Category improvements

Most features in the Socio Platform that show a list of individual items - Speakers, Sponsors, Documents, etc. - let you apply one category to each item. Attendees can see which items are related and filter the items in the feature by category. In short, categories have been very basic — until now! 💥

We're pleased to announce these awesome improvements to categories:

• Multiple Categories - An item can now be assigned to multiple categories. This lets attendees filter lots of items with more precision to find exactly what they're looking for. 🕵️‍♀️
• Category Colors - Categories can now be assigned a color for easier visual distinction between categories. 🌈 
• Visible To - You can now apply groups to categories to restrict visibility to only attendees in those groups. 🔒 

Attendees will now see categories listed very similarly to tracks. 

On mobile, if the categories don't fit on the screen, users can scroll to the side to see the rest.

Take a look at our guide to using categories to learn more about these improvements!

Show participants list 

Under Agenda settings, you can uncheck the Show participants list box to prevent Attendees from seeing who else has added an Agenda session to their personal agenda. 

Unchecking the box now also removes the participant count from each session.

For more on the Agenda feature, check this out.

Your Events with [Connection Name]

Web App attendees can now see which other events they'll be attending with people they've connected with. When viewing a connection's profile, the Your Events with [Connection Name] section that was previously only visible on the mobile app now appears. 

Connection search in messages

Attendees can now search their connections when creating a new private message or adding someone to an existing one. This makes it much easier and faster to start conversations after connecting! 🗣️ 

As always, we're thrilled to keep improving the Socio Platform for YOU! Keep the feedback coming - we're listening. 👂 

Load New Posts button

When attendees are browsing the Wall, and someone makes a new post, they'll now see the Load New Posts button. Previously, the Wall would automatically refresh, taking the attendee back to the top of the wall.

Faster load times

Last, but not least, we've made some improvements to how quickly pages load on the Web App and Mobile App. This is especially impactful for events with high attendee counts. 🏃 

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

We've received a lot of feedback lately about the limitations on sharing pre-recorded videos in Socio Streaming. We've been working hard with our streaming partner, Restream, and we're very pleased to announce that both the number and size of Video Clips you can upload to the studio have increased! ⏫

Previously, uploads to the Video Clips feature were limited to 10 videos of no more than 150 MB each. 

The NEW limit is 200 videos of no more than 2 GB or 1 hour in length each. 😮 🌈 

⭐️ Keep in mind, video clips MUST be MP4 format, 16:9 ratio, and no less than 720p. Processing/upload time will vary depending on internet connection. Uploads could take up to 2x the video duration (example: a 1 hour video may take up to 2 hours to upload and process).

We ❤️ feedback, so keep it coming, and keep challenging Socio to be better and better!

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

Partial Refunds/Cancellations

You asked, and we answered! When multiple people registered for an event or community on a single order using Socio Registration, there wasn't any way to refund a single ticket - until now. 🥳 

When you click the Settings (⚙️) icon next to an order on the Orders page and click either Cancel Order or Refund, a new modal appears.

You can select one or multiple tickets to refund or cancel. When you complete the action, the order's status will reflect the change, and email notifications will be sent out as usual. 

With this change, there are now two new statuses: X/Y Complete and Refunded/Canceled.

If only some of the tickets were either canceled or refunded, the Status shows X/Y Complete. If one or more tickets were refunded, and the rest were canceled, the status shows Refunded/Canceled. 

It's that simple! Go check out the Manage Orders article for a complete look at the refund/cancellation process.

Metrics: Filter by Groups

Another highly requested feature is the ability to see metrics for only people assigned to specific Groups. Now you can! Simply click the new Filter by Groups option and select the Group(s) you want to see, then click Apply Filters. 

To return to seeing metrics for everyone in the event or community, simply click Clear All, and then Apply Filters. 

⭐ Keep in mind, the Filter by Groups function only affects metrics as viewed on the Metrics page. Data exports will always include all attendees in the event.

Take a look at the article about the Metrics page for a complete overview of all the data goodies it has to offer. 📈 

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself.

Web App image messages

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then is the ability to send infinite pictures worth infinite words? 🤔 We'll let Web App attendees decide that with the new image message feature for private chat! They can simply click the Image button beneath the message field and then drag and drop or click to select an image.

Video Room Picture-in-Picture improvement

You try not to miss any of the action, but sometimes the action makes you miss the action. Confused? So were Web App attendees who left a live stream to join a Video Room and were hearing both the live stream and Video Room participants at the same time! 🙉 

When you click away from a Live Stream feature or Agenda live stream, the stream will continue to play picture-in-picture (PiP) in the bottom right corner of the screen. We've now made it so that Socio Streaming by Restream and Socio RTMP Player live streams will automatically mute when someone joins a Video Room. For all other streaming providers, the live stream PiP window will close.

For more on Video Rooms, check this out.

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

Invoice & Check Payments

If you want to let registrants pay cash, write a check, or use some other means of payment, you now can! We've just rolled out two new options for Registration: Check and Invoice. Get. Paid. 💰 

When you visit the Payments page of your registration event, you can enable one or both of the new options in the Additional Payment Options field. 

If both options are enabled, registrants will see three options on the registration form - Credit Card, Invoice, and Check. 

If registrants choose invoice or check, they'll receive their invoice, but no ticket or receipt, and they won't be synced with a linked Event or Community. The ticket(s) and receipt will be sent in a separate confirmation as soon as you click Mark as Paid from the Orders page. How and when you collect payment is up to you. 👍

For full details on using Invoice and Check payments, check this out!

Email Recipient Type

With the release of Invoice and Check payment options, we've also added the new Recipient Type selection in registration emails. 

You can now select Attendee or Purchaser as the type. The Attendee selection lets you choose attendees by Tickets and Groups. The Purchaser selection lets you choose All Purchasers, Invoice, or Check. This lets you send payment reminders to people who paid offline or anyone who paid for registration! ⏲️ 

For a complete look at registration emails, check this out!

Socio Platform URL restructure

This one may not seem exciting, but it's going to open the door for future improvements to the Socio Platform! We've now greatly simplified the URL structure of each page in the Socio Platform to read more like breadcrumbs than gibberish. Drake likes it. 🐉 

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

We think you'll "love" 😃 this one. We're excited to announce a new way to gather feedback from your attendees - Attendee Insights! With this release, your Web App attendees will see a pop-up that asks them for feedback on the event, after they've completed certain actions in the event.

After people leave feedback, you can see who and what they said on the Metrics tab. 

Don't want to use Attendee Insights? No problem! You can turn it off in your event Settings.

For a complete look at Attendee Insights, including what attendee actions trigger it and what is included in the metrics export, check this out!

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

'Sup streamers? Ever since Socio launched Socio Streaming, we've been working exclusively with StreamYard as our preferred streaming provider. Now, we're bringing on an additional streaming partner - Restream.

When you select a live streaming provider for an Agenda session or Live Stream, you'll now see two options for Socio Streaming: Socio Streaming by Restream and Socio Streaming by StreamYard.

When you select Restream, you'll still see the Launch Studio button and the Speaker instructions. When you enter the Restream studio, you'll quickly realize it's a lot like StreamYard in many ways. You've got access to Chat messages from attendees, custom branding, overlays, captions (banners), video clips, and more! For a full feature comparison, check this out.

Got a speaker that's much more comfortable with StreamYard, but others are excited to try Restream? No problem! No matter which Socio Streaming provider you select, your streaming credits can be used for either of them, so you can mix and match.

We're thrilled to be providing you this additional option for producing amazing live streams, and, as always, we're excited to always keep improving Socio for YOU!

For a complete look at using Restream in your event, check this out.

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

We've been cooking this one up for a while, and we can't wait for you to see it!  We’re excited to support event professionals’ continued learning with Socio Academy, the place where event professionals, Socio partners, and customers go to learn and certify their knowledge. Socio Academy makes it easy for you to become a Socio expert and master of your craft. To go there now, click the button below.

For a preview of Socio Academy and the learning opportunities there, take a look at the video below. 👇

Customizable Course Plans Based on Your Learner Persona 

Getting started with Socio Academy is easy and only requires a Socio Platform login. If you’re a customer, you can log in with your existing Socio Platform credentials. Anyone can enroll in Socio Academy! If you’re not a customer, you can easily set up a Socio account here. 

When you log into Socio Academy, you can choose courses based on what aspect of your event is most important to you. Are you focused on crafting a fun-filled, unforgettable attendee experience? Do event operations make your world go around? Are you striving to make a lasting brand impression with your attendees and sponsors? Is your bottom line ROI? If any of these piqued your interest, Socio Academy’s Learner Personas have you covered with courses tailored for each outcome. Dive into one or two that best fit your current knowledge needs, or take it to the next level and try them all! 

If you’d like to take a broader approach to your search, you can browse the full course catalog and select the courses that most interest you. 

Become a Power User with Socio Academy Courses 

Staying up-to-date with the Socio Platform has never been easier with Socio Academy. Socio Academy courses are a great way for event professionals to learn more how Socio products support virtual, hybrid, and in-person events.

Socio customers have the added benefit of accelerating their product onboarding with Socio Platform and Release Readiness courses, helping them become certified experts on all that their Socio products have to offer. 

To take your Socio knowledge to the next level, you can enroll in Socio Certification to gain a firm understanding of all Socio product functionality and benefits, learn an overview of product configuration, and discover where to go for more information on configuration or any other Socio-related topic.

Once you’ve completed Socio Certification or a Socio Academy course, you’ll want to shout your success from the (virtual) rooftops! You can easily share your certificate of completion with your LinkedIn network directly from Socio Academy. 

Level Up Your Event Industry Skills 

As the events landscape continues to evolve, Socio Academy is here to help you get the most out of your events with industry specific courses. Whether you’re focused on how to drive Event Revenue and Sponsorship ROI, interested in becoming an expert on Negotiating with Vendors, or you’re looking for guidance on how to Raise the Bar on Virtual Events, Socio Academy has the courses you need to become a master at your trade. 

The abrupt switch to virtual events in 2020, combined with the emergence of hybrid events, has left many event professionals with more questions than answers. Socio Academy is tackling these topics in courses like Bringing the Magic of In-Person Events to Virtual and Showcasing Sponsors in a Virtual Event with expert advice on how to ensure your virtual and hybrid events are successful, engaging, and measurable.

As an added benefit, on-demand versions of Socio webinars will be uploaded to Socio Academy. To get right to what matters most, each webinar will be condensed down into the session’s most important takeaways. Whether you’re revisiting a favorite webinar or watching for the first time, you’ll gain valuable insights on some of the most relevant topics in the events industry.  

Master Your Craft with Socio Academy

Whether you enroll in Socio Academy to ensure you're getting the most out of your Socio products, or you simply want to stay up-to-date on event industry trends, you’ll walk away with valuable insights and learnings to amplify your events. 

Whether you come to ensure you're getting the most out of your Socio products, or you simply want to stay up-to-date on event industry trends, Socio Academy is for you. We can't wait to see you there!

We're pleased to announce that the amazing new Video Rooms feature is available in the Mobile App! Now, attendees using the Socio App or your very own Branded App can join in the fun from any device!

Mobile attendees can engage in chat, send Connection requests, and view Web App users' shared screens, just like Web App users can. 

⭐️ Keep in mind, Mobile App attendees can't share their screens, and Video Room moderation is still only available on the Web App.

Along with this change, we've increased the limit on the number of people that can be in a Video Room and private video chat. Video Rooms can now have 13 attendees and 3 moderators for a maximum total of 16 people in a Video Room. Private video chat now lets up to 13 people talk to one another, provided they've connected first. 

More people means more reach for speakers and sponsors, more capacity for event support reps to field questions, more people in panel chats, and more possibilities for what you can dream up to use Video Rooms and video chat for.

The more, the merrier! 

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself. 

We don't blame you if you zoned out a bit reading that massive title. The point is, Registration just got better with several small but mighty enhancements! 💪 

• You can now clone Tickets and Checkout Forms! 
• We've removed the 2-answer minimum for the Checkbox Select (formerly Multi-select) and Single Select Checkout Form question types 
• We let you disable the Download Ticket button included in every confirmation email on a per-ticket basis. 
• You can now see hidden Groups in the Integrations to Event App section when creating a new Ticket, provided your Registration is linked to your event.

Clone Tickets and Checkout Forms

Save yourself a little work - or a lot! When you click the Settings (⚙️) icon next to an existing Ticket or Checkout Form, you'll now see the Clone option.

Click Clone, and a modal will open where all of the settings are exactly the same as the Ticket or Checkout Form you're cloning from, with a couple of exceptions. 

When cloning a Ticket, any Discount or Promo applied to the existing Ticket you're cloning won't be associated with the new cloned ticket. 

When cloning a Checkout Form, everything will copy over exactly except for the Tickets assigned to the existing Form you're cloning from. Tickets already assigned to a Form can't be assigned to a different one without removing them from that Form. 

Single Checkboxes

☑ Check this box if you agree Socio is cool. 

The Checkbox Select and Single Select question types in Checkout Forms now allow for only one option instead of a minimum of two. This is great for opt-in type questions where attendees have the option to agree to something or opt for additional access. 

PDF Ticket toggle

By default, we include a Download Ticket button with every confirmation email. If it's a paid ticket, attendees will also see the Download Receipt button. What if your event is virtual and the Ticket is free? There's no need to wave an official piece of paper around to get in, so we've added a way to remove the Download Ticket button.

When you make a new Ticket or edit an existing one, you'll notice the new Include in confirmation email toggle under Advanced Settings. If you're making a free Ticket for a virtual event, you can toggle this to NO to keep your emails neat and lean. 

⭐️ Keep in mind, if multiple people registered at the same time, and one of the Tickets had the toggle switched to YES, the confirmation email will still include the Download Ticket button. PDFs will only be included for the Ticket with the toggle turned on, however.

Select hidden Groups

When you make a new Ticket, the last section in the modal is Integrations to Event App. This area lets you select a Group from your Event to automatically assign attendees to when they complete registration using that Ticket. 

⭐️ Keep in mind, your Event has to be linked to your Registration to select Groups.

We're excited to keep implementing your feedback and leveling up Socio Registration more and more! ⏫ 

Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look for yourself.