Trybooking vs Eventbrite vs Member Jungle

Running an event for your club can be a time-consuming and stressful experience. 

I struggle organising kayak camping trips with a dozen friends, it is like herding goats.
Three of them are fighting, several are too busy eating to listen, and a surprising amount are in a tree for some reason. 

That is a long-winded way of saying running and hosting events is hard. Especially, if you have hundreds of members in your club or organisation. You probably already know what an event management system is and how it can help you, but which to choose? 

Have no fear. Today we are having a three-way shoot-out to help you decide which system is best for you. The following is a comprehensive breakdown of the features, price points and fine print of Eventbrite, Trybooking and Member Jungle. I spent hours researching, examining and combing through all the websites so you wouldn’t have to. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do your own research, it just means that you have a solid foundation to start on. 

It has to be said as we are one of the options we are comparing today, there is an obvious bias. However, I will do my very best to stay objective and give you only the facts. At the end of the day, our system is great, but it is not for everyone.  

So let's find out which system is best for you. 

The things we are comparing today are:

• All-in-one systems vs specialists 
• Pricing
• Ticket sales
• Payment for ticket sales
• Data reporting
• Event and ticket advertising 

Meet The Event Planning Systems

We have Eventbrite, Trybooking and Member Jungle. 

Eventbrite

An event management and ticketing website and app, that helps to promote and sell tickets for events. 

Trybooking

An event management system and app, that helps in the promotion and sale of tickets for events. 

Member Jungle

Is an all-in-one club and organisation management system. That helps in the promotion and sale of tickets for events. 

One Of These Event Planning Systems Is Not Like The Others

The first thing we should talk about is that there is an odd one out here. Eventbrite and Trybooking are both event and ticketing specialists. It is all they do, and they do it very well. 

Member Jungle is an all-in-one management system and website creator. Designed for clubs and organisations of varying sizes and seriousness. From ten people knitting clubs to 6000 people car clubs and to associations. 

Member Jungle is a subscription-based platform for managing clubs and organisations. While we are very able to help you manage and sell tickets for events. We only offer this as a part of our membership management service. 

So, if you are an individual planning a one-off ticketed event, or are exclusively running events and nothing else then we are probably not the right choice for you. That being said, there is still a lot of useful information here to help you choose the right system. So, keep on reading. 

You can see a brief breakdown of what Eventbrite, Trybooking and Member Jungle offer in the table below

If you aren’t just planning events but organising a whole club or organisation that also has events. Then maybe you should look into what else Member Jungle can do for you.

Very briefly Member Jungle is an all-in-one membership management system. That takes the hassle out of running a club or organisation. Related: Save Time with an Online Membership Management System.

Managing And Selling Tickets With An Event Planning System

There are several important things to consider when choosing what event management system to use. 

• Choose how many tickets you’re selling 
• Choose the price of tickets 
• Whether system fees are absorbed in your profits or your customers' prices
• What fees and how much are those fees
• How quickly do you get paid
• What analytics are available to you
• How do these systems help you market your events

Here’s some great news. All three of the systems we are looking at today allow you to set the amount and price of your tickets. They also all offer the ability to absorb all fees into the prices or profits. 

As far as the fees themselves go, have a look at the following chart. 

* Member Jungle transaction fees apply per transaction not per ticket. So, if 10 tickets are bought in one transaction the $0.99 fee is only charged once. 

It is also worth noting that both Eventbrite and Trybooking do not charge anything for free ticketed events.

How Long Until I Get Paid?

When it comes to how long it takes you to get the money for your event things get slightly more complicated.

According to Eventbrite’s payment page they process your payment three days after your event takes place. 

According to Trybooking’s account setting page, they process your payments one to three days after your event takes place. However, you can request access early, though they are under no obligation to pay you before the event takes place. 

At Member Jungle, we will process your ticket sale when it happens, and you will receive your payment on your next scheduled payday. Your chosen package determines how often your paydays occur; the most frequent being every day and the least frequent being once a week. 

Data Reporting

What data analytics and reporting are available to you, will play a big role in helping you grow and improve your events. 

So what are data analytics and reporting?
Data analytics and reporting are a way to see specific information about those who are buying your tickets. For example the age, gender or date of birth of your attendees. You should be able to choose what information you want to collect about those who are buying your tickets. So, you only have information that is relevant to you and your event. Maybe the gender of your attendees isn’t important to you but their addresses are. You should be able to customise your data reporting to reflect this.  

Being able to do this will allow you to see who your events are appealing to and help you predict the demographic of people you can expect to be at your event.  

This allows you to alter your advertising and events to better reach the people you want to. Making your club events more successful as you keep refining your event promotions.

This can also let you alter your events before they happen to better suit the needs of those who are buying your tickets. If you notice that the majority of your attendees are past retirement age, maybe make sure you have enough seating for everyone.

If the majority of your attendees are Millennials and Gen Z then maybe more phone chargers are needed.  

In all seriousness, good and customisable data reporting is very important to the ongoing success of your events.  

Eventbrite, Trybooking and Member Jungle all offer a wide range of customisable data reporting including customisable data forms and dashboards to easily see all relevant information. 

Advertising Your Tickets

This should go without saying but no one will buy your tickets if you don’t advertise them. So, how do today’s competitors advertise your events and promote your tickets?

Eventbrite

Eventbrite advertises your events and tickets on its website, where other event organisers and the public can see them. They do offer email advertising campaigns, Facebook event creation and social media ads. Though these features are locked behind a monthly subscription fee paywall. Their subscription prices are $15, $50 and $100 a month.Eventbrite gives no clear information on what currency their pricing is done in. For more information on their international pricing see Eventbrite’s Fees page.

Find out more about Eventbrite’s Boost subscriptions here. 

Trybooking

Trybooking also advertises your events and tickets on their website, for other event organisers and the public to view. They also allow you to add widgets and unique URLs to your website to advertise your events.They also offer special email campaigns to people who have already purchased tickets to your previous events.

There are no signs of a paywall or social media ads here. 

Eventbrite and Trybooking definitely have better free promotion to the general public than Member Jungle has. 

Member Jungle 

Member Jungle advertises your events and tickets on your website. 

These can be added to your website's custom club calendar, so all your members can see your new event.  Custom notifications can be sent to all your members via your website and Member Jungle-made app. Custom email campaigns for all your members are also available. 

All of these are free, there is no secondary paywall here. 

The Best Event Management System For You

I cannot tell you who the winner of today’s competition is, only you can make that decision. Hopefully, after this, you will be able to make an informed decision on who works best for you. 

All three of today’s competitors have their pros and cons.

You just need to weigh up the options and find what is best for you.

Keep doing your research, and I’m sure you will make a great decision.

So go check out Eventbrite, Trybooking and Member Jungle. Once you have decided who you’re going with, you’ll need to organise your event so go read our article How to Organise a Successful Event.