and email are the minimum. Add organization and title if you print badges, dietary needs if you serve food, and anything else only if someone will use the answer. Every extra field costs you a few registrations.
What should the registration confirmation email say?
That they’re registered, for which event, with the date, time and address, an add-to-calendar link, a receipt if they paid, how to change or cancel, and who to contact. It should look like the rest of your event materials, not a plain system default.
Need a registration page that matches the rest of your event and works on a phone? We build them for associations, chambers and event planners. Request an introduction.