Event Basics
In our framework, a Meeting is a very simple event that allows users to specify the meeting name, location and time and then send the invite out to designated individuals that are part of the current database. It is ideal to use as a means of inviting board members or other internal staff or members to a meeting that has no related financial components or tickets.
Events can be much more complex in nature, allowing sub events, the sale of tickets and on line registrations connected to an organizations website.
Terminology
It is necessary to have a solid understanding of Simple and Advanced Events and to understand the fundamental terms used most often in event management. These would include, but are not limited to: a 'registration', an 'attendee', and a 'ticket'. A clear definition of each of these items follows below.
Simple Event: A Simple Event is when the user purchases a ticket to attend a meeting or event.
Advanced Event: An Advanced Event is when there are multiple sessions for the user to choose from and the schedule is complex. This may involve CEU (continuing education units) credits and concurrent sessions.
Registration: A registration occurs when a single individual logs in or sends in information on behalf of one or more attendees pertaining to an event. A single registration captures all of the required information about event attendee(s) which may or may not include the registrant. The registration will also capture the details associated with all of the tickets purchased for each of the attendees (under the registration) attending the event. A registration is the baseline object for an order. Effectively, whenever a registration is created, an order is created for that registration.
Attendee: An attendee represents a single person for whom tickets have been purchased. One attendee belongs to one registration and each registration can have multiple attendees.
Ticket: A ticket is a 'purchasable' item that describes attendance at an event or some aspect of an event. For example, an organization can sell one ticket for the entire event or can sell multiple tickets, where each ticket represents some part of the overall event or a sub-event. A ticket can also be an exhibit booth or sponsorship package.
Example: A secretary registers her boss and his three colleagues for one foursome at a golf outing. The secretary is the registrant even though she is not attending. The boss and three colleagues are attendees since they are attending the event. The foursome is the ticket that the secretary purchases via on line registration.