Quick answer: what is an event registration platform?

An event registration platform lets people sign up, pay and receive communications for your event while your team controls capacity, data and reporting in one place. The best platforms help event teams convert faster, reduce admin and protect margin while meeting GDPR and procurement demands.

In this article, you'll learn:

• The most common registration pain points and how to fix them.
• The features that actually move conversion, margin and attendee experience.
• How to set up your first event quickly and avoid costly rework.
• An event buyer checklist and FAQs you can copy into your RFP today.

The problem: where registration goes wrong.

• Leaky funnels. Forms are long, unclear or not mobile friendly, so conversions drop.
• Manual chaos. Spreadsheets and email threads lead to errors and delays.
• Capacity stress. Overbooking or underutilised rooms because data is scattered.
• Payment friction. unclear pricing, poor currency handling and failed 3-D secure checks hurt completion rates.
• Compliance risk. Inconsistent GDPR practices and no clear retention policy.
• No proof of impact. it's hard to show carbon, revenue or engagement outcomes to clients.

What to aim for instead:

One place for offers, registration, payments, comms and reporting so your team moves faster, protects profit and demonstrates value.

What to look for in an event registration platform.

• Built for conversion. Clean, mobile-first forms, guest categories, and short paths to payment. Progress is clear and fields are only shown when needed.
• Capacity and rules. Live quotas per ticket, room or session, with waitlists and automatic confirmations.
• Communications. Branded emails and SMS with tokens for names, categories and times. confirmations and reminders are automated.
• Payments. Multi-currency when needed, correct VAT handling, pci-aware gateways and strong customer authentication.
• Data quality and privacy. GDPR-ready consent, verification codes, access controls and data retention schedules.
• Reporting that matters. Conversion by segment, no-show rates, revenue and carbon per attendee, all exportable for client debriefs.
• Workflow coverage. Proposals, budgets, registration and supplier comms in one place so nothing falls between tools. that is how you earn time back.

How to set up your first registration flow in under an hour.

1. Clarify the offer. Confirm dates, audience categories, inclusions and deadlines. shorter forms start with a clear proposition.
2. Design for mobile first. Keep essential fields above the fold. use conditional logic to hide complexity.
3. Price with intent. Create early, standard and late rates with clear cut-offs and capacity limits. show totals including VAT.
4. Enable strong payments. Choose a gateway that supports SCA and common wallets. Show trusted badges at checkout.
5. Automate comms. Confirmation, invoice and two reminders with add-to-calendar links. Send a final logistics note 24 hours before doors open.
6. Collect sustainability data. Ask for travel mode, nights and dietary preferences to power co₂ reporting later.
7. Publish and test. Do a full run on mobile with a dummy payment, then invite a colleague to try to break it.

Event buyer checklist you can copy.

• GDPR: consent capture, purpose limits, deletion and anonymisation tools.
• Security: ISO-aligned processes and access controls.
• Payments: multi-currency support, PCI-aware gateway, SCA, refunds and partial payments.
• Tax: multi-VAT and itemised invoices suitable for procurement.
• Accessibility: forms aligned to WCAG guidelines.
• Scale: Supports everything from 50-person meetings to 5,000-person conferences.
• Reporting: conversion, revenue, attendance and co₂ in client-ready formats.
• Integrations: finance and CRM connections to avoid rekeying.

FAQ: Quick answers for busy event managers.

What is the difference between an event registration platform and a ticketing tool?

Registration platforms handle categories, data capture, payments and capacity across meetings and events, not just tickets. They are built for procurement needs and complex itineraries.

How much does an event registration platform cost?

Pricing ranges from per-registration fees to annual licences. Model the total cost including payment fees and staff time. The cheapest tool can be costly if it adds manual work.

What improves conversion the most?

A clear value proposition, fewer fields, mobile-first design, guest categories, trusted payments and reminders are all part of improving those conversion rates. Small changes here beat cosmetic tweaks elsewhere.

How do I reduce no-shows?

Send a logistics email 24 hours before the event, use wallet passes, and add a waitlist with automatic confirmations so seats stay filled.

What about GDPR?

Pick a platform with explicit consent, data minimisation and clear retention settings. Publish your privacy note on the form and honour deletion requests.

Do I need multi-currency?

Yes if you serve clients beyond your local market. Support GBP, EUR, USD and other local currencies,  and show VAT treatment clearly.

How do I handle group bookings?

Enable a primary booker to add guests and assign categories. Keep per-guest fields short and relevant.

Can registration help with sustainability reporting?

Yes. collect travel mode and nights at sign-up, then produce a co₂ summary per attendee and per event for client debriefs.

What should I ask vendors in a demo?

Build a live form with two categories, capacity limits, payment, and automated emails in 15 minutes. If they can't, expect heavy admin later.

Why Qondor is the right event registration platform for event teams.

Qondor brings proposals, registration, payments, communications and reporting into one platform so your team can move faster and make better decisions. You get clean attendee data, live capacity control, professional comms and client-ready reporting, including co₂ summaries when you collect travel and accommodation details. That combination helps you run more efficient, profitable and sustainable meetings & events while keeping GDPR and procurement in check.

What you get in practice.

Higher form completion, fewer manual steps, clearer margin visibility and a stronger close to your sales cycle. Your clients feel the speed and credibility. Your team earns time back to focus on the experience.

RFP question set to copy into your next vendor call.

• Build a two-category registration with capacity limits, a waitlist and automated comms. show it end to end.
• Process a payment with SCA and issue a VAT-itemised receipt.
• Demonstrate consent capture and scheduled anonymisation for GDPR.
• Show how to collect travel mode and produce a co₂ summary for the client debrief.
• Connect to your CRM and finance stack to avoid rekeying.

In short:

The right event registration platform is the one that lifts conversion, keeps capacity and pricing under control, meets GDPR and cuts admin by unifying proposals, registration, payments and comms. Implement mobile first forms, VAT-inclusive pricing, SCA-ready payments and automated confirmations, then track invite to registration to check in, no-show and co₂ per attendee to iterate fast. If you want a single solution that delivers this while giving clients credible reporting, Qondor helps you run more efficient, profitable and sustainable events.