A refreshing approach to event registration

With the RegOnline platform shutting down at the end of 2019, we needed a new event registration solution for the DVB World 2020 conference. After researching the available options, we went for Tito. It’s not as well known as some of the other options in this space (e.g. Eventbrite, Ticket Tailor), but I’ve been very impressed so far.

DVB had been using RegOnline for more than ten years and it had served the organization well. It had nevertheless begun to feel a bit clunky, particularly in comparison with other modern web-based services.

The experience for those buying tickets with Tito is clean and fast. The backend is also easy to get to grips with. Setting up the event was quite straightforward – both the documentation and the very responsive helpdesk meant we could do everything we needed in terms of discounts, group rates, optional extras, etc.

Thinking differently about registration

Using Tito forced us to think a bit differently about the whole registration process. In the past, we would collect a full address from every user and ask questions about social events and other extras before the user paid for their tickets. Now, if they’re paying by credit card, we only ask for the user’s name and company, before passing them to Stripe for payment, also quick and easy. Once the payment has been made, they can deal with other matters in their own time: assigning attendee names to the tickets they’ve purchased, adding a job title or letting us know if they’ll attend the social event.

This approach from Tito is very deliberate. To quote from a blog post explaining their ticket purchase flow:

“The traditional solution is to require information before the attendee can purchase the ticket. It’s always been very important to us, however, that our users are never presented with any type of panic-inducing form. So instead, we only ever ask for the minimum amount of information required to complete the transaction. If we’re not providing a fast and simple method for a customer to secure a ticket, we’re doing it wrong.”

The rest of that post is worth reading. It certainly gave me food for thought regarding the user experience and “panic-inducing” forms!

As a tech company, Tito seems to be flying below the radar a bit. I believe this is a choice they have made and I hope it leads to them remaining independent in the long run. I’ve only been working with the platform since October, but I would definitely recommend you consider it if you’re looking for an event registration solution.

As a bonus, it has turned out to be cheaper than RegOnline was, particularly with a special rate for non-profits. And if your event tickets are free, the platform is free to use!

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