Grip announces deal for new event management system

• Grip, the flexible AI-powered event platform, has acquired the event management system (EMS) from Connectiv Holdings, which uses the platform to power its Manifest, Medicarians and Blueprint confex events
• The newly acquired products are now part of Grip’s ‘Manage’ product suite, a powerful EMS that saves organizers time and drives participant conversions
• Manage includes: Registration, Sponsor / Exhibitor Management, Side Event Management and Smart Badges
• This acquisition means Grip is now the most complete, end-to-end solution for commercial event organizers that want to generate more revenue from their events
• With ‘Manage’ (Grip’s new EMS) and ‘Engage’ (Grip’s existing suite of products, which includes its mobile app and AI-powered meetings) Grip offers commercial organizers a complete, end-to-end platform for the first time
• Newly announced Grip customers using Manage include HumanX, which has been founded by the team behind Money2020, Shoptalk, HLTH and ViVE
• Grip also offers organizers complete flexibility: they can use all the features Grip offers as an end-to-end platform, or go modular by choosing which elements of the platform they’d like to use with their existing event tech stack

Grip, the AI-powered event platform built for revenue growth, has acquired Connectiv Holdings’ event management system (EMS) which powers leading events such as Manifest (logistics tech with 6,000+ participants), Blueprint (real estate tech) and Medicarians (senior health, wealth & age tech). 

The newly acquired products are now part of Grip’s ‘Manage’ product suite, a powerful EMS that saves organizers time and drives participant conversions. Now offered to event organizers internationally, Manage includes four class-leading products: 

• Event Registration: A seamless registration platform, which helps large conference, trade show and confex event organizers increase registrant conversions
• Sponsor / Exhibitor Management: A portal which gives exhibitors and sponsors all the tasks and resources they need to succeed
• Side Event Management: Sponsors and exhibitors are now able to list and launch their own side or ‘satellite’ events as part of the main show
• Smart Badges: Participants can now easily exchange contact information with the click of a button on their electronic smart badges. Organizers benefit from a 10x increase in connections plus rich insights, like heat maps showing where connections are taking place, plus session tracking

Events using the new Grip Manage solution include HumanX, a new AI gathering, which has been founded by the team behind Money2020, Shoptalk, HLTH and ViVE with $6m in venture funding.

Emily Narcessian, Head of Product, HumanX, said: “I am passionate about leveraging new event technology to create a unique, stellar experience for attendees. Nearly every goal HumanX set to achieve this, Grip is able to provide. One of the reasons why it made the decision really easy for our company to work with them.

“I am really excited about using Grip’s newly integrated product to transform the way we craft and design the attendee journey by taking an honest, user-centered approach that considers both their functional and emotional journey throughout the event. With this, we will be able to elevate the event experience and maximize attendee engagement by making it easier for people to connect, which adds to a memorable experience at HumanX.”

Grip’s new, comprehensive, yet flexible, platform

This deal means that for the first time, Grip offers commercial event organizers a complete, end-to-end platform featuring registration, sponsor / exhibitor management, mobile app, AI-powered meetings, smart badges and more. 

While at the same time, the platform provides organizers flexibility to choose the features they need. For example, organizers can use their existing registration and event management products in combination with Grip’s event engagement platform (i.e. matchmaking, meetings and mobile event app) thanks to the company’s Native Integrations wizard.

“This acquisition means we’re now the most complete solution for event organizers wanting to increase revenue,” explained Tim Groot, founder and CEO of Grip. “In addition, our research shows that using the Connectiv Holdings’ EMS results in significantly higher event app activations, connections and meetings. This is because having such a powerful event management solution, including registration, means we have more control of the data flowing into our platform, improving outcomes for event organizers and their participants. This leads to our customers benefiting from better event satisfaction scores, increased growth and ultimately, higher revenues.”

In numbers: superior engagement with an EMS

Grip has had a deep integration with Connectiv Holding’s EMS since 2018. Therefore, it has extensive data to prove the multiple benefits it brings organizers, such as a 250% increase in the number of connections made at events.  It analyzed the benefits of introducing an EMS and identified the following benefits:

Reference: Stats taken by comparing events that use Connectiv Holding’s EMS with those that don’t use one at all (stats exclude Smart Badge usage)

Grip customers driving the EMS acquisition

Grip’s existing customers were the catalyst behind this acquisition, according to Tim: “This deal has been driven by our customers. They’ve been constantly asking us for an integrated registration system, and all the other EMS tools needed to seamlessly manage their events. That’s why we went on the hunt for the best system we could find. Rather than build it ourselves, we went one better: we acquired and integrated an EMS built by event organizers for event organizers. 

“This acquisition further enhances Grip’s AI-powered platform. We now have complete, end-to-end visibility of customers’ events. This means even better quality data entering the platform, thanks to Grip offering registration, resulting in better participant engagement and deeper insights. This data loop means we are constantly helping organizers improve and grow each event, year-on-year.

Flexibility: organizers can integrate their own tools with Grip’s modular solution

“This deal means that from today we can offer all the tools organizers need to generate more revenue from their events. Plus, if organizers want to use their own tools, we can integrate with any software they have, thanks to our modular platform, which features a powerful native integrations wizard. It’s the best case scenario for our existing and prospective customers that want flexibility. They can use our complete platform or go modular by simply integrating specific Grip products with their existing event tech stack.”

Why Connectiv Holdings’ built its own EMS

The EMS Grip acquired was built by Connectiv Holdings, the New York-based event studio co-founded by Jay Weintraub, the company’s CEO: “We began investing in our proprietary technology stack six years ago because none of the existing tools could help us both operate more efficiently while also creating the type of experiences that set our events apart,” said Jay. “Everyone wants to sell more tickets, but you only do that by empowering your team and solving for the attendees.

“We want and expect our technology to help us make more money, but revenue for us is the result of solving a problem preventing others from the experience they want. Event registration is a classic example. If I want to buy ten tickets today to lock in a specific price, why should I be asked for every participant’s information or be asked for a unique email address for each ticket at the time of purchase?

“Our partnership with Grip began four years ago, and our teams have built deep integrations together. This partnership has certainly aided our industry leading NPS scores and helped our shows during and post acquisition.”

To discover more about Grip’s AI-powered events platform, please visit: www.grip.events