Questions

The Questions page is where you create custom questions for use on registration forms, Certain Check-In, and elsewhere. The Questions page is opened in a pop-up window when you add or edit a question on the pages listed below.

• (Event) > Plan > Event Setup > Questions
• (Event) > Plan > Event Setup > Travel
• (Event) > Plan > Event Setup > Agenda > Agenda Item > 'Advanced' (Note: Legacy feature used prior to development of the Forms > Agenda section.)
• (Event) > Plan > Forms > (form) > Questions Section
• Account Settings > Registration > Profile Data (Administrators only)
• Account Settings > Management > Event Data (Administrators only)
• Account Settings > Management > Display Fields (Administrators only)

Creating a Custom Question

To create a custom question, you need to supply the question (a request for information) and, for some questions, the possible answers (a way for the registrant to respond). Use the sections on the Questions page to create questions and answers to collect information.

Types of information collected

• Profile data is unique information about a registrant that cannot be changed by attending multiple events and cannot be collected using Certain's built-in data entry fields.

Example: "What division of the company are you in?"

Each Certain account may have up to 40 such questions. Administrators set up these questions on Account Settings > Registration > Profile Data.

• Registration information is information collected from a registrant relating to a specific event.

Example: "How did you hear about this event?" with options to select.

Each event may have up to 135 such questions. You set up these questions on Plan > Event Setup > Questions.

• Videos: All videos about Custom Questions.

Video: Adding a Question.

Video: Creating a Question.

• Event information is information that the event planner needs, and the registrant may not see.

Each Certain account may have up to 45 such questions. An Administrator adds these on Account Settings > Management > Event Data.

• Display Fields are fields the event planner uses when configuring the display used for registration forms, event websites, and email templates. See Plan > Configure > Primary Display and Extended Display.

• Travel information is travel reservation information. This module and its Travel Reservations sub-module are required.

Each event may have up to 30 such "Custom Travel Questions," including 15 default questions (such as Travel Request Confirmation Number). See Plan > Event Setup > Travel.

• Agenda Item information is legacy information about the reservation of an agenda item. Example: "How many tickets would you like to purchase?"

Certain knows where to show each custom question and its corresponding answer field, based on the page from which the Questions page was accessed.

How to create a custom question

Follow the steps below that correspond to the sections seen on the Questions page in Certain. Skip steps that refer to panels not seen.

Note: When you begin to create a custom question, you see only two sections on the Questions page: Select Question Type and Details. The question type chosen determines which other sections and options are displayed.

STEP 1 — Select the type of question/answer format

• Text — Text field with a single row for answer entry (up to 256 characters).
• Textarea — Text area with multiple rows for answer entry (up to 4000 characters).
• Radio (button) — Registrant selects one answer from multiple choices displayed as radio buttons.
• Checkbox — Registrant selects zero or more answers from a list displayed as check boxes.
• Select — Registrant selects one answer from multiple choices displayed as a drop-down list.
• Select Multiple — Registrant selects zero or more answers from multiple choices displayed as a scrolling list.
• Ticket — Registrant enters an integer value to indicate the number of items to select or purchase.
• Date — Registrant enters a date (from a calendar selection or in a text field) in a specified format. Default is the current date. Maximum is 20 years later.
• Time — Registrant enters a time (as a text field) in a specific format.
• Date-Time — Registrant enters a date (from a calendar selection or in a text field) and time (as a text field) in a specified format.
• Number — Text field, validated as a number.
• Integer — Text field, validated as an integer (a whole number without any decimal places).
• File — Registrant can upload a file and attach it to the registration. Uploadable file types include Word, Excel, PDF, PPT, AI, EPS, HTML/HTM, RTF, text, ZIP, etc. File must be less than 4 MB. File name must be less than 50 characters and unique within the event.
• Image — Registrant can upload an image file and attach it to the registration. Image types include JPG, JPEG, PNG, GIF, EPS. File must be less than 4 MB. File name must be less than 50 characters and unique within the event. AI and PSD images should be uploaded via File questions.
• Rating — The registrant gives a rating of one to five by clicking one symbol. When creating the question, select a Rating Symbol (Star by default) or Radio.

STEP 2 — Provide information about the question part of the format

• Name — Required. What shows on attendee confirmations and in user views. Best practice: keep the name short.
• Code — Abbreviated name used for report column headers. If left blank, this is set to the question's Name when saved.
• Display for Reg Form — Optional. Text or HTML displayed on registration forms. If left blank, this is set to the question's Name when saved.
• Error message — Optional. Message displayed if the answer fails validation. If left blank, the form's default error message is used.
• Tags — If any Tags have been set up for the relevant object, select one or more of them here. This field is available only if tags exist for the relevant object (for example, for Event Setup > Custom Questions). Technical Note: All tags are exposed via API 2.0 and returned when includeList=tags is used.

• Settings (not available for Radio and Select types)

STEP 3 — Provide information about the answer part of the format

• Size of input field (Text and Textarea) or Size of form field (Ticket, Integer, Number, File, Image) — The width of the answer field (maximum visible characters).
• Characters in Answer — Optional. Minimum and maximum character limits for Text and Textarea questions.
• Minimum — Optional. Minimum number of characters in the answer.
• Maximum — Optional. Maximum number of characters in the answer.
• Enable character count — Optional for Text Area questions.
• Number of answers allowed — For Checkbox and Select Multiple questions. Minimum and Maximum values determine how many options registrants may choose.
• Number of options to display — For Select Multiple questions. Sets how many options are displayed in the dropdown list.
• # of 'tickets' allowed — For Tickets questions. Includes Minimum and Maximum values.
• Minimum, Maximum — For all numeric answer types. Sets the numeric range.
• Range of values — For Integer and Number questions. Includes Minimum and Maximum values.
• Date Format — For Date and Date/Time questions. Select a format (Default is MM/DD/YYYY). Various formats available.
• Time Format — For Time and Date-Time questions. Select AM/PM or 24-hour.
• Date Range — For Date and Date-Time questions. Defines From and To values.
• Year Range — For Date and Date-Time questions. Defines From and To years.
• From, To — For Date Range.
• Answer Options — For Radio, Checkbox, Select, and Select Multiple questions. Enter a Label, Name, and Code for each option. Maximum options: 1000 (recommended: not more than 150).
• STEP 4 — For each answer option, enter a Label, a Name, and a Code (separated by hyphens). Press Enter after each option. Do not use Tab.
• STEP 5 — Click Save at the bottom of the page to save the options. Additional options are displayed.
• STEP 6 — Select additional options if needed. Sequence order (Seq), Label, Name, Code, Sel? (display only), Web? (remove option from online form), Capacity (Cap.), Active flag (Act?), Sort order, and extra display controls like “Add a text field after the last option.”
• STEP 7 — Click Save and Close to proceed after preview.
• STEP 8 — Verify the question's appearance and adjust with Display Settings if needed. Click Save to preview changes.
• STEP 9 — If the question type uses radio/checkbox/select, choose a default answer from the available options when needed.
• STEP 10 — Change the question's appearance using Display Settings if needed. Click Save to preview changes.
• Display Settings cover a video: Setting Question Display Settings (Less than 2 minutes). Options include Show Online? (No, Optional, Require, Read Only, Hidden); Include an empty option with the label; Questions/Answers orientation; Multiple Answers layout; Answers Order; Font and alignment options; Class for CSS styling.

• STEP 11 — Click Save and Close when satisfied with the results in the Preview section.

Display Settings (quick reference)

• Video: Setting Question Display Settings (Less than 2 minutes)
• Show Online? — No, Optional, Require, Read Only, Hidden
• Include an empty option with the label
• Questions/Answers — Orientation of the question text to the answer entry field (left/right or top/bottom)
• Multiple Answers — Layout (single column, row, or multiple columns)
• Answers Order — Order of display across rows or columns
• Question Font, Horizontal, Vertical Alignment
• Answers Font, Horizontal, Vertical Alignment
• Class — Optional CSS class name

Note on creation flow

• The registration form must include a Questions section before a custom question will appear (regardless of the setting).

Follow-up steps

• Preview Questions and Set Default Answer
• Display Settings
• Preview and Save
• Save and Close

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Related articles

• Custom Questions
• Questions (Registration Form)
• Enforcing email uniqueness and addressing form errors for existing email addresses
• General FAQ - Tips for Names, Codes, and Labels
• Event List
• Logic Rules (Attendee Form)
• Confirmation (Attendee Form)