Webex Events Platform: 5.1
Event App: 29.0.0
Webex Events Production Studio: 1.1

We have lots of goodies in store for you today. Keep reading or click the video below to learn more!

Embed Event App content with widgets

You build a lot of useful and informative content in your Event App. Why not show it off in more places, like the event website? We’re pleased to announce that you can now embed Event App content in external websites with widgets. Let people know what they can expect at your event, including speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors, and get them excited about what’s to come before they even join your Event App.

No more manually adding and updating information on multiple websites. Simply create widgets in the Webex Events platform, choose the items you want to include, and add the widget embed code in a website. If you make any changes to items that appear in widgets, the widgets update automatically — no code update required!

After creating a widget, select ‘Preview’ from the Settings (⚙️) icon to customize and preview the widget appearance. Choose to display the widget in Carousel View or Grid View, Light or Dark mode, and manage widget settings.

Excited to get started? Read our new article about embedding Event App and Community content with widgets.

Webex Events Production Studio polling integration and network indicator

In case you missed it, last month we released our built-in live streaming solution, Webex Events Production Studio. We promised to add more bells and whistles to the Studio, and here’s the first installment of many to come. As part of this month’s collection of product enhancements, polling is now part of the Webex Events Production Studio! 

When you activate polling for a Live Stream feature or Agenda session live stream that’s using Webex Events Production Studio, polls now appear in the Studio. Polling results, percentages, and total votes update in real time based on attendees’ votes.

Just like with chat and Q&A, Webex Events Production Studio lets you display poll results in the live stream. Show live poll results as answers come in, or show results after the poll closes!

Read our Polling feature guide to learn how to set up polls in the Webex Events platform.

You're a little laggy — is that me or you? Never question your network strength again with the new network indicator. If the network strength or CPU usage changes, a message appears above the network indicator so you can take appropriate action if needed.

To learn more about all the awesome capabilities included with Webex Events Production Studio, read our Getting Started with Webex Events Production Studio article.

Webex Events Video on Demand Closed Captions & Translations

We’re all about enhancing the live streaming experience and promoting greater accessibility for attendees. Last year we launched Webex Events Closed Captions & Translations for Webex Events Streaming. Later, we added it to Webex Events Simulive and Webex Events Production Studio. Now, it's time for Video on Demand to join the club! 

When you upload a video to Video Center, turn on Captions & Translations to automatically add closed captions and translations in over 30 languages to your Simulive and Video on Demand videos. This functionality is completely free — no streaming credit necessary!

💡 Keep in mind, closed captions and translations become available when Video Center content is added to a Live Stream feature or live stream Agenda session. Video Center content doesn’t currently support closed captions and translations when added to speaker, sponsor, and exhibitor profiles and Custom List items.

Want to know more? Read our article about using Video Center for Simulive and Video on Demand for more details. 

Registration website and PDF ticket improvements

We’re continually making Webex Events Registration more and more customizable, and we’re happy to announce a new batch of customization options! 🍪 

We’ve made it easier for registrants to find out if your event is in-person, virtual, or both, and we now provide the option to add a zippy tagline about your Event or Community. Visit the Registration Basics page's Event details tab to add a tagline below your Registration page's title and show or hide your event type.

Are you using Webex Events Registration for your Community? Haven't quite decided on the event venue? Head over to the Registration Appearance page on the Webex Events platform to find the new ‘Show event location’, 'Show event date', and 'Show event time' toggles. To hide this information, change the toggles to 'No'.

We have one more Registration morsel to share. The PDF ticket preview now includes checkboxes that let you show or hide the QR code, event date, and event location on the PDF ticket. 🍬

Improved feature arrangement

And now for a short and sweet encore. In the platform on the Features page, you can rearrange features by clicking and dragging. Previously, rearranging features caused them to switch places, which wasn't very intuitive. We've now made it so that dragging a feature to a different position simply shifts other features to the right.

That's all for today, folks! Head over to the Webex Events Platform and explore these new changes for yourself. Not a customer yet? We'd love to give you a demo!

Lights. Webcams. Action!

As a digital event platform powering virtual and hybrid events, we know how critical live streaming is to your event's success. Providing a simple, reliable, integrated streaming solution has been one of our highest priorities over the years. Until now, we've only provided Webex Events Streaming which integrates Restream's studio with the Webex Events platform.

Now, to provide you with an additional streaming experience that integrates more deeply with your Event App and Community, we're proud to announce the arrival of the Webex Events Production Studio beta! Keep reading or click the video below to learn more.

Designed and built by Webex Events

We've spent months researching, designing, building, and testing this brand new studio experience, and we'll spend years continuing to add more features and make the Studio your best streaming solution. Now, we want to give everyone the opportunity to use the Studio and share feedback. 💬

The features you're used to...

If you're used to the Restream studio's features, you'll feel right at home in the Webex Events Production Studio. Features like brand folders, custom banners, videos, images, and private Studio chat are all available in the right menu's tabs.

You can also show stream content in different layouts, queue layouts to automatically switch when screen share is added, and control who's in the stream and where they appear onscreen.

...and more

In addition to chat integration, the Studio features integration with the Q&A feature and Custom Tab content, so it's easier than ever for speakers and presenters to read and respond to questions and Slido polls!

Guest speakers can join the Studio from their mobile device using the speaker link. Speaking of guests, you can have up to 13 people in a Studio at once. Up to three of these people can be hosts who can control graphics, banners, and other stream content.

⭐️ Keep in mind, hosts must always join the Studio from a computer.

Next steps

Webex Events Streaming by Restream is still available, so keep using it if that's what you're comfortable with. If you want to try out the Production Studio, use it for one or two live streams in your event to get a feel for it! It's all covered with a single Webex Events Streaming credit. 👍

If you're ready to learn more, here are some additional resources to get you started:

• Introduction to Webex Events Production Studio
• Getting Started with Webex Events Production Studio
• Webex Events Production Studio vs. Webex Events Streaming by Restream comparison

That's all for today, folks! Head over to the Webex Events Platform and explore the new Webex Events Production Studio for yourself. Not a customer yet? We'd love to give you a demo!

Platform 4.31
Event App 25.1.0
Onsite App 1.1.5

Introducing Webex Events Closed Captions & Translations 🎉

This one's so exciting, I don't know where to begin! No extra cost! Simple! Automatic! Mobile and web! Only the beginning! Ok... calm down. Deep breaths. You can do this. 

We're proud to introduce Webex Events Closed Captions & Translations for Socio Streaming and the Socio RTMP player! Included with your Socio Streaming credit, this feature lets you provide closed captions and translations from English into 30+ languages, visible to live stream viewers in the Web App and Mobile App.

Enable Webex Events Closed Captions & Translations in just three clicks, and you're ready. No captioner coordination. No widget codes. No sweat if you change a session start time.

Here's how it works:

We use the power of machine learning to automatically generate captions in 34 languages. When you start your live stream, we apply a delay of 30 seconds to the video feed so the machine translation can "preview" the stream and show captions in sync with what's being said.

This is just the start, and we're looking forward to improving this feature soon. 🧡 There's more to learn, and our knowledge base article has the goods!

Bulk Resend Order Confirmation

This change is small, but mighty. 💪 You can now multi-select up to 100 Registration orders and resend confirmation emails!

If you select orders with statuses other than 'COMPLETE', confirmation emails will only be sent to completed orders.

'Nuff said! Read all about managing orders in our knowledge base.

Onsite badge design improvements

If you thought we were done after last month's badge design improvements... Well, I won't hold it against you, because why would you have formed a theory about that anyway? *ahem* 

Anyway, this months batch of improvements is sure to please our productivity-minded users. We've introduced keyboard shortcuts, pinch/scroll to zoom on touch devices, and multi-selection! Here's a breakdown of the new keyboard commands.

When you multi-select elements, you can move and resize them all at the same time. With User Info or Text type elements, you can multi-select and update the font, color, size, and other styling options for all selected elements. 

BONUS! You can now also add the Summary field to badges. If Onsite is linked to an Event App, attendee summaries will print on the badge! 

Learn all about designing badges in our Onsite Badge Creation article.

Upcoming Webex Events app name changes

On August 24th, the Socio Event App, the Socio Check-in, Badge Printing app, and the Lead Retrieval by Socio app will adopt the Webex Events name in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. We’re keeping "Socio" in the listings for all three of our apps so attendees can find the right app even if they search for "Socio". 

Additionally, the Event App display name on your device will change from "Socio" to "Webex Events" with our brand new launch icon.

⭐️ Keep in mind, the new Event App icon shown above is blurred because we're not ready to reveal our new icon just yet! 🤭

We’re letting you know so that you can provide updated app access instructions to your attendees for upcoming events. No matter what kind of event you're hosting, or when, our App Access Instructions for Attendees guide has everything you need. Branded Event Apps won't be affected by these changes. 

Look for more changes from "Socio" to "Webex Events" in our products over the coming months. 👀

It's a privilege to keep improving attendee and organizer experiences month after month, but that's all for today, folks! Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look at these new changes for yourself. Not a customer yet? We'd love to give you a demo!

Platform 4.29
Mobile App/Branded App 25.0.0
Onsite App 1.1.4

Banner improvements

Everyone's favorite Event Layout just got even better! When you upload a new Banner image, you'll see two new fields: Visible To, and Activate Banner.

Visible To lets you select one or more Groups so that only attendees in the selected Group(s) can see the banner. This is an amazing way to keep event content relevant to each attendee type, and it offers new avenues for event sponsorship tiers.

Activate Banner is a simple Yes/No toggle. If you want to upload all your Banners and aren't ready to show everything right away, no problem! Simply set the toggle to 'NO', and the banner will remain hidden until you activate it.

BONUS: If no Banners are visible, the event mimics the Features Only layout, so attendees don't see a boring placeholder image.

Web App Propose Meeting and Mobile App Video button

Networking is one of the most important aspects of the attendee experience, whether the event is in-person, virtual, or hybrid. To make networking even easier, we called a meeting between the Web App and the Mobile App and told them it's time to share. 🤝

Attendees can now propose meetings in the Web App — something only Mobile App users could previously do. The Meet button now appears on a connection’s detail page, in the live stream side panel, and as an option in the connection chat. 

Onsite Badge design improvements

Our Onsite badge design process was already great. Any child can tell you there's always more room for icing on a cake, and we've added three sweet updates. 🎂

First, we've added smart guides to the badge designer, so aligning elements is a snap. Get it? GET IT?!

Anyway, when you drag and drop an element in the Badge Preview, red lines appear when the element is aligned with the edge or center of other elements. This guarantees a crisp, consistent design, every time.

We've also added the badge name to the page breadcrumbs so you don't forget which badge you're editing. 🧠 

Last, but not least, we've made it so that changing a badge's size no longer removes design elements. Always double-check that everything is where it's supposed to be after changing the size!

To learn more about designing badges in Socio Onsite, check this out.

Custom Invite Only Denial Message

Attendees sometimes forget which email they used to register for your event, or they simply aren't registered yet. When your event's Privacy Setting is set to Invite Only, and someone not in the users list tries to join, they see a message letting them know the email they entered isn't recognized.

We've now added the ability to customize the Denial Message!

A custom message is a great opportunity to help orient your attendees and direct them to helpful resources. 

To learn all about Privacy Settings, check this out.

That's all for today, folks! If you made it this far, you deserve a cookie. 🍪 Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look at these new changes for yourself. Not a customer yet? We'd love to give you a demo!

Mobile App/Branded App Version: 23.0.0

Agenda/Calendar View Update

Your community calendar and event agenda just got a whole lot better! Two awesome new features are now available for both the Web App and Mobile App. 🎉

First, we've introduced Month and Year views. It's now very simple for community members or multi-week event attendees to browse the Agenda/Calendar and find upcoming or past sessions quickly. 

Selecting a month in the Year view takes you to the Month view. Selecting a day in the Month view takes you to the Day view, which is the same view you and your members and attendees are used to. 

When you edit the settings for the Agenda/Calendar feature, you can choose a Default View to suit your needs. 

The default Day view also got some love! Your attendees will now see the Happening Now carousel when there are sessions in progress. Users can scroll the carousel to the side to reveal additional sessions if there are lots happening at once.

⭐ Keep in mind, to take advantage of these new features in your Branded Mobile App, you'll need to update your app using this process.

For a complete look at using either the Agenda feature in Event Apps or the Calendar feature in Communities, check this out.

Custom Refund Policy

Sometimes life happens, and people can't make it to your event. Socio Registration gives you the power to issue refunds, and you could previously select from a list of 3 preset refund policies to present in the registration form. We've now added a 4th option that puts the stated policy in your hands! 

When editing your Refund Policy, select the Custom Refund Policy option from the drop-down, enter your own refund policy, and click Save Changes. It's that easy. 😀

For a complete look at how to set your Refund Policy, check this out.

Promo Code entry update

Don't discount the value of this update! 🥁🥁 🐍 Registrants no longer have to click the Enter Code link to reveal the Enter Code field. The field is now always visible at the top of the Tickets list in the registration form and in Ticket widgets.

To learn more about using Promo Codes in your registation, check this out.

Lead Retrieval Export

If you've ever wanted to see specific data on each lead captured by your Lead Retrieval exhibitors, you're in luck! 🍀

We've added the new Export Scan Data button to the Metrics page of your Lead Retrieval event. Click it, and you'll get an xlsx file with the following data goodies:

• Attendee Id 
• First Name 
• Last Name 
• Attendee Email 
• Title 
• Company 
• Scanned by Exhibitor Name 
• Exhibitor User Id 
• Scanned by User First Name 
• Scanned by User Last Name 
• Scanned by Title 
• Lead Quality 
• Lead Status 
• Scan Date 
• Scan Time 

This is great for when you want to summarize how Lead Retrieval performed for your stakeholders, and to prove value to future exhibitors who may want to use LR at your next event.

To learn all about setting up and using Lead Retrieval, check this out.

Croatian Language Support

Zdravo! We're pleased to announce that we now support Croatian in the Web App and Mobile Apps. For our full list of supported languages, check this out.

That's all for today, folks! Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look at these new changes for yourself. Not a customer yet? We'd love to give you a demo! 

More Languages

• Bulgarian
• Catalan (Spain)
• Croatian
• English (UK)
• French (France)
• Indonesian
• Norwegian
• Spanish (Spain) 

App Guide and Attendee Knowledge Base Retirement

On February 23, 2022, we’re retiring the Attendee App Knowledge Base at help.ea.socio.events.

We launched the App Knowledge Base to help answer attendee questions. However, it receives very little traffic — <1% of total feature clicks on average. Turns out, our products are pretty intuitive for end users! Instead of maintaining articles that few are using, we’ve opted to double down on the content that you are using, and empower you to create custom guidance for your attendees.

We encourage you to check out our article about creating an awesome Attendee Walkthrough and use it as inspiration for creating your own guides, whether a video, FAQ, or PDF. Using the examples from other organizers, you can create awesome content tailored to your brand, event, and attendees.

We've taken measures to ensure that anyone who happens to find a link to the App KB will be redirected after February 23.

Term Change: Branded App Custom App

"What's in a name? That which we call a Branded App by any other name would smell just as sweet." - William Shakespeare (sort of)

When you create a Socio Event or Community, your attendees on mobile devices can access it via the Socio App at no additional cost. If you want your mobile experience tailored more to your brand, we offer the add-on Custom App, formerly referred to as the Branded App. 

These great options remain unchanged! We simply wanted to let you know that we've changed how we talk about this custom version of the Socio App from "Branded App" to "Custom App". You'll see this change reflected in the Socio Platform, the Socio Platform Knowledge Base, and future communications from our team.

To learn all about making your own Custom App, check this out.

That's all for today! Hop over to the Socio Platform and take a look at these new changes for yourself. Not a customer yet? We'd love to give you a demo!