Managing speakers

Managing your speakers and their information in your account is easy. You have the flexibility to add new speakers one by one or in bulk, delete outdated ones, and make any necessary updates to their details whenever you need to.

Adding speakers individually

Adding speakers in bulk

Adding speakers and sessions in bulk

Editing speakers

Deleting speakers

Connecting & disconnecting a speaker from a session

Adding speakers

To manually add an individual speaker:

1. Go to the Event
2. Click Speakers on the left-hand side menu
3. Click on the plus sign (+) in the blue circle
4. Choose Add a single speaker card
5. Enter the following details:
• Name
• Job Title
• Company Name
• Email address (optional)
• Destination URL (PRO subscription only) 
6. Click on Create

Once the speaker record is created, you will see it on the list of speakers. You can then add their headshot image by clicking on the image icon.

You will need to follow these steps for every single speaker that you want to add manually. 

For more information about the headshot images, please see the article here. 

The unique destination URL for each speaker is also optional, and more information on unique destination URLs and why you might want to use them can be found here.

Adding speakers using spreadsheet import

If you have a large number of speakers or if you want to add a group of speakers all at once, you can easily do so using the Speaker import tool.

For the Speaker import tool, you will need to make sure that you have their data ready and prepared in the spreadsheet beforehand.

Data preparation

In preparation for the import, it is important to have all the necessary data organised in a spreadsheet. Please make sure to include all columns in your sheet, even if some data is missing. Leaving a column empty will prevent errors caused by shifting data.

1. Column 1: Name (speaker's full name - this is a mandatory field and the import will fail without the name) 
2. Column 2: Job Title
3. Column 3: Company Name
4. Column 4: Headshot URL*
5. Column 5: Email address 
6. Column 6: Destination URL (PRO only feature)
7. Column 7: Groups

*If you are using event management software and have the image URLs ready, you can bulk-add them in one go. Alternatively, you can upload the images afterwards.

Note: There are different processes for adding Headshot URLs depending on how you receive them, and you can find them all explained in this article. 

You can find the data import template here. Please navigate to the Speaker tab for this import. 

Data paste

Once your data is ready, you will need to copy and paste it into the Import box. 

Please DO NOT copy column headings across, as they will be treated as a speaker record. Please note that this is a copy-and-paste process and not an actual upload. 

1. Go to the Event
2. Click Speakers on the left-hand side menu
3. Click on the plus sign (+) in the blue circle
4. Choose Import multiple speakers' cards
5. Select the data in your spreadsheet and choose copy (do not include column headings) 
6. Go back to the Gleanin import screen and paste the data in the grey box

If your spreadsheet will contain email addresses or unique URLs, please make sure to enable those fields from the right-hand side selection box and make sure that the number and order of the columns match the platform.

 

Initial import

After pasting and processing the data, you will be taken to the Review Speakers screen. Here, you can review all the details to ensure their accuracy before completing the import process.

The Review Speakers screen will display the total number of speakers, their status (New, Updates, Unchanged, and Missing), as well as their image, name, title, and company. If this is your first import, all the records should be labelled as New, and the action should be set to Create.

 

If you need to make changes to the details before completing the import, you can click on Cancel to amend them and start the import process again. To finalise the import, click on Apply. If the import is successful, a green tick will be displayed at the end of each row.

In case there are any issues, we will flag them and highlight the problematic row in red. We will also provide information about the incorrect field, such as a blank name or an email address in an incorrect format. To proceed with the import, you will need to correct these errors in the original spreadsheet. If needed, you can click on Start over to return to the import screen and re-paste the corrected data.

If you are still experiencing problems, please message us at hello@gleanin.com. 

Subsequent import

If you have more speakers that you would like to add to your event, simply include their information in your original spreadsheet and follow the initial import steps.

After pasting the data into the import box, you will be able to view the total number of speakers in this import, along with the number of new, updated, unchanged, and missing records.

If there are no changes to the previous speakers, you will only see the new speakers in the review, while the existing ones will remain unchanged.

Same as for the initial import, click Apply to proceed with changes. 

If you need to update speaker data in bulk, please see the next section. 

Adding speakers and sessions

In preparation for the bulk import, it is important to have all the necessary data organised in a spreadsheet. Please make sure to include all columns in your sheet, even if some data is missing. Leaving a column empty will prevent errors caused by shifting data.

1. Column 1: Name (speaker's full name - this is a mandatory field and the import will fail without the name) 
2. Column 2: Job Title
3. Column 3: Company Name
4. Column 4: Headshot URL*
5. Column 5: Email address 
6. Column 6: Unique destination URL (optional) PRO only
7. Column 7: Groups (optional)
8. Column 8: Session (title)
9. Column 9: Schedule
10. Column 10: Tracks (optional)

*If you are using event management software and have the image URLs ready, you can bulk-add them in one go. Alternatively, you can upload the images afterwards.

You can find the data import template here. Please navigate to the Combined upload tab for this import. 

Note: There are different processes for adding Headshot URLs depending on how you receive them, and you can find them all explained in this article. 

E.g. the following row would create a speaker called "Mary", a session called "Talk 1", and make Mary a speaker in the session:

Mary | CTO | Acme Inc. | http://photo | asdf@bvcs.com | Talk 1 | 9th 3pm

Sessions with multiple speakers

If you have a session with multiple speakers, add a row for each speaker including the session details. As long as the session details are identical, we will create one session and assign both speakers to it, e.g.

Mary | CTO | Acme Inc. | http://photo_a | bcvd@bvcs.com | Talk 1 | 9th 3pm

Paul | CFO | Ecma Inc. | http://photo_b | asdf@bvcs.com | Talk 1 | 9th 3pm

Speakers on multiple sessions

If a speaker is on multiple sessions, add a row for each session, including the speaker details. As long as the speaker details are identical, we will create one speaker and add them to each session, example:

Mary | CTO | Acme Inc. | http://photo_a | asdf@bvcs.com | Talk 1 | 9th 3pm

Mary | CTO | Acme Inc. | http://photo_a | asdf@bvcs.com | Talk 2 | 7th 4pm

Data paste

Once your data is ready, you will need to copy and paste it into the import box. 

Please DO NOT copy column headings across, as they will be treated as a speaker record. Please note that this is a copy-and-paste process and not an actual upload. 

1. Go to Event
2. Click Speakers on the left-hand side menu
3. Click on the plus sign (+) in the blue circle
4. Choose Import speakers. and sessions
5. Select the data in your spreadsheet and choose copy (do not include column headings) 
6. Go back to the Gleanin import screen and paste the data in the grey box.
   
   

NOTE: If your spreadsheet will contain email addresses, unique URLs or Tracks or Groups, please make sure to enable those fields from the right-hand side selection box. 

NOTE: If this is not your first import on this event, please go straight to the Subsequent import section.

First import

Once data is pasted, you will be able to see the Review Speakers screen, which will show you the total number of Speakers, their status - New, Updates, Unchanged and Missing - as well as their Image, Name, Title, Company and so on. If this is your first import, all the records should be New.

If the Speaker details look correct, leave the action as Create and click on Apply, and if the green tick is present at the end of the row, it means that the record has been created, and you can now proceed to review the session. 

NOTE: We will flag any issues and highlight the problematic row in red, as well as tell you which field is incorrect, ie, the name is blank or the e-mail address is not in the correct format. You will need to rectify those errors in the original spreadsheet to proceed with the import. Click on Start over to go back to the import screen and re-paste the corrected data. If you are still experiencing problems, please message us at hello@gleanin.com. 

After adding the speaker data, you’ll see a similar review screen with the details of the sessions (title, schedule, new, updated and so on) as well as which speaker is assigned to which session. 

If you are happy with the data and it all looks good, you can just click on Apply and again, if all is good, you will see a green tick, and if there are issues, the red error will appear. 

To complete the import, click on Finish. 

Subsequent import

If you have completed your first combined import and need to update some records or add additional speakers or sessions, you can do it here as well. 

Once data is pasted, you will be able to see the total number of Speakers in this import as well as the number of New, Updates, Unchanged and Missing records. 

At this stage, you will be required to choose which action you would like the system to perform:

• Update existing - will update the existing speaker record with the change
• Create - will create a brand new record for the speaker (e.g. if you have two speakers called John Smith, there is a possibility of the system suggesting an update, and in this case, you will need to choose to create)

You will see as well which speaker record will be updated in the Connected speaker column. 

Unchanged status is for the records that have not been updated, and Missing is the list of records that are on the system but have not been included in the current import.

NOTE: Missing records will not be processed through the import; however, if you have speakers assigned to a session that is included in the import, you will need to make sure that you include them in the spreadsheet, as otherwise, they will be unassigned from that session. If they are assigned to a session that is not in the import, no changes will be made. 

When you are happy with the data and the actions that will be taken, click on Apply and as with the first import - if all is good, you will see green ticks and if there are errors they will be flagged and if you still experiencing issues after rectifying the highlighted details, please message us at hello@gleanin.com.

On the sessions review screen, you will be able to see the total number of sessions as well as the number of New, Updates, Unchanged and Missing. 

NOTE: Currently, on a subsequent upload, we will never update an existing session. We do not identify the updates as the same session can be run at different times, and different sessions can run at the same time. 

For Sessions, Missing records will remain as they are. 

Editing and updating speakers

To update the speaker's details, such as their company name and job title, you have the option to make manual changes for individual speakers or update them in bulk using the spreadsheet import feature. 

If you need to update the headshot images for your speakers, please refer to this article for step-by-step instructions.

To edit details manually

1. Click on Speakers on the left-hand side menu
2. Click on the Speaker's name
3. On the next page, click on the blue pencil icon to amend their details
4. Click Save to make sure that the new details have been updated

To update details in bulk

1. Go to your data spreadsheet
2. Change the details that require updating
3. Paste the data as you would for the standard import

After pasting the data, you will be able to see the number of speakers whose details have been changed. For those with updated information, you will see the Update Existing action and their name in the Connected speakers column.

If all is correct, click on Apply to make the changes. 

In certain exceptional situations, such as when you have two speakers with identical full names who work for the same company, you will need to manually link the changes to the correct speaker. To do this, simply click on the pencil icon and select the appropriate speaker from the dropdown menu.

Deleting speakers

If a speaker is no longer able to attend the event, you can remove them from the platform by following these simple steps.

1. Click on Speakers on the left-hand side menu
2. Hover over the speaker row that you would like to delete and click on the red trash icon at the right-hand side
3. If you want to delete multiple speakers, select them by ticking the box next to their name (or tick the main one at the header level to select all)
4. Click on the Delete all speakers button above the table

Please keep in mind that deleting speakers is a permanent action, and once they are deleted, we will not be able to recover any of their data.

Connecting a speaker to a session 

If you haven't used the combined upload feature for speakers and sessions, you can still manually add a speaker to a session.

1. Click on Speakers on the left-hand side menu
2. Click on the name of the speaker that you would like to connect to the session
3. Under Participating in using the drop-down to select the session in question

Please remember that if you have chosen the Speaker & session campaign type all of the speakers must be connected to at least one session. 

Disconnecting speakers from a session 

If you need to make changes to your speakers and session schedules, it is easy to disconnect a speaker from a session.

1. Click on Speakers on the left-hand side menu
2. Click on the name of the speaker that you would like to disconnect from the session
3. Under Participating in click on the X next to the session that you want to disconnect from

Please be aware that if you disconnect speakers from all sessions, their previous share link will become inactive. In order for a new share link to be generated, the session must be reconnected.

---

If you are using event management software, you can access a list of available API integrations here. Please note that API functionality is not included with the basic subscription, and you will need to upgrade your account to take advantage of this feature.