Create a Custom Floor Plan

Are you looking to create your very own custom floor plan for your upcoming event on Remo?

Well, here’s everything you need to know, whether you’re a master designer or someone who’s still trying to get their stick figures right. 

And for a little inspiration along the way, check out some of these other crazy yet brilliant masterpieces that other event hosts, (just like you!) have created

Table of Contents:

• Design Software

• Floor Plan Breakdown

• Important Tips

• Templates

• Map Background

• Conference Area

• 1. Tables (aka Rooms)

• EXTRA: Clickable Area (Optional)

• 2. Table Name

• 3. Seats

• 4. Host Seat

• 5. Green Room

• 6. Content Banners (previously sponsor banners)

• Final Optimizations

• Validate your Design

• Where to Upload?

• Time Restrictions

Design Software

The first thing you need to do is pick a design software you’re comfortable using. You can use any tool you like, provided it can export in an SVG format.

If you don’t have much design background, don’t worry we’ve compiled a quick list here of some of the tools you can try out when creating your custom floor plan.

That being said though, we do recommend using either Adobe Illustrator or the latest version of Sketch to design your Custom Floor Plan. So much so, we've created tutorial videos for both of these applications:

Click here for a video tutorial on how to create a Remo Custom Floor Plan using Adobe Illustrator

Click here for a video tutorial on how to create a Remo Custom Floor Plan using Sketch

Floor Plan Breakdown

Here’s a quick illustration of the various elements that make up a Remo floor plan:

When you’re customizing your floor plan, essentially each of these elements is going to be in a different ‘layer’ and that layer has to be named a certain way so that our system will recognize these elements for what they are.

Important Tips

Here are some key tips you should be aware of before you start designing so that all your hard work pays off:

• Make sure to check out these common mistakes when creating Custom Floor Plans.
• All layer names are case-sensitive!
• Our maximum file size is 4MB, as this contributes to a faster loading time for yourself, your speakers, and your guests when they first enter your event space.
  • Here are some tips for reducing file size you can keep a note of as you design:
    • Lots of elements and small items will contribute to a larger file size and slower load times, so cut back on any unnecessary elements
    • Use image compressors to minimize the file size of various design elements (such as food items on a table) before adding them to your floor plan
    • Reduce unnecessary path points when designing various elements
    • Here is a super useful article about some other ways you can optimize your SVG file
• Please ensure you share your custom floor plan with us at least 7 days before your event, if it’s less than that we cannot guarantee your floor plan will be fully functional during your event
• At each step, export your design in SVG format and upload it to our custom floor plan validator to see if you’ve created that element correctly - it’ll save a lot of time as you can point out any errors much faster
• Remember the Floor Plan you apply for your event is repeated on each floor in the event space. So the Floor Plan you design now will be used for Floor 1, Floor 2, and how many ever floors are in your event.

Templates

If this is your first time designing a custom floor plan or designing in general, you may find it more helpful to download one of our templates and just work off of there, so you understand and learn the various naming conventions and how they work (or if you’re in a bit of a time crunch and/or you don’t need too many modifications from the standard one):

We've also got the files of our other Standard Remo Templates here if you'd prefer to work from those.

Map Background

The first thing you want to design is the map background, this is the green rectangle with trees and bushes on the standard Remo Floor Plan:

Remember the map background does not contain any functional elements for your event, it’s just an exciting way to give your guests context about “where” your event is. For example, if you’re hosting a space enthusiast convention you could design the map background to look like outer space…

When designing the map background, keep the following notes in mind:

• It has to be rectangular in shape

• It can be a rectangular image if you want (make sure you have the right to use that image though!)

Once you’re happy with your map background you need to group all the elements present into a single layer. 

Name this layer “map-background”

Conference Area

The Conference Area represents what your guests see when they first enter your event space. Therefore, whatever you want your guests to see easily, please make sure to place this within this conference area space. 

For example in the picture below, all the tables, seats, content banner, green room, sponsors, and floor are within the conference area layer, thus all these elements will be seen by guests entering into an event with the floor plan below:

The conference area also must be rectangular in shape. You can play around with size if you like, but the ideal conference area size is 2200 pixels x 1300 pixels (width x height), with a 16:10 aspect ratio. (Remember, most laptops, desktops, and computers have an aspect ratio of between 16:9 and 16:10).

The important thing to note though is that this area will be zoomed in to fit your guests' browser view.

Once you’re done with this, create a new layer with just the conference area rectangle you just created. Name this layer “conference area”.

CHECKPOINT 1: You should have something similar to the image below, two layers: “map-background” and “conference area”. Your conference area layer should include the rectangle you just created.

If you would like to add anything below your tables, sponsor banners, content banner e.t.c. such as a floor or walls (as we've done in the image above), now is the best time to do it.

1. Tables (aka Rooms)

Tables in Remo are the areas that your guests can jump between, and where they can have private audio and video conversations with other guests. In your floor plan, each table will have its own separate layer. 

Firstly, design your table area (no need to worry about the seats just yet). Here are some examples for inspiration:

This “table” (or room) has a rug, a circular desk as well as a laptop, tablet, and cups (all made from a bunch of rectangles and circles!) Try creating some cool elements for yourself as well…	This one is more like a bar table with different types of food on it (again just a series of shapes strung together)

Once you’re happy with the table you’ve created you need to again group all the elements and create a layer. 

The name for this layer should be “table-{name of your table}”. The layer name will be used to identify which table is which, therefore they must be unique names. For example:

• If I wanted to call the table Lounge 1, I would name that table layer “table-Lounge 1”.

• if I wanted to call the table Rainy days, I would name the table layer “table-Rainy days”.

If you want to keep the same design for the table, just copy and paste the table layer. But make sure to change the table layer name each time.

A couple of points to note when designing your tables:

• Your tables can be any size
• If you'd like the table to be seen when guests first enter, make sure to place it within the conference area rectangle created previously
• All table layer names must be unique (i.e. if you want to call all your rooms Lounge, you’ll need to name your layers “table-Lounge 1”, “table-Lounge 2” and so on
• All table layer names must be in English
• All other elements such as seats, admin seats, and the table name will go under this layer
• The order of table layers in your floor plan file dictates the order in which tables are filled when guests enter. The first table layer will be the first table attendees land on when entering your event. You can also pre-assign guests to land at specific tables when setting up your event.

EXTRA: Clickable Area (Optional)

This additional layer is only valid for Isometric floor plans. This additional layer will help you customize the area of your table, just like in the image below:

To add this layer, you need to insert a polygon shape (not just a path), double-click on this shape, and change the shape outline to fit the outline of your table area.

You then need to rename this element as "clickable-area". This element should again go underneath the respective table layer. See below for an example:

Repeat this for each of your tables. Remember to add them in the right table layers though!

2. Table Name

Table Names are a great way to help your guests navigate your event space. 

To add table names, insert a text element and write down what you want your table to be named. 

Please note, the only font we currently support is Myriad Pro, with a maximum font size of 25. 

Position the text element where you want it. 

And now, you need to rename this text element and call it “name”. This element should again go underneath the respective table layer. See below for an example:

Repeat this process and add table names for all the tables you want names for. Remember to add them in the right table layers though!

Table Names on Clickable Areas:

If you're designing an isometric floor plan and have used the "clickable-area" above, you can add angled table names to your floor plan as well. Here's how:

1. Add your table name as outlined in the steps above, and angle it to match the angle your isometric floor plan is designed using.

2. Create a line, make it into a "path", and place it below wherever you want your table name to be

3. Rename the element to "text-path-name"

4. Make sure the path is invisible (no fill and no border), and is placed within the respective table layer

Just remember, adding angled table names is only available if you have added the "clickable-area" element as shown in the section above.

3. Seats

The seats are where your guests “sit” when they join a table. They can be any shape or size but keep in mind the avatars are circles measuring 55px in diameter, so keep your size relatively close to this measurement

Here are a few examples of seats we’ve had on Custom Floor Plans to get you inspired for your own creation:

Good old trusty sofa chair made from rectangles!!	If you want to keep it simple, try a circle	Or how about let your guests chill on a beach chair!

Once you’ve created your seat, group all the elements that make an individual seat together and create a layer. Name this layer “seat”. See below for an example of a seat layer:

Make sure the seat layers are added to the respective table layers. So for example, if you’re creating a seat for the Lounge 1 table, you need to add that seat layer into the “table-Lounge 1” layer you created in the previous step. 

There are some restrictions you need to follow when creating seats for your table:

• The maximum number of seats you can have per table depends on your current Remo plan, so please check our pricing page for your plan features. (Of course, you can design tables with more seats, but the actual number of guests that can sit at the table is determined by your plan)
• You can also design tables with less than your maximum number of seats, for example, tables of two or tables of three. (You can even mix them up, so your floor plan has varying table sizes to give your guests options)

Tables of two, ideal for speed networking sessions or private conversations	A mix of tables of two, four, and six, so guests can choose the types of conversations they want to be part of

• You must add buffer seats to your floor plan (above your expected number of guests) to allow guests to move around! Our algorithm automatically fills up 80% of the seats on a floor and then moves on to filling the next floor. So, for example, if you’ve got 40 expected guests and you want to keep them all on a single floor, you need to design at least 50 seats (80% of 50 = 40)
• However, the total maximum number of seats you can have is 125, and the total minimum number of seats is 25. The number of seats only includes the number of guest seats (it does not include seats in your green room (see section 5 below), or host seats (see section 4 below)).

4. Host Seat 

A host seat is an extra seat that event hosts can occupy if a table is full.

A lot of event hosts choose to keep this seat ‘invisible’ so guests don’t get confused, but the choice is yours! If you want to make it invisible, you can just insert a circle (size: 55px by 55px) and then remove any fill and/or border-color.

If you want to make the host seat visible just go ahead and copy and paste one of your seat layers from before or design a new seat design the same way

Either way, once you’ve created your admin seat, group all the elements together and create another layer. Name this layer “admin-seat”. Make sure this layer is under the respective table layer as well.

Repeat this for all the tables where you want a host seat.

CHECKPOINT 2: Each of your table layers should begin with “table-” and they should contain seats (with layers starting with “seat”), a text element (named “name” in the layer panel), and an admin seat if you wanted one (with a layer starting with “admin-seat”). 

Each of your table layers should look something like this:

5. Green Room

Only event hosts and registered speakers can access the green room area so it’s commonly used as a private meeting room or green room before presentations.

The green room can be any shape or size and placed anywhere on the floor plan (if you want your guests to see it when it first loads, remember to place it within your conference area rectangle)

If you want hosts and speakers to be able to enter the green room area, you need to add seats in the green room as well. These seats, again, can be invisible (no fill or border color) or have a fancy design, but whichever option you go for, each seat needs an individual layer named “seat” (which is the same process as adding seats to your table). 

A stage with ‘invisible’ seats	A stage with ‘visible’ seats

Once you’ve created the green room and the seats in the green room, group all these elements together and create another layer. Name this layer “table-stage”

It should look like this:

6. Content Banners (previously sponsor banners)

Content Banners are dynamic and can be used to display all kinds of content in your event space (donation forms, videos, seating plans, and much more!). Check out this article for more information on how you can use Content Banners. 

To add a content banner, insert a rectangle (it can be any size, but remember to size it according to the content you wish to display in this slot). Position the content banner where you want it on your floor plan. Name the rectangle “sponsor”. 

If you want more content banners, simply repeat the steps above, but this time name it “sponsor-2”, then “sponsor-3” and so on. 

Some things to note in regard to content banners:

• It’s best to make your content banners invisible on your floor plan (remove the fill and border colors), just in case you don’t end up using them during your event.
• Your content banners can be of varying sizes, but they must remain rectangles.
• If you want your content banners visible to guests when they first enter, make sure to fit these within your original conference area rectangle.

CHECKPOINT 3: That’s everything done! Check the image below to see if the names and positions of your layers match. There should be a “map-background” layer, a “conference-area” layer, a “table-stage” layer, “sponsor” rectangles, and all the “table-” layers (that contain “seat” and “admin-seat” layers and text elements called “name”)

Here’s a sample design you can take reference from with all the layer names.

Final Optimizations

Now you need to export your floor plan design as an SVG file, but there are a few things to note here:

• When exporting, make sure the ‘Responsive’ option is unchecked as shown below (if your design tool has this option)

• Please set the SVG export decimal to 2 (if your design tool has this option)
• After exporting, the SVG file and design may become distorted, so please either have your designer or yourself check the file before submitting it

Validate your Design

To validate your design:

• Go to your Organization Settings > Custom Floor Plans

• Click on "Upload Custom Floor Plan" or "Validate Custom Floor Plan"

• Upload your floor plan file in SVG format

• Check the results to see if there are any errors found, if not continue scrolling, if yes, go back to your design and correct the errors (it’s likely to do with the naming of your layers)

• Click "See details" to check the image of your custom floor plan, and make sure everything appears the way you imagined it:
  • The conference area will be highlighted in red.
  • Your tables, stage, Content banners, and sponsors are highlighted in grey.
  • Your admin seats are represented by the star icon.
  • The order that the tables and seats will fill up is indicated by the numbers on them.

If everything checks out, that’s it! You’ve just created your very own custom floor plan for your event! Congratulations ✨

Where to Upload?

You can send our Support Team your SVG file and we'll take care of uploading it to your account.

Alternatively, if you see a "Save Floor Plan to Account" button on the floor plan validator page, you can enter a name for your floor plan and click this button to upload it directly to your account!

Time Restrictions

Please give your custom floor plan to us at least 7 days before your event. This gives us enough time to identify any technical issues with your design, and if there are, help you to resolve them.

If you upload your custom floor plan less than 7 days before your event, we cannot guarantee that your floor plan will be fully functional for your event.