Event Tech Atlas (ETA), the business event industry’s most powerful decision-support platform, has become an indispensable tool for both planners and suppliers with its 2.0 update.
“As event professionals, you need to utilize technology to streamline the planning process, but there are so many tools available,” says Event Tech Atlas co-founder Tess Vismale, CMP Fellow, DES. “How do you make use of them and pull all of that together? Event Tech Atlas helps you see everything you have and make better tech purchasing decisions.”
Here’s what’s new with ETA 2.0.
Tech tool tracking
ETAaccounts are for more than saving search results. Now, all registered users have access to a Tech Stack Tracker to keep track of all the tools their event teams use to plan meetings and events. Free account users can:
- Add up to 10 tools (more with a premium account)
- Link stack tools to Atlas tech listings
- Save notes and general sentiment about each tool
- Keep track of what each service costs
- Receive automatic renewal reminders (in case you want to switch things up)
“I don’t expect planners to know everything about technology, but they’re in charge of keeping track of the contracts, what everything integrates with, and they may not know what they have, especially if the IT department is managing the relationships,” Vismale says. “The Tech Stack Tracker will give event professionals a dashboard so they can see all the tech tools they’re working with, whether or not it works, if they’re leveraging all the features and integrations, and whether they have gaps or redundancies. Plus, it keeps track of contract times so you can sleep better at night.”
Coming soon: A comparison tool that reveals what might happen to integrations, operations and APIs if one tool is swapped for another.
“That’s huge,” says ETA co-founder Keith Johnston. “You’ll be able to ask, ‘If I replace this tool with X, what would happen?’”
Faster, smarter search
Searches of the comprehensive Atlas of event technology are now powered by AI. That means the Atlas search uses both context and keywords to serve up relevant results. And it overlooks typos!
Another new feature helps users keep track of their research. “The system now saves the last 10 companies you looked at so you don’t have to save them,” Johnston explains.
Peer review collective
Love tech? Want to share unvarnished opinions about what works and what doesn’t? Event and meeting planners, as well as event technologists, are invited to join the Event Tech Atlas Peer Review Collective. Each pod selects three technologies to review over the course of a year.
“When planners get together, they’re always asking, ‘What are you using? How does it work?’ and talking about what we really need,” Vismale says. “Why are we having those conversations in a closed environment? The Peer Review Collective brings those conversations about pre-event, onsite and post-event technology into the open. And it benefits the tech companies too, because they can make improvements based on user feedback. This is my and Keith’s gift back to the industry: To give everyone a voice for the greater good instead of maintaining this ‘us vs. them,’ planner vs. tech company mentality.”
The first pod will launch in May. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis here.
Easy-to-find resources
Downloadable resources are handy — until you lose them. That’s why, with the ETA 2.0 update, it’s now possible for users to find every resource they’ve downloaded from the site on their personal dashboard.
Expanded listing management access
Something that has always set ETA apart is its refusal to be a pay-to-play network. “Everyone has the ability to claim a listing, add videos, downloadable resources and a gallery of images,” Johnston explains.
But something that often challenges tech companies, especially small ones, is that the person who claims a listing isn’t always the best person to manage it. With the update, Johnston says, “You can connect more than one user to your company, so multiple people have access to the same listing. Now, anyone in your organization can update company information.”
Connected listings
Another new feature allows tech vendors to connect listings to other companies, so planners can see which products are connected. For example, if Company A owns Company B, reps can link the listings. “Any [planner] visiting any of those pages will also see all the connected listings,” Johnston says.
“The next [step] for tech companies is for them to identify integrations,” says Johnston. “Some integrate with Hubspot, others with Salesforce.” Knowing this will flesh out the comparison tool we’re developing to add to the tech stack tracker.
Perks for completed profiles
The update also made the process of selecting products from the Atlas to feature on the homepage more egalitarian. Johnston says, “Any company that updates its listing and has a featured image will have the chance to be featured on the homepage, randomly.”
Stay tuned!
New features will be released on the first Friday of every month to keep making it easier for business event organizers to find the best tech to fit their events at any point along their event lifecycle.
Author: Kizzy Allott
Kizzy Allott is Publisher at Event Industry News, where she has been a driving force behind the brand for over a decade. With a deep understanding of the events sector and a passion for storytelling, Kizzy leads the platform’s commercial and content strategy, connecting the industry through news, insights, and meaningful conversations. She is dedicated to championing innovation, amplifying industry voices, and ensuring event professionals stay informed, inspired, and future-focused.
