Saffire Blog

NALS&RMA 2012 Recap

We (Cassie and Kendra) just got back from the North American Livestock Show and Rodeo Managers’ Association Annual Meeting in Shreveport, LA, and we had a blast! Of course, we learned how to host a stellar rodeo and livestock show, but these folks sure knew how to have a good time while we learned. Louisiana … Continue reading “NALS&RMA 2012 Recap”

We (Cassie and Kendra) just got back from the North American Livestock Show and Rodeo Managers’ Association Annual Meeting in Shreveport, LA, and we had a blast! Of course, we learned how to host a stellar rodeo and livestock show, but these folks sure knew how to have a good time while we learned.

Louisiana has a ton to offer and we took full advantage of the culture, food and warm weather.

One of our first stops was Alligator Park, where we saw, you guessed it, a ton of alligators!

We even saw the house where the wedding from Steel Magnolias was filmed!

Then in the evening, we spent a little time drinking mint juleps on the porch and having delicious BBQ at a fabulous plantation.

We also took a trip to the country and saw the fantastic LSU Ag Research Center, where we took a hayride to visit some cows. They were also growing some amazing-looking tomatoes in a greenhouse. These were honestly the biggest tomato plants I’ve ever seen. So delicious!

We had the change to hear from a great speaker named Teresa Allen, who kicked her presentation off with a Mardi Gras style entrance by the officers, who threw beads to get the crowd going.

Our visit to the Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City was incredible. We saw some awesome planes and got a tour from a retired Air Force vet. It was such a treat so close to Memorial Day!

We got to eat crawfish at the LA Exhibit Museum, where Jarrod from HOT Fair and Karla from State Fair of Texas showed us how it’s done.

To cap off our trip, we went to Mudbug Madness, Shreveport’s biggest crawfish festival! The festival hung a sign to welcome our group, and Cassie made sure everyone was using their new Saffire koozies!

A special thanks to the staff and volunteers at The State Fair of Louisiana for showing us around your great state. We had such a fantastic time at the NALS&RMA Annual Meeting, and we can’t wait until next year!

Saffire 101: Dashboards

A few of our clients not only use the Saffire software to manage their customer website, but also to keep track of their members. Our member sites includes a member specific calendar, directory, member profiles, events and documents. With Saffire 1.8, we updated our password-protected admin site to better differentiate between your customer and member … Continue reading “Saffire 101: Dashboards”

A few of our clients not only use the Saffire software to manage their customer website, but also to keep track of their members. Our member sites includes a member specific calendar, directory, member profiles, events and documents.

With Saffire 1.8, we updated our password-protected admin site to better differentiate between your customer and member site management tools with two distinct dashboards.

Watch this quick video as Jessica shows you how to navigate around your new and improved admin site!

What’s the big deal about ecommerce?

If you’ve had a conversation with one of our team members for longer than 30 seconds, we’ve probably told you how important we think ecommerce is to the success of any event. Our roots are in ecommerce for large companies and we’ve proved our theory to be true, so it’s no surprise we are so … Continue reading “What’s the big deal about ecommerce?”

If you’ve had a conversation with one of our team members for longer than 30 seconds, we’ve probably told you how important we think ecommerce is to the success of any event. Our roots are in ecommerce for large companies and we’ve proved our theory to be true, so it’s no surprise we are so sure that it will help increase revenue for your event.

Even though we are spreading the ecommerce message far and wide, we still find events that are skeptical, so we’ve decided to try a new approach. They say “A picture is worth 1,000 words,” and in this case I couldn’t agree more! This infographic tells you just about every reason we have (and a few more) as to why your event MUST have ecommerce.

So let’s recap:

50% of the online population has made more than one purchase online.
Over the course of 2012, 184 million people will shop online.
By 2015 US consumers will spend $270 billion online!

Folks, if these stats don’t convince you that it is time to make ecommerce a priority, I don’t know what will!

Saffire 101: Help Desk

Customers tell us all the time that one of the reasons they wanted to work with Saffire was the ability to control their own website! But having control over your site doesn’t mean you won’t need a little help now and then. As you are getting to know our software, you may have questions and … Continue reading “Saffire 101: Help Desk”

Customers tell us all the time that one of the reasons they wanted to work with Saffire was the ability to control their own website!

But having control over your site doesn’t mean you won’t need a little help now and then. As you are getting to know our software, you may have questions and our team has the answers!

And while our team isn’t available 24 hours a day 7 days a week (we do require a little bit of sleep), that doesn’t mean you should have to wait to find answers to your questions. You should have access to help all the time!

We recently released the new and improved Saffire Help Desk so you can find answers to your questions whenever you need a little extra help. Check it out!

Saffire Updates: Version 1.8

We are very excited to introduce the new features we’ve included in the Saffire software with Version 1.8, including the biggest update we’ve had so far this year! The most exciting thing in this release is a complete redesign of your mobile site! As mobile web usage statistics continue to skyrocket, we think it is … Continue reading “Saffire Updates: Version 1.8”

We are very excited to introduce the new features we’ve included in the Saffire software with Version 1.8, including the biggest update we’ve had so far this year!

The most exciting thing in this release is a complete redesign of your mobile site! As mobile web usage statistics continue to skyrocket, we think it is more important than ever to make sure your Saffire mobile site keeps you a step ahead of the game.When you visit your mobile site for the first time on Saffire 1.8, you’ll immediately notice big changes. Your navigation buttons are much larger, making it easy to explore. Buttons that encourage actions from your customers, such as buying tickets and signing up for your email list, appear front and center. Additional large buttons include customer conveniences like directions and event information.
Watch this video to learn more!

Your customers will now receive an automatic confirmation email when they complete one of your dynamic forms. Previously, a confirmation was only sent if a customer made a purchase. Now, regardless of payment option, your customers will be worry-free in knowing your event received their information.

With this release, you now have the ability to add an interactive event map to any dynamic page on your entire website! Use the maps to mark out vendor booths, specify locations for your barbeque cook-off teams or lay out facility rentals. The possibilities are endless!
Watch this video to learn more!

If you have a Saffire member site, you’ll notice the member site has its own separate dashboard! Take a look at the top of your admin site, you have two tabs reading “Customer” and “Member”. These tabs allow you to toggle back and forth between your sites, making it even easier for you to manage your complete online presence.
Watch this video to learn more!

When you log in to your admin site, you will now be able to view direct messages from the Saffire Team. We’ll be using this feature to post announcements and exciting news straight from us to you. Keep your eyes open at the top of your dashboard for updates!

We hope all of our clients are enjoying the updates this morning. Let us know what you think!

Welcome Brazoria County Fair!

It’s hard to believe we’re about to say this, but: we now work with 15 events in the great state of Texas! We are so happy and proud to be making such a difference here in our home state. The Brazoria County Fair is the newest member of the Saffire community, so please give them … Continue reading “Welcome Brazoria County Fair!”

It’s hard to believe we’re about to say this, but: we now work with 15 events in the great state of Texas! We are so happy and proud to be making such a difference here in our home state.

The Brazoria County Fair is the newest member of the Saffire community, so please give them a warm welcome!

Cassie has made a few trips to Angleton and had the opportunity to get to know their team after we met at the TAF&E Convention this spring. We are excited to bring a new online presence to such an established event!

Their new site will be up and at ’em by their event this fall. So you folks in South Texas, make plans now to visit the Brazoria County Fair October 12-20!

2012 Saffire Boot Koozie Debut

Since our Saffire boot koozies have been such a hit every where we’ve gone, we decided to get a new color this year and every year from now on! We went to visit our partners at American Royal last week, so they were the first to receive the 2012 edition of the koozies. And we … Continue reading “2012 Saffire Boot Koozie Debut”

Since our Saffire boot koozies have been such a hit every where we’ve gone, we decided to get a new color this year and every year from now on! We went to visit our partners at American Royal last week, so they were the first to receive the 2012 edition of the koozies.

And we just can’t get over how cute they look on these little feet! Thanks for sharing this adorable picture Jody.

Saffire 101: Cropping Tool

In one of our previous software updates, we introduced the ability to crop photos for your Saffire site to make sure you’re highlighting your images in the best way. After using the cropping tool, we thought of ways to make it even better, including showing previews! Watch this Saffire 101 video as Rebekah shows you … Continue reading “Saffire 101: Cropping Tool”

In one of our previous software updates, we introduced the ability to crop photos for your Saffire site to make sure you’re highlighting your images in the best way. After using the cropping tool, we thought of ways to make it even better, including showing previews!

Watch this Saffire 101 video as Rebekah shows you how to use the cropping tool to enhance your photos.

Saffire 101: Update Your Fairs Everywhere Listing

Last fall, we partnered with our friends at the International Association of Fairs & Expos (IAFE) to launch a new kind of event calendar called Fairs Everywhere. It’s hard to believe 2012 is going by so fast and it’s already May. Many of you are putting the finishing touches on this year’s event while others … Continue reading “Saffire 101: Update Your Fairs Everywhere Listing”

Last fall, we partnered with our friends at the International Association of Fairs & Expos (IAFE) to launch a new kind of event calendar called Fairs Everywhere.

It’s hard to believe 2012 is going by so fast and it’s already May. Many of you are putting the finishing touches on this year’s event while others have already started working on 2013! While you’re in planning mode, we wanted to offer a quick video tutorial to remind you just how easy it is to update your event’s listing.

And remember, if you upload at least one photo we will feature your event on our homepage as your event approaches! You can’t beat free advertising, right?