Eventbaxx: Digital Swag Bags for Events [Review]

Eventbaxx: What Is It?

Eventbaxx is a modern day swag bag and an alternative to tangible options. Instead of packing and distributing physical bags or folders, packed with printed flyers and promotional items, an event organizer creates digital offers. The attendee can then select and interact with the special deals that appeal to them and it is possible to measure the reach much more scientifically and gather data from those that are interested.

Eventbaxx can create added value for events, event organizers, partners, sponsors, exhibitors, visitors and attendees. Every attendee has multiple event bags and generic pens, cups and stress balls from several different events laying forlorn or forgotten at the back of their wardrobe, with printed media going straight in the bin. By using an online tool it reduces this waste and impact on the environment. Digital swag bags can offer lots of potential in terms of marketing opportunities, sponsor exposure and measurement.

Packing or “stuffing” traditional bags can also take a lot of man hours and effort from multiple staff or volunteers, particularly if you have an event with hundreds or thousands of attendees. Other costs such as delivery and printing and purchasing of expensive promotional items are also removed. Digital swag bags are monetizable and can offer an attractive sponsorship opportunity.

Still not sure what a digital event swag bag could look like? You can explore a sample Eventbaxx by logging in here. Let’s take a deeper look at how they could work for your events.

The Main Categories of Features Are:

Event Information. Include important information about the event, upload PDFs and include rich media, such as videos and integration with Google maps.

Digital Swag. Create four different types of coupons and schedule when the offers are available and how many can take advantage of it. Coupons can involve discounts, a code to be redeemed or rewards for specific actions, such as answering a question or opting-in to a newsletter.

Marketing. Send the Eventbaxx privately to registered event attendees, sync with Eventbrite, or create a public link which can be shared widely and used as a marketing tool to generate leads.

Analytics. Monitor the overall engagement and activity, as well as and performance of each of the specific coupons.

Review

Any event planner will be relieved to know that setting up Eventbaxx is considerably quicker than filling numerous event bags! The dashboard is where the virtual swag bag is created and event details added and then individual coupons can be created to “fill” the Eventbaxx. The coupons replace the traditional promotional flyers and can be used as a validation to receive a perk or event freebie.

An unlimited number of coupons can be added but the more you have available the more diluted the interaction will be, particularly if people are accessing from a mobile device. If you have 50 coupons available they won’t perform well so it is best to focus on a limited number of offers from your top sponsors and partners. Eventbaxx is fully responsive, adapting to any device.

Set Up

You can see an overview of progress throughout the setup stages and it walks you through adding a header image, event description and other important details. You can set the precise color of all links to match your branding. Although there is no inbuilt color dropper you can specify precise colors using the Hex code. A white label version of the product is available, otherwise the tool says powered by Eventbaxx.

You can specify a closing date for the digital swag bag – after which time the Eventbaxx will disappear – and set the timezone. The language can be set to English or German and you can personalize the welcome message and mail merge salutation used.

Sharing

Event planners can upload the event participants email addresses, add a single participant, or if bookings are via Eventbrite, you can select the event and sync lists directly so they receive a private, personal invitation to explore their Eventbaxx. The email text, button text, sender, subject, and reply to address can all be edited and a test email sent.

The lists can be filtered or segmented according to how they were uploaded so you can see and target those that registered via Eventbrite or that were uploaded from specific lists. You can also divide the lists to see just those that haven’t received or accessed their Eventbaxx so that you can send targeted reminders.

Alternatively, a public link can be created and shared widely. The individual has to enter their email address or log in with Facebook or LinkedIn to gain access to the Eventbaxx filled with the coupons. This gives the organizer a database of potential attendees, or warm leads, and is another way to freely market the event, raise awareness and get people curious to come along.

Even if people register on site at the event they can still access their Eventbaxx either by making it available by a public URL or by creating posters with a QR code which directs them straight to it.

Coupons

Coupons can be used as a marketing tool before the event. For example, the first 500 to register for the event could be eligible for a free gift. All coupons can be specifically redeemable in person at the event if you wish, so only those that actually attend on the day will receive the benefit so it gives a greater incentive to turn up too.

There are 4 different types of coupons to choose from and sponsors can be given access to set these up themselves to save the event planner some work adding them all. The coupons can be set to be available immediately or the start and end times scheduled as you wish. Every coupon allows for a description and target link to direct visitors to. This may be a Facebook page, Twitter, email address, website, download or registration page.

Classic Coupons are the simplest coupon type with a simple but clear advertising message.

Redeemable Coupons include a redeem button and can be exchanged directly at the sponsor’s stall at an exhibition or POS (point of sale) in a store. You can limit it to one redeem per person and make the process 2-step checking “Do you really want to redeem?”.

Discount Code Coupons include a special discount, specified and named by the stakeholder, such as 50% off all purchases made at the event. Codes can be personalized or general.

Game Coupons include special interactive elements and can be used for quizzes, polls, to conduct a survey or generate subscribers. Either way, users have to interact with buttons and can get rewarded for it with a trophy coupon. Users have one attempt and a message can be set to display after submitting to indicate success or failure. If they are successful and awarded a trophy coupon it is highlighted in yellow to easily identify it as the prize.

The disclaimer enables the terms and conditions and legal messaging to be set. Testing mode enables all coupons to be checked and reset, before being shared with any event attendees.

Analytics and Reporting

From the dashboard, the organizer can monitor real-time performance overall, including email views, unique views, how often they come back, when accessed, the device used, Facebook reach, and gender.

You can also learn the open, view and click-through rates for each specific coupon to evaluate the respective success and ROI, and how many have bookmarked (favorited) a coupon. The results can be exported as a PDF and shared with partners and sponsors. Please note that for data security reasons this is general tracking and not specific tracking back to an individual. For the sponsor to collect data from interested parties they should create a coupon which opts-in to future contact, for example by creating a coupon where the individual supplies their email address to receive future newsletters.

From an environmental perspective, Eventbaxx also shares the amount CO2 saved in kg, and estimates the number of sheets of paper saved, which may be important to know from a CSR and reporting perspective.

Affiliate Coupons

A really neat way to measure the specific return to event stakeholders is by tracking interactions through an affiliate code to see purchases inspired as a result of the digital swag bag. A snippet of javascript needs to be added to the page the user sees after a successful transaction was made on the stakeholders’ website. This then enables partners and event planners to track directly how many attendees made a purchase, when the transaction took place, the amount, who purchased and the reference ID. This is powerful information for an event planner in terms of future sponsor interest.

Features

Event Information

• Add information about the event or company
• Create a header image
• Upload PDFs and important event documents
• Add rich media, including video
• Link Google maps

Digital Swag

• Create different types of coupons
• Add images unique to each coupon
• Limit the start and end dates and times when the offer is available
• Set limited availability e.g. available to the first 250 people
• Invite sponsors, partners or exhibitors to create coupons by themselves, to limit the workload of the event professional
• The four different types of coupons include:
  • General coupons with a simple advertising message
  • Redeemable coupons include a button which can only be validated once and used to give out freebies and goodies
  • Code coupons specify a general code or a personalized code to be redeemed
  • Gamification coupons can be used to conduct surveys, opt-in e.g. for a newsletter, create quizzes and so forth
• A disclaimer can be added detailing the legal information and terms and conditions of the offer
• Affiliate links can be used to track purchases as a result of the awareness raised via the digital goody bag

Marketing

• Upload the data of your participants and visitors which are supposed to receive the Eventbaxx via Excel or CSV files
• Sync with Eventbrite registrations
• Add individual participants
• Customize the email message
• Send out Eventbaxx via email
• Create a public URL which can be used to market your event more widely, via social media and the web
• Directly opt-in participants and attendees via email, Facebook or LinkedIn login data

Analytics

• General reporting of the Eventbaxx
• See the overview of participants and engagement
• Analyze if they have received/opened their Eventbaxx
• Reporting of the specific interest in the coupons
• Export reports

Who Is It For?

Eventbaxx is for event organizers and companies who want to distribute information and analyze their reach. It can be used for all types of events and is particularly viable for large events and trade shows. Many marathons are replacing starter kits with Eventbaxx and it is also being used for tourism and destination marketing, special events, late night shopping, and campaigns such as creating excitement by counting down to the event day or a Christmas advent calendar promotion.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Reduces waste and the impact on the environment
• Creates awareness of the event and can be used to attract visitors to the offers of partners and sponsors before the event
• A transparent and monetizable way to measure how visitors interact with content and what they are interested in
• No “bag stuffing” required so it is more realistic for large events and to reach larger numbers

Cons

• PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone needed
• The lack of physical product. Everyone likes “free stuff” even if it isn’t particularly effective in terms of returns for the brands themselves
• There isn’t a color dropper to match exact colors from logos so Hex colors are required to match the link color to your branding
• The number of coupons should be limited to have maximum impact

Pricing and Plans

Eventbaxx is charged per event, not per attendee, based on your bespoke requirements. Prices are calculated for a single event or based on a bespoke plan over a longer campaign or multiple events. Please contact Eventbaxx for a tailored quote.

In Conclusion

Event planners and sponsors are hungry to measure the specific impact and returns generated from their event and digital swag bags offer the analytics to do this, in a way that traditional goody bags never have. Although people will always love “freebies” the value and impact of promotional items is unclear. As event planners become increasingly aware of the environmental footprint of their events, and look for innovative ways to monetize and reach large numbers of attendees, Eventbaxx is the future of event swag.

Disclaimer: Reviews are paid for placements. While Event Manager Blog receives a fee to extensively look at the tool and review it in detail, the content of the review is independent and by no means influenced by the company. If you have any questions please use the contact us section.