How to Choose the Right Online Event Software For Registration

Online event registration software is a stop platform and a cloud-based solution that allows organizations to host events and conferences and manage them from start to finish. A sound online event registration software allows a user-friendly interface for attendees to register themselves easily. It lets the organizers track registrations, manage payment attendees’ data, and generate all relevant reports.

Entrepreneurs, business organizations, and other professionals can use online event registration software to host events that inform and educate attendees about their products and services. It is highly beneficial to manage a large number of registration and attendee data.

There are many registration software floating in the digital space. But you must select one that works best for your objectives.

Factor the following points into consideration before selecting an online event registration software:

1. Focus on your purpose

When selecting an event registration software, specify the format of the event. Is it in-person, virtual, or hybrid? As there are software with interfaces suitable for a specific type of format of the event. There is software best suited for in-person events that offers capacities such as badge printing and lead capture. There are solutions like Eventzilla that offer registration software for both hybrid and virtual events and conferences.

Further, decide upon free or paid events. If you are hosting a paid event, select an event registration software that can handle transactions securely, offer different payment methods, etc. Consider how frequently you host events, as software designed to handle occasional events will fail to manage high-traffic events. Your attendee profile also plays its part when selecting an event registration software.

2. Determine your budget

Determining the budget for registration software is one of the most vital considerations. An online event registration software that meets all your conference needs without burning a hole in your pocket is the ideal one. Here’s how you can go about the economics of the event:

• Start with a clear budget: Set financial parameters on upfront costs, recurring fees, transactional charges, and upgrade costs if you decide to evolve your events strategy.

• Evaluate the pricing strategy of the software: Pricing models for different registration software significantly vary. Some may charge a set amount for unlimited free access, while others may base their fees on the number of guests or frequency of events.

• Consider your Return on investment (ROI): As important as it is to evaluate your budget, you also need to think about the possible Return on investment that the software could provide you with. For example, slightly more costly software that provides enhanced analytics, an improved user experience, and better marketing tools may increase event attendance, engagement, and revenue.

• Factor in the additional costs: Apart from the software’s price, several other additional costs need to be evaluated. Payment processing charges, fees for integrating different tools, and training costs of your employees to learn the new software should be included in your budget.

3. Identify the user experience.

After establishing the objective and financial parameters for your event, you need to access the operational features that will contribute to the user’s overall experience of using the software:

• Management of attendees: Select between basic and advanced methods for managing attendees. While certain events could only need the most basic registration functionality, others might demand tools for group invitations, attendee segmentation, and other things.

• Effective landing pages: Select an online software for registering events that enables you to generate powerful landing pages. These pages should successfully convey your event and brand and be aesthetically beautiful. It is crucial to select software that supports mobile-responsive designs in this mobile-centric world to ensure that every guest has a seamless and uniform experience, regardless of their device.

• Customization of registration forms: Every event has different needs, and there are differences in the kinds of information you want to get from participants. Whether you need to know about the professional details of your visitors’ areas of interest for workshop topics, a personalized registration form is essential. 

You should be able to add, remove quickly, or edit fields in the online event registration software to make sure you collect all the information you need without asking too many questions of the participants.

4. Consider your needs in terms of customer support.

The process of onboarding, implementation, and deployment of the online event registration software are some vital aspects that need to be evaluated for its effective integration into your organization. Ensure that the online registration software is compatible with your existing systems. Understand your employees’ technical know-how to determine if they need external support. Prepare to arrange training sessions or tutorials to equip them with the software.

Make sure the software provider meets your expectations about response time. For instance, at Eventzilla, our response time is significantly less, guaranteeing that our customer support representatives serve clients in a timely manner.

• Research:

Now that you are clear with your expectations, start effectively with the research to select a registration software that works for you.

Reach out to colleagues and peers who have hosted events or have some experience with online event registration software. Google search and AI platforms like Bard or ChatGpt can provide valuable results for you to consider. Be precise with your prompts. Platforms like LinkedIn and Capterra can help you find a suitable event registration.

• Select the provider of software.

After following the steps above:

1. Select 2-3 software that aligns most with your objectives, budget, and other needs.
2. Reach out to other organizations or individuals that have worked with that software.
3. Visit the websites of your shortlisted provider and maintain clarity of your requirements and needs. 

Ask the software provider to provide you with a brief presentation of their functionality, solutions, and pricing models. Finally, select the one that serves your interests the best.

Wrapping up,

Eventzilla boasts a range of features when it comes to online registration software. It gives your organization a platform to market events, publish agendas, register, and manage events and conferences.

Eventzilla serves several industries ranging from education, media, retail, ecommerce, and non-profit organizations.