Event Success Case Study
Launch Tennessee: From Spreadsheets to Seamless Check-In with Expo Pass
“Expo Pass has proven itself year after year as a reliable, all-in-one solution, and we couldn’t recommend it more highly to fellow event organizers.”
— Cat Boose, Event Manager
Photos from LaunchTN 3686 Conference, 2025
Credit: Elle Danielle (Instagram, Google)
Every year, Launch Tennessee brings together founders, startups, and investors for its 3686 Conference, a high-energy three-day event in Nashville designed to fuel entrepreneurship across the state. With 900+ attendees, a smooth and professional check-in experience is critical to making a strong first impression.
We caught up with Event Manager Cat Boose, who knew their old process of pre-printing name tags and tracking attendees on spreadsheets was slow, inefficient, and not sustainable. Launch Tennessee needed a modern solution that would save staff time, impress attendees, and scale with their growing event.
The Challenge
Before Expo Pass, manually managing pre-printed badges and cross-referencing spreadsheets of attendees was a big headache. For a small team producing programming for such a large event, this approach drained resources and left little room for flexibility.
- Pre-printing name tags and sorting through them onsite.
- Using spreadsheets to track check-ins manually.
- Lack of flexibility if attendee details changed or info was misprinted.
“What they were doing before was trying to print name tags themselves… and trying to keep track in a spreadsheet, which is crazy.”
— Boose on 3686’s badges before she joined the team
The Solution
Expo Pass provided Launch Tennessee with plug-and-play badge printing kits, including customizable wireless iPad check-in kiosks, printers, and integrated software to deliver a seamless on-site, on-demand badge solution.
“We’re doing our due diligence to make it a great conference, and check-in is part of making it a great conference.”
This system allows for smooth check-ins, including the ability to make updates when names, titles, or attendees change last minute.
“The check-in and badge printing process was fast, efficient, and stress-free, setting the perfect tone for attendees the moment they arrived.”
Photos from LaunchTN 3686 Conference, 2024
Credit: Elle Danielle (Flickr, LinkedIn)
The Results
Polished, Streamlined Check-In
Instead of bottlenecks and piles of pre-printed badges, attendees could check in smoothly when they arrived throughout the day.
“People come throughout the entire eight hours or so to get their name tags. It’s very easy in terms of just clicking a button, and then making sure their name is spelled correctly. Print it out. Grab a lanyard and go. It’s very quick, easy, and looks good. They love it.”
Easy Setup & Valuable Efficiency
Plug-and-play badge kits ship securely in organized cases with clear, color-coded instructions that make set up simple. With the ease of setup, Boose’s team Can focus on other important tasks at the event.
“I can pass it off to a team member to actually set it up, and we allow volunteers to man [the check-in] because it’s that easy. It’s that simple.”
“It frees us up for the bigger things that we have to do in the three day conference.”
Attendee Experience & ROI
The investment in Expo Pass pays off in efficiency gained for the team and attendee satisfaction.
“We are a small team, so it is important for us to be efficient. We’re willing to pay for efficiency. This is going to help us so that we’re not running all over the place… But also for the attendee, it makes sense — to allow the attendee to have a great check-in experience, because their feedback and reviews really are important to our bottom line as well.”
Why Expo Pass?
Beyond the technological benefits, Boose values the support and relationship with the Expo Pass team.
“From contract negotiations to on-site support and even the return of equipment, every detail was handled with care and professionalism.”
“As an event manager, I work with a lot of vendors… And so when you find one you like, you keep them. It’s about relationships at the end of the day.”
