Event Tool Comparison FAQ | Company A vs. Company B vs. BASE — A Full Breakdown
This is Hamamoto from TIMEWELL. "Is Company A good enough, or is there something better out there?" When people start running events, tool selection is a common stumbling block. Company A, Company B, and our own BASE each have distinct strengths and weaknesses.
Which one actually fits your events? Here are answers to common questions, looking at cost, features, ease of use, and extensibility.
Basic Information and Features
Q: What is Company A?
A: One of Japan's largest event platforms, with a member base of over 8.4 million. Free events cost nothing to run, and you can create an event page in as little as 5 minutes. Its greatest strength is discovery — Company A users search for "events near me" and flow in organically, so even without your own mailing list, attendees find you.
Q: What is Company B?
A: An event management platform built for corporate use. Its main selling point is a high degree of customization, with support for large-scale conferences and trade shows. Strong capabilities for invitation management and attendee tracking — heavily used by B2B companies.
Q: How is BASE different as an event tool?
A: BASE is fundamentally different in that it is not a standalone event tool — it builds event features into a community platform. The design keeps attendees in the community after events end. It's suited for those who want to use events not as "one-off promotion" but as a starting point for "ongoing relationship building." The AI-native design also makes it strong on automation and analytics.
Q: What other event tools are available?
A: eventos (large-scale virtual events), CLOUD PASS (trade shows and festivals), STORES Reservation (salons and classes), and more. For tech and engineering events, Company F is hard to ignore — it's free and has unmatched pull in the developer meetup and study group scene. The right tool depends on your use case, so "what kind of event is this for?" should be your starting point.
Looking to optimize community management?
We have prepared materials on BASE best practices and success stories.
Cost Comparison
Q: How much does each tool cost?
A: Here's a breakdown of pricing for the three main services:
| Service | Free Events | Paid Events | Monthly Fixed Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company A | Free | 4.9% + ¥99/ticket | None |
| Company B | Free | Varies by plan | Depends on plan |
| BASE | Free | Included in monthly plan | Yes (plan-dependent) |
Company A's pay-per-use model makes it cost-effective for small, infrequent events. Company B's corporate plans carry a monthly fixed fee, but for large events the per-ticket cost can work out favorably. BASE bundles event features into community operating costs — so if you're running both a community and events, consolidating into one platform can save money.
Q: Are free tools sufficient?
A: For trying out a small free event, they're perfectly fine. However, once you need paid ticket sales, brand-aligned design customization, and detailed analytics reports, upgrading to a paid plan becomes necessary. Test with a free plan, and once you've built confidence in the approach, make the switch.
Q: How do I compare payment fees?
A: For paid events, compare the fee rate per ticket. Company A is straightforward at 4.9% + ¥99/ticket. Company B varies by plan. If you're running multiple events per month with higher-priced tickets, a monthly flat-rate plan can work out cheaper overall. Run the numbers based on your annual event frequency and ticket price.
Feature Comparison
Q: How do attendee management features differ?
A: This is where each tool's design philosophy shows through. Company A's core features are viewing the applicant list, sending messages, and QR code check-in — simple and hard to get lost in. Company B goes a step further with invitation management, session-level attendance tracking, and capturing visitor behavior data. BASE has a different approach: management is based on community membership, so it supports unified management — including communication before and after the event.
Q: How do email delivery features differ?
A: Company A allows bulk messaging to applicants, but design customization is limited. Company B's corporate plan supports custom HTML email delivery. BASE works as a notification system for community members and can be combined with push notifications for higher delivery rates. Honestly, if email delivery functionality alone is your deciding factor, Company B offers the most flexibility.
Q: Do they have survey features?
A: All three support surveys. Company A provides basic survey functionality. Company B supports detailed questionnaire design with custom forms. BASE naturally enables feedback collection within the community, and integrating with external tools like Google Forms is straightforward as well.
Customization and Branding Questions
Q: How much can I customize the event page design?
A: Company A customization is limited to what the template allows — you can change the header image and text, but not the layout itself. Company B supports CSS editing and custom domains (corporate plan), enabling pages that match your brand identity. BASE lets you build event pages as part of a visually unified community design.
Q: Can I use a custom domain?
A: Company A pages use the Company A domain only. Company B supports custom domains on corporate plans. BASE also supports custom domain configuration. If brand consistency matters to your organization, choose a service that supports custom domains.
Q: Is design aligned to brand guidelines possible?
A: Company B and BASE both support this on corporate plans. You can customize logos, colors, and fonts to match your guidelines. Company A has limited branding freedom, which may not work for organizations with strict guidelines.
API Integration and Extensibility
Q: Can I integrate with CRMs or marketing automation tools?
A: Company B supports data integration with MA tools like HubSpot and Marketo. Company A has limited official APIs; integration is typically done via middleware like Zapier. BASE is designed with API integration in mind, enabling automatic syncing of event participation data into your CRM.
Q: What can the API actually do?
A: Automatic retrieval of attendee data, real-time ticket sales status sync, and automated follow-up email delivery to attendees are the typical use cases. Leveraging the API eliminates manual data transcription, significantly reducing operational workload.
Q: Is Webhook support available?
A: Company B supports Webhooks on corporate plans. Company A does not officially offer Webhooks. BASE supports Webhook notifications, enabling real-time data transmission to external systems when a registration occurs or a ticket is purchased.
How to Decide
Q: Which tool should I ultimately choose?
A: Choose based on your purpose.
| Purpose | Recommended |
|---|---|
| Maximum organic discovery and attendance | Company A |
| Running large-scale conferences | Company B |
| Building ongoing relationships starting from events | BASE |
| Running your first event | BASE |
| Complete brand consistency | Company B / BASE |
| Combined community + event management | BASE |
Q: Is using multiple tools together a problem?
A: Not at all, but watch for data fragmentation. Based on what I hear from customers, using Company A for discovery and BASE for post-event community follow-up is a very common combination. What matters is building a mechanism to consolidate attendee data in one place.
Summary
There is no single right answer for event tool selection. The best choice is whatever fits your situation.
- Discovery-focused, primarily standalone events: Company A — easy to get started
- Corporate use, customization priority: Company B — handles granular requirements
- Unified community + event management: BASE — consolidates from event to post-event relationship building
- Not sure where to start: BASE lets you create an event page in 60 seconds — start small and see how things respond
We also have a whitepaper summarizing features, costs, and extensibility across tools, which you can use as internal reference material. For anyone who wants to make events more than a one-off, and build lasting relationships with attendees, please consider adding BASE to your evaluation.
