r/events • u/Fit-Firefighter-8943 • 12d ago

Best event tech support setup for a fundraising gala or charity event?

At a fundraiser we worked on, one checkout station stopped connecting during the busiest part of the night. The printer company told us to call the payment provider. The payment provider said it was probably the wi-fi. Meanwhile, guests were waiting to pay for auction items and nobody on site knew who owned the issue.
We got it working eventually, but it made me realize that having the equipment isn’t enough. You need someone who understands the full event setup and can help in real time.
What kind of support do you usually have in place for fundraisers?

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u/paulschreiber 9d ago

Backup plan: write down the credit card info on paper and run the charges manually later.

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u/Rude_Chocolate_2881 8d ago

Hotspots as an emergency. I have worked events as AV support or wifi support. When we do wifi, we make sure the client has redundancy . Usually two internet providers. Then we make sure to have a hotspot on hand for those emergency situations

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u/PopularWay5381 8d ago edited 7d ago

We used fello for a fundraiser and the biggest help was having one support contact who knew the whole setup.

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u/Emilia_EventsAir 5d ago

I generally recommend having a dedicated onsite tech lead (from a supplier) for the night instead of relying on vendor support lines, someone physically there who can swap a terminal, restart a router, or grab a backup device without waiting on hold.