Pulling off one incredible event is no easy feat. Add more events — in multiple different countries no less — and pulling them off feels nearly impossible.
But it can be done — with the right tools. Caroline Draper, global events specialist for Stone Brewing, knows how.
Draper organizes all of Stone Brewing’s events at their 12 locations around the world, from beer festivals and anniversary parties to exclusive beer releases and employee events.
Here are the must-have tech capabilities Draper relies on to pull off incredible international events.
One centralized platform to manage all your events
Draper says it’s absolutely vital that you have all your events on one centralized platform before scaling to multiple locations — be it different venues, cities, or countries.
For example, you don’t want to sell tickets in the US using one ticketing provider and host your events in the UK with an entirely different provider. Think of the headache trying to pull that sales report.
Instead, look for a ticketing or registration solution that allows you to host, promote, and manage multiple events at one time, regardless of what country the event is in.
“The ability to host international events on one platform, at the exact same time, has had a huge impact on the business,” Draper says. “Having everything in one platform has saved so much time — and it’s made my life easier as well.”
You’ll want a technology partner that has subdomains in different countries and automatically translates the text to that country’s primary language. Stone Brewing partners with Eventbrite to host their events around the world without worrying about subdomain or translation issues.
Flexible access controls for global team members
If you’re managing events across different geos, chances are you have teammates working out of different locations as well. Make sure your centralized ticketing or registration platform can support flexible access control across all of your teams.
For example, Draper uses Eventbrite’s multi-user access control to manage individual permissions of teammates in different countries. “This is particularly important with teams in multiple locations, because it allows us to control who can see and access certain events,” shares Draper. “It’s great to minimize the clutter that each location sees.”
Multi-user access and flexible permissions allows your team to work more efficiently, while you ensure that your key information is kept in the right hands.
Secure — and easy — international payments
You’ll also need a platform that can accept international payments before you scale globally. Attendees will be buying tickets in multiple time zones, languages, and with complex payment preferences. For instance, Stone Brewing customers around the world can purchase tickets with US dollars, Euros, and 21 other currencies without a problem using Eventbrite.
And, of course, payments always need to be secure. Doubts about payment security accounts for 12% of drop-offs during checkout, so make sure your solution prioritizes security.
Of course, technology isn’t the only element of growing your events business. Read the full interview with Draper to learn How Stone Brewing Poured Up Beer Events Across The Globe.
