The ExpoMatch® Online event scheduling system allows you to organize and manage an event at which participants want scheduled one-on-one appointments with each other. Online Registration forms capture participant data and preferences and an automated "solve" process generates appointment schedules for all participants on a best-match basis. ExpoMatch® Online allows administrators to generate reports, and export participant lists in order to print badges, labels, event programs, and signage while keeping track of travel arrangements and who is attending any special functions such as luncheons, banquets and receptions. The cost benefits of an online system are significant, with savings in telephone costs, mailing costs, and dramatically reduced administrative overhead expenses. The Contact Manager allows event administrators to develop a database to use for future or repeat events and the online site promotes your event, your exhibitors and your sponsors year-round. When the time comes for your event, the entire system can be quickly and easily deployed onsite at the venue, allowing you to handle any last minute scheduling requests and changes.

ExpoMatch® Online consists of the following key components:

Online Registration and Database-driven Webpages
ExpoMatch® allows participants to register, select and rank their appointment choices online, review their appointment schedules, and receive automated confirmation and transaction receipts by email. An user ID and password system allows event participants to preview their appointment schedules after the appointment "solve" process has been run, while allowing administrators world-wide secure access to approve, reject and modify registrants.

There are significant benefits to providing online event registration for your event participants:

• Electronic registration forms can be programmed to enforce correct completion, eliminating errors and omissions during the registration process.
• Registration information can populate database-driven web pages in real time, instantly updating registrant, exhibitor, sponsor and schedule information pages.
• Financial calculations can be verified by the computer and transmitted securely.
• Credit card authorization and payment can be processed online with automatic funds deposit direct to your bank account.
• Registration forms can be made available to a global audience around the clock, giving your audience the benefit of being able to register for your event at any time. No need to design and print registration forms. The online forms can be printed and mailed or faxed to any registrants without Internet connections.
• Confirmation of receipt notification can be sent to your registrants in real time both by onscreen message and by electronic mail.
• Returning registrants enjoy a fast streamlined registration process. Registrant information can be retrieved from previous events, allowing repeat registrants to approve or update existing information.
• "Remember Me" function is added to all pages requiring a username and password, allowing participants who have forgotten their username/password to receive them by email within minutes.

Website
We can provide your event with a complete event website including Welcome pages, About your event pages, Venue, Online Help, Contact Us page. We also look after the registration of your event name(s) and date(s) with the major internet registries and search engines. If you already have an event website, we can allow users at your site to link directly to our system for registration and appointment scheduling functions.

Database-driven Webpages
These include:

• Buyer Registration Form (registered exhibitors automatically populate the buyer registration form as potential appointment choices)
• Participant appointment schedules with links to profile pages of the person or organization with whom that meeting is booked
• Participant travel itineraries
• Exhibitor List
• Individual exhibitor profile pages
• Sponsor List
• Individual sponsor profile pages
• Event Schedule, customized for buyers and sellers
• Searchable downloadable Directories – Event Administration, Exhibitor, Sponsor, Participant.
• Who's Attending This Year list

Appointment Scheduling
Registrants can rank the importance of their appointment choices as either high or regular during the registration process or can return to the site to alter appointment choices at any time. Event managers can optionally assign a rank to the registrant. The system solves appointments based on the ranking information and the arrival and departure times indicated by the participants.

1. The Solve Function – At the heart of ExpoMatch® is the global "solve" algorithm. Running a "solve" for the event generates the appointment schedules for all participants based on the participants attending the event, the available timeslots, the meeting spaces and the various rankings applied by the buyers, sellers and event managers. The solve process generates appointment schedules for participants who can preview them online and/or print their appointment schedules prior to their event. The appointment schedule provides links to the participant's information sheet.
   
   
2. Incremental Solves – Allows supplementary solves to be run by event administrators after the primary solve, to accommodate minor scheduling changes and last minute registrants prior to and during the event.
   
   
3. Assign Appointment Manually – Allows event managers to manually assign open appointment timeslots to specific users. Allows event managers to make scheduling changes onsite. Overrides the automated solve process, allowing administrators to "lock" specific appointments into the schedule.

Contact Database
Captures and stores information about all your event contacts. The contact database is not limited to tracking those taking part in appointments, but may include exhibitors, registrants, suppliers, sponsors, and other categories of individuals. Once captured in the database, contacts may then be "assigned" as participants in any pre-defined event(s) or be retained in the database as potential contacts for future events.

Email Communications Center
Allows event managers to create and save custom mailing lists, allowing you to email and send attachments to all list members (for example: all exhibitors, all sponsors, all registrants, all registrants who have not completed the appointment selection form). The Email Communications Center also allows you to create custom signatures.

Automated Email Response Letters
Participants will receive automated personalized email inviting them to the website to register, an automatic confirmation that their registration form was submitted, confirmation of when their registration has been approved, when their appointment schedule has been posted, confirmation of travel/accommodation forms submitted, and confirmation of approved travel arrangements. Sponsors receive confirmation of request to sponsor form submitted, sponsorship accepted, invoice and thank-you for your payment letters.

Administrative Center
You and designated members of your event management team get secure private access to an Online Administrative Center specifically tailored for your event with an integrated set of administrative and reporting functions including:

1. Special Functions – Allows event administrators to define special functions which a registrant might attend. Examples include opening and closing sessions, receptions, lunches, dinners, seminars, etc., which would be choices available to participants on the event registration form.
   
2. Appointment Schedules – Allows managers to view the appointment schedules of both exhibitors and attendees;
3. Assign Booth Numbers – An interface for assigning and tracking booth numbers and meeting locations;
4. Reports – Automatic generation of lists for name badges, table signage, those participating in special functions, and mailing lists for export and merging into common commercial software office suites.
5. Online Registration Approval – Approve or reject registrants. Query/add/modify/delete participant data records.

Reports
Administrators have worldwide instant access to up-to-the-minute data and reports. ExpoMatch® instantly generates lists of attendees for each special functions, name badges, table signage, travel times and anything else you want to track.

Financial
ExpoMatch® allows you to generate and send invoices electronically and track payments. We can also implement secure end-to-end financial payment processing online, allowing you to accept major credit cards as an integral part of the online registration process at your event site. Card authorization takes place in real time, with payment credited directly to any bank account you specify.