Use Tracks to Categorize Sessions

Categorize and restrict access to Agenda Sessions

Daniel Murphey avatar
Written by Daniel Murphey
Updated this week

Tracks are an advanced function used to categorize and even limit access to Sessions.

In the Event App, attendees can easily filter Agenda Sessions by track to find only those that match their role or interests. Restrict attendee access to certain Sessions in the Event App and Onsite Session Check-in by combining the power of groups with tracks to create truly customized experiences.

Add tracks

  1. In your Event navigation bar, click Sessions.

  2. Click Tracks.

  3. On the Tracks page, click the New track button.

  4. In the modal that appears, fill in the following information:

    The steps just described.
    • Track Name - The Track Name is visible in the expanded Session view and in the Agenda filters in the Event App.

    • Track Short Name - The Short Name is visible in the Day View of the Agenda feature in the Event App.

    • Track Color - The Track Color appears with the Short Name in the Agenda feature's Day View, expanded Session view, and the Agenda filters in the Event App. It also appears in the Onsite App's Session Check-in mode on each Session's details page.

    • Visible To - This optional field is a great way to create tailored attendee experiences in the Event App and restrict Onsite Session Check-in to certain groups of attendees. If you select exclusive and non-exclusive groups from the 'Visible To' drop-down, only attendees associated with the same groups as the track can access the Sessions assigned to that track. We'll cover assigning Sessions to tracks in the next section of this article.

      Here's an example: Anyone who purchases an in-person ticket is automatically assigned to the 'In-Person Ticket' exclusive group. In the Event App, certain features are only visible to attendees in this exclusive group, and you also have certain Sessions meant only for in-person attendees. So, you create an 'In-Person' track and assign the 'In-Person Ticket' exclusive group to the track.

      Now, any Sessions you associate with the in-person track are hidden from people who aren't in the 'In-Person Ticket' exclusive group.

      Read our article about how to use groups for tailored attendee experiences for complete instructions on creating groups.

  5. Click Save Changes when you're done.

Assign Sessions to tracks

After you add tracks, assign them to Sessions on the Sessions page.

Assign a new Session to tracks

When creating a new Session, simply select the tracks it should be assigned to from the 'Tracks' drop-down.

💡 Keep in mind, if you assign multiple tracks to a Session and one or more tracks are visible to specific groups, then only attendees in those specified groups can access the Session. For example, if you assign the 'Sponsor' and 'VIP' tracks to a Session and the VIP track is only visible to the VIP group while the Sponsor track has no group assignment, only VIP group members can access the Session.

Assign an existing Session to tracks

To assign an existing Session to a track:

The steps just described.
  1. On the Sessions page, click the Settings () icon next to a Session.

  2. Select Manage tracks.

  3. In the modal that appears, click the Assign to tracks drop-down and select the tracks you want to assign.

  4. Click Save changes.

Assign multiple Sessions to tracks

If you need to assign multiple Sessions to the same tracks, save time by assigning them in bulk!

The steps just described.
  1. On the Sessions page, check the boxes next to the Sessions you want to assign.

  2. Click the three-dot () icon next to the search field.

  3. Select Assign to tracks from the drop-down menu.

  4. In the modal that appears, click the Assign to drop-down and select the tracks you want to assign the Sessions to.

  5. If you want to remove currently assigned tracks from the selected Sessions and replace them with the newly assigned tracks, check the Remove existing tracks box.

  6. Click Save changes when you're done.

Limit Onsite Session Check-in with tracks

If you're using Onsite Session Check-in, you can prevent people in specific tracks from checking in to certain Sessions. To learn how, read our article about configuring Sessions for Session Check-in.

Manage tracks

After you've created some tracks, you can manage them in several ways on the Tracks page.

  • Click the Settings () icon next to a track to edit or delete it.

  • To re-order the tracks, click on the six-dot cluster next to the Settings icon and drag and drop the item in your preferred order.

  • To export or delete multiple tracks at the same time, check the boxes next to several tracks and then click the three-dot () icon next to the search field.

Tracks in practice

Now let's explore how tracks work in the Event App and Onsite Session Check-in.

Event App

When attendees open the Agenda feature in the Event App, the tracks each Session belongs to appear below the Session name.

Here's a pair of screenshots showing the same Agenda feature for someone on the 'In-person' track (left) and someone on the 'Virtual' track (right). The in-person Sessions at the bottom of the left screenshot are only visible to the 'In-person' track, and the virtual track isn't assigned to a group, so it's visible to everyone.

The screenshots just described.

Attendees can also click or tap the filter button in the top right corner of the screen to filter Sessions by one or more tracks.

The session filter modal.

Tracks in Onsite Session Check-in

Any tracks you assign to a Session appear in a section called 'Tracks' in the Onsite app on the page for that Session. If you're limiting Session Check-in access based on tracks assigned to a Session, only attendees who belong to groups associated with those tracks can check in to the Session.

The Onsite App's Session Check-in page for a Session. The Tracks and Settings sections are indicated.

Now you know how to use tracks! 🎊 For related learning, read our guide to using groups.

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

Did this answer your question?