If you're an event professional (photographer, caterer, DJ, florist, etc.), you know that being an event professional (photographer, caterer, DJ, florist, etc.) is the easy part. It's all the other things you have to do to run an event business that are the hard parts. No event pro goes into business to run a business—so most don't—and it costs them. In lost opportunities, lost business, and lost money.
In event management, efficiency and simplicity are paramount. This is where cue, a CRM tailored for the event industry, emerges as a game-changer. With a background in IT and a passion for DJing, founder Lou Paris found himself at a crossroads in his mobile DJ business. While experiencing rapid growth, he encountered the frustrating lack of a suitable productivity platform bespoken to the nuances of his business. Determined to bridge this gap, Paris innovated cue, a B2B SaaS productivity suite designed specifically for event professionals.
Comprehensive Simplicity Drives cue
At the heart of cue's success lies its commitment to simplicity. Paris emphasizes the platform's focus on simplifying complexity, ensuring user convenience across all its features. One of cue's standout features is its turnkey automations, which offer pre-built templates for swift adoption and seamless workflows. These templates, derived from Paris's personal experience and contributions from other industry professionals, enable users to streamline their processes.
Paris adds, "You literally can adopt the platform within minutes and be running. There isn't a platform out there right now that has that type of capability, there's nothing specific to our industry."
Another distinctive feature of cue is its exclusive Venue Intelligence, which provides comprehensive insights for event planning from crowd-sourced information. "This way, other professionals that are coming into a venue that may have never been there will have a wealth of knowledge about a place they've never worked before." This wealth of data includes details on floor plans, power supply, photography opportunities, and potential challenges that enable professionals to make informed decisions before stepping foot into a venue.
Paris explains, "Another feature that we're really looking forward to, either for this year or next year, is the social media engine aspect of this. Other platforms just simply don't have a way to ingest all the media surrounding an event. For example, working at a wedding, you might have one tool for your video side, one tool for your imaging, and then if you have to do a social media post, you're basically scratching your head, wondering, 'Okay, who did I work with here? When did this happen? Which couple was this?' Because you might be shooting 30, 60, 90 couples in a year. It's a wealth of disparate information that you want to try to gather and coalesce. This is going to be the one huge advantage of cue. All the media can be ingested on our platform. By integrating all event media and leveraging AI capabilities, users can even effortlessly create and schedule social media posts, saving valuable time and ensuring accuracy in content attribution."
Crucial Value Proposition
cue's all-in-one solution simplifies event management by integrating essential features within a single platform. From automation that prevents potential losses to venue intelligence that enhances profitability, cue offers tangible business impact for event professionals. Its quick onboarding process, facilitated by customizable templates, ensures that users can get started within minutes, catering to both time-strapped novices and pro-users seeking customization options.
Evolving cue for Tomorrow's Needs
Driven by user feedback, cue continues to evolve to meet the evolving needs of the event industry. Paris has many plans for the future. Upcoming features include a focus on more venue management, equipment tracking, and leveraging big data for informed decision-making. By prioritizing development based on user feedback and market demand, cue aims to remain at the forefront of event tech innovation that empowers professionals to stay ahead in a competitive industry.
Paris shares one story. "I know somebody; a very successful multi-op who manages 10–12 DJs, but has been kind of stuck doing things manually; spreadsheets, google sheets and foldable pdfs. We were talking, and he related to me that he had lost somewhere north of 20 leads that month simply because he couldn't get to them in time. Without some sort of automation to lighten the load, each point of contact was the same time-consuming manual process, and there simply weren't enough hours in the day to keep up. Being able to automate something as simple as lead follow-up, so that you were staying in touch with a couple until they either schedule a consultation or opt out, would have saved this guy energy and helped make him more money."
Traction and User Engagement
Currently boasting over 800 pilot users, Paris' user base continues to grow steadily. While many users are on the free tier, cue's strategy revolves around enticing them with the platform's full feature set and upcoming developments. By leveraging direct marketing strategies and capitalizing on the growing user base, cue aims to convert free users into paid subscribers to solidify its position as a leading solution in the event management space.
As Paris' cue propels into the future, its commitment to simplicity, innovation, and user-centric design remains hyper-focused. With a suite of features tailored to the unique needs of event professionals, cue is redefining event management, offering a seamless and efficient solution for professionals striving for excellence in their craft.
Check out cue's many unique event management features for your business.
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