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The music industry is changing at a rapid pace and your venue needs to change with it. In order to attract the type of fans or patrons you want at your establishment and keep them coming back for more, you’ll need a venue or event management platform that can streamline your operations, centralize communication and resources, and help make sure you've got the right band or act in your room every night. Read on to learn more about why your venue should invest in an event management software solution, how those solutions compare, and which one is right for you as a venue operator. We'll quickly cover what to look for in the top event management software, how it can impact your venue, questions you should ask along the way, and a lot more when it comes to the benefits and challenges of a great event management platform.
Venue management systems (VMS) have been around in one form or another since the birth of the business event industry. They were developed with the goal of simplifying the process of managing events, cutting down on administrative overhead, and streamlining the process of budgeting and booking talent. All of these goals are still pertinent today, which is why so many venues and event managers still choose to invest in this technology. However, VMS are typically outdated, difficult to navigate, and challenging to implement, which is why many venues are choosing to invest in an easier to use event management platform. Other than the ease of use, these tools come with a host of other benefits that make them a wise investment in today’s climate. These benefits include increased efficiency, better event management website design, real-time communications, an included event management app, and simplified reporting. Some platforms will even include event management website templates or an independent event app for your venues fans to use. Each of these benefits can help you improve communication across teams, streamline operations and reduce costs, and better engage your team, while providing fans and patrons a terrific experience.
Venue managers who choose to invest in an event management platform are typically those who are looking to optimize their business processes and make their operations more efficient. The benefits of this are immediately apparent when you consider just how much time and resources are wasted when an event is managed manually. For example, if you were to book an agent or talent buyer, who is paid every time an event is booked, and then count how many times that agent has to log into their system, you’d discover nearly 30 times, just to book one act. The same is true when it comes to managing a talent roster, or managing offers and settlements. Thus, one of the biggest draws to an event management solution is the fact that you can automate these processes, while also saving time and greatly increasing efficiency. If you’re looking to optimize your business and increase revenue, a VMS may be a good investment for your venue. Of course, other things that will need to be considered are more specific to your organization. For example, not every venue management system will be the best event management software for nonprofits, others may be great conference management software but not great for ongoing events and concerts that a music venue may host.
Centralized communications is an important benefit of a good set of event management tools. Centralized communications refers to the ability to have live discussions and share data between team members. With an event management software solution, teams can share information as soon as it is entered. This allows for near real-time communication and greater collaboration between members of the team. Real-time communications can also help to streamline operations, reduce errors, and improve team member efficiency. Centralized communication can be a huge boon to those who are looking to optimize their venue, especially when it comes to streamlining all of the moving parts that go into putting on a live show. Venue managers can instantly engage their team members, manage the plan, and make updates to production, show, or input advances. Central communications can also help to manage risk of error in communication or important details falling through the cracks. When you have a system that allows for real-time data sharing, you also have the ability to view risk. This allows for greater accountability, since team members can see when things have been updated or changes have been made. They may also be able to respond quickly to any potential changes, questions, or any other updates related to a show.
The most important question you must ask yourself when deciding whether to invest in an event management platform is what the best fit is for your venue and team. For example, most music venues wouldn't get much value from a corporate event management software or party planning software. There are both qualitative and quantitative factors that you need to consider when choosing an event management solution. Some of the most important qualities to look for in an event management platform include ease of use, scalability, security, reliability, and flexibility (for example, you may need the flexibility of the best event management software for small business but not need all the bells and whistles of an enormous enterprise solution) These are important considerations, because they will determine how easy it is for you to navigate your online event management tool, whether it will grow with your needs, and how easy it is to make adjustments and improvements. Additionally as you begin your event management software comparison and decide on the best event management app for your venue, you should look for an event management solution that is compatible with your existing technologies and infrastructure. This will help to ensure that your system is scalable and reliable, while also allowing for seamless integration and interoperability. Lastly, consider your event management software pricing - while it can be tempting to chose a VMS that is cheapest, that may not
As we discussed earlier, event management software can drastically improve the efficiency of your event management operations and help you save time and money. However, it is important to remember that it is just the beginning. You will need to implement business-changing strategies, in order to see the most impact and reap the benefits of this technology. Here are some of the things you’ll need to think about when it comes to implementation: What is your technology stack? - Is it compatible with your existing setup? - What kind of budget do you have? - Do you have a developer on your team? - What are your goals with implementing an event management system?
These are quite a few of the key differences that you should be aware of when comparing ems event management solutions. When you are looking to invest in an event management solution, you should be sure to ask the following questions: What will success with this tool look like? What are our key performance indicators (if any)? What are our key financial indicators? What is important to our team? - What impact will this have on our fans? Will this platform save us time or money? Will the team continue to utilize this platform after implementation? Does this event or venue management system have a team to help us during and after implementation? Which event or venue management solution is right for our needs? Which venue management solution is right for our budget? It can also be helpful to build out a document that you and your team can use to score or grade different options against criteria that are important to your use of the platform.
An effective set of event management solutions will help you to improve your internal processes, increase your communication effectiveness, and streamline your operations. While not every tool will complete every task under the sun, a great tool will help you in a lot of the things you do in your day to day role effectively. It's also critically important that you ensure you and your team will be able to effectively use the tool in the longer term - a platform purchased and unused is not efficient, so having a team of folks to help ensure you get the most out of your investment will also help ensure long-term success in your implementation. If you are looking to make this investment, you need to make sure that you are using a vendor that is right for your venue, your budget, and your team.