Case Study

The ARU Discovers a Revolution in Efficiency and Savings with the Floktu Event Management Platform

Challenge
For the Australian Rugby Union (ARU), the prestigious DHL Australia 2013 Lions Tour and Rugby Championship involves the sale of some 40,000 corporate hospitality match-day seats. Previously the ARU had managed agent ticket sales, company information, event management logistics and invoicing with paper-based systems. Everything got done, but only by my working late into the night most nights and weekends, says Di Holman, ARUs Senior Manager Hospitality & Events. Nothing was integrated. Sales and commissions all got recorded manually. Even with continual cross-checking, there was the potential for human error. I had to walk around to Finance to get invoices created which created time lags and the potential for lost paperwork. We had a challenging time keeping track of match day inventory sold and did not have the ability to provide a 100% accurate report of our inventory at any given point in time. Other deficiencies included, real time visibility to bookings that the hospitality agents had in their systems, no ability to provide reports to assist with efficient financial reconciliations with agents, unable to invoice within 12 hours of lodging a booking and no survey feedback.

Solution
After extensive product research, the ARU selected Floktu (www.floktu.com), an integrated cloud-based system that handles everything from hospitality ticket sales, event day information, financial and inventory reporting, surveys and event reporting as its new event management platform. Among the capabilities figuring in the Floktu decision were: minimal help needed from the ARUs IT group because of web-based technology, Floktus user pays pricing model which assisted with budgeting, the prospect of improved customer service for both agents and attendees, back-end integration with the ARUs financial systems, and Floktus willingness to customise the platform where needed. As added perks, looking good on smartphones would enhance our branding and the match-day experience, allowing guests to manage their own hospitality booking and the reduction of staff required to process invoices and enter bookings.

Results
Using Floktu, the ARU has an efficient, mobile-integrated, highly secure, registration and event management system that is able to process hundreds of additional bookings more accurately in less time. Management had real-time data for faster decision-making and attendee information for themselves and sponsors. Costs for software and labour fell. All that ridiculous overwork is behind us now, says Di Holman. We can now create an excellent experience for our guests and solicit their feedback, without blowing out costs. We also get to grow our brand internationally as an innovative organisation. Aside from match day events, we are now using Floktu for all our VIP events. Thanks to Floktu, weve got the fun - and financial returns - back into event management.