PORTLAND, OR, United States – Hosting a large event can be a stressful occasion. There’s a lot that goes into events including securing the venue, managing invites and tracking RSVPs.
For me, I’m helping host two events in the coming days, both associated with South By Southwest, also known as SXSW.
Luckily, by using a few smart tools, running an event can go much more smoothly for all involved. My tool of choice, Eventbrite makes it much easier to successfully manage an event, from developing the invite, broadcasting it on social media channels and managing the party list.
Attending events
SXSW is a conference where you register for a lot of events and keeping them all straight is sometimes hard. It would be really nice to see a list of your upcoming events with the details you need to get there and show up on time.
Events Tracker, available in the Windows Marketplace, is a terrific application that shows your Eventbrite-powered gatherings with ease. As long as you’ve registered on Eventbrite, Events Tracker will show you what’s next with details such as: date and time, description, end date and location.
From the app, you can also share your attendance on your social networks as you see fit.
Running your Eventbrite event
Ok – so let’s flip the coin. What happens if you’re hosting an Eventbrite-powered gathering and you need to manage it while you’re on the ground. Check In is an application you’ll want to have in your arsenal.
Check In enables you to check people in as the enter into your party or gathering. There’s even a great scanner module that allows you to scan attendees’ EventBrite print-offs for easy record retrieval.
One facet I like about Check In is that you can see who has registered but who haven’t checked in just yet. That way you can see who’s on your register and gauge how much space you have left in case attendees come who weren’t registered ahead of time. With this data, you can know how much capacity you have in your event.
Choosing a big winner
Typically when it comes to any kind of event at a conference, there comes a fun opportunity to raffle off some swag or even do a giveaway. There are a number of ways to do this, including drawing a business card out of a hat or conducting trivia.
However, with an app such as EventBrite Raffle, the process is easy. EventBrite Raffle is as simple as the app’s title sounds. The application randomly draws a name out of the EventBrite roster for your event and shows the name.
You can set options in the application to only draw from checked-in attendees. Also, you can email the winner if you want to send the award after the event itself.
This app may seem simple, but it solves a common problem when it comes to giveaways with a simple solution.
Are you an Eventbrite user? What tips would you have for everyone?