Has your organization plunged into the wonderful world of online registrations? If not, the time to do so is now. With TransactU, you have everything right at your fingertips to get going and never look back. Tired of taking cash and checks in the front lobby for Bible studies, retreats, and special events? Ready to retire the notebook in favor of a more suitable tracking method? Whether you’ve never used EventU for online registrations, or are a veteran user, this article aims at helping you realize the full potential of EventU for all your online event registration needs.
Options, Options, Options . . .
When asked what he hears most from clients he speaks with, ServiceU
Support Manager Brian Robison said, “What customers tend not to
be aware of is just how much customization is available to them.
Whether they want to make changes to how their forms pop up online,
how their forms look and feel, what types of menus and choices they
offer, to how their receipts appear online and when printed, there
are just so many ways to customize EventU for their church.”
To start out, log in to the ServiceU system and go to “new>event registration.” This will start the wizard that will walk you through every aspect of setting up a new event registration. From here, you can easily begin the process of allowing your members to register for events online.
Perhaps one of the best options is the way in which the registration forms can be customized. There are customizations opportunities at every stop. Users can create as many questions and answers as they need to, and have a variety of ways in which to layout the form for any given event. Check boxes, radio buttons, and drop down menus with customizable choices are all available for your use. You can even get complex and input multiple questions with costs associated with each question, then at the end, the system will tally up all costs associated with a particular event someone is registering for.
Fee vs. No Fee, That is the Question
One point that needs to be made is that the EventU system alone
does not accept payments for event registrations. If you desire
to take payments for events online, you must sign up for TransactU,
which handles payments for both online donations and online registrations.
This ensures adequate security for all financial information gathered
and really makes things run smoothly in this department.
ACH, often called online checks, and all major forms of credit cards can be accepted through TransactU. Within each event registration, users can define the payment amounts and even include fees for additional requests related to each event. For registrants that do not wish to pay online, system users can input their info directly into the system and bypass the payment option. Payment of a check or cash can be made when received.
It’s also possible to sell materials related to events such as books, CDs, lunch, conference materials, etc. as a part of any given event. When you check out, the system will add up all associated costs and allow registrants to pay in full at the time of checkout.
When you add TransactU to your system, it integrates seamlessly with EventU and is easy-to-use and makes taking online registrations that much simpler.
More Helpful Hints
Another helpful tidbit of information is that you can attach files
to your events such as child release forms, brochures, maps, pictures,
agreement forms, conference materials—you name it. Put pertinent
info right at your user’s fingertips.
It’s also good to know that your hard work never goes to waste. Once you save forms you create, you can turn them into template forms for use in the future for other events. This can be done from the administrative section and can assist you in streamlining processes.
Another question that clients often ask Brian is, “how do I get registration forms to show up online?” There are three ways to link registration forms to your website:
- Through the calendar page where events are listed
- By posting a link to the open registration page where all church events are listed
- By inserting a direct link to the form itself
When it’s all said and done, you’ll want simple ways to report on your event registrations. The reporting feature within EventU is fabulous and allows you to change the layout and customize almost every way to view the information that has been gathered. Reports are generated in real time and include every person that has registered at the time the report is created. Users can even create their own report templates that can be saved and modified in the future. This is a wonderful feature if you plan to run the same report for a given event over and over again.
Lastly, it’s important to know that for particularly complicated events, specific layout requests, or general technical assistance, ServiceU offers support services to assist you in designing exactly what you need to get the job done. Just call Brian, he’s your man. Email Brian here.