Outcomes and post-event reporting
Reconciling event attendance figures before you report them
Registration says one number, the door count says another, and the board paper needs a single figure you can defend.
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The short answer
Attendance has several honest meanings: invited, registered, paid, checked in, present at a session, joined online. Reconcile them by defining each one, listing the source for each, and explaining the gaps between them. Report the figure that matches the objective, and show the others beside it.
Do not choose the largest number because it looks best, or merge definitions to avoid explaining the difference.
Define each count before comparing
| Count | What it means | Typical source |
|---|---|---|
| Invited | Contacted or eligible. | Mailing or member list. |
| Registered | Signed up, paid or not. | Registration system. |
| Paid or confirmed | Fee settled or place confirmed. | Finance records. |
| Checked in | Arrived and was recorded. | Badge scans, signing-in sheets. |
| Session present | Counted in a specific session. | Session scan or room count. |
| Online joined | Logged in to the online link. | Platform report. |
Why the numbers differ
- Registered people who did not attend, and walk-ins who did not register.
- Substitutions, where a different person used a place.
- Speakers, committee, sponsors' staff and suppliers counted in some lists but not others.
- Check-in that only started at one entrance, or stopped after the opening.
- Online viewers who joined briefly, joined twice or shared a login.
A reconciliation sequence
- Pull each list into one sheet with its date and who produced it.
- Agree the definition of each count with the secretariat and finance, and write it beside the number.
- Reconcile step by step from registered to checked in, listing each difference, such as no-shows, substitutions and walk-ins.
- For each remaining gap, note whether it is explained, partly explained or unexplained, and who will look into it.
- Choose the headline figure that matches the objective in your objectives-to-evidence map and label it clearly in the report.
Reporting without overstating
Say how the figure was counted, for example checked in at the main entrance by badge scan. Present registered and checked-in side by side and the explained difference.
If part of the audience is unrecorded, say so. See the respondent bias review for how to handle groups you cannot count well.
What attendance does and does not show
Attendance shows reach and delivery. It does not show learning, relationships or change, which need their own evidence in the benefit evidence tracker.
Avoid cost or satisfaction comparisons built on an unreconciled figure. Reconcile first, then interpret.
Worked example · Fictional example
Three counts for a one-day members' congress
Fictional organisation and illustrative figures, written to show how a reconciliation reads.
Persatuan Fiktif Doktor Haiwan Komuniti compares four lists after its congress: registrations, finance receipts, badge scans and a manual head count at the plenary.
The secretariat lists the difference at each step and marks one gap as unexplained: badge scanning started late at the second door. It reports 212 checked in by scan as a minimum, states that late arrivals through the second door are not fully recorded, and uses the plenary head count only as a cross-check, not as the headline.
| Step | Count | Difference and reason | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered | 240 | Source: registration system | |
| Paid or confirmed | 228 | 12 places not paid; finance to confirm | Explained |
| Checked in by scan | 212 | 16 no-shows reported by the secretariat | Partly explained |
| Plenary head count | 224 | 12 above scan count; second door scanning started late | Unexplained gap noted |
Use this yourself
Attendance reconciliation table
Copy into a spreadsheet and replace the blanks with figures from your own lists. Add a row for each list you have.
- Headline figure chosen, and the objective it supports:
- Groups not recorded or recorded differently:
- Sentence stating how the figure was counted:
- Gaps still to be resolved, with owner and date:
| Count | Definition | Source and date | Number | Difference from previous step | Explained / partly / unexplained, and owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Invited | |||||
| Registered | |||||
| Paid or confirmed | |||||
| Checked in | |||||
| Session present | |||||
| Online joined |
Handle it in-house, or bring in help?
Your team can usually handle this when
- Attendance was captured in one system and the lists differ by small, explainable amounts.
- One person can pull the lists and talk to finance.
- The figure is for an internal report.
Outside planning help earns its fee when
- Registration, finance, check-in and online platform each belong to a different team or supplier.
- The figure drives a funding, sponsor or board decision and must be defensible.
- The same reconciliation is needed after every edition and has been done differently each time.
Want one reconciliation method across editions?
If registration, finance and on-site teams each count differently, recurring programme management can set the definitions, data owners and reconciliation dates once and apply them to every edition. A conference project lead can do this for one event. The definitions and conclusions remain your organisation's.
Questions organisers ask
Which attendance figure should go in the headline?
The one that matches the objective. For reach, checked-in attendance is usually the clearest. Show registered figures alongside it with the reason for the gap.
What if we have no check-in data?
Say that attendance was not recorded at the door and report registered and paid figures with that limit. Do not estimate the gap without stating how.
Should speakers and staff be counted as attendees?
Decide and state it. Many reports show delegates, speakers and organisers separately so the comparison with registration is clear.
Related resources
Content record: Draft. Written from the cited sources and checked by automated rules; not yet independently reviewed.