Whova - Event & Conference App Reviews

by Brustarooster

this app tech support does not exist. They implemented an update that wiped out our speakers and vendors uploaded information the day before our conference.
They are West coast based. We are East coast. Tech support is only available when they open. With every issue that came up they immediately blame the issue on something we did or were doing.
After the first day of our three day event they did a security update that wiped out the compatibility between this app and Zoom. Our second day is 1/2 over and no resolution to the chat issue.
They are very cavalier with their support. When their update wiped out the data for vendors and presenters they suggested we just reload the information less than 8 hours before our conference.
I would not recommend this app to anyone searching for a platform to use for a virtual conference. Terrible, terrible tech support.

by Jfordwolf

We used this for an annual industry conference this year due to COVID. Many participants experienced audio and visual difficulties. We were able to work through this using the this app chat function and logging in to the meetings directly on Zoom.

Be very careful not to click on any chat “pop ups” that appear on your screen when you are in a session. If you do, you will be removed from your session to view the chat box. When you reenter the session, you will be put into the session “waiting room” and the session facilitator will need to readmit you.

I do hope that we can begin to have our conferences in person again soon. This conferencing platform is a great idea, and I’m sure this app will work through the bugs in their software over time. However, there are so many software bugs and usability issues that an app like this will never be able to take the place of in person learning.

by Tyrreacakes

Wow! There were so many reasons why I would recommend this app. I wasn’t on the team of coordinating all of this, however, you must have an awesome team to come together to make this all happen from the speaker platforms to the vendor tables. I would have liked to have understood more on how the videos for vendors were being shared so that we were able to get more hits. I loved the messaging systems to be able to communicate with everyone including the speaker. Our LifeAct team would like to mimic some of your processes within our own organization. Thanks again for all that you do.

by Junebird6

I participated in a remote conference using this app recently and was impressed with its performance and functionality. Seven months into the pandemic, I’ve used several of these apps for virtual conferences and meetings. this app is perhaps the best one I’ve used so far: it’s easy to navigate, allows participants to create meet ups, has a job messaging area, and other functionality I have not seen before. The only thing that I think the developers need to work on is to make it easier to toggle between sessions and the overall agenda. That seemed to actually work better on my iPhone that on my laptop.

by Jewelsandjemsbyjen

Initially I was iffy about having to use this app for the event I was attending, but once I saw how it allowed me to interact not only with the event hosts but also the other attendees, I quickly came to love Whova . I was going to this event on my own and didn’t know anyone else that was attending and the this app app allowed me to chat with and get to know other attendees prior to the event so I actually had some new friends to meet up with and hang out with. Whova also allowed me to keep easy track of my schedule for the event (had several classes), allowed for immediate notifications of updates to the event and even had a map of the venue which was extremely helpful for finding my classes.

I feel kinda spoiled by having been able to use the this app app for this event and I hope that any future events like this that I may go to will use the this app app as well.

To those planning events, I highly recommend you use this app for your attendees to keep track of the schedule and get to chat with other attendees prior to the event. It really helped make the whole event so much better!

by Kc Media

Great app and very functional :) I loved all of the service items within. It was my first time using Whova for an event and found it extremely helpful!!! By having Whova , I can review the agenda, and see the attendee list, which is great for targeting specific leads, and engage in messaging with other conference attendees. It's a great tool for networking at conferences. Our company used this app to generate leads at the conferences/events. We are also able to start relationship building right away by engaging in texting and conversation groups through Whova . As a person with background of Operations / IT project management / Sales, I would say this app is definitely an impressive platform.

by #TeamWicks

I really appreciated Whova and found it most useful as I am New to the Board of Commissioners and I was a “First Time Conference Attendee.”
I did quite a bit of networking thru Whova and made some, hopefully, lifetime friends! I did find that a lot of conference attendees did not take advantage of Whova and that was a bit puzzling to me but I guess once you’ve been to so many, you may not need as much guidance and already know what to expect? As for me, I found it extremely useful and would definitely use it for the upcoming Colorado Conference which I am looking forward to😉
I thank you and feel that without Whova , I would have been lost.🤔 I do appreciate you and thank you for listening!

by Deann Schneider

Combining live zoom presentations with multiple virtual exhibitors, conference attendee chat functions and more...I can’t imagine a conference, class or event Whova would not be a great supplement to. Even when we can go back to meeting in person, it is valuable to connect with attendees, be able to go back and watch speakers your schedule wouldn’t allow at the time of the live event, etc.

I was an attendee and felt it was seamless. I will have to read reviews of those who had to use it to create the virtual event but can’t imagine it want also intuitive for organizers. I bet my daughter wishes her professors would use this!!!

by Emboring

I used the this app app for a recent conference was blown away by how closely it matched the best features of an in-person experience. Prior to the event I was able to connect via personal message with like-minded people and start good conversations. As a speaker, I appreciated the feature that allowed attendees to post questions to my session prior to the day of the conference, which helped me adapt my talk to be relevant to my audience’s interests. (This feature isn’t usually available at an in-person event!). The integration with Zoom was smooth and user-friendly. I would highly recommend this app to conference organizers and participants.

by DashTheGreat

GoalMakers2021 was my first virtual conference to attend. Most part of the conference along with its activities could be accomplished through this app mobile apps. I think team this app did an excellent job. I gave it 10 out of 10 even though I was little disappointed that they didn’t allow simultaneous use of two devices by an attendee. I would have preferred to use the laptop for the panel discussion and the mobile phone for networking. But after all the two days conference ended with no major hassles or interruptions.
Two of our board members assigned for our Exhibit booth could not sign in for some technical reasons.

by Jim-Howard

I recently attended the first all-online version of the Pacific Seabird Group’s Annual Meeting. It was held on the this app app, and the features supported on Whova were great. Some improvements from the in-person meetings I’ve attended in the past are the ability to access the pre-recorded or live-recorded talks and posters, which you can access again if your notes aren’t perfect. The chat options in the live talks are great, and the speaker can focus on answering questions, rather than the room being held captive while one person has a “more of a comment” moment. The “agenda” interface was great, and the ability to set up a “my agenda” to compare to the whole conference was great. Getting in and out of “rooms” was simple, and I didn’t experience any lag or glitching when they opened.
All in all, I hope we use the platform to augment any in-person future meetings, especially since being able to access the other talks means you don’t have to miss anything during concurrent sessions. If we do future online or virtual conferences I think this would be a great app to organize it on.

by Esc Swede

The this app app made my first multi-day virtual conference an unexpectedly rewarding experience. Installation was simple, loading the meeting info was a snap, and selecting among optional sessions was a breeze. I liked the ability to flip quickly between My Agenda and the whole conference agenda to see what I might be missing. The embedded video links were seamless on my iPhone and conveniently linked out to a desktop for larger format viewing. The session Q&A and real-time chat functions created the interactive piece that is usually lacking in most web conferences. Virtual conferences will never quite match in-person events but this app makes it feel like you’re part of a real meeting!

by Mackster19

I used this app both on a computer and on my phone to follow the Statistics in Pharmaceuticals conference (SIP2021). I can say I liked the experience. I were able to see the agenda and select the part that interested me to put reminders on my own calendars. this app allows presenters to add the materials for the participants, and it’s a good way for participants to network since they can see each other’s profile and interact. One particular is that we were asked to list our interest, and based on them we could see which participants shared the same. That’s an excellent way to filter out the hundreds of participants in a conference. I will definitely recommend this app for future activities.

by Poeple Will Love This

As a first time user of this app, I am impressed with how simple maneuvering around Whova is. Attending a virtual conference became interactive in more ways than would be possible in person. Meeting and connecting with people in this virtual world was simple, fast, and allowed for so much information at the tip of my fingers. Each link was exceptionally easy to access. I especially love the space to take notes, and store data. The bonus was being able to participate in chats during presentations as well as access several presentations at once. Virtual conferences on this app will change the way conferences happen. this app paved the way for me to see how accessible participating in a conference can be from the luxury of my own space.

by Collaborator

I’ve got to tell you that I am beyond impressed having used this app for the first time in an online conference experience. What really did it was seeing the many engaging ways this app has built into Whova to connect individuals and groups interested in the same topics. It actually suggests people to the user who share similar interests. It facilitates anyone starting a topical discussion group — or, taking it farther, facilitates anyone scheduling a video or face to face meet up. The contests built in make it fun to share more and complete tasks to gain points - perhaps to rise into the leaderboard. All to say that in the week leading up to the conference, I saw more interaction in Whova than I usually see during a whole conference. Talk about giving a boost to the actual online conference!

by Slide Doctor

Once I found out that livestreams were indicated at the top of the sessions ‘agenda,’ and only appeared there each day, I found Whova easy to use to find a live-streamed session. And you can create your own own agenda of only those things you want to attend. The streams ran one after another with no real need to leave and come back to see the next one. It was, for the most part, glitch free as well once something started streaming. I used my iPhone for everything each day and was on my own home WiFi. And, once things that were recorded for later viewing that we had to miss are loaded into Whova , we’ll be able to see all those sessions too. I like Whova . It’s pretty easy to use and connect with others at the event.

by Sophia7269

My first time using this app was also my first time going to a professional development conference. The organization elements of this app helped me easily browse and set reminders for different panels I wanted to attend. The Community board was great for interacting with other participants, and the Ice Breakers helped me feel more comfortable in this virtual community space. The mobile app and desktop page UIs are similar in a good way! It meant that I could easily navigate both and quickly pick up a conversation I was having on desktop later on the mobile app.

My one critique is that the Polls tab never worked on mobile for me. The conference I attended didn’t use that feature much, but it was a slight point of confusion for me when I was watching a panel on mobile and they asked me to fill out a poll.

by Spaceveldt

I recently downloaded this app for a virtual research conference, and I’m very impressed with both Whova and website performance. Both platforms really facilitated organic interaction between attendees. The Exhibitor Hub was especially useful and gives options for promoting yourself/your company, showcasing offerings, and collect leads. My favorite part of Whova was that it automatically grouped attendees by keyword interests and organizations, and you could browse through all of the groups to find mutual interests.

I’m not sure if this is already a feature on Whova , but on the desktop version, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I could browse the conference website while I was attending a Zoom session (great integration with Zoom, btw) and a popout of the video would appear alongside the rest of the content. Would be good to have that for mobile as well.

by Jebb13

I was introduced to the this app app for our UCC national church conference of some 150 plus participants resorting to a virtual meeting due to COVID. I’m age 73 and an avid Facebook user, texter, and email user. I’ve used Zoom some. I was very comfortable with the this app app in reviewing my agenda and signing up for various breakouts. I was impressed how well we were able to break out for small group discussions, the warning message as time limit was approaching and the rejoining the large group. I could see participants. I use a Mac which does not always adapt to various app, but had no problems. Our conference ran four days with minimal issues.
A highlight of our conferences is the meeting of folks from all over the nation and hugging. We could not physically hug but Whova readily allowed me to search out to folks, meet new folks, send messages, and more.
In these crazy times and when travel is not an option....this app is an outstanding option.

by Indent9

this app, a virtual platform, made my learning experience exciting! Finding topics, for our event, was easy and efficient. Using the Follow tab helped me to keep up with Topics that interested me the most. Finding valuable resources was just one click away! The search feature saved time when looking for a topic, small group, or an individual within a small group. When networking , I was able to bookmark a participant so that I could find them quickly and message /video chat with them worldwide! Though I tend not to interact with Organizers / Program Facilitators / Program Presenters, I did so on this app because they seemed “close enough” to be reached. The Organizers/Facilitators/ Presenters interacted with participants real time and if participants reached out to them afterwards, we were notified that a response was given. I did not have to consider technology troubles because there were none. For that reason , I was able to fully grasp all that was available to me during the event! this app is the right choice for an awesome event!

by M&lfan7

Great concept to have interactive conferences, but disappointed with Whoova so far. Looking at other reviews, the developer has known users needed landscape orientation for iPad nearly a year and still no fix. By today’s tech standards, that is simply unacceptable, and makes one skeptical of trusting such a shaky platform with one’s personal data - which sadly one is forced to do by the conference host organization. Also very busy with too many bells and whistles to keep track of when one is supposed to be learning from the conference. Finally, when we were leaving our conference, the survey server was down meaning we had to delay our exit survey and thereby our credit awards.

Please take these critiques into account and save Whova.

by Omdfipp

On the whole, I’m glad to use Whova for an event I’m attending. But this app does some faulty things. For example, the event I’m going to is something people will drive from their home to, but this app sets it up a “carpool from the airport”. So you have to say your airport and flight and then explain later that you’re not coming from any airport. Worse, when you post there, this app makes a statement “Hi guys, I want to join the carpool!” which is obnoxious and confusing, since they make it appear like you said that but you didn’t- you wouldn’t- in the context of rideshare it doesn’t make sense- there’s no carpool yet. Are you driving? Do you need a ride? That’s relevant information. But this app makes you look like some idiot who is trying to join a nonexistent carpool.

by Teachwatts2

Please allow users to merge email accounts. Currently many of my colleagues look like there are 2-4 versions of themselves attending an event this week. If I can’t merge the accounts, I end up getting messages sent to one email account (ie. personal email) but I can’t see them because I am logged into Whova on another account (ie. work email). I have to keep signing in and out and my schedule is not the same on each. It looks like there are 2-3 versions of myself attending one conference.

by Peaksurfer

Whova has a nasty habit of clearing the screen you are on if you leave to take a message or look something up in another app. It starts you back at the home screen and does not remember what screen you are on. So, for instance if you want to enter a bio or a subject description or look up a date and you pull the text from another app, Whova will wipe out everything you already entered in the moment later when you return. Very annoying.

by Tl4I

It’s helpful for finding out information about a conference, and the sessions at the conference.

But it has some quirks:
- if you don’t give access to your calendar, it gives you an error message every time you add an event to your agenda.
- the reminders for sessions you are attending is broken if it doesn’t have calendar access (other apps have no trouble giving reminders without using the calendar)
- It’s just about impossible to clear the unread notification for the Community part of Whova . For example, it’s showing me that there are three new comments in job openings. But when I go into job openings, I see nothing with any kind of indicator showing that it is unread. Even if I open and close every single one, it still shows that there are three unread comments

by FDF113

I’m really enjoying this conference like no other before and due to all the in time info I have under my finger tips! Thank you! Well done! So far nothing is missing!"
I would like a bigger tab along the main ones that tells me more about the company, story of who started Whova, how it came about, who owns it, who runs it, and how it came about? If it was there I would thank the creator about creating this great app! I’m really enjoying this conference more than ever.
Thank you,
Farrah

by DO-STAGE! LLC

Yes! I found out about Whova this app because our IAHSP Conference/Expo which was in October in Nashville, TN. The Leadership team with IAHSP recommended that all members who are attending the Conference download Whova so we can communicate with one another, know the details and see the daily schedule and any other information that we will need! It’s awesome! I’ve already uploaded a few pictures, sent messages to others and have read the Conference details/schedules that are already posted! Cool! So cool! Thank you, this app! This is a very helpful app for coordinating everything for a Conference!
Thank you,
Virginia
DO STAGE LLC

by Chasemax1

I have now had the opportunity to utilize this app at two separate conferences. Honestly, I don’t know why all event organizers aren’t going this route? So user friendly, everything at your fingertips. Easy to see all the agendas and reach out to meet people while at the conference. In my position, I relish the extra time afforded me with planning my days etc. I will definitely be recommending to others in my professional that are in charge of organizing events.

by Kdfsmiley

We used this app at a conference last week, and it was perfect! It held the agenda, you could pick a session and it put it on your calendar, and sent a reminder! There were great opportunities to network, and really get to know the others attending the conference! Excellent message boards for organizing “meet ups”, posting pictures throughout the week, and presenters could share their documents and PowerPoint info with us! I can see using this for every conference I attend!

by Cconrow

I enjoyed using the this app app for a recent conference I attended. Pre-conference, it was a great way to start engaging with attendees and networking ahead of time with people I didn’t know previously. It was a great platform for scheduling meetups and appointments. And during the event it helped me keep track of my schedule and was easy to use, unlike many event apps that can be buggy and fail to create value for attendees.

this app definitely helped me get the most out of my conference experience!

by ChristineCintron

I recently attended a conference and Whova was recommended to be downloaded by the organizers. I found Whova simple to use. It allowed me to select my preferred session from my choice of concurrent sessions. I was then able to click and access my personal agenda for the day. I was also able to learn more about the presenters by clicking on their bios. I was also able to see other attendees for networking.

I would definitely recommend!

by HybridRxN

Hi a great app in general. One thing I’m struggling with is seeing notifications I specified . It would be nice to get some kind of front end display or phone buzz, even option for alarm, I missed several events due to this given there was a lot going on at the conference I attended. Great work in outing all the content there for a Neurips, but what was sometimes missing was links to the original pages with more details.

by ScavuzzoM

You here so often these days about UX, AI, IoT, etc as it relates to apps fully expecting an improved experience. But I find 99% of these apps are inoperative, unintuitive, poorly designed, anything but user friendly.

That is not the case with Whoa. It was quick, intuitive, worked right the first time and actually very useful. What a pleasant surprise!! Technology can work sometimes.

I used Whova to identify interests, set up connections and meetings, and review relevant articles even after the event was over.

And last but not least, it was fun using their app. I would recommend it to anyone, so much so that I am already thinking ahead to the next event they are running!!

by Mpuabukkop

With so many apps out there, it’s hard not to expect mediocrity. this app is a rare exception. It has so many features—and I never experienced a glitch while utilizing them. It made our event nearly effortless when it came to connecting. I especially liked that it automatically sent all of my notes to my email account. Kudos, this app developers!

by Jens320

I recently attended an event that used the this app app. Whova was so helpful! It was an excellent tool for communication and many took advantage of it! It made it very easy to arrange to meet up with other people throughout the event. People also used it to recommend local restaurants and tourist attractions. I would highly recommend Whova for networking! It was very easy to use.