Recommended Setup Timeline

Plan an on-site visit. If you're planning a large-scale event that's taking place in a location that's new to you, it's a good idea to do a site visit and meet with the venue staff to go over building layouts, parking, and other logistical details. Doing this well in advance of your event will allow you to answer any questions that might come up and ensure that your attendee check-in experience runs smoothly on the day of your event.
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Determine check-in locations and staffing needs. If you expect a large number of attendees, make sure you have enough space and check-in locations to handle the capacity. Long lines are the fastest way to upset your attendees before the event even starts.
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In general, we recommend you plan to have enough space in your check-in area to accommodate 30% or more of your total expected attendees, plus check-in locations, and any staff needed to support the check-in process.
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If Social Distancing measures are needed for your event, be sure to have enough space to allow guests to keep their distance.
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Check-in locations should also have:
- Power outlets are available so you can plug in devices to keep them charged.
- Wi-Fi access to allow devices to communicate with the internet.
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If your location is outside, consider tents for each check-in location to shelter check-in staff from bright sunlight and the elements. As tents can take up a significant amount of space, consider increasing the size of the check-in area to accommodate the tents.
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While this may be obvious, you should confirm that your venue will be available to you during the hours you plan to open your check-in locations.
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​TIP: If you have walk-ups or other attendees with special check-in needs, consider separate lines to handle those who require more time to check-in.

Test how long a single check-in takes. While ClearEvent's mobile app can check-in as many as 20 attendees per minute, in practice, it can take much longer for an attendee to move into the check-in area, present their ticket, and then clear the check-in area.
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Testing the check-in process under realistic conditions will provide you with the timing information you'll need to determine how many check-in locations you'll need to efficiently check-in your attendees. At a minimum, we typically recommend you assume at least 1 minute per attendee check-in time and that you have at least 3 check-in locations.
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If Social Distancing measures are needed for your event, you may wish to add additional time to allow for the check-in area to be completely clear of other guests.
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In addition to mobile check-in, you should have a plan to handle attendees who may have forgotten their tickets. This may involve adding special lines for manual check-in using ClearEvent's Event Manager App. This will allow staff to look up and manually check-in ticket holders using the check-in features built into the Event Manager App.
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​Let's look at an example: If your event has 250 people attending, and check-in takes 1 minute on average, that would mean if you only had a single check-in location it would take you about 4 hours (250 minutes) to check-in all of your guests. If your desired check-in window was 1 hour, you would require a minimum of 4-5 check-in locations. Since we know registration flow is never consistent, consider designing your check-in process to handle peak loads efficiently. This may mean doubling the number of check-in locations to keep lines short. It may also mean adding extra staff to direct people and help ensure attendees that are next in line are prepared and have their tickets ready to present.

Figure out how many check-in devices are needed. Now that you know how many check-in locations you will need, you can easily determine the number of check-in devices you will need to support your check-in experience.
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You should have at least 1 supported mobile device per check-in location.
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We also recommend that you have backup devices ready in case a device fails to function or runs out of batteries.

Prepare signage needed to direct attendees to check-in. You should assume attendees have never been to your venue before. This means you'll need to provide signage and wayfinding assistance to help attendees quickly find their way around your event. Signage should direct attendees from all potential entry points toward event check-in locations.
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You may wish to extend physical signage outside of your venue to parking lots, pedestrian walkways, or bus stops near your event.
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As attendees near your check-in locations, use signage to remind attendees to have their registration confirmation or tickets ready to be scanned.
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Proper signage will help avoid late check-ins and will also help smooth out peaks and lows in the flow of check-ins.
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Prepare for the unexpected: Make sure you have a plan in place to handle attendees that are not able to be checked in using the Mobile Check-In App. This may include attendees that forgot their registration confirmation or tickets at home or have additional special needs or questions at the time of check-in. For example, you may wish to set up a check-in table where you can manually look up attendees by name and check them in.

Gather and prepare your mobile devices. Make sure all devices are updated to the latest mobile operating system version.
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Charge all devices. Be sure to pack enough device chargers so you can keep your devices charged while on-site.
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Check your licenses. Verify your event subscription plan has enough Event Manager licenses to allow your team to check-in attendees. If you do not, you can upgrade your event subscription plan.
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Invite ticket check-in team members. Each check-in team member must be assigned one or more of the following roles: Registration Check-In Manager, Registration Manager, Ticket Check-In Manager, Ticket Managers, Event Owner, or Event Admin to access the Mobile Check-In App. Learn how to invite event managers here. Event managers must accept the invite before they will be allowed to access the Mobile Check-In App.
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Test the Mobile Check-In App on each device. Learn more about testing here
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Train your staff. There are some basics you should communicate to your check-in staff like how to welcome an attendee, how to access the mobile check-in device, how to scan a registration or ticket, what to do if there is a problem, or what to do if their battery dies.

Enable mobile check-in for Registration and/or Tickets. When you are ready to allow check-ins for registrants or ticket holders, you must enable mobile check-in.
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Set up each check-in location. Ensure power is available at each check-in location if you expect you will need to charge check-in devices. For longer check-in windows you will likely need to charge your mobile device to ensure an uninterrupted scanning experience. When scanning, the typical battery life is 4-6 hours. If scanning tickets outdoors, make sure there is adequate protection from the elements so that device screens are easily viewed.
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Ensure Wi-Fi coverage is available. Make arrangements with the venue, use a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot, or hire a 3rd party solution like http://www.wifient.com
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Test each check-in location. This will help you detect lighting, Wi-Fi, or device scanning problems early.

Disable mobile check-in for Registration and/or Tickets.
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Review your check-ins and no-shows using the Event Manager App. Registration check-ins can be viewed in the Registration section > Registrants tab. Ticket holder check-ins can be viewed in the Tickets section > Ticket Holders tab