Spreadsheets vs event management software.

Spreadsheets are useful for simple planning, but event operations start to strain when applications, payments, documents, tickets, site plans and arrival lists disagree.

SmartGig gives organisers one current event record when spreadsheets, inboxes, Stripe exports and manual checklists are no longer enough.

Start free trial Book a demo

14-day trial · No card required

When someone asks what’s happening, you should have the answer.

SmartGig keeps applications, payments, plans and event-day details with the event, ready for the people who need them.

Where spreadsheets still work

A small one-off event with a short guest list and no public applications can often survive with a spreadsheet.

Simple lists, early planning notes and one-person admin can be fine in a workbook.
Spreadsheets are cheap, familiar and easy to reshape.
They become risky when multiple people, payments, documents, portals or event-day lists depend on them.

Where they start costing you

The problem is not the spreadsheet. The problem is the work around it: copying data, chasing updates, reconciling payments, finding attachments and explaining which version is current.

Form exports go stale as soon as an applicant updates something.
Payment links, invoices and refunds drift away from the trader, participant or ticket they belong to.
Site teams, gate teams, finance and organisers work from different versions of the truth.

What event management software changes

SmartGig connects the work around the event so status, documents and decisions move with it.

Applications become participant profiles, not static rows in an export.
Each event keeps its documents, payments, messages, site plans, transport sheets, running orders, tickets and check-in history.
Roles, portals and scanner access give the right people scoped tools instead of another shared file.

When to switch

Move before your team starts building unofficial side systems to protect themselves from the official one. That is a clear sign.

You are running recurring markets, multi-day events or multiple modules.
Trader applications, ticketing, compliance, site plans, transport or stage schedules need to share current event details.
Event-day teams need live information, not stale printed lists.

What moves out of the spreadsheet

The goal is not to ban spreadsheets from the building. The goal is to stop using them as the live operational system for work that needs status, permissions, audit history and public portals.

Applications move into forms, reviews, participant profiles and portals.
Payments move into invoices, balances, manual tenders, Stripe payments, refunds and audit history.
Event-day lists move into scanner access, live status, exports and reports.

Use exports for handover, not live status

Exports still matter. Finance teams, suppliers and councils may need CSVs, PDFs or packs. SmartGig generates them from current event data, so the team does not have to maintain a separate working copy inside an export.

Generate cleaner documents from the event workspace when a handover file is needed.
Regenerate exports after payments, compliance, site plans, routes or schedules change.
Use audit history and retained event data when the team needs to understand what happened later.

See what else SmartGig can help with.

See SmartGig with your own event in mind.

Walk through your application process, ticket flow, site plan, route sheet, stage schedule or current spreadsheet with us.

Start 14-day trial Book a demo