Why Event Espresso Is The Best For Nonprofit Event Registration

Events have become an important avenue for nonprofit organizations to raise funds and generate awareness for their cause or advocacy. It can get overwhelming trying to discover what to look for in an event registration platform. This article will give you everything you need to look for and why Event Espresso is the best for nonprofit event ticketing. 

What is Event Espresso

Event Espresso is an event registration or ticketing platform for organizations to sell tickets and accept event registration. It is a versatile WordPress plugin that can easily integrate with your WordPress website and help you with free and paid events. Additionally, it even works for events with multiple dates and different ticket types or registration options.

With Event Espresso, nonprofits can enjoy features like customizable event registration forms, the ability to create different ticket types, secure payment collections, customizable event confirmation emails, and more. 

Features to Look For in A Nonprofit Event Registration

The first thing that your event attendees will encounter once they decide to register for an event is your event registration website. To search for the best event registration for you, it is important to understand the basic foundation of what event starts are needed. 

The basic features of an event registration platform that you can look for are the following:

• Affordable fees that are friendly for nonprofit organizations
• User-friendly interface
• Customizable forms
• Secure payment processing
• Automated confirmation reminders or notifications
• Integration with third-party platforms like email
• Analytics and Reporting
• Able to Collect Donations and Support Fundraising efforts
• Support for participant tickets
• Support for selling sponsorships
• Support for taking donations
• Allowing volunteers to sign up for assignments

Before sending your event registration links to your event attendees, make sure your event website is ready with all the information. If possible, keep the process short to not confuse your potential attendee. Try to create a dry run of your registration process to know what your audience will go through when they register. 

Why Event Espresso For Nonprofits Is The Best Event Registration Platform

Pricing/ Fees

Unlike other ticketing platforms that charge a ticketing fee or commission, Event Espresso does not collect any fees for an unlimited number of tickets sold. In fact, you can even apply for a nonprofit discount on your plan. The pricing or fees for Event Espresso is simple – it is a simple monthly fee with all the features you’ll ever need for an event registration platform. 

User-Friendly Interface

You will not risk your website visitors for confusion with Event Espresso. There are no unnecessary elements, steps, or procedures that will get your users stuck on what to do next. 

The intuitive layout guides users through each step of the event setup process, from creating custom registration forms to managing attendee data and processing payments. The drag-and-drop functionality and straightforward menu options minimize the learning curve, allowing organizers to focus more on planning and executing successful events rather than grappling with complicated software. 

Customizable

Since it is a plugin for WordPress, you have the flexibility to customize what or how your site will look like. From registration forms to confirmation emails, you can create personalized touchpoints for your attendees. 

Easy-to-follow video instructions

As an event planner, we understand the importance of your time so we made it easy for you to set up. There are easy-to-follow video instructions for about any concern that you will ever need.

Integration with other tools and systems

Event Espresso excels in its ability to integrate seamlessly with a wide range of essential tools and systems, enhancing its functionality and making it an indispensable asset for event organizers. 

The platform’s integration capabilities include popular email marketing providers like MailChimp, allowing organizers to effortlessly sync attendee data and send targeted communications. This ensures that all marketing efforts are streamlined and efficient. Additionally, Event Espresso integrates with reliable payment processors such as Stripe, providing secure and versatile options for handling transactions.

Support and customer service

Aside from the extensive documentation and support forum available, there is a helpful and friendly customer service available from Monday – Friday, 7AM – 7PM EST and 12PM – 12AM UTC. 

Event registration software features

Event planners won’t need to worry about necessary features for their registration process. Event Espresso has a complete menu of add-ons on every ticketing feature you’ll ever need. Here are some of the event management features of Event Espresso:

• Recurring events manager
• Seat Allocation / Seating Arrangement
• Waitlist manager
• Events Table View
• Promotions and Discounts Code
• Printable Tickets
• Integrate with Authorize.net for credit card payments for your fundraising events

Reporting and analytics capabilities

Event Espresso has features that can give you an overview of your registration and transactions. Google Analytics is also a compatible integration to your WordPress site for accurate analytics on different goals of your site.

Volunteer management features

Volunteers for the nonprofit event can also easily register with Event Espresso. Additionally, there is also a people add on feature where you can add your volunteers to your event.

Donation management and fundraising tools

Reach your fundraising goal quicker by having features that accept donations on your event site. There are two ways to handle donations in Event Espresso.

First, the donations can be created as extra pricing options through the event editor and be connected to their own date time, so they don’t affect the limit of the dinner

Second, you can create a separate event that handles registrations for donations only. Then you can include a link to the donation-only event in the original event’s description. You can even create a custom registration approved email that asks for donations after a guest has registered.

Security features (e.g., data protection, compliance)

Choose an event registration platform that you can trust especially with sensitive event data and payment collection activities. 

Event Espresso employs advanced security measures, including Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption, to protect sensitive data during transactions. Also, it is designed to be GDPR compliant, providing tools to help event organizers manage data privacy and user consent effectively. Additionally, the software supports Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) compliance through integrated payment gateways, ensuring that payment information is handled securely. 

Empowers nonprofit organizations with their event capabilities

Instead of just relying on a third party for event registration and ticketing, Event Espresso enables skills and capacity of nonprofit organizations to customize their event registration process and systems. By giving nonprofits the tools to manage their own events, Event Espresso fosters greater autonomy and flexibility. Organizations can design custom registration forms, set up automated email communications, and integrate with their existing CRM and email marketing tools. 

Event Espresso helps nonprofit organizations learn the valuable skill on how to drive engagement and achieve their fundraising and awareness goals more effectively.

Comparison with Other Nonprofit Event Registration Platforms

In the search for the best nonprofit event ticketing, almost all the foundational features are comparable with one another. The main difference would be the fees. To give you a grasp of the fees for your event, you can try the fees calculator. 

Here’s a comparison of the different fees of ticketing platforms for nonprofits:

• Eventbrite: 3.7% + $1.79 per sold ticket. They also have a subscription plan – pay per event fee or a monthly fee.
• Donorbox: 2.95%
• RSVPify:1.95% + $.90
• Ticketstripe: 1.50% + 50 cents
• Qgiv: 3.95% (Qgiv + Merchant), 4.95% (peer-to-peer only), plus $0.30 per transaction
• WildApricot: $60/mo
• Event Smart: Starts at $20/mo, zero commission fees
• Event Espresso (WordPress plugin): Starts at $99/mo 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How do I set up my first nonprofit event and start accepting registrations?

Purchase the Event Espresso plugin and install it into your WordPress site. Then you can watch our very easy-to-follow video tutorial to get you started. 

How much are the fees to sell event tickets and registrations for nonprofit events?

A personal license starts at only $99/mo and allows you to sell unlimited tickets at no commission fees. 

How do I receive payments or donations?

Event Espresso has activated payment gateways like Authorize.net, PayPal, Braintree, Stripe, and more! Offline payment options like checks, bank transfers, and invoices are also supported.

Do I need to have a WordPress site to use Event Espresso? 

Yes, Event Espresso is a WordPress plugin so you need a WordPress website. However, if you don’t use WordPress, Event Smart is the most compatible ticketing system for you. It has all the features without you needing a WordPress site.

Do you offer discounts for nonprofit organizations?

Yes we do, you can apply for a nonprofit organization discount here. 

Can I host free events?

You can host events for free using Event Smart. 

If you ever encounter troubleshooting concerns, you can easily contact the customer service support.

Success Story of Using Event Espresso for Nonprofits

“At first, I thought that it would be overkill for such a small site, but now I see the possibilities and will definitely be offering Event Espresso to my clients…”

You might be thinking, what’s the catch? Are all these features really possible with just one software? The answer is yes! 

Here’s what an actual customer has to say:

“I recently downloaded it to add to a nonprofit site for a Boy Scout troop and the features work wonderfully with what we wanted to accomplish for the site. It allows us to set up calendars, events, and even take payments for trips. At first, I thought that it would be overkill for such a small site, but now I see the possibilities and will definitely be offering Event Espresso to my clients that need an event organization system for their websites.”

Organize Nonprofit Events with Event Espresso

Start making your nonprofit events happen without worrying about your ticketing process or ticket sales. Event Espresso is the solution for nonprofit organizations for all their ticketing and registration needs. 

If you are just starting out and you don’t have an event website yet, you can start with Event Smart – a similar ticketing platform that does not require WordPress.

Check out the free live demo or our 14-day free trial now.