Audience: CMS Users, Event Organizers

Import sessions, speakers, abstracts, ePosters, handouts, evaluation links, and optional credit assignments from Planstone into the Conference App Builder. Create a separate source for each data set.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Planstone API - Before Getting Started
• Choose a Planstone V2 source
• Setting Up the Initial Data Sources and Running the Initial Import
  • Speakers
  • Sessions
  • Abstracts (Media)
  • Handouts (Media)
  • ePosters (Media)
  • Evaluation Deeplinks  (Media)
• Filters
• Credit Assignments
• Incremental Imports after Setup
• FAQ
  • I have made changes in Planstone and imported but I am not seeing the content updated? 
  • What triggers which sessions / presentations are imported into EventPilot from Planstone? 
  • I am unable to import my filter keywords - I am seeing an error that field length is exceeded? 
  • What are the Planstone session (parent) and presentation (child) IDs in the EventPilot platform?
  • How do I remove a session from EventPilot?
  • In my speaker list, I am seeing a speaker called Break - how do I remove that? 
  • Which uploaded handouts are included?
  • Can I import handouts that are not linked to an imported presentation?
  • Are PowerPoint handouts included?
  • How are the handout title and label generated?
  • How is the handout icon chosen?
  • Why is a handout missing from its presentation?

Planstone API - Before Getting Started

In order to set up new data sources that connect with the Planstone API, you will need to contact Planstone to receive the following:

1. The API base URL (it could look similar to this https://apps.planion.com/feed/v1)
2. Your Planstone Account Code (this is likely your organization name)
3. The conference name in Planstone (this could look like ABCD2024)
4. Get confirmation that Planstone added ATIV's user account to the project on the Planstone side.

Once you have received the details, you will be able to set up Import Sources in the Conference app builder. 

Access the menu item in the Conference App Builder where you would like to import data: 

Agenda for session data

Speakers for presenters

Media for abstracts

Choose a Planstone V2 source

Use the V2 source for every Planstone import:

• Planstone V2 for Sessions or Speakers.
• Planstone Abstracts V2 for abstracts.
• Planstone ePosters V2 for ePoster files and available audio.
• Planstone Handouts V2 for presentation handouts.
• Planstone Deeplinks V2 for evaluation links.
• Planstone CE Credits V2 for credit assignments.

Setting Up the Initial Data Sources and Running the Initial Import

Speakers

1. Access the Conference App Builder (From our website, choose Organizer Login > EventPilot on the top right)
2. Select your project
3. Navigate to Agenda > Speakers
4. Click Add Import Source (note: you may need to click the carrot to expand the import card before this button is visible) 
5. Enter a logical name for the source to indicate where this import is coming from e.g. Planstone API 
   1. Tip: we recommend including the Planstone event ID in the name. When you clone your project in the future, you'll then easily know if you need to update your import source. 
6. Select Planstone V2from the Source dropdown
7. Select Next
8. As prompted on the screen, enter:
   1. Planstone Account Code
   2. Planstone Conference Code
   3. In Subsession Roles Without Speaker (optional) enter a comma separated list of the speaker roles where you do not want speaker entries generated. For example, Break or Q&A. 

9. If you have used import customizations in the past, ask your ATIV Project Manager to add your Custom Code (optional) (generally your ORG ID in the App Builder) or Custom Import Parameters

10. Select Next

11. Complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:

    • Speaker ID to Speaker ID
    • First Name to First Name
    • Last Name to Last Name. Use Last Name with Degree instead to append the degree.
    • Company to Organization
    • Bio to Bio
    • Email to Private Email (not displayed in the app).
    • Image to Photo. Use Full Size Image instead when preferred.
    • Country to an available filter field if needed.
    • Media to Media Items for associated abstracts and ePosters. Handouts link to presentations, not speaker Media lists.

12. Next to run the import

13. If there are errors in your data, review: Common Conference App Builder Import Data Errors and Import Exclusion Reasons

Sessions

1. Navigate to Agenda > Sessions
2. Click Add Import Source (note: you may need to click the carrot to expand the import card before this button is visible) 
3. Enter a logical name for the source to indicate where this import is coming from e.g. Planstone API 
   1. Tip: we recommend including the Planstone event ID in the name. When you clone your project in the future, you'll then easily know if you need to update your import source.
4. Select Planstone V2from the Source dropdown
5. Select Next
6. As prompted on the screen, enter:
   1. Planstone Account Code
   2. Planstone Conference Code

7. If you have used import customizations in the past, ask your ATIV Project Manager to add your Custom Code (optional) (generally your ORG ID in the App Builder) or Custom Import Parameters

8. If you wish to display Learning Objectives in the session detail view, click on Include Learning Objectives in Description and select Yes

9. Add which speaker roles should be included to display in parent sessions as a comma separated list e.g. Moderator,Discussion Leader, etc.

10. Optional: If you wish to import CE types to display in Filter 3 (via mapping in the next step), select the type of credits e.g. CME,CE,MOC (add as a comma separated list)

11. Select Next

12. Complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:

    • Session ID to Session ID
    • Session Number to Session Number to preserve presentation ordering.
    • Session Title to Session Title. A presentation with an empty title in Planstone does not create a child session.
    • Session Type to Session Type
    • Date to Date
    • Start Time to Start Time
    • End Time to End Time
    • Location to Location. Use Room Name instead for the room name alone. Commas are removed and colons replaced with hyphens for location compatibility.
    • Description to Description. Use Description plus location instead to repeat the location in the description.
    • Parent Session to Parent Session
    • Speakers to Speaker ID
    • CME to Filter 3 for available credit types.
    • Additional track or category columns to appropriate available filter fields, such as Filter 1 or Filter 2.
    • For Planstone track and filter keyword fields, set the delimiter to the pipe symbol |. Click the hamburger menu next to the mapping and select the pipe delimiter.

    Can I use symbols like slashes, semicolons, etc. for locations (rooms, booths), tracks and metadata? My pin drop or filter is not working? 

    

13. Click Next to run the import

14. If there are errors in your data, review: Common Conference App Builder Import Data Errors and Import Exclusion Reasons

Keep Subsession Roles Without Speaker (optional) consistent in Sessions and Speakers. Select Use Parent Times For Invalid Subsession Times: Yes to use the parent’s times when a presentation has an empty start or end time, or identical start and end times.

Abstracts (Media)

1. Navigate to Media > Media Data
2. Click Add Import Source (note: you may need to click the carrot to expand the import card before this button is visible) 
3. Enter a logical name for the source to indicate where this import is coming from e.g. Planstone Abstracts V2
   1. Tip: we recommend including the Planstone event ID in the name. When you clone your project in the future, you'll then easily know if you need to update your import source.
4. Select Planstone Abstracts V2from the Source dropdown
5. Select Next
6. As prompted on the screen, enter:
   1. Planstone Account Code
   2. Planstone Conference Code
   3. Optional
      1. Embargo: If you don't have embargo dates on abstracts in Planstone, you can set a default embargo date for all abstracts, you can set the date using this format yyyy-mm-dd for example: 2027-09-26
      2. Display Presentation & Schedule Buttons: if your abstracts are linked to presentation sessions that users could add to their schedule, select Yes.
         

7. If you have used import customizations in the past, ask your ATIV Project Manager to add your Custom Code (optional) (generally your ORG ID in the App Builder) or Custom Import Parameters

8. Select Next

9. Complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:

   • Media ID to Media ID
   • Session ID to Session ID to link the item to its presentation.
   • Title to Title
   • Default Subtitle to Subtitle
   • Type to Media Type
   • Description to Description
   • MediaType Filter to Filter 4 to identify Abstract items.
   • Embargo to Start for a per-abstract release date.
   • Default Embargo to Start instead when using the conference-wide date entered in Embargo Date (optional).
   • Topic to an available filter field, such as Filter 2.
   • Keep Session ID mapped to Session ID so the abstract appears on its presentation. Leave Import Without Associated Session set to No unless you also want otherwise eligible abstracts without a published agenda association.

   A per-abstract embargo requires the Planstone form_data_embargo_release field. Ask your ATIV Project Manager if Planstone uses a different field.

   For Planstone track and filter keyword fields, set the delimiter to the pipe symbol |. Click the hamburger menu next to the mapping and select the pipe delimiter.

10. Next to run the import

11. If there are errors in your data, review: Common Conference App Builder Import Data Errors and Import Exclusion Reasons

Handouts (Media)

Use a separate Planstone Handouts V2 source to import eligible presentation handouts. See the FAQ for publication requirements, supported formats, and how titles and icons are chosen.

1. Go to Media > Media Data.
2. Select Add Import Source. Expand the import card if needed.
3. Enter a recognizable name, such as Planstone Handouts ABCD2026. Including the conference code helps identify sources after cloning a project.
4. Select Planstone Handouts V2 from Source, then select Next.
5. Enter the Planstone Account Code and Planstone Conference Code.
6. Leave Import Without Associated Session set to No to import only handouts linked to a presentation that qualifies for the published agenda. Select Yes only if you also want eligible handouts with no imported presentation association.
7. Use Custom Code (optional) and Custom Import Parameters (optional) only when your ATIV Project Manager provides instructions.
8. Select Next and complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:
   • Media ID to Media ID
   • Session ID to Session ID to link the handout to its presentation. Keep this field mapped so the handout appears on the correct presentation.
   • Title to Title
   • Default Subtitle to Subtitle, for example Handout - pdf.
   • Type to Media Type. Leave the alternate Type 2 field unmapped unless ATIV advises otherwise.
   • URL to URL
   • Icon to HTML Icon
   • MediaType Filter to Filter 4 to identify these items as Handout.
9. Select Next to run the import and review the Results for errors or excluded records.
10. Import the related Sessions source as well. Publish to proof and verify that each handout appears on the correct presentation and opens the expected file. Publish live after review.

ePosters (Media)

ePoster PDFs and available audio files uploaded to Planstone are imported as separate media items and linked to their presentations. 

1. Navigate to Media > Media Data
2. Click Add Import Source (note: you may need to click the carrot to expand the import card before this button is visible) 
3. Enter a logical name for the source to indicate where this import is coming from e.g. Planstone ePosters V2
   1. Tip: we recommend including the Planstone event ID in the name. When you clone your project in the future, you'll then easily know if you need to update your import source.
4. Select Planstone ePosters V2from the Source dropdown
5. Select Next
6. As prompted on the screen, enter:
   1. Planstone Account Code
   2. Planstone Conference Code

7. If you have used import customizations in the past, ask your ATIV Project Manager to add your Custom Code (optional) (generally your ORG ID in the App Builder) or Custom Import Parameters

8. Select Next

9. Complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:

   • Media ID to Media ID
   • Session ID to Session ID to link the item to its presentation.
   • Title to Title
   • Default Subtitle to Subtitle
   • Type to Media Type
   • Icon to HTML Icon
   • URL to URL
   • MediaType Filter to Filter 4 to distinguish ePoster and ePoster Audio items.
   • Topic to an available filter field when supplied by a matching published abstract.
   • Default Embargo to Start when using Embargo Date (optional).
   • Keep Session ID mapped to Session ID. Leave the alternate Type 2 and Type 3 fields unmapped unless ATIV advises otherwise.

   For Planstone track and filter keyword fields, set the delimiter to the pipe symbol |. Click the hamburger menu next to the mapping and select the pipe delimiter.

10. Next to run the import

11. If there are errors in your data, review: Common Conference App Builder Import Data Errors and Import Exclusion Reasons

Leave Import Without Associated Session set to No unless you also want otherwise eligible ePosters without a published agenda association.

Evaluation Deeplinks  (Media)

This import is links to the Planstone Evaluation Module. If you are using this module, ensure to contact your Planstone account manager to activate the mobileActionURL for the API. Work with your Planstone Account Manager to set this up a Session Group called "Mobile Evaluation". Your Account Manager will import "Yes" for this field on all sessions that have an evaluation attached. 

1. Navigate to Media > Media Data
2. Click Add Import Source (note: you may need to click the carrot to expand the import card before this button is visible) 
3. Enter a logical name for the source to indicate where this import is coming from e.g. Planstone Deeplinks V2
   1. Tip: we recommend including the Planstone event ID in the name. When you clone your project in the future, you'll then easily know if you need to update your import source.
4. Select Planstone Deeplinks V2from the Source dropdown
5. Select Next
6. As prompted on the screen, enter:
   1. Planstone Account Code
   2. Planstone Conference Code

7. If you have used import customizations in the past, ask your ATIV Project Manager to add your Custom Code (optional) (generally your ORG ID in the App Builder) or Custom Import Parameters

8. Select Next

9. Complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:

   • Media ID to Media ID
   • Title to Title
   • Subtitle to Subtitle
   • Type to Media Type
   • Icon to HTML Icon
   • URL to URL
   • Session ID to Session ID to associate the evaluation link with qualifying sessions.

10. Next to run the import

11. If there are errors in your data, review: Common Conference App Builder Import Data Errors and Import Exclusion Reasons

In the Data step, set Link Title, Link Subtitle, and optional Link Icon to control the evaluation media item’s appearance.

Filters

If you are importing filter keywords, ensure to open the filter card to: 

• set the filter label
• adjust the filter display order

Credit Assignments

If you are using the Credit Certificate add-on, you can import the credit assignments directly. 

1. Navigate to Add Ons > Credits
2. On the Session Credits page, click Add Import Source (note: you may need to click the carrot to expand the import card before this button is visible) 
3. Enter a logical name for the source to indicate where this import is coming from e.g. Planstone CE  
   1. Tip: we recommend including the Planstone event ID in the name. When you clone your project in the future, you'll then easily know if you need to update your import source.
4. Select Planstone CE Credits V2from the Source dropdown
5. Select Next
6. As prompted on the screen, enter:
   1. Planstone Account Code
   2. Planstone Conference Code
   3. Optional CE Types
      For example, you may have CME and CNE and CME-Pharma listed in Planstone. But you only offer a CME certificate. In that case, enter CME in that field and only CME credit amounts will be imported. 

7. Select Next

8. Complete the field mapping. Common mappings include:

   • Session ID to Session ID
   • Credit Type to Cert Name. The credit label, such as CME, associates the matching certificate.
   • Number of Credits to Num Credits
9. Select Next

Incremental Imports after Setup

1. Return to the Conference App Builder, log in, and access your project
2. You have three different import options: 
   1. Import all at once
      Select the Home menu > Import All Data 
   2. Import one data set (e.g. just speakers or just sessions or just media)
      To import all sources for a given table individually, visit that page of the Conference App Builder (e.g. Agenda > Sessions) and choose Import All [Agenda]
   3. Import one source only
      To import just one single source, visit that page of the Conference App Builder (e.g. Agenda > Sessions), expand the import card if necessary, and select the Import button beside a single data source
      
      Note: If you manually import individual sources, ensure to import all related sources (Sessions, Speakers, Media) or you may be seeing orphans errors.
3. If there are errors in your data, review this article: Common Conference App Builder Import Data Errors and Import Exclusion Reasons
4. Select the Publish Menu on the top left and Publish to Proof
5. After reviewing your data update in the proof version on iOS and Android, you may publish to live by selecting Publish Live Data

Note: If you are using the credit certificate, the Session Credit import is NOT included in the Import All. Please visit the page Add Ons > Credits and click Import on that page in order to update credit

FAQ

I have made changes in Planstone and imported but I am not seeing the content updated? 

Changes must first be available through the Planstone API. V2 imports also reuse downloaded data for up to 10 minutes. Once that copy is older than 10 minutes, the next import requests fresh data; this is not a background refresh on a fixed schedule. Re-run the related sources after allowing time for the update, then review and publish the changes. If an update is still missing, ask Planstone whether it is available in the API.

What triggers which sessions / presentations are imported into EventPilot from Planstone? 

The parent session must have Published set to true. A presentation must also have its own presentation/speaker record published and a non-empty presentation title. Project-specific import rules may exclude additional session types or records.

I am unable to import my filter keywords - I am seeing an error that field length is exceeded? 

During field mapping, the default delimiter is a comma. However, in Planstone data, the delimiter is a pipe symbol |. After selecting the metadata field to map to, the delimiter must be changed to the | symbol. 

What are the Planstone session (parent) and presentation (child) IDs in the EventPilot platform?

For parent sessions the Planstone Id field is "schedid" and for presentations (child) sessions, it is the "pslinkid" field.

How do I remove a session from EventPilot?

Set the Published field in Planstone to false and then reimport your data into EventPilot.

In my speaker list, I am seeing a speaker called Break - how do I remove that? 

In Planstone, all sessions have a speaker role so on import, a speaker entry gets generated for that role. In order to stop the system from generating a speaker for a particular role, follow these steps: 

1. Open Agenda > Speakers 
2. Expand the Import card and click the edit symbol next to the Planstone import source
3. Select Step 2 Data 
4. In the field Subsession Roles Without Speaker (optional) enter the role you wish to exclude, e.g. Break
5. Click the Next button to go to the Mapping step
6. Click the Next button to go to Results. If you see any import errors, correct those in Planstone first and then click the Import button in the import card (you do not have to go through the setup steps to import data)
7. Refresh the page and confirm that the speaker with the name Break is no longer displaying
8. Publish to proof to see the results in the proof version of the app, publish to live to push the update to your attendees

Which uploaded handouts are included?

The standard Planstone Handouts V2 import creates one media item for each qualifying resource on a Planstone presentation’s speaker record. An upload is included only when:

• Its resource type is Handout. Other uploaded resource types are excluded.
• The presentation/speaker record has Published set to true. The importer checks this record’s publication status; it does not check a separate publication flag on the individual handout resource.
• By default, the presentation qualifies for the imported agenda: its parent session is published and allowed by the project’s import rules, and the presentation has a non-empty title. Project customizations may add exclusions.
• The file has a non-empty URL with a supported extension: png, jpg, jpeg, mp3, mp4, m4a, or pdf. Eligibility uses the extension in the file URL, so an extensionless URL does not qualify.

Can I import handouts that are not linked to an imported presentation?

Yes. Set Import Without Associated Session to Yes in the Handouts source. This allows otherwise eligible handouts with no qualifying agenda presentation, but their Session ID is blank and they will not appear attached to a presentation. The presentation/speaker record must still be published and the file must still pass the Handout type and supported-format checks.

Are PowerPoint handouts included?

A ppt or pptx upload is included through Planstone’s converted PDF URL when one is available. EventPilot links to that converted file, and the subtitle is normally Handout - pdf. If no converted URL is provided, the PowerPoint upload is skipped. EventPilot does not perform the conversion itself.

How are the handout title and label generated?

The Title uses the handout’s publication name (pubname1). If that is blank, it uses the presentation title (cargo); if both are blank, it uses Handout. The Default Subtitle is Handout -  followed by the extension of the linked file, for example Handout - pdf or Handout - m4a. Map these fields to Title and Subtitle to display them.

The media filter label is always Handout. Each qualifying upload becomes a separate item, so a presentation may have several handouts.

How is the handout icon chosen?

The Icon uses the thumbnail URL supplied by Planstone (thumbnail_url). If there is no thumbnail and the linked file is a PDF, EventPilot supplies the standard PDF icon. This also applies to PowerPoint uploads linked through their converted PDF. For other supported file types without a thumbnail, the imported Icon field is blank. Map Icon to HTML Icon to use the supplied icon.

Why is a handout missing from its presentation?

Check the Handout resource type, the presentation/speaker record’s Published status, the parent session’s publication status, and the file URL and format. Confirm that Session ID is mapped to Session ID in the Handouts source and that both Sessions and Handouts have been imported. Handouts are not automatically added to speaker profiles. Allow for API availability and the V2 cache described above, then review the import Results and publish the update after proof review.