Jon Benjamin, CEO of ASP Events, talks website integrations.
ASP’s recently launched upgrade to its integrations framework. What does it offer clients that they couldn’t get before?
JB: We’ve been developing this upgrade for quite some time, largely in response to what our clients have been telling us. It’s clear that event organisers don’t want to be restricted with what can come with a ‘one-size-fits-all’ platform. The upgrade is designed to make building a truly connected, best-in-class tech ecosystem simple and flexible.
It allows organisers to integrate their chosen platforms directly into their website, rather than being boxed in by a platform that siloes their website from the rest of their tech stack and limits which platforms they can use. Now, our clients can use any and all of the best-in-market solutions for registration, data, marketing automation, content and more, all working together with their website seamlessly.
Clients were telling us that the way integrations were being done before, manually and one by one, often limited or one-way, simply wasn’t efficient. They wanted something much faster and truly two-way. This upgrade delivers. This upgrade means our technology works around our clients’ needs, not the other way around.
The new integrations upgrade would seem to reposition ASP. What is your next ambition in this sector?
JB: The next phase will be all about making event websites more intelligent and adaptive, not just functional. It will be about helping organisers to get smarter insights and deliver a more dynamic, personalised experience to their audiences.
A big part of that vision is personalisation and the opportunity lies in making sure each visitor quickly finds exactly what they want. Our overall ambition is to create websites that don’t just host information but adapt and respond to audience behaviour, driving more meaningful, high-performing digital experiences.
With organisers now expecting speed, flexibility and scale as standard, and much more besides, how can that be squared with budget constraints?
JB: It all comes down to making smarter choices with the budget you already have. Event organisers spend significant amounts on marketing, PPC, registration, email, social media, SEO, optimisation, to mention just a few. All of that investment is designed to drive traffic to one place: the website. That’s why it’s so important to work with an event website specialist. Your website shouldn’t be a static destination; it should be your very own living, breathing conversion engine.
How easy is it for new start-ups and entrants to this market now and what would be the pitfalls to entry?
JB: The biggest challenge for new entrants is focus. There are plenty of companies trying to do too many things at once, but, in our experience, the strongest players are the specialists, those who do something really well.
No one in the event space has successfully done everything at scale, so the key for new entrants is to identify a specific area where they can add real value and really hammer that USP home.
ASP Events is an award-winning, global leader in designing, building, hosting and supporting industry-leading event websites.