What matters for conferences and corporate events — custom forms, approvals, badges, sessions and integrations — and the features nobody ever uses.
Registration is a different problem from ticketing. Ticketing sells admission; registration collects information, applies rules and produces something usable — a badge, a session schedule, a dietary report for catering. Buying a ticketing tool for a registration problem is a common and expensive mistake.
Ticketing or registration?
| Ticketing | Registration | |
|---|---|---|
| Core job | Sell admission | Collect and manage attendee data |
| Form | Name, email, pay | Custom fields, conditional logic |
| Approval | None | Often required |
| Output | A ticket | Badges, schedules, reports |
| Typical use | Concerts, festivals | Conferences, corporate, training |
The features that actually matter
Custom forms with conditional logic
"Are you attending the dinner?" → if yes, "any dietary requirements?". Without conditional logic you either ask everyone everything, which kills completion, or you chase people afterwards by email.
Approval workflows
For invite-only or vetted events: register, hold as pending, approve, then send the payment link. Check whether approval can be delegated, and what the attendee sees while pending.
Group and delegate registration
One person registering eight colleagues is standard for corporate events and surprisingly badly handled. Can the organiser pay once and let each delegate complete their own details later?
Session selection with capacity
If your event has parallel tracks, attendees pick sessions and rooms have limits. Capacity must be enforced at the moment of selection, or you get sixty people at a forty-seat workshop.
Badges that print correctly
Underestimated every time. Check: does it produce a print-ready file for your badge stock, can you print on demand at the door, and can you reprint for the person who lost theirs at lunch?
Ask for a test event, not a demo. Build your actual form, with your actual conditional logic, and register through it yourself. Demos are configured to look effortless.
Integrations worth confirming
- CRM — registrations landing as contacts, without duplicates. See CRM integration.
- Email platform — segmented by ticket type and attendance status
- Calendar — a working invite, with the right timezone
- Check-in — the door app must read the same data live. See check-in and access control.
The features nobody uses
Do not pay for these unless you have a concrete plan:
- Gamification and leaderboards
- In-app networking, unless you have over a thousand attendees
- Bespoke mobile apps for one-day events — a good mobile web page beats an app nobody installs
- AI matchmaking, which needs data volume you probably do not have
Questions before signing
- Can I export everything, at any time, without asking?
- What is the all-in cost including payment processing?
- What happens to data after the event, and how long is it retained?
- Is there a per-attendee cap, and what happens if I exceed it?
- What support exists on event day, at the hour I need it?
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between event registration and ticketing software?
Ticketing sells admission and optimises for conversion. Registration collects structured information and applies rules — approvals, sessions, badges, reporting. Conferences need registration; concerts need ticketing.
Do I need an event app?
Rarely for a single-day event. Install rates are low and a well-built mobile web agenda usually serves better. Multi-day conferences with parallel tracks and networking are where an app starts to earn its cost.
How early should registration open?
As soon as you can describe the value — usually when speakers or the programme are confirmed. Opening before you can answer "why should I come" wastes your best announcement moment.
