Event Mender B.V. | KVK: 87753677 | Herman Robbersstraat 94D, 3031RK, Rotterdam
© 2023, by Event Mender bv
Our journey with virtual events started right at the beginning of the P word. During this time; many companies were turning to virtual events from in-person events. That’s when Merijn van Buuren, founder of Event Mender and an event professional himself, was helping these companies to make the shift. The biggest task was finding the right platform to host the event.
The market was almost chaotic, filled with so many platforms, and finding the appropriate one meant:
Scrolling through an endless list of features of each platform and breaking them down to find a fit.
OR
Take recommendations from a friend.
Both options turned out to be hit-and-miss.😓
When we discussed this issue with other event professionals, we realized we weren’t alone. So many professionals were struggling like us. That’s how the idea of Event Mender was born.
Event Mender is a marketplace that helps you find the best platform and partner for your virtual and hybrid events. Our vision is to simplify the life of event organizers so they can spend more time on event planning than finding a platform.
While many platforms are available for getting software reviews, we focus specifically on event platforms.
Planning to use Event Mender to find the best tool for your next event? Here is a detailed guide to get started.
Once you go to the tool at eventmender.com, you can quickly hit the ‘Get started’ button.
We understand it’s different from your usual task to go through platform technical features and find what suits their requirements.
So, to keep it simple, you only have to answer six easy questions, which mostly you will already know if you are planning the event.
For how many days do you need the platform? Less than 24 hours, one or more days. Or do you need an always-on platform? In always-on platforms, participants can revisit the platform even after the event. For example, they can view the recording or engage with the community.
You can enter the number of attendees you are expecting to host. The maximum number of attendees we currently support is 1 million.
2D: Two-dimensional, like a Zoom where participants can see the video.
Semi 2D: Images in the background resembling a 3D platform. It’s not exactly 3D means you can’t walk around, but it gives an illusion that you are in a 3D space.
3D MR: Attendees have an avatar and can walk around interacting with other attendees and the environment. This option is more suited for experienced-based events.
3D VR: Attendees wear glasses and get a fully immersive experience. Here, participants feel present in the environment, and the experience is a lot more engaging.
Customization helps you in branding, promoting sponsors, and handling specific requirements. Below are the four options:
No customization: No branding. Use the product as it is for quick implementation.
Adding my brand colors to certain elements: Basic branding where you can rebrand a few sections.
Fully rebrand the environment with my logo(white-label): Completely branding the environment in terms of colors and the URL.
Change the complete setup: Choose this if you have a precise idea of how the environment should look like. For instance, you want to adjust the placement or size of specific elements like the chat.
You can opt for no support if you have a strong in-house technical team who can handle any glitches. Alternatively, you can choose partial support(before, during, or after the event). Lastly, you can also get 24/7 support. This is highly recommended for major and important events.
Fill in the budget to get relevant options matching the price range.
To show the results after answering all the questions, you need a profile. This step is to prove you are human. We won’t spam you 😊
After you log in or create a profile and click on the verification link, you will see the top matches that 100% suit the requirements you filled in the questionnaire. If there is no perfect match for your request, you’ll see partial matches with at least one or more elements of your search.
Now you have a list of the platforms that match your needs; you can narrow down your search for the platform which best suits your requirement by sorting and filtering by:
Below you’ll find a list of the different feature categories and questions you can ask yourself to start using them:
Registration: How do you want your participants to register for the event?
Experience: Is there a specific experience you want your attendees to have?
Customization: What elements need to be customized?
Networking: What type of networking do you want the platform to support?
Content: Are there different types of content that need to be supported, like on-demand content, live streams and workshops?
Exhibitors/sponsors: How do you want to showcase your sponsors?
Data: What data do you need to collect from the events for reporting?
Integration: What is your existing tech stack, and with what tools should your new platform integrate?
Devices & web browsers supported: Do you require the platform to work on a specific browser or operating system?
Privacy & Security: Do your participants require a specific level of privacy and security measures?
Admin: What admin features would you like to control and adjust?
Support: Is there a specific way you prefer to communicate when you need support?
After narrowing down your results, you’ll only see a few platforms that 100% match your requirements. This is the right moment for you to compare those best options side by side. In the comparison tool, you can select up to 3 platforms. Here you’ll see a quick overview of their ratings, a video of the platform, and their price range.
When you scroll down, you can compare their individual feature sets in an apple-to-apple format, divided into the different feature categories ( as mentioned above). All features have the same position and description for each platform you’re comparing, so you can easily see the differences.
After comparing the best event platforms for your needs and deciding on those you’d like to explore, you can visit their profiles. You can find a short description and the most essential information.
You can also find images to get a more visual representation of the platform. Below this, you’ll find a complete overview of all the features.
On the bottom of the page, you can see where the rating and number of reviews come from and what other event professionals say about their experience with this platform.
Once you’re 100% certain that a platform is the best match for you, it’s time to reach out. You can request a quote to get a better idea about the price before you schedule a demo or a demo immediately.
If you feel overwhelmed, have questions, or need hands-on support, you can click on the blue button in the bottom right corner to start a conversation with an actual human who can help you out.
You don’t have to spend hours on Google and go through 100s of platforms. And do not forget about the demo time. How will you have time to plan an event if you attend seven demos a week? Event Mender gives you a narrowed-down list and saves time.
It’s not uncommon for marketplaces to recommend products that pay them more for advertisement. But that’s not what we stand for. You only get recommendations that 100% suit your requirement.
In fact, we also check the maximum number of participants a platform has hosted in a live event. If a platform has hosted a live event with a maximum of 10000 participations so far but claims its capacity to be 20000, we will set its maximum capacity as 10000 only. We don’t want last-minute crashes in your event.
Automating the process of choosing a platform for your event can help reduce the risk of choosing a platform that doesn’t meet your needs or is not a good fit for your event.
With Event Mender, you don’t have to be tech-savvy and decode technical features. We know your language and ask you questions based on it. Event Mender is made for event professionals by event professionals.
Using a marketplace tool like ours can help you stay organized by providing a central location for all your research and decision-making.
Automating the process of choosing a platform for your event can help increase your return on investment by ensuring that you choose a platform that is the most cost-effective and efficient for your event.
Woohoo! 🎉 You are all set to find a partner for your next event. So save yourself time and find a trustworthy platform for your next event now.
Check out the Event Mender Marketplace and get a shortlist of options in under 4 minutes.
Event Mender B.V. | KVK: 87753677 | Herman Robbersstraat 94D, 3031RK, Rotterdam
© 2023, by Event Mender bv