The Maps feature combined with locations help in-person attendees using your Event App easily find their way around your venue and discover activities and points of interest. As attendees explore the map, they tap regions to find Sessions, speaker profiles, and sponsors associated with that venue location. Attendees can also access the map from a feature linked to the same location, such as a sponsor profile. When they tap a location, the map feature opens and zooms to the associated area.
This connectivity between Maps, locations, and other features means your staff will spend less time telling people where to go. 🧭
This article explains how to add and manage the Maps feature, and it provides an overview of the attendee experience.
Add the Maps feature
In your Event navigation bar under 'Event App', click Features, then click Add Features.
In the modal that appears, search for the feature, click Add, then close the modal.
Edit Settings
To customize the feature's name and icon or limit its visibility using groups, click the feature in the navigation bar, then click the Settings (⚙️) icon next to the feature's name.
When you're done, click Save Changes.
Add locations, map images, and regions
There are two main Map components — regions and locations. Regions are clickable sections you draw on top of the map image you upload. Locations represent physical areas of your venue, like meeting rooms, ballrooms, and the main stage. Once you create locations, you assign them to regions you've drawn.
For the most seamless setup, first create locations, then upload map images, then define regions and assign locations to those regions.
1. Create locations
In your Event navigation bar under 'Event App', click Features, then click Maps. On the Maps page, click the Locations tab, then click New location.
In the modal that appears, enter the Location name, then enter the maximum number of attendees allowed to be in that location at one time in the Location capacity field. This lets you honor fire code regulations when checking attendees in to sessions with Session Check-in. Learn more in our article about configuring Sessions for Session Check-in.
Repeat until you've added all the locations you need. If you forget something, don't worry — you can come back and add more later.
💡 Keep in mind, you can also create locations from the Sessions menu. To learn more about locations and all the places to use them in the Webex Events platform, read our Add Location to Your Event article.
2. Upload maps
To upload a map and start drawing regions, click the Maps tab, then click the New Map button. In the modal that appears, enter a Map Name that clearly tells attendees the corresponding building, level, or area the map shows. Next, click the Select Image button to upload a map.
Follow the prompts in the uploader to add an image file. Once you've added an image, click the Edit button to crop the image or adjust its rotation and zoom.
Click Save after adjusting the image, then click Upload to start adding locations to the map.
3. Add map regions and assign locations
Now, click Add Location and select one of these options:
Custom shape - Click to start drawing a line around an area of the image. Click again to add a corner. Click the point at which you started to complete the shape.
Rectangle - Click to start drawing a rectangle around an area of the image. Click again to finalize the rectangle.
Circle - Click to start drawing a circle around an area of the image. The place you click is the center of the circle. Click again to finalize the circle.
Pin - Click to add a pin icon on the map image.
When you finish a shape or add a pin, a modal appears where you'll select the location the map element corresponds to and choose a fill and border color.
Select a location you made previously in the 'Location Name' field. Next, choose custom Fill and Border colors. Use the opacity slider to make sure the map image is still visible behind regions.
💡 Keep in mind, while it's also possible to create new locations as you draw location regions on a map, you can't add a location capacity using this method. Either add locations before adding them to map regions, or edit the location capacity later.
Click Save to finalize the location.
Edit location region borders and positioning
If you need to edit any of the regions you've added, click Edit Location, then click and drag the dots at the edge of a shape to resize it. Click and drag the middle of a shape or a pin to move it to a different part of the map. Click Stop Editing to finalize your edits.
To delete a region, click on the map element you want to delete. In the modal that appears, click the Delete button.
Click Save Changes when you're done. It's a good idea to save your work often so you don't accidentally lose work! 💾
Upload as many maps as you like — go wild!
Manage maps and locations
After you've added locations and maps, they appear in a list on their respective tabs on the Maps page. Click the Settings (⋯) icon to edit or delete a map or location. Click and drag the six-dot cluster to rearrange item order.
💡 Keep in mind, you can also access and edit locations on the Locations page under 'Sessions'. Regardless of where you manage locations, your saved changes reflect instantly in both places.
To delete multiple maps at once, click the checkbox next to maps, then click the three-dot (⋯) icon next to the 'Search' field, and click Delete.
⚠️ Caution! Deleting a location doesn't delete any associated regions. However, regions without an associated location don't appear to attendees.
Click on a map's name to edit its regions or replace the image. Remember that changing a map image doesn't remove or automatically adjust regions you previously added.
Linking locations to other features
Although you could simply link a location to a Map region, doing only that might not tell the whole story about what's happening at that location, like where a Session is taking place, who's speaking at a Session, or where sponsor and exhibitor booths are located. That's why you can add locations to the following areas:
Linking any of the items above to a location is as simple as picking a location from the 'Location' drop-down when creating the item. Refer to each guide listed above for specifics on where to add locations.
Maps in practice
On the Web App and Mobile App, attendees can click the Maps feature to access a list of maps. After selecting a map, they can use the drop-down at the top to switch between multiple maps. Attendees click a region or pin to zoom in on the map, then they tap the location name to find a list of everything linked to that location.
If an attendee is viewing a feature linked to a location, clicking the location instantly opens the map and zooms to the relevant region.
Metrics
After attendees use the Maps feature, review the Feature Comparison chart on the Metrics tab to find the number of clicks for each Map.
To find even more Maps feature data points, export the Metrics.
Pro Tips 😎
Consider having a separate map with your sponsors' logos as another way to showcase sponsors in your Event App.
If your venue is very large, break the map into sections and upload the sections as separate maps.
Now you know all about Maps! Now read about adding Sessions to your Event, and remember to link them to locations. 🔗
Questions? Chat Us or Email support@socio.events