Create and set up an event
To create a new event record, open the Events work area and go to Event planning > Events. On the upper toolbar, select the New event dropdown menu and then select In Real-time Journeys to create and open a new event record.
Setting up the initial record for an event provides a summary of its most important details. Those details help you organize your work at each stage of the event-management process. After initial setup, you might return to the event record repeatedly over the next several days or weeks when you continue adding or updating details about your event.
General details
We recommend that you fill out certain key fields on the General tab when you're creating a new event. The following sections describe those key fields in detail.
Key information
In the Key information area, fill out the following fields:
Event name - This field is required. Because you use this field for internal reference and it's visible to registrants, we suggest that you enter a descriptive name that makes sense to your event registrants.
Event type - Select a type of event, such as a conference, demonstration, training, and so on. The system has several out-of-the-box options, but you can modify them to match your business needs. This field is for internal tracking/reporting purposes and doesn't affect the other event features.
These remaining fields in the Key information area are locked for editing:
Registration count - This field automatically calculates the number of event registration records that are associated with the event.
Check-in count - This field automatically calculates the number of event check-in records that are associated with the event.
Event URL - This field populates the registration link based on the settings on the Website and form tab. The system only populates this field when an event is live.
Schedule
In the Schedule area, fill out the following fields:
Event time zone - This field is required. The time zone defaults to the time zone that's associated with the user who creates the event. You can change this field as needed for each event.
Event start date - This field is required. Specify the start date for the event.
Event end date - This field is required. Specify the end date for the event.
After you save the event record, the system populates the Countdown in days field as a read-only field.
Stream this event online
To create a Microsoft Teams event and view the streaming options, set the Do you want to stream this event toggle to Yes on the event record. As a result, more webinar settings become available.
Location
In the Location area, you can specify the location where your event takes place. The location is hierarchical, and you can specify only as much detail as you need. For example, after you specify a building, you can select a room that's associated with the building, including other buildings, rooms, and layouts.
Often, this information is unknown when you first create the event, so you can return to edit it later. The process for setting up the event venues is discussed in a later unit in this module.
For more information, see Set up the event venue.
Venue constraints
The Venue constraints section only appears for on-site events. If you set a new location, the Maximum event capacity value updates to match the capacity that you set up for your last selected building, room, or layout, if available. You can edit the value to override the capacity figure if needed.
Additional information
On the Additional information tab, you can capture extra information about your event, such as goals and financial details that are related to your event. This tab is also where you set up your event team. To view and edit these attributes, open the appropriate event and then go to the Additional information tab.
In the Additional information section, you can enter your expected outcome, primary goals, and a general description for the event. Fill out these details as needed to meet your business needs.
Financials
The Financials section is where you can view and record financial details for the event, such as target revenue, venue costs, budget, and more. These values appear in dashboard charts and analytics but are intended for information only, not for formal accounting or bookkeeping. You can also track other financial information about your events, including speaker costs, venue costs, and more.
For more information, see View and record financial information for events.
Event team members
Your event team includes coworkers and external contacts who help you organize the event. Each event record lists each team member's name and role. Additionally, the event record includes links for more information so that you know whom to call in certain situations and you can find their contact information whenever you need it.
You can view and edit the list of all team members who worked, are working, or will work on all your events by going to Events > Event > Event Team Members. In the events area, you can set up a database of people who are available to help with your various events.
Tip
To associate a team member with an individual event, you need to first set up the person as an event team member. You can create team members from the Event Team Members list view or from within an event.
For more information, see Set up your event team.
Calendar content
When attendees register for an event, they want a way to track the date of the event and what session they plan to attend.
With the Dynamics 365 Customer Insights - Journeys email editor, you can automatically generate personalized iCalendar files to track events and sessions. By using the email editor, you can add an iCalendar file button that's personalized to the email contact. When the contact selects the button, the iCalendar file downloads, allowing the contact to add it to the calendar of their choice.
To set up the calendar content, open the appropriate event and then go to the Additional information tab. To edit the iCalendar information, go to the Calendar content section. The left content section allows you to edit content for calendars that support HTML descriptions, such as Microsoft Outlook. In the right content section, you can edit content for calendars that only support text descriptions, such as Gmail and Apple Calendar. Depending on which calendar the iCalendar file is imported into, the system uses the HTML or the text only description.
For more information, see Customize the iCalendar file descriptions.
Note
After you create or update a Teams event and add the producers and presenters (by adding team members and speakers), the meeting should appear in their Outlook calendar and in their Teams calendar. The calendar item is a read-only version of the event. Changes that you make to the event from the Teams meeting owner's calendar won't update the event in Dynamics 365 Customer Insights - Journeys. Speakers and team members can join the live event from their calendars.
The calendar integration feature for producers and presenters isn't affected by the Calendar content field on the Additional information tab. The Calendar content field only affects the .ics files that the system sends through the email designer to registrants of the event.