Testing Your Event App

Try things out without leaving a mess, and help speakers, sponsors, exhibitors, and staff test, too

Daniel Murphey avatar
Written by Daniel Murphey
Updated over a week ago

There are many facets to your event, and Webex Events is only one piece of the puzzle. To ensure that everything goes smoothly, it's incredibly important to carefully examine and test all aspects of your Event App.

This article provides the framework and steps needed to test your Event App, including test user creation and management, basic testing protocol and best practices, and instruction templates tailored for different kinds of testers. Let this be your guide to making sure that everything is in place and ready to go before showtime! 🌈

💡 Keep in mind, publish your Event App and configure everything as close to completion as possible before you begin testing.

Prep your Event App for testing

Testing can be as simple as clicking around in the Event App to make sure everything looks and functions like it should. However, some preparation may be necessary in the following scenarios:

  • You've already welcomed attendees into your Event App

  • You want to make test posts and comments

  • You want to test Game code entry

  • You add anything to the Event App that you'll delete after testing

No matter how you plan to test, more testers mean more chances to catch problems before your attendees do. Create test accounts for each of your testers. Then you can block them after they're done testing, which removes all the content they've posted. 👍

The next few sections show you how to create a hidden group, add all of your test attendees to the hidden group, and associate features with the hidden group to temporarily hide them.

Create a hidden group

  1. In your Event navigation bar, click Attendees.

  2. Click Groups to open the Groups page.

  3. Click the New Group button.

  4. In the modal that appears, enter a name for the testing group, pick a color, and select Hidden from attendees.

    The process just described.
  5. Click Save Changes to finish creating the group.

Add test attendees

  1. In your Event navigation bar, click Attendees.

  2. On the Attendees page, click New attendee.

  3. In the modal that appears, add information to the required fields. We include detailed instructions for adding an attendee in our article about adding Attendees.

    💡 Keep in mind, the email address should not be the same address the testers will use during the actual event. Ask your testers for an alternate email address.

  4. Click the Exclusive group drop-down and select the hidden test group you created.

    The process just described.
  5. If there are multiple groups restricting visibility in different ways, use the Groups drop-down to assign different groups one at a time, testing each time you assign a new group.

    • For example, if you want to test features that are exclusive to virtual attendees and features exclusive to in-person attendees, assign the in-person group, test, then unassign it and assign the virtual group and test again.

  6. Click Save changes when you're done.

After creating test accounts for your testers, use the templates later in this article to invite them to test!

Hide features

If there are already people using the Event App, hiding features entirely will ensure your testing goes unnoticed. This is especially useful if you want to test Wall posting, sending chats, entering Game codes, or starting live streams. 🙈

If you're testing to make sure certain features are only visible to specific attendee groups, skip this part for now and do interaction-based testing at the very end so the activity will only be visible for a short time before cleanup.

💡 Keep in mind, if attendees are using features in your Event App already, consider creating separate test features associated with the test group so that only your testers can access them. It's always a good idea to add a Live Stream feature dedicated solely to testing live streaming with Webex Events.

To hide features before testing:

  1. In your Event navigation bar under 'Event App', click Features.

  2. If needed, add features dedicated solely to testing.

  3. On the Features page, hover over the feature you want to hide and click the Settings (⚙️) icon.

  4. In the modal that appears, click the Visible To drop-down and select your hidden group.

    The process just described.
  5. Click Save Changes.

Time to test!

Now you're ready to test! Every event is different, so our best advice is to go wild! Work your way down the list of features on the Mobile App and Web App and click on everything. Pay attention to the smallest details of images. Make sure there's nothing strange, broken, or off-center. Act like an attendee in any way you can think of. If you leave a mess, don't worry — it's easy to clean up the Event App. 🧹

Access the Event App as an attendee

Whether you published your Event App to the Webex Events App or a Branded App, simply access the Event App promo page and download the Mobile App or open web version to start testing.

Testing tips

Beyond being aware of how the app and its features will appear and behave for attendees, there are some specific areas we always recommend testing. Follow the links for details on how each of these works:

  • Sending announcements - Send a few announcements to the hidden test group and check how they display on the Web App and Mobile App.

  • Q&A moderation - Test Q&A moderation in Agenda Sessions and Live Stream features, if you have both. Try approving and dismissing posts.

  • Activating and deactivating polls - Test polls in Agenda Sessions and Live Stream features, if you have both.

  • Wall posting and moderation - Post text and images to the Wall feature and test out moderating these posts.

  • Run a Test with the Webex Events Production Studio - This article guides you through the whole process of testing with the Webex Events Production Studio. Use these steps to do a rehearsal with your speakers.

  • Video Room moderation - This article offers best practices and instructions on moderating and removing people from Video Rooms.

  • Do you have 'Open link in external browser' unchecked for any links? If any of the links don't display embedded content in the Web App when you click on them, refer to our article about troubleshooting embedded websites and videos for advice.

  • Are you using the Pass data to URL function for anything? Check to ensure the data from Webex Events is flowing to the external website correctly.

  • Using Onsite? Have your resident Onsite expert and staff set up your Onsite hardware and test print badges the day before your event and first thing the day of. This is the best way to ensure a smooth check-in experience for you and your attendees.

  • Read our article about testing Lead Retrieval if you or your exhibitors are using it at your event.

  • Testing shouldn't be up to one person. Invite your sponsors, speakers, moderators, and other staff to test the Event App to ensure it's fully vetted. The more the merrier! Use the following testing instruction templates to get more people involved.

Testing instruction templates

Replace the text in {{braces}} with the correct information from your Event App before sending these templates. Here are some tips:

  • Consider adding screenshots or creating a short Vidcast to help guide people through the testing process.

  • If you're using collaboration forms for speakers, sponsors, or exhibitors, consider including the link to their collaboration form so that they can submit changes to their profile if needed. To learn how to find the link for each profile, read our article about setting up and using collaboration forms.

⚠️ Caution! These templates are meant to be a starting point, and not everything in them will apply to you and your Event App. Read the templates carefully and remove anything that isn't relevant before sending.


Sponsor/Exhibitor template

Thank you for being a part of {{event name}}!

We want you to be comfortable with the Event App before show time, so I've set you up with a test user account. Simply follow the URL below and download the Mobile App to your device, or click Access on the web. Next, enter {{test email address}} on the login form and create a password.

{{promo page URL}}

{{access code (if applicable)}}

Once you log in, go to the {{sponsors/exhibitors}} feature and locate your {{sponsor/exhibitor}} profile. Make sure all the images, links, and buttons are accurate. The application displays differently depending on whether you're on the web version or the Mobile App, so please review both versions. Feel free to also explore the other features of the Event App.

If you find that anything is missing, incorrect, or not working, let me know!

When you're done reviewing the Event App, let me know so I can remove your test account. Your official user account will be under {{email address}}.


Speaker template

Thank you for being a part of {{event name}}!

We want you to be comfortable with the Event App before show time, so I've set you up with a test user account. You can use the test account to try out chat, make Wall posts, and try out anything else you might do during the actual event. Simply follow the URL below and download the Mobile App to your device, or click Access on the web. Enter {{test email address}} on the login form and create a password.

{{promo page URL}}

{{access code (if applicable)}}

Once you log in, go to the {{speakers}} feature and locate your profile. Make sure all the images, links, and buttons are accurate. The application displays differently depending on whether you're on the web version or the Mobile App, so please review both versions. Feel free to also explore the other features of the Event App — make posts, leave comments, and request follow-ups.

If you find that anything is missing, incorrect, or not working, let us know!

When you're done reviewing the Event App, let me know so I can remove your test account. Your official user account will be under {{email address}}.

Please also review the Speaker Instructions so you know what to expect during a live stream. We'll schedule a live stream test session to get you comfortable with the streaming studio and process.


Moderator template

Thank you for being a part of {{event name}}!

We want you to be comfortable with the tools you'll use to moderate the Event App before show time. Please follow the instructions in this article to log in and get familiar with moderating the Event App: https://help.socio.events/en/articles/5445247

I've set up your admin account under {{admin email}}.

You can also use this email to log in to the Event App as an attendee. Simply follow the URL below and download the Mobile App to your device, or click Access on the web. Enter {{admin email}} on the login form and create a password.

{{promo page URL}}

{{access code (if applicable)}}

If you find that anything is missing, incorrect, or not working, or if you have questions about your duties, let me know!


Cleanup

Block test attendee

After everyone is done testing, it's time to block those test attendees.

  1. In your Event navigation bar, click Attendees.

  2. If everyone is in a hidden testing group, click the filter drop-down and select the test group. If you didn't use a hidden test group, simply use the search function to quickly find a test attendee.

  3. Now, click the Settings () icon next to a tester.

  4. Select Block.

    The process just described.

💡 Keep in mind, the Event App Metrics will still include blocked user interactions, minus Wall posts.

Unhide features

If you chose to hide any of your features during testing, simply remove the hidden group from the feature using the steps described earlier.

That's it! Blocking test attendees has removed their posts, chats, and game interactions from the Event App, and your features are no longer hidden.

Now that you've tested your Event App, read our best practices for launching and promoting your Event App to attendees. 🚀 Don't forget to do live stream rehearsals with your speakers, too!

Questions? Chat with us, email support@socio.events, or attend a Face to Face session.

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