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How Leaderboard works

An engagement feature for gamification, with points for attendee activities and a ranking of the most active.

Leaderboard is an engagement feature that lets you collect points for attendee activities in the platform and display a ranking of the most active people. It is used for gamification and motivation — attendees earn points for actions (scanning a QR code, posting a photo, liking, commenting, downloading material, visiting a booth) and compete with each other. Leaderboard is not configured in the self-serve admin — it is turned on and set up by customer support / customer success.

Getting started

  • Decide whether gamification makes sense for your event — it fits expos, festivals, trade shows, networking events, and events for a younger audience. It does not fit closed client dinners or internal trainings.

  • If you want Leaderboard, contact customer support / customer success with enough lead time.

  • Prepare the list of activities that earn points — what do you want to motivate (booth visits? photo posts? workshop attendance?).

  • Prepare prizes / rewards for the winners — without them, the gamification falls flat.

Details

What Leaderboard does

It collects points for any attendee activity in the platform. The Happenee customer success team configures the rules based on the organizer's request. Examples of activities that can earn points:

  • Scanning a partner's QR code (at the booth, on a badge).

  • Posting a photo (for example, in a Social Wall inside the Online module).

  • A comment or reaction in notifications or surveys.

  • A like / favorite on a piece of content.

  • Downloading a file (a document, a presentation).

  • Clicking an external link (to a sponsor's website).

  • Attending a session (a workshop, a talk) recorded through check-in.

The list is not exhaustive — the Happenee customer success team can suggest additional activities to fit the use case.

The ranking

Inside the app, attendees see a list of people sorted by points. Each person sees their position and the positions of others. The ranking can be displayed:

  • Overall — all attendees.

  • By group — comparison only within a group (if groups are set up).

How to turn Leaderboard on

  1. Contact your customer success person — ideally before the event, no later than weeks before kickoff.

  2. Describe the goal and the rules — which activities to motivate, which prizes you will offer, how you want to announce the winners.

  3. The Happenee team configures Leaderboard inside your event: the activities, the point values, and the presentation in the app.

  4. It is tested and published.

Leaderboard is not self-serve. It is not a button you flip on. It is a configured service with manual setup by the Happenee team.

Prizes and announcing the winner

Happenee itself does not provide prizes — the organizer arranges them. Typical scenarios:

  • A physical prize for the top 3 (a gadget, a voucher, an experience).

  • A title in the app or on the screen (Most active attendee of the event).

  • Access to an exclusive event (after-party, VIP section).

The announcement usually happens at the end of the event — the organizer pulls the ranking from the admin and announces the winners.

Combining with other features

With Networking — points for making a connection (saving a contact, scanning a badge QR).

With the Online module — points for activity in the online environment (chat, reactions, questions, Social Wall photos).

With the Agenda — points for registering for and attending sessions (check-in).

With Sponsors and Exhibitors — points for scanning a partner's QR code (motivation to visit booths).

Social Wall and other online activities

The Online module can include a Social Wall — a space where attendees share photos and posts. Points can be configured for activities in the Social Wall (posting a photo, commenting, liking). The Social Wall as a whole is also set up by customer success.

Limits and anti-gaming

When configuring Leaderboard, customer support also defines the limits (how many times the same QR can be scanned, how many points are the maximum for a single activity), so attendees cannot artificially "load up" the ranking. Without limits, an active user could scan the same QR a hundred times and end up with disproportionately many points.

Common pitfalls

The organizer expects Leaderboard as a self-serve feature and a week before the event realizes the settings are not visible

Leaderboard is set up by customer success. Reach out with several days' (better, several weeks') lead time.

Leaderboard is turned on without clear rules and prizes, and attendees ignore it

Gamification works only with a clear motivation. Before turning it on, think through what attendees care about (a prize, prestige, recognition) and communicate the rules.

Leaderboard at an event where attendees do not actively use the app, and the ranking stays empty

Leaderboard makes sense only at events where the app is actively used (physical interaction with booths, the online module, Networking). At simple lecture-style events with passive attendees, it does not fit.

The scoring rules are not communicated, attendees do not understand why someone is leading, and there is a sense of unfairness

Publish the rules at the start of the event (in a notification, on the microsite, on a screen). Scanning a partner booth = 10 points. Posting a photo = 5 points. The winner gets…

Prizes are promised, but the organizer forgets to bring them, and the winner walks away empty-handed

Arrange the rewards before the event. If they are non-physical (a voucher, an experience), prepare a digital handover (by e-mail within an hour of the event ending).

Anti-gaming is not applied — one attendee scans the same QR code 50 times and ends up with a huge lead

Walk through the limits with the customer success team — how many times the same activity can earn points, what the daily maximum is. Without limits, the ranking quickly loses credibility.

Related articles

  • How the attendee app and its home screen work

  • How Networking works

  • Using the Online module

  • Must-have, optional, and advanced features and modules by event type

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