For many medical and surgical societies, the annual meeting is the year's biggest event, its biggest source of non-dues revenue, and its biggest renewal moment. It's also where small staffs feel the strain: abstracts in one inbox, registrations in a form tool, payments in a processor dashboard, and CME attendance on paper.
This checklist works backward from the meeting. The timings are examples, not rules. Shift them to fit your meeting date, your accredited CME provider's requirements and your bylaws.
Twelve weeks out: pricing and categories
Decide the registration categories and prices before you build anything. Most societies need at least:
| Category | Typical rule to decide |
|---|---|
| Member | Current members only. Decide what "current" means on the day they register |
| Non-member | Often priced so that joining plus the member rate costs about the same |
| Trainee (resident, fellow, student) | Proof of status, and whether trainees must be members |
| Guest or companion | Social events only, or sessions too |
| Day pass or single session | Optional. Adds complexity, so only offer it if people ask |
Also decide now:
- Early and regular rates, and the date the early rate ends.
- Lapsed members. Can someone renew during registration to get the member rate? Writing this down saves a lot of one-off emails.
- Capacity limits for workshops, dinners or hands-on sessions.
- Cancellation, substitution and refund terms, approved by the board if needed.
Abstracts and the agenda
- Open the call for abstracts early enough for review and author notification before the early-rate deadline.
- Publish submission rules: categories, word limits, disclosure requirements and deadlines.
- Assign reviewers and a scoring rubric, and track conflicts of interest.
- Notify authors, and require presenting authors to register by a set date.
- Build the agenda from accepted abstracts and invited talks, and publish it before registration peaks.
Registration and payments
- Take payment by card at registration, with an automatic receipt. Many attendees expense the meeting.
- Show the member price only to current members, and prompt lapsed members to renew.
- Collect only what you need: name, credentials, specialty, institution, dietary needs, accessibility requests, and session choices.
- Keep card numbers out of your hands by using a payment processor's hosted card fields.
- Remember that card processing fees are separate from any software subscription.
CME credit tracking and attendance
Continuing medical education requirements come from your accredited provider (or joint provider), not from your software. Confirm their requirements before the meeting. In general, plan for:
- A list of sessions and the credit each one carries.
- How attendance is recorded for each session.
- How attendees claim credit and complete evaluations afterward.
- Records you need to keep, and for how long.
Day-of check-in
- Print or prepare badges from the registration list, sorted by last name.
- Have a plan for walk-ins and on-site payments.
- Keep one up-to-date attendee list that the registration desk, session rooms and CME staff all use.
After the meeting: who attended, who joined, board report
The weeks after the meeting are when the data pays off, if it's all in one place:
- Attendance by category, compared with last year.
- Non-members who attended, so you can invite them to join while the meeting is fresh.
- Members who attended but haven't renewed.
- Registration revenue, refunds and outstanding balances.
- CME credits issued.
Where MemberTrace fits
MemberTrace keeps annual meeting registration on the same member record as dues and renewals, so the registration list, the roster and the board report start from the same data. For medical and surgical societies it supports registration, agendas, abstracts and credit tracking for conferences and education, along with event schedules, pricing, capacity and attendee lists.
Every plan includes automated dues renewal reminders, which helps when you want lapsed members current before the member rate closes, and every plan includes email, chat and phone support. The Society plan is $299/month, billed monthly, with 500 active members included. See medical and surgical societies or the pricing page.
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