Online Investment: Event Management Websites

Problem Statement

Managing an event is a hectic job. Most of the times it is a thankless job; people seldom praise and efficiently arranged event but quick to judge a poorly managed one. As an event manager, it is paramount to ensure a swift event process until completion especially on significant events or meetings.

For the managers to have a successful event, numerous details must be taken care of professionally. It will ensure that both the participants and the members of the audience do not complain. However, event managers have now shifted from manual event management to digital event solutions. Not all event management software is satisfactory though (Nickson, 2013). This report will look at features required for an active event management website.

Event management websites allow back-end management of an event such as event details; date, venue, charges and payment procedures. The site enables automated display on the event calendar. Members and clients are also allowed to view and book reservations online. Today’s companies now have the resources to build a website specifically for publicising (Judy Allen., 2000).

In our case study, we will look at cvent.com. Cvent is a world’s largest online event manager, web survey software, and meeting site selection website. The website offers four distinct products; communication with target audiences, marketing and events organization. This is through various marketing platforms and event organization (Koreneff and Sims-McLean, 2005).

The website has a comprehensive application usually linked to the client database management system that allows the customer to access all aspects of the event online that is event posting/ advertising, registration, payments, and bookings, invoicing, etc. (Miller, 2009). The Cvent is the standard software used in event management.

Features of Event Management Website

A) Admin Log in

The administrator end performs administrative functions such as adding events, customizing contact database and modifying site pages (Dehaan et al., 2004). The administrator possesses all the website privileges; he/she can designate any contact to become an administrator, grant partial or full administrative privileges. The administrator also has the right to switch between admin view and public view and vice versa.

Visual Management

In an event organization website, the administrator is responsible for adding new events. This feature allows the administrator to add new features; themes customize CSS, banners, and overall graphical outlook (Lane, 2012). This element is essential in making banners for an online campaign.

Financial Management

The administrator is also able to add commercial transaction links, manage transaction records done by users, prepare a general account statement account and edit login details. The administrator also has the role of adding, editing access roles, edit membership, edit log for more information, etc.

The admin can manage the event budget by building, tracking and analysing data from registered users. This is an onsite functionality that allows the admin to check the attendees as they arrive, on the site. The website also has a self-registration kiosk where registered attendee list can be printed, can be created barcode name budges and even provide live credit card payments (Miller, 2009).

With a payment feature, it is possible to confirm or cancel the registration, record paid or unpaid listings, renew or suspend membership, add a member to a bundle, etc. in a donation event, the admin can record donations through the donation tab.

Customers Management

Through the admin back-end, the administrator is in a position to add or delete contacts, achieve contacts, add, edit access roles, view all contact details, import or export contacts, etc. Through the email setting tab, the admin can change contact email blast preference, shift contact topic subscription or contact forum, change contact event announcements, enable or disable all emails for contact, etc.

Event Management/ Ticket Reservations

The event management feature allows the administrator to add, edit or delete an event, customize registration form, add or remove guests, cancel, delete or edit registration, record payment and generate an invoice. The administrator can also record attendee, send notifications to attendees email event attendees, customize registration emails, view payment report, generate event registration report, track event, etc. (Help.wildapricot.com, 2017).

B) The Customer

The customer end in event management website should have features such as login or register to account, view and update a user profile, view free concerts or events and allow ticket reservation bookings or hotel reservations (Koreneff and Sims-McLean, 2005).

Features

Register

This feature allows new users to register an account with their details to the event management servers. The recorded data (names, contacts, locations and billing information) is visible on the admin side.

After registration and in some cases payment, the customer gains access to the event management portal where he/she can view available events, billing information and book for events. During the registration, the customer fills a designed form where he/ she is required to have username and password is then used for future signing (Selamat, Nguyen and Haron, 2013). In most cases, customer’s information privacy is protected by the site user protection agreement that should be ticked during registration. The user agreement confirms that the given information is private and that the company cannot share with third parties ((Koreneff and Sims-McLean, 2005).

Password protection ensures that customer’s information is secure and can only be accessed by them or with their permission.

View and update Customer profiles

This feature allows users to log in to their accounts, view profile information such as names, address, passwords, and username or profile pictures. This feature in a website ensures that the data about the clients are up to date. The data is sent to the administrator’s server database.

View available events, concerts and make reservations.

The website software has an onsite functionality that allows the admin to check the attendees as they arrive, on the site. The website also has a self-registration kiosk where registered attendee list can be printed, can be created barcode name budges and even provide live credit card payments.

However, due to data breaches happening in the online business purchases, it is always advisable for the customers to ensure they use (AVS) address verification system. This system checks whether the billing address is accurate by verifying it alongside the cardholder’s data given by the issuing bank. Often fraudsters do not have access to the billing address (Montague, 2013)

After booking a reservation, the customer receives a bar code budge with his or her name that will be used on the day of the event.

Methodology

This paper involved creating an account with Cvent website to have an experience on how it works and its user interface. In the site, there was the option of creating a new account through “need an account?” button. In this, there we created an event management account demo.

Cvent is a world’s largest online event manager, web survey software, and meeting site selection website. The website offers four distinct products; communication with target audiences, marketing and events organization. This is through various marketing platforms and event organization (Koreneff and Sims-McLean, 2005). The world-class event management website provided a working example of the features an online event management system should possess.

UML Diagram

User Interface

Customer Registration UI

Sample Code

<?php

require_once('data/get_origin.php');

require_once('data/get_destination.php');

// echo '<pre>';

// print_r($origins);

// echo '</pre>';

<!DOCTYPE html>

<head>

<title>Event Ticket Reservation</title>

<a class="navbar-brand" href="#">Event Online Ticketing</a>

</div>

<a href="#">Rerservation

</a>

</li>

</ul>

</ul>

</div>

</nav>

<h3 class="panel-title">STEPS FOR BOOKING</h3>

</div>

<h3 class="panel-title">1. ITINERARY

</h3>

</div>

SCHEDULE OF EVENT

</div>

<h3 class="panel-title">2. EVENT</h3>

</div>

EVENT TYPE

</div>

<h3 class="panel-title">3. CUSTOMER INFO</h3>

</div>

CUSTOMER DETAILS

</div>

<h3 class="panel-title">4. PAYMENT INFO</h3>

</div>

TOTAL PAYMENT

</div>

</div>

<h2>

<center>ITINERARY</center>

</h2>

<label for="">Origin:</label>

<?php foreach($origins as $o): ?>

<?php endforeach; ?>

</select>

</div>

<label for="">Destination:</label>

<?php foreach($destinations as $d): ?>

<?php endforeach; ?>

</select>

</div>

<label for="">Departure Date:</label>

</div>

<button type="submit" class="btn btn-success">NEXT

</button>

</form>

</div>

</div>

$(document).on('submit', '#form-itinerary', function(event) {

event.preventDefault();

/* Act on the event */

var validate = "";

var origin = $('select[id=orig-id]').val();

var dest = $('select[id=dest-id]').val();

var dept = $('input[id=dept-date]').val();

if(dept.length == 0){

alert('Please Select Departure Date!');

}else{

$.ajax({

url: 'data/session_itinerary.php',

type: 'post',

dataType: 'json',

data: {

oid : origin,

did : dest,

dd : dept

success: function (data) {

console.log(data);

if(data.valid == true){

window.location = data.url;

console.log('sss');

}

error: function(){

alert('Error: L161+');

}

});

}//end dept kung == 0

});

</script>

</body>

</html>

User Manual

1. Dashboard

1.1 Login

The customer has to log in to authenticate access to the website features such as profile, portfolio, events, booking and reservations etc. Login can be made through the website homepage.

a) Username: Type the username created during account creation.

b) Password . Key in your password created during registration.

c) Login Button. Clicking the button allows you to access your account.

d) Forgot password/ username. Provide an option to recover your password in case you have forgotten. It will send a link to your email.

e) Register. This will allow self-registration an account to the website. Fill the form provided then click on next page.

f) Log out. The button contains a link to end the session.

g) Profile. It contains information about the user; names, address, profile picture etc.

h) Events. Contains ongoing events, pending, venues and dates (Boag, 2010)

System testing

The website was tested on different web browsers such as Mozilla Firefox, Opera Mini and Google Chrome. Registration to the website was successful.

Bibliography

https://help.wildapricot.com/display/DOC/Managing+site+administrators

Koreneff, I. and Sims-McLean, K. (2005). Information technology. Glebe, N.S.W.: Pascal Press.

Miller, M. (2009). Cloud computing. Indianapolis, IN: Que Pub.

Montague, D. (2013). Essentials of online payment security and fraud prevention. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.

Boag, P. (2010). Website owner's manual. Greenwich, Conn.: Manning.

Judy Allen. (2000). Event planning : the ultimate guide to successful meetings, corporate events, fundraising galas, conferences, conventions, incentives, and other special events. John Wiley & Sons.

Nickson, D. (2013). Human Resource Management for Hospitality, Tourism and Events. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.

Lane, J. (2012). Foundation Website creation with HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript. [Berkeley, Calif.]: Friends of ED.

Selamat, A., Nguyen, N. and Haron, H. (2013). Intelligent information and database systems. Berlin: Springer.

Chen, J. (2009). Advances in hospitality and leisure. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

Dehaan, J., DeHaan, P., Horwith, S., Hermann, C., Foti, M. and Zubler, E. (2004). ColdFusion Web development with Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004. Berkley, CA: Apress.

Friday, December 22, 2017

Event Management Websites

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