Eventbrite platform provides unique service for organising free or paid-for events

There are very few technology products which meet with almost universal approval, actually deliver on their promise – and which are available for free to users around the world.

Eventbrite is one of those, and right now it’s being used to administer about 250 events in the West of Ireland.

For those unfamiliar with the product, it is the world’s largest self-service ticketing platform, a web-based application which allows organisers to set up and control access to their events.

It is free to use for free events but it has the capability to set up paid-for events at a relatively low cost to the organiser. And uniquely the product is the same regardless of whether it’s free or paid for.

Maricka Burke-Keogh, founder of Online Marketing in Galway, says that the group would not have grown so quickly or lasted as long without Eventbrite.

“It’s simple to use and has no cost for us in most cases,” she says.

“Since we organise OMiG on a voluntary basis we don’t have time to devote to the control of ticketing, even if it is free. Eventbrite does that for us,” she adds.

That’s a point also taken up by Marino Fresch, Head of Marketing at Eventbrite, who was guest speaker at last week’s OMiG monthly event.

“Technology has revolutionised our lives but it can also lead to isolation, making it harder to make personal or inter-group connections because our time is scarce,” he says.

“Eventbrite applies modern technology to live events, allowing people to connect at events, rather than over Skype or social media.”

In some ways Eventbrite seems to be the modern equivalent of the RSVP allowing organisers track who’s attending their events.

However it goes further because it can be used to collect payments securely where required, issue refunds, obtain feedback from attendees and provide powerful analytical tools for the organisers.

Organisers can get a better understanding of their audience and improve their event or bring in other businesses to add value to it.

“For years people have been organising brilliant events but the user experience in booking places or paying was, to say the least, haphazard,” says Marino.

“Eventbrite solves this problem for events catering for between 10 and 10,000 people.

It has recently launched reserved seating for events and is using crowd-sourcing to develop a library of conference or meeting lay-outs for venues across the world.”

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.