Welcome to the eventplanner.net Academy. This training guide will help you get the most out of our eventplanner.net software and help you focus on what's really important to you: organising remarkable events.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: We're upgrading our training portal! For now, all course materials are bundled in this article. Certification is temporarily unavailable. We apologise for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience during this enhancement.
With our certification program, you can show potential customers and employers that you’ve mastered the fastest-growing event platform on the market. And the best part? Our event software (as you may or may not be aware) is completely free! That means you can use all basic functionalities without paying a penny.
As with any software, there are some limitations, such as the number of people you can work together with, the number of events you can organise per year, or the number of items on a checklist. But don’t worry, the limits are set quite high, so you probably won’t run into any issues. But if you love using our software and want to contribute, you can always upgrade to a premium account without limits. Follow the link here for more information.
- Important! We try to keep this training guide as accurate as possible, but since our developers continue to upgrade the platform and release new functionalities, not every new feature will always be captured. So please also refer to all the documentation and other materials we have available for you.
Setting up events
Creating An Event
What better place to start than creating a new event with our eventplanner.net software? If you haven’t already, go to the event software homepage. Next, click on “Event software” in the top right of the navigation bar.
Method #1
When you’re in the eventplanner.net software, on the left side of the screen, you will find the menu, where you will see all the tools we have available: Moodboards, Checklists, Callsheets, Budgets, and Contacts.
There are multiple ways of creating an event, but for simplicity, we’ll start with the easiest one.
Click “Add a new event”, and input the following details:
- Event name
- Date
- Event type
- Number of people
- Region
- Budget
- Currency
- VAT checkbox
- Description
- Blank template checkbox
Event name: choose something specific that you’ll be able to distinguish from the other events you create. You’ll see all your events on your main dashboard in a list format; giving those a specific name will help you navigate to the correct one.
Date: this is the date when your event takes place.
Event type: there are multiple options to choose from: business event, staff party, product launch, meeting, conference, teambuilding, concert, wedding, private party, and other. Pick the most appropriate one.
Number of people: the number of people in attendance. This becomes important later when we start building our budgets. If you work with prices based on units, the number of people will affect the overall cost. For example, if the price for a caterer is $20 per person, your budget will be calculated accordingly.
Region: type in the town or city where the event is due to take place. If it’s a virtual event, simply enter the registered address of the business, the office address, or the event organiser. It’s important to get this detail right, as our eventplanner.net software will help you find the right venue for your event.
Budget: the amount you wish to allocate for the overall scope of this particular event.
Currency: select the appropriate value from the drop-down list. These are the currencies currently available to choose from, and we’ll be adding new ones in the future.
VAT checkbox: select this box if you wish to see prices in the Budgets section excl. VAT.
Description: provide an overview of the event, and include relevant detail, such as the aim of the event, what the intended outcome is, and any planning considerations.
Blank template checkbox: select this if you don’t want to pre-fill your event Checklist or start from a blank Checklist. For example, if you’re planning a wedding, a checklist will be added with all the necessary tasks that are required, such as “Book the ceremony venue”.
- Important! At present, we don’t have the functionality to start using our template. But you can re-use a checklist for another activity, such as your call sheet. It’s also possible to start using a previous event (for example, last year’s) and build on that. More will be shared on how to do that later in this guide.
Once all the above information has been input, check the details are correct, then select “Save”.
You’ll then be taken to a new screen, where you’ll see your event name at the top.
- Top Tip! If you want to add a new event, click on the event name (adjacent to the down arrow) add select the option to add a new event. From here, you can navigate between your other events too. Not only that, but one feature of eventplanner.net is that you can work on multiple events at the same time.
And voila! The tools are now ready to start using.
As a quick exercise, navigate to “Checklists” in the left pane and you will see (if you selected to pre-fill the checklist) several tasks ready for you to organise the event type you selected. From here, you can start building your budget, carrying out a brief, selecting an event agency, and so much more.
Method #2
As mentioned previously, there are other ways to create a new event. One of the best ways to do this is to create an event based on a previous event you’ve organised. Simply click on the event name at the top (adjacent to the down arrow) add select the event which you would like to use as a template for your new event. After making your selection, you’ll see the familiar screen where we input our event details. Revisit the instructions above if you require any further explanation.
- Important! The software will recalculate all the dates of tasks and call sheet items for the event based on the new date you input. For example, say you have a task on your checklist, and the due date of the task was three months before the start date of the event, then our software will recalculate based on the date of the new event.
It’s the same for call sheet items, too. For example, if you have a call sheet, and the day before the event you decorated the venue, then your new call sheet will take that into consideration and amend the date accordingly.
The only difference when creating this event, in terms of options available, is the “Import these contacts” checkboxes. Here you can decide whether you want to include the same contact details of the people you worked with on the last event. Check all the boxes of the contacts you want to include. If you leave out a contact, all corresponding tasks and assignments will be assigned to you, the organiser of the event. You can always reassign them to somebody else at a later stage.
Go right ahead and save the new event.
In the navigation header (adjacent to the drop-down arrow), you will now see your original event and the new event you’ve created. Remember, you can switch between these events easily with all the available tools in the eventplanner.net suite. If you switch tools, the system will remember what you were working on and you won’t lose any of your work.
Method #3
The last option to create an event is not from within the event software itself but from anywhere on our platform. For example, say you’re in the directory on our website and are browsing event venues, and imagine you’re planning to run an event in Antwerp, simply enter the details in the search bar and hit “Search”.
After a moment, you’ll see a list of search results. Imagine now that you’ve found the perfect location. After clicking on the page, you’ll see all the details about that particular venue.
Click “Get a quote”, and you’ll be taken to a page where you can select a new event or a current event that you’re planning. Once selected, you’ll be taken to another page with a web form (this will be prepopulated if you’ve selected an existing event). Check you’re happy with the details and click “Send”.
- Note: when creating an event this way, there are fewer options to select from. Any events created this way will be done so with standard values. But fear not! You can always populate the required information by going back to the event software and clicking on “Show info”. Here you will see all the information on the event you’ve entered. You can always click “Edit” and change any of the event details.
Archiving Events
And last but not least, there’s also an archive event button. When your event has taken place – or if it’s been canceled, postponed, or no longer required – you can archive your event without deleting it. Archived events don’t show in the usual places anymore, such as the drop-down list when switching between events.
Archiving events it’s really handy if you work on a lot of events; you’re drop-down list will soon become overgrown if it’s not pruned.
You will see a new link here: “Archived events”. Clicking on that will take you to the archive, where you will see all the events that are archived. From here, you can still access your historic events, open them, and even unarchive them.
Personalizing Your Experience
One final point: you can personalize your experience by going to the settings screen. To do so, click on your name in the top menu, then go to the “Personal” tab. Here, you will see all your communication and notification preferences.
When it comes to notification preferences, you can choose between three ways we communicate with you: push notifications (through the eventplanner.net app if you have it installed), emails, and website notifications (these can’t be toggled off).
On top of this, you can change the types of notifications you’d like to receive. For example, we can send notifications when you get an assignment, or when a colleague assigns you to a task, or when someone creates a call sheet entry. If you wish to change any of these preferences, click “Edit” and check the relevant boxes.
- Important! What’s the difference between email and consolidated email? An email is when the action occurs. So, if it’s 10 am and your colleague assigns you to a task, then you get that email immediately. The consolidated email is sent once per day, which gives a breakdown of all your notifications throughout the day.
- Top Tip! You can set reminders for tasks and amend your notifications. For example, if you have a task assigned in any given project, and you want a reminder when the task is due, make sure these reminders are switched on in this screen.
And that’s a wrap for how to create an event.
Next, we’ll be learning all about the tools we offer in our eventplanner.net software. So grab yourself a drink, and we’ll see you in the next section.
Moodboards
In this section, we will be learning about Moodboards. It’s a fairly short section, but an important one nevertheless. Moodboards help you organise remarkable events by bringing all your inspiration together in one convenient place.
Firstly, open up the eventplanner.net software (if you haven’t already done so). On your main page, in the left pane, you will see “Moodboards”. Once you’ve selected this, if this is your first time creating, you will see a section that says “Add your first pin”. Click “Learn more” and you will be taken to a page that provides detailed instructions on how to do so.
Your mood board is like a creative idea board where you gather all your inspiration for your upcoming events. Some things you may wish to include are shortlisted venues, interesting articles, or events businesses.
Customizing Your Mood Board
Adding a pin to your mood board is easy. Just go to the business page of the company on our site and click “FOLLOW”. A popup will appear when selecting the event you want to pin this to, or you can add it to a new event.
There’s also a shortcut: many of our pages display a heart icon (or ‘save’ link), and by clicking this, you’ll be saving companies and venues to your mood board.
You can add multiple options to the same board. For example, if you find a few interesting caterers – maybe you like the look of a food truck, or maybe you’ve found a caterer who specializes in vegetarian food – you can add these to your mood board too.
Also, when in the “News” section of the eventplanner.net website, instead of a heart, you’ll see the word “Save”. This works in exactly the same way as clicking a heart and will pin that particular post to your mood board.
Now, let’s go back to the event software by clicking the link in the header pane (on top of the website) and going to “Moodboards”. Here you’ll see any of the content you’ve pinned, such as that from clicking “Save” or a heart. eventplanner.net groups the pins together based on their categories.
In one section, you might see all the caterers you’ve saved; in another, you’ll see all your event venues consolidated; and another contains all the posts you’ve saved.
- Pro Tip! Not everything that inspires you is on the eventplanner.net website. That’s why there’s also the functionality to add external links to your mood board. To do so, navigate to the bottom of the mood board, and scroll down until you reach a section titled “Links”. Simply paste the URL of your chosen article, and click on “Add link” to add it to your mood board.
While working on your mood board, there will come a time when you want to delete stuff – which is also possible. Just hover your cursor over the article in question and select the trash can icon. When clicking, you will be asked, “Are you sure?” Clicking “Okay” will permanently delete this from the mood board.
Benefits of Using Moodboards
Moodboards are incredibly useful. They are great for when you’re working alone on an event, but they’re especially impactful when you’re working with other people.
Imagine you and a colleague are organising an event together. You’re scouting for venues online – on the eventplanner.net platform and other websites. Both you and your colleague can bring all the ideas together on one board at the same time, sharing your ideas with each other. During this process, you’ll learn from each other and, eventually, find the best possible venues and suppliers for your event.
With these tools at your disposal, you have the ability to share and work cross-functionally and give several people access. More will be covered on that in the “Contacts” section.
Rest assured, you can restrict access to certain parts of the eventplanner.net software. For example, if you want to share access to the mood board but restrict access to the checklist, you can give read-only access. That way, colleagues can see what you’re doing but are unable to change it.
- Remember! At all times, you have control over who can access what.
So, that’s a wrap for Moodboards. Next, we’ll be learning all about checklists. Feel free to take a short break, and we’ll meet you on the other side.
Checklists
In this section, we’re going to be looking at “Checklists”. Our project management tool is built especially for event planners and seamlessly integrated with our other tools and the eventplanner.net platform.
Even the simplest events generate endless to-do lists. With checklists, you can keep track of every important detail, and ours even come pre-filled with suggested items tailored to your type of event. Add, assign, and update the status of tasks by simply dragging and dropping.
You may or may not be familiar with the term “Kanban board”. For those who don’t know, a Kanban board is a board which you put tasks on. They allow you to visually depict work at various stages of a project using cards that represent work items and columns to represent each stage.
In your checklists, you will see three columns: “To do”, “In progress”, and “Done”.
When you create an event and don’t select the option to start from a blank canvas, we will pre-fill your event with all the relevant tasks for the type of event you’re organising. Remember, there are many different types of events with different tasks – for example, you need to work on your budget; you need to write a brief; you need to decide whether you will organise the event yourself or hire an event agency; but there are also more specific tasks like finding an event venue.
Using the example earlier, when we set Antwerp as our location for the event. If you now click on “Find an event venue”, the software automatically searches the directory for all possible venues in Antwerp.
Adding Tasks
You can also “Add tasks” in the “Checklist” section. First, you’ll need to enter a task title – say “Send out invitations”. Then you need to enter a description of the task. Set the priority of the event (low, medium, high). Then set the progress by selecting one of three options in the drop-down menu (to do, in progress, done).
You can also select a category for this type of task; for example, marketing, budget, or entertainment. Next, you’ll want to set a due date. Finally, at the bottom right, there’s also a drop-down where you can assign the task to somebody in your team. Once done, click “Add task”.
- Top Tip! A task typically gets added to the bottom of the page. If you want to move it further up, simply drag and drop it to the desired place in the list.
Deleting Tasks
It’s also possible (and really easy) to delete all tasks in your list. When creating the event, you might have asked us to pre-fill your event, or perhaps you forgot to check the “Start from a blank canvas” checkbox. Just scroll to the bottom of the list, and you will see “Delete all tasks”, which looks like a hyperlink. A warning will pop up on the screen before carrying out the action.
- Important! As a failsafe, the link will disappear when you start working on your checklist. This is to prevent you from accidentally deleting all your important tasks.
You can also manually delete specific tasks. Click on the title of the task you want to delete and can click “Edit”. A window will pop up. In the bottom left is a “Delete” button. Click on that to get rid.
So, even if you start with a pre-filled list, you can still add, delete, or amend different tasks as you see fit – personalizing your experience.
Something else that you may find useful is, if you’ve taken a template from a previous event, you’ll find all the appropriate tasks in here. You’ll just need to drag and drop all the “Done” tasks back into “To do”.
- Important! When a task is in progress, you need to update the status by dragging it across to the relevant column; and for tasks you’ve completed, move those to “Done”. To run a successful event, you need to move all your tasks from the left column to the right column.
Adding and Assigning a Contact
Now, let’s add a contact. We will go into more detail on that later, but we’ll touch upon this briefly now to enable us to run through some additional functionality.
Go to “Contacts” in the left pane, then click “Add contact”.
Start typing in the “Company name” to which the person belongs to; a number of results will appear. Select the company, then move on to fill out the remaining credentials. In this window, you can give a user (or restrict) certain access, but we go into detail about that later. For now, give this example contact access to the checklist.
There are four options:
- No access: user has no visibility of this tool
- Read: user can read all tasks but can’t change anything or add comments
- Comment: user can read and comment on tasks but can’t change the tasks
- Manage: user has full access and can create, edit, and delete tasks
Once you add a contact, they will receive an invitation to join you in working on this project. You’ll notice that the invitation shows as pending. If the recipient doesn’t respond after some time, this button will change to “Resend the invitation”.
Once the recipient accepts, if you go back to the checklist, you can now assign this task to them.
Filtering
One useful tool is the filter, right at the top. If, for example, you want to see tasks that are assigned to one specific person, click “Filter by person” and then check the box of the relevant person.
You can select multiple assignees, and you can always remove filters so that everything is visible. It’s great for project management and keeping everyone in the loop with what’s happening elsewhere. It’s a powerful tool that fosters collaboration at all stages of a project.
Other Features
You can also comment on tasks or even add files. Just click on the title of the task you want to amend and add the detail in the comments box.
Adding an attachment is just as easy. Just drag and drop from your folder to the “Comments” text field. Don’t forget to hit send (the paper airplane icon). Once the file loads, it will be accessible to all who have visibility.
- Note: when uploading a file, you will notice that the file is being processed. That’s because we run virus scanners on every file, to protect the integrity of our system.
When tasks have multiple steps to complete, it can be useful to add a comment for subtasks:
- shortlist five caterers
- send out emails
- organise a call to discuss requirements
You can edit your comment later when you’ve completed a task.
If you want to go back, just click the left arrow in the top left corner, and you’ll be back at the checklist on the Kanban board.
If selecting “Read” under some categories, you will be presented with a checkbox: “Only own items”. This is a feature we built for privacy and European GDPR legislation, but it also comes in handy for another use.
Let’s say you work with an external catering partner, and you want to give that catering partner access to your call sheets, you can give them access to call sheets that are only assigned to them. They won’t see other tasks, which may contain sensitive data.
So, that’s a wrap for checklists. Hopefully, that wasn’t too taxing. We’ll be diving headfirst into Callsheets in the next section. See you there!
Callsheets
In this section, we’re going to run through Callsheets. Callsheets are a crucial element in organising an event – especially on the day of the event and the days before. With Callsheets, you can easily manage all the action points for your big event in a few clicks, easily assign ownership, and share it with the whole team.
In short, a call sheet is a useful tool that allows you to add all the tasks that need completing prior to, during, and after an event.
Adding a Call Sheet
Before we start, let’s head back to our event software dashboard. In the left pane, select “Callsheets”. In there, you’ll see an example entry to show you what this will look like after inputting all the relevant information.
- Top Tip! Before adding a call sheet, ensure that you’re adding it to the correct event. If you need to change this, click the drop-down arrow next to the event name at the top and select the correct option.
To get started, you can either (a) edit the example entry, or (b) click “Add entry”. You’ll then need to enter the following detail, some of which is self-explanatory:
- Start and end dates
- Start and end times
- What the task is
- Where the task takes place
- Who is involved in the task
- Note any other important information
Now, let’s imagine an event is due to take place on the 20th of February, on the 19th of February, from 10 till 11 am. Once you’ve entered the dates and times, populate the required information in “What?”; for example, “Decorate the venue”. Then move on to “Where?”, and include details of the event venue. Complete the “Who?” section with information relating to who will carry out the task (it’s possible to assign multiple people to one task). You can also add a note; for example, “Don’t forget the party lights.”
- Top Tip! If you start typing a name that isn’t in the system yet, a suggestion will appear showing “Add contact”. Clicking this will open a new window and allow you to add the relevant personnel in the appropriate event.
Once all the information has been added, click “Add entry”, and you will see the new entry is added.
To delete the example entry, select the entry, scroll down to the bottom of the information, and click “Delete”.
Adding a Section
If you’re building a large call sheet, it can be helpful to break this up into sections. You can do this by clicking “Add section”. Then simply name your section depending on how you want to categorize the outstanding tasks. One way to do this would be to create a section for before, during, and after an event.
The next time you add an entry, you’ll see a section titled “Add to section”. Select the checkbox of the section to which you want the entry to be added to, then click “Add entry”. The section an entry falls under can be changed by simply clicking on an entry and selecting the relevant checkbox.
- Note: sections and entries are sorted according to their start dates.
Other Features
There are some other features that are worth mentioning.
- As with checklists, it’s possible to filter entries by assignee. Refer back to the Filtering section of this guide for more detail.
- It’s also possible to set rules for your team so that a person can only see their own call sheet entries. Refer back to Adding and Assigning a Contact in this guide for more detail.
- You can also print the call sheet to keep as a handy reference with you at all times. Just click on “Print”, and you’ll be presented with a print version of your call sheet. Click “Ctrl+P”, and your call sheet will start printing.
- Important! If you have any filters applied when printing, the printout will contain only what’s visible according to the filter you’ve set.
Just like all the other tools in our eventplanner.net suite, your call sheets can be accessed in the app – meaning you can keep an eye on these when you’re on the go.
But remember, there’s always a chance you won’t have an internet connection at the event. That’s why we always recommend printing out the call sheet, or whatever information you need at the event. That way, you can be sure that you will always have access to your call sheet.
Next stop, Budgets!
Budgets
In this section, we will learn how to create your event budget with our event planning software. Budgets keep track of all your event-related expenditures and, if you wish, revenue as well. It also seamlessly integrates within a solid financial plan. So you’ll never miss the mark when it comes to budgeting your event.
Go to “Budgets” in the left pane. At the top, aligned left, you’ll notice that you’re in the same event as when you last took action in the eventplanner.net software. If this is your first time here, the budget will currently show empty.
Adding a Budget
First things first, click “Add a budget line”.
Then we need to enter a category. You can select from the following options:
- Inspiration
- Event agency
- Catering
- Venue
- Entertainment
- Decoration
- Photo/video
- Rental
- Staff
- Security
- Transport
- Guests
- Software
- Budget
- Marketing
Once you’ve selected the category, insert a description (whatever you deem most appropriate, preferably something that’s distinctive and easy to identify).
You then have the option of selecting either a cost (for example, ticket printing) or revenue (for example, ticket sales).
In the “Supplier” section, just start typing the name, and a number of results will appear. Select the company, then move on to fill out the remaining credentials. If the supplier isn’t on the eventplanner.net platform, you can simply enter whatever you want in there.
Decide if the cost or revenue is a fixed price or a price per unit. If you need to change the number of units, select the checkbox “Manually edit # units”.
- Important! A unit price will be multiplied by the number of attendees. Remember, this amount is determined when you create a new event – unless you manually change that amount.
If the overall number of attendees changes – for instance, due to cancelations – it’s better to update this in the event settings by selecting “Show info” on any page, then clicking “Edit”. The changes will be cascaded down to all other tools within the eventplanner.net software, including your budget calculations (unless you have selected the checkbox for a manual entry).
When all the fields have been populated, select “Add budget line”.
If you proceed to add more costs under the same category, you will notice they are grouped as such in the main budget screen. At the top, you see the total cost of the event.
Different Scenarios
The next thing we can do, which is really useful if you’re organising larger events, is create different versions of your budget. You might want visibility of an optimistic and pessimistic scenario of your event.
To do so, you can either:
(a) create a new version of the budget from a blank sheet
or
(b) copy the current version, rename, and amend as appropriate.
Just click the drop-down arrow next to the title of the budget and choose one of the options. Then click “Save”.
This is also great for version control. You could periodically save a copy of the budget so that you always have a useful reference to look back on over the history of the project.
VAT Calculations
Another thing to keep in mind is whether you want to include or exclude VAT in your calculations.
Head to the “Show info” button, then click on “Edit”. You’ll see a checkbox about halfway down the page that says “Work with prices ex VAT in Budgets”
As standard, all prices include VAT, which means the tool uses gross prices in its calculations. But let’s say you want to work excluding VAT, you can do so by checking this checkbox.
- Important! You can change an event budget to be VAT exclusive. But remember, once you do, you can’t go back. It’s a one-way road. If you want to create an event budget without VAT, the best way is to select this checkbox when creating the event.
When selecting the VAT checkbox, you’ll now see another column in your budgets that says “VAT”. At present, the VAT percentage is empty, since we don’t enter that data when creating the budgets.
If you change the VAT status of the project after creating budget lines, you need to revisit and enter the percentage manually, one by one. Simply click each budget line you wish to amend, enter the correct percentage, then save.
The result? You can now see that VAT is calculated separately. Prices are shown excluding VAT, the VAT amount, and then the total including VAT.
Remember, when working with multiple versions of the budget, the previous versions don’t change when one has been amended. You’ll need to repeat those steps outlined above for each version of a budget you have. That’s why it’s so important to get this right when creating the event – to avoid duplicating your efforts.
Don’t forget that you can share your budget with peers too, enabling you to review and collaborate together.
Our next and final stop is “Contacts”, where we’ll learn everything there is to know about users and contacts for your events. See you on the other side!
Tickets
This training guide shows you how to utilise the Tickets function in eventplanner.net. Just like all our other tools, you'll find Tickets in the main menu along with Moodboards, Checklists, Callsheets, Budgets, and Contacts.
Before we start setting up Tickets, we need to optimise some settings. Head over to Tickets in the menu in the left-hand pane. Then select the appropriate event from the drop-down arrow.
Organizer Information
The first thing you need to set up is the organizer information. Click “Set up”, and a window will pop up. You need to input:
- Organizer name
- Contact email (which auto-fills)
- Organizer introduction
- An image that distinguishes this event (minimum size 1024x1024px)
Once you've completed the fields, click 'Save'.
Event Information
Next, you need to set up your event information, so click on 'Set up' on the Event row. We start by entering some basic information: the event name. You have already set that previously when setting up your main event profile, but you can change it here if you want to display a different name to your audience.
Then enter some details in the event intro text, such as what will happen during the event, why it's important, and the outcomes the attendees can expect. This is just an introduction, so two to three sentences will suffice. We’ll be writing a more detailed event description shortly.
After you've completed the event intro, enter the relevant start date and time (and end date and time).
Important! Be sure to set the right time zone for the event destination.
You have three location types to choose from: a physical event, an online event, or both. If choosing an online event (or both), you will need to enter a URL. When choosing a physical event, you need to enter the address, including:
- Venue name
- House number
- Street
- City
- Postcode/zip code
- Country
Once you've entered the details, the map automatically finds the address and puts a marker in the location. You can move this if it's not completely right.
Then we need to upload some images: a cover image and a preview image. Please ensure you use high-resolution images because customers will see large versions of these. For best results, use a PNG. file with a minimum resolution of:
- Cover image: 2564x804px
- Preview image: 540x360px
Next, we need to enter more detailed information about the event. If your event features live music, for example, you could give an overview of the performers, the genre of music, and any special details of the show, such as age restrictions and accessibility information.
For paid tickets, it’s especially important to include your refund policy in the next field. To be compliant with EU GDPR legislation, you should also include a URL to your privacy page so that customers and attendees know what your privacy policy is. If you are processing or storing customer data, you require consent from the customers. Select 'Yes' or 'No'.
You can also add some tags to your event, for example, 'business event'. Once all the fields have been populated, click 'Save'.
Sections
Then we need to head to Sections and click 'Set up'. This particular section isn’t mandatory because many events don't have sections (which are essentially different types of tickets, such as a particular time slot or designated areas). Here, you’ll see three options to choose from:
- Zone
- Time slot
- Zone and time slot
If you have an event where you have tickets for regular customers and VIP customers, you can set those zones here. If you have multiple stages, you can set them here, too.
A section can also be a time slot. For example, if you have an event that runs across multiple days, you can allocate users access to a ticket for just one of the days or offer a combi-ticket. You can even make combinations between a time slot and a zone, and you can add as many sections as you want.
When complete, hit 'Save' and head to the next stage, which is Ticketing.
Ticketing
There are some basic settings that we need to set over here. You have three choices available to you at this time. We can do RSVP events when you have a guest list, to send out the invitations and request that recipients respond if they are planning to attend your event.
We also have free tickets, and in the near future, we will also be offering paid tickets through our platform. Once you've selected the appropriate event type, you need to decide if you want to:
- Generate a scannable QR code for each ticket, or
- Automatically send booking confirmation when somebody registers.
You may not want to do this for some events, for example, if you want to vet the attendees who register before issuing them with a ticket. After this, you can set a registration end date and time, such as ten days before the event at noon.
Next, you can choose whether there is a limit to the number of guests. Select the 'No limit' check box if you want to manually enter a specific number.
You then need to specify what information you require from the ticket buyer. Do you require their address and phone number? As for the attendees, specify whether you need their names and email addresses.
Important! There may be a difference between a buyer and the attendees. For example, a customer may buy three tickets: one for themselves and two for their friends.
You can ask for email consent from the users if you want their permission to send them marketing emails later.
Remember! With ticketing, you are processing lots of data. In this case, eventplanner.net is acting as the platform, but it is your data and you are responsible for managing it.
eventplanner.net is ISO 27001-certified and has the highest standards for data protection. On top of that, we are GDPR-approved. But since you are processing this data, you need to make sure you have consent to do so.
At this stage, you can add some bespoke questions:
- Multiple choice/single answer questions – when you want the ticket buyer to specify one response from the choices provided.
- Multiple choice/multiple answer questions – when the ticket buyer can select multiple responses from the choices provided.
- Text – when you want to give the ticket buyer the option to provide commentary without restriction.
An example of a multiple choice/multiple answer question would be: 'Do you have specific dietary requirements?' The following options would typically be included: No, Vegetarian, Lactose-free, Gluten-free, Halal, Kosher, and specific allergies. A customer may be vegetarian and have a nut allergy.
Now it's time to create the actual tickets. If you created any specific zones earlier, you’ll need to create tickets for each of these by selecting 'Create new ticket'. You then need to specify:
- Ticket name
- Custom end date, e.g., early bird tickets
- Quantity (the total amount available)
- Maximum tickets per order
- Description (more detailed information on your event).
This will become especially useful when setting different prices when the functionality becomes available. In the meantime, have a play around with the settings.
Once you’ve entered all the relevant details, hit 'Save'.
Two-Factor Authentication
The next thing we need to do is set up two-factor authentication. Handling customer data carries a big responsibility - especially when you’re facilitating large events with thousands, if not tens of thousands, of attendees.
Setting it up quick and easy! You’ll need to download an authenticator app such as:
These are totally free, by the way, so feel free to download them and get a feel for them before you commit to your favourite.
Once you've downloaded your app, simply scan the QR code. You'll need to enter this code into eventplanner as well as your password.
Next, you'll need to enter your mobile phone number to set up SMS verification and click 'Send code' That's a second layer of security just in case you can’t access the app. A code will be sent to your phone which you need to enter into the designated field.
Click 'Verify' to switch on your two-factor authentication.
If you also give other users access to Ticketing, you will need to enforce two-factor authentication for them in your account.
Publishing Your Event
Next, we move on to publishing the event. Select 'Active'. Please be aware that you will not be able to change certain settings after publishing your event (such as changing the type from RSVP to Tickets).
In the next section (Sharing settings), you can choose from:
- Public event - anyone can access
- Private event - anyone with a specific secured link can access
- Private event - only people with the password can access
Selecting option 2 or 3 will generate a link for your event. If you follow that link it will take you to a checkout where you will see the ticket types you have created. If you follow the process as a customer, you will see that the predetermined rules are in place, such as the maximum number of tickets per customer, the customer information required, and any additional questions you are asking.
The user can decide whether or not to create an eventplanner.net account. That's completely up to them. After clicking 'Purchase tickets', they'll be taken to an order confirmation page.
Managing Your Tickets
If we head back to our Tickets page, you will see an updated guest list. In the right-hand column, you’ll see some actions, denoted by an ellipsis (...). Clicking on that will reveal some options:
- View & edit guest details
- Resend confirmation
- Download ticket
You can change the name, for example, if a user has entered the wrong email address or name. You can select 'Resend confirmation' if, for example, the user didn't receive a confirmation email.
Important! It’s worth asking the user to check their spam/junk folder. Occasionally, an over-zealous email client will prevent our emails from reaching customers. If the issue persists, you can manually download the ticket yourself and send it like any normal email.
You can easily print tickets or just save them on your phone. Our handy eventplanner app comes with a built-in ticket scanner. The app is available for free in the Android and iPhone app stores. If you click at the bottom of the ticket scanner, you can select your event.
Ticketing scanning is really easy. With your camera, you just need to scan the ticket, and you can scan with multiple devices at the same time. If you have a large event, make sure to create multiple users in advance and give them access to ticketing.
- The screen turns green when the scan is successful.
- The screen turns yellow if a ticket has been scanned twice.
- The screen turns red if it's an invalid ticket.
Ordinarily, you need internet access to process all the scanned tickets and sync them back to our server. But the app is smart in that it enters offline mode if the connection drops during your event. You can still scan tickets in offline mode. When your internet access comes back online, everything syncs automatically.
Important! In offline mode, if you have two visitors who are entering with the same ticket at different checkpoints at the entrance of your event, both could enter with the same while the internet is down.
It is more important that you are able to keep scanning tickets than to keep your guests waiting for the internet connection to be restored.
The app will indicate when it’s in offline mode, and you can choose whether to use or not use offline mode.
And that, in a nutshell, is how free tickets work (and how paid tickets will work when we launch this feature).
RSVPs
Before we conclude, we’ll quickly cover how RSVPs work. Head back to the Tickets page by selecting this in the left-hand pane. You'll need to set up a new event because you can’t change the event type once an event ticket has been published.
Let’s say, for example, that we are organising a wedding - an event where you typically use an RSVP list.
You fill the following stages out as described above to complete the sections, Organizer information, Event, and Sections.
Then, in Ticketing, we now need to set this to RSVP and select no under 'Use tickets'. The next settings are completed in exactly the same way as described above. You need to fill out:
- auto-send invitations
- registration ends
- maximum number of guests
- all attendees
- ask for email consent
- additional questions
If you haven't yet set up two-factor authentication, return to the section in this article titled 'Two-Factor Authentication'.
In Publish, set the event up to active. Unlike free ticketing, there is no link to share with attendees. Then click 'Save'. Next, you need to click 'Add guests'. As a test, add yourself as a guest by filling in your name and email address, and allocate yourself three tickets. Then click 'Add guest' and repeat this for all your guests.
When you return to the guest list overview, you immediately see that there are three tickets assigned to your name but that you haven't responded yet (see Status).
After completing your guest list, you can click on 'Send invitations'. You have the choice to send the invitations to:
- Anyone who hasn't received the invitation
- Everyone who hasn't responded to the invitation
Your guests will receive an email with a link to the RSVP page. They then need to select if they are attending or declining your invitation. They can then enter ticket-holder information for all who are attending with them.
The primary ticket-holder information is already pre-filled, but if they have been allocated multiple tickets, they can add the details of those joining them. Once they’ve filled out the details, your guests just need to select all the relevant checkboxes:
- I agree with the Privacy Policy of eventplanner.net
- I agree with the Terms of Use, Terms of Sale and declare to have taken note of the Privacy Policy
- I want to give consent to the organiser of this event to send me updates and promotions about this event and other events
- I want to create an eventplanner.net account to order tickets faster and organize events myself.
Once all the relevant boxes have been checked, click 'Confirm' - and that’s it! The event is confirmed.
If you go back to your guest list, you will see that it is updated with the confirmed tickets. You can click on the names of the primary ticket holders to reveal who has confirmed in their party. If needed, you can edit the data and resend the event confirmation - just as you would with normal tickets.
As mentioned earlier, paid ticketing is coming soon. So, stay tuned and thank you for reading!
Contacts
In this final section of the eventplanner.net training guide, we will be looking at contacts for your events. Here, you can give others access to your event and choose the level of access to give to team members: read-only, commenting, full access, or no access.
Starting on the eventplanner.net dashboard, in the left pane, we click on “Contacts” to enter the list of people who have access to your event.
We covered this briefly in “Checklists”, but let’s refresh our memories and do it again. This time, we’ll cover the topic in more detail.
So, let’s say, for example, that you want to give somebody working for you access. Click “Add contact” and start typing in the “Company name” to which the person belongs to; a number of results will appear. Select the company, then move on to fill out the remaining credentials.
You can set the access level individually for all the relevant tools. Remember, there are four options:
- No access: user has no visibility of this tool
- Read: user can read all tasks but can’t change anything or add comments
- Comment: user can read and comment on tasks but can’t change the tasks
- Manage: user has full access and can create, edit, and delete tasks
- Note: commenting is only available for checklists.
Once you add a contact, they will receive an invitation to join you in working on this project. If they already have an eventplanner.net account, they can just accept the invitation and log in with their existing credentials and start working with you.
If they’re not an eventplanner.net user at this moment, once they get the invitation, they will need to create a free account, which takes little more than a few minutes. Once done, they will get immediate access to your project, and you can start working together.
You’ll notice that the invitation shows as pending. If the recipient doesn’t respond after some time, this button will change to “Resend the invitation”.
If the person is new to the eventplanner.net platform, please share this training guide with them to give them a head start and help them to get the most out of the software.
Remember, it’s possible to change the access rights, or even delete a user, at any time. Just click on the name of the person and make the required changes. However, deleting is only possible when there are no line items assigned to the person. So before deleting the person, you need to reassign those items to others within your team.
That’s It For Now!
We hope you found the above information useful. Over the coming months, we’ll be adding lots of new features, so keep your eyes peeled for some exciting updates. You can do that by signing up to our newsletter. Whenever there’s a big update, we’ll be sure to update this guide so you get the latest training on how to get the most out of the system.
And last but not least, don’t forget to complete the quiz after finishing this training. If you pass the quiz, you get an official eventplanner.net certification, which you can add to your resume or your LinkedIn profile – to show the world that you’ve mastered the most popular event software on the market!
Thanks for taking the time out of your day to read this training guide. If you have any feedback for us on how we can improve our software, just reach out via the chat widget in the bottom right corner of all the eventplanner.net software web pages.
So, thanks again for reading, and good luck with organising your events!
Best wishes,
eventplanner.net team.
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