Event Registration Rewards

Whenever an event announces that the first X registrants will receive some kind of swag, a gold-rush stampede begins. More often than not, it’s the people chasing rewards (they are quick and ruthless), not the event itself.

Most of these events include a free account to test an application, tool, or platform by building a small project. That’s where the real value lies, and the reward structure should reflect it. Instead of rewarding speed at registration, reward actual usage:

1. First finisher → backpack + t-shirt + mug

2. Next 2 finishers within 1 hour → backpack + choice of t-shirt or mug

3. Next 10 finishers within 24 hours → t-shirt + mug

4. Next 10 finishers within 72 hours → mug

5. All other finishers (within 7 days) → entered into a draw for 100 mugs

6. All attendees (even if they didn’t finish) → entered into a separate draw for 100 mugs, to feel included and not discouraged, next time they will do better

Yes, this approach takes more resources to organize, but the outcome is worth it. Instead of rewarding fast clickers, it rewards people who actually explore the product. Some of them may end up liking, even loving the product, becoming its strongest evangelists.

After all, in technology, it’s not what you learn but what you ship that counts.