Associations & Organisations · Checklist
Running paid events online: a checklist for associations
Member events are one of the main ways associations create value, and one of the biggest admin loads. This checklist covers the steps that make paid events easier to run.
When registrations arrive by chat, payments by bank transfer slip and the guest list lives in a spreadsheet, event days become stressful. Moving registration and ticketing online does not have to be complicated. Use this checklist to plan your next event.
1. Decide your ticket types
Before you open registration, decide who can attend and at what price:
- Member and non-member prices
- Early-bird prices with a clear end date
- Free tickets for speakers, sponsors or guests
- A limit on the number of tickets, if the venue has a capacity
2. Publish one clear event page
One page should answer every question attendees have: what, when, where (or online link), who it is for, the agenda, prices and how to pay. Put the date and price near the top, and make the registration button easy to find on a phone.
3. Make payment simple and traceable
Choose payment methods your attendees actually use, and make sure every payment can be matched to a registration. If you accept bank transfers, give each registration a reference so your treasurer is not matching slips by hand.
4. Plan check-in before the day
- Send each attendee a ticket with a unique code
- Scan tickets at the door from a phone rather than reading names from a printed list
- Have one person ready to handle registrations and payment questions on the day
5. Communicate before and after
- Confirmation immediately after registration
- A reminder a few days before, with the address or link
- A thank-you message after the event, with photos, slides or a short survey
Share event news on your website and social media. Our social media service and PR and news publishing can help associations reach members, sponsors and partners.
6. Close with a report
After each event, record registrations, attendance, income and costs. Over a year, this shows which events members value and gives sponsors evidence of your reach.
Tools that can help
EDS built ButEvent, an event ticketing system with variation, free and stock-limited tickets, online and venue events, single and multi-date scheduling, early-bird discounts and coupons, a phone-based ticket scanner, and booking and income reports with CSV export. Organisers can list events on butevent.com, or an organisation can run its own ticketing website with a ButEvent licence.
See how EDS works with associations and organisations.
