Certain Event Automation Software vs. Cvent Event Management

Certain is very well suited for any type of event or tradeshow that require specific fields from registrants and an automated email sequence to keep them engaged. It's less appropriate for one-off events, since setting up those pages can be quite complex if you're used to the types of Eventbrite/Sympla. If you don't really build event pages regularly, I'd recommend a software that's more simple, which should address what you need.

Incentivized

The breadth of features is such that Cvent Event Management is a strong choice for events of significant scope and complexity, particularly in volume and diversity of programming. The learning curve may be on the steep side for customers with simpler needs, though Cvent Event Management is addressing this by providing more streamlining in their solution suite.

Incentivized

• Easy to use and create
• Easy to pull reports once event has been sent to attendees
• Great way to gather a lot of information

Incentivized

• I love Cvent Event Management's registration platform specifically because of the flexibility. There are no limits to what Cvent Event Management can do - if you want custom logic, questions or buttons, it's all possible!
• The Exhibitor Portal is an exceptional option for event sponsors. Exhibitors have so much power to manage their profile in the back end, and it's very easy to navigate.
• The Agenda section is a favorite of mine, as the customization options are endless. You can have people select their sessions and view speaker profiles + the planner has endless options for making the agenda thorough.

Incentivized

• Dashboards: It's quite important for leadership to get a visual of what their event registrants look like (with graphs, for example). Now, Certain does not present a feature to create dashboards, so we have to export their reports and create our dashboards ourselves.
• UX when setting up an event: Now this can be quite complex, as it's not as easy to use or intuitive. Many different tabs with many different sub-items can present a confusing experience for newcomers when building an event.

Incentivized

• The "Badges and Certificates" feature can use some work. This is where you build out your name badges, invoices, receipts, etc. The system works but the build feature is difficult to line everything up and navigate. Also, building the receipts/invoices can be difficult to adjust for when things for to multiple pages. It doesn't allow you to pre-program margins so it just continues to the top of the next page without leaving additional space.
• Processing payments for multiple registrations at once after the registrations have already been submitted could also be improved. Currently, the only opportunity you have to submit a payment for a full group is when they register initially. After that phase, if you need to enter a check payment or process a credit card after they've finalized their registration, you have to go into each attendees record to process the payment which can get tedious.
• I would like to see a functionality where we can collect actual signatures during the registration process vs. just having a check box available. For some of the more sensitive materials we need our attendees to approve of, an actual signature feature would be very beneficial.

Incentivized

We are very pleased with the features that Cvent gives us. The ease of use and the immediate support when something does stump us. Cvent provides us with everything that we need to run a successful event. The only reason I did not Rate Cvent as a 10 is the cost

Incentivized

Cvent has a lot of functionality, which can be overwhelming to new users who are not too technically savvy. However, Cvent does a great job of providing tools and support for users to learn and troubleshoot. I also appreciate the work and progress that Cvent has been making in Accessibility.

Incentivized

Cvent does go down pretty frequently. And while it often doesn't impact day to day use usually, if it does go down at the wrong time, you may not be able to access very important event information when you need it. Usually outages do not last very long, but it could still be a very bad situation if this happens at the wrong moment

Incentivized

When pulling reports and it can sometimes lag a bit and that can be frustrating when you are trying to get things done on a timeline

Incentivized

The company offers 24/7 customer support, including phone, email, and chat support, to ensure that we can get help when we need it. Additionally, the platform has a comprehensive help center and knowledge base, including user guides, tutorials, and FAQs, which help us troubleshoot issues on our own. Cvent also provides training and support resources, including onboarding assistance, live training sessions, and webinars, which help us get the most out of the platform. Overall, Cvent appears to be committed to providing excellent customer support and resources to its users, which can help ensure a positive user experience and successful events.

Incentivized

Our on-site trainer was very knowledgeable in the product and gave us very important pointers on best practices and how to perform tasks in the simplest manner

Incentivized

It was all self-driven and I had to do a lot of searching around in the community to get answers.

Incentivized

It would have been nice during implementation if we had received more pointers on how to organize our parked report folders, libraries, etc. to avoid the mess we find ourselves in today. If we had known ahead of time the limitations we could have planned better.

Incentivized

My company selected Certain and continues to use Certain because it is quick, easy, and efficient. We create up to 20 registration links a year and Certain allows us to create templates to copy and create annual event links very fast. I also love that there is someone there to speak to if I ever need assistance

Incentivized

Cvent was the only events software that could meet our needs at a price that was palatable. We have been with Cvent for over a decade and I shop around every time we come up for contract renewal just to see what's out there. Cvent hands-down is able to handle so much more complex needs than anything else out there. The value for what you get is exceptional.

Incentivized

We use Cvent for many different clients and events. It's very easy to customize the experience for the event that you need

Incentivized

• Certain helps to deliver a great customer experience, since it facilitates automatic email delivery and your company can keep them connected well before or well after an event.
• Certain presents a wide variety of reports, which perfectly addresses any request for visibility coming from your organization.
• Certain's configuration settings are quite complex, so our newcomers are not comfortable using the software at first.
• In case you need a more visual representation of your audience, Certain, unfortunately, does not generate dashboards.

Incentivized

• Positive ROI: See which registrants [participated]
• Positive ROI: See survey results from the feedback survey pushed at or after an event
• Positive: Helps us lessen time spent setting up an event, emailing, or capturing data for event staff-- which in turn means MORE events!

Incentivized