Running an Event Without a Ticketing Platform

A small event needs three things. A page that says what, when, and where. A way for people to pay. And a way to know, on the day, who is actually in the room. Many organizers hand all three to a ticketing platform and accept a fee on each ticket. There is another way to set it up.

The event page and the ticket

An event page holds the date, time, venue, description, and ticket quantity. Tickets go through the cart and card checkout, the same way an order does, and the buyer sees a confirmation on screen and receives one by email. The page lives on your website, in your brand, so people see your name rather than a third party's.

A code on every confirmation

Every confirmation carries a QR code. On the day, the host scans it at the door and marks the attendee present. A mistaken scan can be undone. Walk up tickets capture name, email, and phone at the door, so late arrivals are still on the list. Check in works from a phone, so there is no special scanner to rent.

The list behind the door

The admin shows every order with attendance and payment status. Registrations are joined to what each person signed up for, with counts and payment status. If someone needs their money back, refunds are made from the admin.

Courses and classes

The same system handles multi lesson courses. A course has a classroom with a video player, lesson text, downloadable resources, instructor details, a schedule, a capacity, and a registration deadline. A video room can also be attached to a course for live sessions, so one setup covers an in person workshop and an online follow up.

Who this suits

Organizers, instructors, studios, nonprofits, and anyone running events or classes. There are no per ticket fees to a ticketing platform, because tickets are sold through your own checkout and the attendee list is in the admin.

If you run one event a year, a platform may be fine. If you run events or classes regularly, a page, a checkout, and a phone check in on your website is worth a look. Setting it up once means the next event is mostly a matter of filling in a date.

The first call is free. Bring the event you are planning, the tickets you are selling now, or the sign in sheet you would like to retire. We will tell you what we can do, what we cannot, and what we think you should do next. Visit https://evolv-to.net/contact to set it up.

Photo by Rafael Idrovo Espinoza on Unsplash