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Making Connections

Networking is at the heart of every event. Atria makes it easy to discover attendees, send connection requests, and build your professional network across all your events.

Overview​

Atria's networking system allows you to:

  • Browse and search event attendees
  • Send connection requests with icebreaker messages
  • Accept or decline connection requests
  • Message your connections directly
  • View all your connections across all events

All connections are built around events - you meet people at events, send requests during events, and those connections persist beyond the event.

Discovering Attendees​

Accessing the Networking Area​

  1. Join an event as an attendee, speaker, or organizer
  2. Navigate to the event
  3. Click Networking in the event menu
  4. Select the Attendees tab

You'll see a grid of all event attendees you can connect with.

Attendee Information​

Each attendee card shows:

  • Profile avatar - Customizable cartoon-style avatar
  • Role badge - Shows if they're a Speaker, Organizer, Admin, or Attendee
  • Name - Full name (clickable if you're connected)
  • Title - Job title (if they've filled it out)
  • Company - Company name (if they've filled it out)
  • Social links - LinkedIn, Twitter, Website, Email (if visible per their privacy settings)

To see someone's bio, you need to be connected and visit their profile page.

Searching Attendees​

Use the search bar at the top to find specific people:

  • Search by name
  • Search by company
  • Search by job title
  • Search by speaker title (for speakers)

The search filters results in real-time as you type.

Filtering by Role​

Use the Filter by role dropdown to narrow down attendees:

  • All Attendees (default) - Shows everyone
  • Speakers - Shows only speakers
  • Organizers - Shows admins and organizers
  • Attendees - Shows regular attendees only

The filter clears your search and resets to the first page.

Browsing More Attendees​

The attendee grid loads 50 people at a time. When you scroll to the bottom:

  • Click Load More Attendees to see the next 50
  • The button shows "Loading more..." with a spinner while fetching
  • Keep loading until you've seen all attendees

Sending Connection Requests​

How to Send a Request​

  1. Find the person you want to connect with in the Attendees grid
  2. Click the Connect button on their card
  3. The icebreaker modal opens
  4. Select an icebreaker message from the list
  5. Click Send Request
  6. A success notification appears
  7. The button changes to Pending
Connection Status

The button on each attendee card shows your connection status:

  • Connect (light violet) - Not connected, click to send request
  • Pending (yellow, disabled) - You've sent a request, waiting for response
  • Message (filled violet) - Already connected, click to message

The Icebreaker System​

Icebreakers are conversation starters that help break the ice when connecting with someone new. When you click "Connect," you'll see:

If the event has icebreakers:

  • A list of 6-8 predefined icebreaker messages set by the event organizers
  • Examples:
    • "Hi! I noticed we're both interested in similar sessions. Would you like to connect?"
    • "Hello! I saw your profile and would love to discuss technology with you."
    • "I'm looking to connect with others in the tech field. Would you be open to chatting?"
  • Click on one to select it (it will highlight)
  • Click Send Request to send your connection request with that message

If the event has no icebreakers:

  • You'll see a message: "No icebreakers available for this event. Event organizers haven't set up icebreakers yet."
  • You cannot send connection requests for this event
  • Ask the event organizers to set up icebreakers
Custom Messages

Currently, you must choose from the event's predefined icebreaker list. You cannot write completely custom messages when sending connection requests.

After Sending​

Once you send a request:

  • The recipient sees it in their Requests tab
  • Your request includes:
    • Your profile information
    • The icebreaker message you selected
    • Which event you connected from
  • The button on their card changes to Pending
  • You cannot send another request to the same person until they respond

Managing Connection Requests​

Viewing Your Requests​

To see who wants to connect with you:

  1. Go to any event's Networking area
  2. Click the Requests tab
  3. You'll see all pending connection requests
All Your Requests

Currently, the Requests tab shows connection requests from ALL your events, not just the current event. This makes it easy to see all pending requests in one place.

The Requests tab shows a badge with the number of pending requests.

Request Information​

Each request card shows:

  • Requester's profile - Avatar, name, title, company
  • Social links - LinkedIn, Twitter, Website, Email (based on their privacy settings)
  • Icebreaker message - The message they sent with the request
  • Originating event - Which event they sent the request from
  • Received date - When the request was sent

Accepting a Request​

To accept a connection request:

  1. Review the person's profile and icebreaker message
  2. Click the Accept button (green, with checkmark icon)
  3. The button shows a loading spinner
  4. A success notification appears: "Connection accepted"
  5. The request is removed from your list
  6. A direct message thread is automatically created between you
  7. On desktop, you may be navigated to the DM thread

Once accepted:

  • The person appears in your connections
  • You appear in their connections
  • You can message each other
  • When you see them in attendee lists, the button shows Message instead of Connect

Declining a Request​

To decline a connection request:

  1. Click the Decline button (gray, with X icon)
  2. The button shows a loading spinner
  3. A notification appears: "Request declined"
  4. The request is removed from your list

Once declined:

  • They won't be notified that you declined
  • The request is removed from your list
  • You won't see requests from them again

Your Network​

Viewing All Connections​

To see all your connections across all events:

  1. Navigate to My Network (in the main app navigation)
  2. You'll see a complete list of all accepted connections

The Network page shows:

  • Total connection count
  • Search bar - Search by name, company, title, or event
  • Connection list - All your accepted connections

Connection Information​

Each connection shows:

Desktop (table view):

  • Name (clickable to view profile)
  • Title and company
  • Connected at (which event)
  • Social links (LinkedIn, Twitter, Website)
  • Email (if visible per their privacy settings)
  • Connection date
  • Message button

Mobile (card view):

  • Same information in a card layout
  • Optimized for mobile screens

Messaging Connections​

To message a connection:

  1. Find them in your Network page or in an event's Attendees grid
  2. Click the Message button
  3. A direct message thread opens
  4. Type your message and send

All messages with a connection are in a single thread, regardless of which event you met at.

Privacy and Visibility​

What Others See​

What attendees see about you depends on your privacy settings:

  • Email visibility (3 levels - controlled in privacy settings)
  • Social links visibility (3 levels - controlled in privacy settings)

Your title and company are always visible if you've filled them out.

Your bio is only visible on your profile page to people who are connected with you.

What You See​

What you see about other attendees depends on their privacy settings and your relationship:

  • Not connected: You see what they've made visible to "Event Attendees"
  • Connected: You see what they've made visible to "Connections"
  • As an organizer: You can always see more information for event management

Event Context​

Privacy settings are context-aware:

  • During an event: You see information based on event privacy settings
  • After an event: You see information based on connection privacy settings
  • Different events can have different privacy overrides

Best Practices​

Discovering Connections​

Be specific with search:

  • Search for people by name if you met them
  • Search by company to find people from specific organizations
  • Use role filters to find speakers or organizers

Review profiles before connecting:

  • Check their title and company for relevance
  • Look at social links (if visible)
  • After connecting, you can view their full profile including bio

Sending Requests​

Choose relevant icebreakers:

  • Pick an icebreaker that matches why you're connecting
  • If you're both interested in similar sessions, use that icebreaker
  • Generic icebreakers work when you don't have a specific reason

Send requests thoughtfully:

  • Don't spam connection requests to everyone
  • Focus on people you want to genuinely connect with
  • Remember that your profile is visible when you send requests

Managing Requests​

Respond promptly:

  • Check your Requests tab regularly
  • Accept requests from people you want to connect with
  • Decline requests if you're not interested (it's okay to say no)

Review before accepting:

  • Look at their profile and icebreaker message
  • Make sure you want to stay connected after the event
  • Remember that connections persist across all events

Building Your Network​

Message your connections:

  • Start conversations with new connections
  • Follow up after events
  • Share relevant information or resources

Update your profile:

  • Keep your bio current and relevant
  • Add social links so connections can find you elsewhere
  • Update your title and company when they change

Troubleshooting​

Can't Send Connection Request​

Problem: Connect button is disabled or greyed out

Solutions:

  • Check if the event has icebreakers set up
  • Make sure you haven't already sent a request to this person
  • Verify you're not already connected
  • Check your privacy settings - you may have connection requests disabled

No Icebreakers Available​

Problem: Modal says "No icebreakers available for this event"

Solutions:

  • Contact the event organizers and ask them to set up icebreakers
  • Icebreakers must be configured by event admins/organizers
  • You cannot send requests without icebreakers

Don't See Some Attendees​

Problem: Expected to see someone in the attendee list but they're not there

Solutions:

  • Check if you're using a role filter that excludes them
  • Try searching by their name
  • They may not have joined the event yet
  • They may have been removed or banned from the event

Request Stuck as Pending​

Problem: Your connection request shows "Pending" for a long time

Solutions:

  • The recipient hasn't responded yet
  • They may not have checked their Requests tab
  • They may have declined (you won't be notified)
  • Be patient - some people check requests infrequently

Can't Find Connection in Network​

Problem: Accepted a connection but don't see them in My Network

Solutions:

  • Refresh the page
  • Check if you're searching/filtering
  • Make sure the request was actually accepted (check for success notification)
  • The connection may take a moment to appear

Message Button Not Working​

Problem: Clicking "Message" doesn't open a thread

Solutions:

  • Refresh the page and try again
  • Make sure you're actually connected (not just pending)
  • Check your internet connection
  • Try from a different page (Network vs Networking)
  • Privacy Controls - Control what others see about you
  • Chat & Messaging - How to use direct messages (coming soon)
  • Your Profile - Update your profile information
Networking Across Events

Your connections persist across all events. When you connect with someone at one event, you'll see them in your network and can message them even after the event ends or at future events you both attend.