Eventbrite

Owned by Jodie Miners
Last updated: Oct 03, 2017
7 min read
Linkhttps://www.eventbrite.com/spectrum/salesforce/
PricingFREE
5 Users / Year$0
DescriptionOfficial Eventbrite app for Salesforce

Note: This page was written in 2015 based on the older version of the App. They do have a new app that is quite different in the way it works. 

  • Import from Eventbrite only
  • Questions go into a custom object, then you get to decide what to do with them - eg Process Builder to update the Campaign Member with their dietary requirements
  • Optional mapping to custom objects (but again, keep things mapped to standard salesforce objects where possible. 

As I haven't used this version in anger (really trying to achieve something with it), I have not updated this page yet. As soon as I do use the new app, I will do. 

Here is the documentation https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Hniu7vvpJqyZpCmZDNUibWslGWwShKdbZ1YBSgRtAYI/edit#heading=h.2xcytpi

And as at Oct-2017 they are working on new features, which is good to see. Oh and they do have official support in place too, which is good! 

Beware!

A brand new install of this app and I got an integration error that the URL for the Single Event Sync API had been Permanently Moved. See below as to why I got this error.

I have spent hours configuring this app (and did not finish) and tried to just import one event and it completely failed with an API error. There is no documentation about this error or why it occurred, and not support listed on the Appexchange for this product.

HOWEVER, there apparently IS support - email eventbritesync@eventbrite.com as per this twitter thread, and they thankfully helped me get to the bottom of this API Error.

Javascript Buttons

 Eventbrite Sync uses Javascript Buttons that are planned to be removed from Salesforce. Hopefully they come up with an alternative before this inevitability.

Details

Use this app rather than the Groundwire or any of the other sync apps. 

Documentation

https://appexchange.salesforce.com/servlet/servlet.FileDownload?file=00P3000000P3XE7EAN

https://www.eventbrite.com/support/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/getting-started-with-eventbritesync-and-salesforce?lg=en_US

https://www.eventbrite.com/spectrum/salesforce/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lx9t5G20Zv4

Setup

APIs - connects to eventbrite.com and eventbriteapi.com 

  • Install
  • Authenticate
  • Set up Sync Configuration
  • Mapping - See Mapping Below
    • Load the fields from Eventbrite
  • Add the Eventbrite ID and Eventbrite sync button to the Campaign layout for your Eventbrite Record Type
  • Create a Campaign, enter the Eventbrite ID for that event. 
  • Sync one event. 
  • FAIL!!!!

Mapping

Before you do your mapping ensure you have

  • A Campaign Record Type created
  • An Opportunity Record Type created
  • A Contact Record Type created
  • A Campaign Member Record Type created (see below)
  • A data source field created on each object - set the static value to Eventbrite Sync - you should always have a notation on each record as to where that record came from and how it was created in Salesforce. 
  • Fields for all the matching fields in Evenbrite - the app does not install even the basic fields so you have to manually create them, which is annoying. 
  • An intricate knowledge of how ALL your events are set up in Eventbrite, what fields you are using, what questions you are asking etc. 
  • Decide which Attendee fields will be mapped to the Campaign (each and every event), or the Contact - overwritten with new events (if that is the way it was imported??)
  • A Campaign Page Layout for the Record Type - add the Visualforce pages to the Page Layout - fiddle around with the heights of the visualforce pages. 

Mapping Issues

Campaigns

  • Event Start Time - What is it - the Date or the Time - the event start on Eventbrite shows as "Tuesday, 22 September 2015 at 6:00 PM (AEST)" - which part of that gets created as the start time? What is the data source for the start time? 

    • At least it does work - it just sets the date. 

Leads

  • Why oh why would you import event attendees as Leads - unless you had some weird event where they had not paid any money. Remember Money in Salesforce only belongs on Accounts and is stored in Opportunities - DON'T break the Salesforce data model! 
  • Ensure you set the Company Name to Self if you are using NPSP. 

Contacts

  • Why oh why oh why can you NOT map any fields other that First Name, Last Name and Email for the Buyer, when you can ask for this details on Eventbrite - This is ridiculous! Unbelievable. What is the point of creating these contacts in Salesforce if you can't map ALL their details! You are assuming that the Buyer is the Attendee in all cases then! 

Campaign Member

  • You can't set a Campaign Member Record Type through Evenbrite Sync so try and avoid using Campaign Member Types because you can't set them via workflows at all, and if the Campaigns from Eventbrite are being created automatically you don't want to have to come back and manually change the Campaign Member Type. 
  • Just add a section on the Campaign Member Page Layout for Eventbrite Details.
  • Campaign Member Statuses do NOT have Responded flags - this could be important for reporting or other integrations. My suggestion is to add AAKonsult Campaign Stats

Large No. of Fields

  • If you are mapping a large number of fields, please save very regularly! 
  • However then the No. of Questions per page goes back to 25 which is highly annoying! 

New Fields

  • If you add new fields, remember to refresh the page before you click Edit, or they won't be there. 

Opportunities

  • Opportunity stages are created as "placed" and "refunded". 
    • Why aren't they in capitals. 
    • Why have they not been "mapped" to existing Salesforce Stages like Closed Won or Lost
    • And for some strange reason these stages are set as inactive! Why? And they are set as 0% - again Why? 
  • OMG, it does NOT Map the Account ID - WTAF? Really? 
    • You are going to have to add an Account named Eventbrite Attendees, and hard code that in the mapping. 
      • NOPE, you can NOT add Account ID in the static mapping. 
      • So you are going to have to add a Process Builder process on Create to add the hard coded Account ID to the Opportunity. 
      • UNBELIVABLE!!!!!
    • Again, this is NOT in the documentation - you just have to make this stuff up as you go along. 

Working with the NPSP

 Eventbrite does not work so great with the NPSP. It does NOT add an Account to the Opportunity (see above).

  • If you use the Bucket Model (not ideal), just add the hard coded Bucket Account ID to the static mapping.
  • If you use the One to One Model (usual), add a hard coded account ID as above, then add a process builder process to update the Account Name to the Buyer's Account ID if the Account is blank and the record type is Eventbrite Sales - you should not need the Process noted above also.
  • Maybe also set the Primary Contact on this process also.

But it does, by default, create the Contacts really well - because it only knows how to create Contacts - and the NPSP will handle creating the account for you.

 

  • OMG, there is NO field to show HOW MANY TICKETS have been purchased for each Order 
    • I just don't believe the missing features in this App. 
    • You can't even work it out by formula, because the ticket prices are only bought in by a VF page, not a related object. 

Testing

Before you click the button to sync all your 150 previous events into Salesforce you will want to test one event only. Be careful - this is where I got the error. I got the eventbrite ID from the URL of the event in Eventbrite, added it to a new Campaign in Salesforce in the Eventbrite ID field. Added the Sync button the Campaign page layout, and clicked Sync. I immediately got an error that the API was PERMANENTLY MOVED. This is not good. 

However, as I'm not a huge Eventbrite user, the error message did not help me. 

I had entered the Eventbrite ID for an Event Series, not an individual event - so please make sure you get the Eventbrite ID for the actual event, not the series. 

Using Eventbrite Sync

After setting up your Campaigns

Notes

Issues

If you have the same question on each event, it imports it as multiple questions - this is ridiculous! But it is a limitation of Eventbrite as they do not handle organisations with a large number of events well - eg you can't set up a question that is used on ALL events. So you end up having to map around 500 different questions all to the same field - stupid, stupid, stupid! 

There is no way to even show which questions are from which events so to just map one event you have to map hundreds of fields. This is probably the most stupidest app implementation I have ever seen, but it's more to do with Eventbrite itself rather than the integration. I had 1250 fields to MAP - that is just Ludicrous! 

And if you just want to filter on Draft events it still shows the questions for ALL events which is even stupider. 

There is no default Email Opt in or Out fields in Eventbrite which would be REALLY important to comply with SPAM laws around the world, so you have to create it for every event and then map it for every occurrence of the question. Stupid Stupid Stupid! 

What it doesn't sync

  • Ticket pricing details
  • Organiser details. 
  • Event Type*
  • Event Topic*

/* These are very important for doing event reporting and tracking of events - it's ridiculous that they are not synced. 

What it can't do

  • Allow you to create and plan your events in Salesforce and then make them live on Eventbrite. 

Questions

What even is that silly documentation of triggers on the main help document - why would you want a DEFAULT parent? And why would you create a trigger and not just a process builder process? Grrr! 

WHY ARE THEY TELLING PEOPLE TO MAP TO A CUSTOM EVENTS OBJECT - IN WHAT UNIVERSE WOULD EVENTS NOT BE CAMPAIGNS!!! GRRRRRR!

Why oh why did they create a new object called Eventbrite Contact Lists which is replicating Campaigns!!! Stupid. 

 

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