Groupings are an incredibly powerful tool in the EventBooking system. In EB's "Event Family," the grouping is at the very top of the hierarchy, the highest "Parent Event." This article will define exactly what groupings are, how they work and how to use them to increase your organization and productivity in the EventBooking system.
Example 1, The Event Family:
<code>- Grouping:
- Event 1
- Event 2
- Sub-event or function 1
- Sub-event or function 2
- What is a Grouping?
- Benefits of Groupings
- Examples of Groupings
- Creating and Working with Groupings
- More Fun with Groupings
What is a Grouping?
As the name implies, a grouping is a group of multiple events. Events in the grouping have independent attributes (each with its own name, type, status, etc.) but are usually related in some way. Examples include a group of multiple holds for the same concert/artist, a series of basketball games or a recurring monthly meeting. The grouping itself has attributes, much like events, such as name, status, type and contact information. This allows the EventBooking system to generate documents and reports over the grouping as a whole, as one might often produce a single contract for all the events within the grouping.
Benefits of Groupings
Organization and Mass Editing
Groupings allow one to conveniently organize related events into the same family, keeping things all in one place and easier to identify and manage. By placing related events in a grouping, one gains access to a host of mass editing functionality for the entire group while each event retains independent entities and attributes.
Hold Multiple Dates
Groupings of holds allow one to quickly book multiple dates, each with a separate hold. The grouping ties the holds together with the same agency/promoter. By booking a grouping of holds using the Next Available Tentative status, each hold retains its own status and is booked to the highest option available depending on whether or not existing holds exist on the date.
Reporting and Form Generation
As stated above, the grouping allows the system to report on the grouping as a whole rather than each individual event. It also allows contracts and forms to be generated over the entire grouping for multiple show dates, an entire sports season or recurring events.
Examples of Groupings
Here are some typical uses for groupings:
- A grouping of multiple holds from the same promoter or agency
- A 2013-2014 season of NHL hockey games
- An event with multiple show days over several weeks
- A group of weekly sales meetings for an entire year
- A large event where move-in days and show days need to be tracked separately, but contracted together under a grouping
Creating and Working With Groupings
Adding a Grouping with Events
You are able to create a grouping and add events via the Add Grouping with Events form or via the Quick Add. Using the add form will allow you to include additional information as you add the grouping; the Quick Add will allow you to view your calendar as you add your events. For step-by-step directions on both methods, see the articles below:
But I've already created my events! Can I move them into a grouping?
Yes, you can! See this article for instructions.
Adding New Events to an Existing Grouping
If you already have a grouping with events and you simply need to add more events to it, see this article for instructions: Adding New Events to an Existing Grouping.
Copying to Groupings
Copying an event to an existing grouping can be used to hold additional dates or shows, while copying to a new grouping can be useful when using a previous event as a template to book a new season or group of events. For instructions, see this article.
More Fun with Groupings
Now that we have covered all possible ways to get events into groupings, here are some of the expanded functions that are now possible.
Mass Edit from the Grouping Level
To mass edit from the grouping level, go to the details page for that grouping. If you are looking at one particular event in the grouping, you will see the hierarchy on the left side. The grouping resides at the top (as the parent event).
From the grouping details page, you should find a tab called Child Events (or something similar). This tab will list all the events in the grouping and also give an option above called Mass Edit. Clicking Mass Edit allows you to quickly make changes to details regarding each event.
Mass Edit from the Event Bin
You can also use the event bin for extended mass editing functionality such as status changes or publicity announcements. From the grouping details page, go to the Actions bar on the top-right and click Send to Bin > Children Only. This sends all child events into the event bin for editing. Details of the event bin are covered in the webinar linked below.
Report on Groupings
From the reports editor page, you can select whether you want to run reports over grouping, event or sub-event/function levels. Now that we have some events in a grouping you can choose to report just on grouping and filter by grouping-specific attributes (e.g. NBA games). Please see the reports webinars for more details.
Generate Forms on a Grouping
Custom forms, such as contracts or booking confirmation forms, can be generated against the grouping level. When a custom form is created, the relevant event level can be specified as Grouping. You can now generate one contract over multiple events in a series/grouping or create confirmation listing all holds, dates and statuses within a particular grouping.
Copy Entire Groupings
Finally, you may have a grouping that serves as a template for some type of event or series of events. You can then copy the entire grouping by going to the Actions bar and clicking Copy Grouping.
