REGISTRATION FAQ AUTHOR: Chris Edmondson-Yurkanan, dragon@cs.utexas.edu, +1 512 471 9546 DATE: last modified 8/2/2006 CONTENTS OUTLINE: 1. Role of registration chair 2. Input to advance program and web 3. Registration processing plan (and policies) 4. Database software 5. Acknowledge letter 6. Pre-paid registrations (and comps for student volunteers) 7. On site registration 8. Packet contents 9. Signs 10. Badges 11. Attendee List 12. Selling extra tickets, extra tutorial notes, extra proceedings 13. Extra tables for related announcements 14. Registration Lessons by Liann Dimare 15. SIGCOMM sponsoring "free memberships" to non-members? 16. After conference action items ******************************************************************************* 1. Role of registration chair * Next year: early registration deadline ( consider moving it to 3 weeks or 22-24 days ) NOT 28 days since so much is done via email these days. * Get volunteers to man the registration desk (Registration Hire and students...) * input to tmrf - how many compl. registrations do we expect 2. Input to advance program and web * we will always want to include in the registration, an option to join SIGCOMM, and thus allow them to save money. Registration web page: should always have the list of prices, independent of the ACM or other database reg. software (the database reg. software goes away!!!!) 3. Registration processing plan (and policies) * See ACM's Conference Manual on Registration... 4. Database software 5. Acknowledge letter * the registration company should send one out.... Review the confirmation letter with the whole conference committee, because it's a great way to emphasize details/times/registration starts/etc. 6. Pre-paid registrations (and comps for student volunteers) See Joe Touch's Web pages -------- 7. On site registration 8. Packet contents ATTENDEE LIST: I strongly believe that the attendee list should have been a required field, i.e. pick one of the choices. Name (and affiliation) can always be provided. And I would go so far as to suggest going ahead and printing the name of every person who is attending.... so that you know if Ellen Z. is coming or not... So, if you don't want to include name (and affiliation) for all, then you should have a statement at the bottom of every page, that it's not an attendee list, but it's a who wants you to know list ;-) 9. Signs directing people to tutorials and other special events and to SIGCOMM itself if necessary. Use hotel's easels 10. Badges 11. Attendee List 12. Selling extra tickets, extra tutorial notes, extra proceedings Tutorial notes can only be purchased at the conference, no mail orders (we do not hold copyright to the tutorial notes so we cannot sell them after the conference, not our property). Proceedings can be sold at the conference or purchased after the conference by contacting the ACM Membership Dept. (212/626-0500) acmhelp@acm.org. 13. Extra tables for related announcements We usually set up a few display tables near the conference area so people can put out promotional pieces. Please let this person know that we will be more than happy to put any books out marked "for display only" with an order form. Also let her know that someone will not be at the tables to watch the books from walking. We usually request as a fee that the books are donated after the conference to a local university and/or academic volunteer for distribution to students. 14. Registration Lessons Administrative support is absolutely essential for the two weeks around the early registration deadline (approx 180 (56%) registered during this period) and the first few days on-site (another 80 (25%) registrations)! The main time sinks were: data entry credit approvals packet assembly packet item production (perhaps because I had such an ancient printer) So, get as much help as you can for these. Because everything comes together through registration, please keep the registration chair informed of policy, give aways, etc. It could avoid some embarrassing situations. So, registration chair needs to know exactly what the tutorial instructors are receiving, who is getting complimentary registrations, what's expected by workshop chair, tutorial chair, ... ... Ciao, Liann Liann DiMare MITRE Corporation -------------------------------------------------------- 15. Do we want to provide free membership? this is an issue to be decided each year? (2003) SIGCOMM sponsoring "free memberships" to non-members During the "economic boom years" SIGCOMM has provided a free SIGCOMM registration (and maybe once - an ACM free registration) to any non-member who "checked that option" in the registration web pages. The registration chair should check with ACM's member services before the registration page is finalized to see exactly what information is needed, and in what format does ACM want the data sent? 16. After the conference action items: a) If conference sponsored free memberships: send names to ACM as early as possible. b) Make sure that complete attendee lists are sent to ACM SIG program director in charge of publicity/labels so that we can archive these for mailing labels in the future. c) 2003 issues: * 6 registrants did not attend, the reg. chair suggests that we send the receipt and proceedings * still some credit card issues, some banks are blocking the charge from KMK, and maybe ACM can handle this. d) create a summary that includes a detailed look at onsite registration e) create a final summary