Quick Guide to Creating Your First Event
This guide takes you through the basic steps required to create an event and make it ready for bookings in Cognivox.
Before starting, it is useful to have the following information available:
- Event name
- Event description
- Venue
- Event start and end dates
- Date bookings should open
- Date bookings should close
- Maximum number of attendees
- Packages you want to offer
- Options within each package
- Prices
- Pricing basis
- Capacity of any limited options
Step 1 — Create the Event
Open Booking Events from the Cognivox administration area.
Select:
Add Event
A new event will be created ready for configuration.
Step 2 — Enter the Event Name
Enter a clear customer-facing name.
For example:
Scottish Conference 2026
The event name may be used by Cognivox when speaking to customers, so use a name that callers are likely to recognise.
Step 3 — Enter the Description
Add a useful description of the event.
For example:
Annual Scottish conference with conference-only and residential accommodation packages available.
The description can help Cognivox answer general questions about the event.
Keep package-specific information within the relevant packages and options.
Step 4 — Enter the Venue
Enter the location where the event will take place.
For example:
Gartmore House
Use a venue name that customers will recognise.
Step 5 — Set the Event Dates
Enter the event:
- Start date and time
- End date and time
These dates represent when the event itself takes place.
They are separate from the booking opening and closing dates.
Step 6 — Set the Booking Window
Configure:
- Booking Opens
- Booking Closes
These determine when Cognivox can accept new reservations for the event.
For example:
Event starts: 23 October 2026
Bookings open: 1 March 2026
Bookings close: 20 October 2026
This allows the event to exist in Cognivox before reservations are opened.
Step 7 — Set the Overall Event Capacity
Enter the maximum number of people the event can accommodate.
For example:
Event Capacity: 100
This means Cognivox must not allocate more than 100 attendee places across the event.
The overall Event Capacity represents people rather than package units such as rooms.
Step 8 — Enter External Attendees if Required
If no places have been allocated outside Cognivox, leave:
External Attendees: 0
If places have already been allocated elsewhere, enter the number.
For example, if 15 people have already booked through another source:
External Attendees: 15
These places count towards the overall Event Capacity.
Do not include existing Cognivox bookings in External Attendees.
Cognivox tracks its own Reserved and Confirmed bookings automatically.
Step 9 — Add Your First Package
In the Packages section, select:
Add Package
Enter a clear package name.
For example:
Conference and Accommodation
You can also add a package description explaining what the package includes.
Step 10 — Make the Package Active
Ensure the package is:
Active
when you want Cognivox to offer it for new bookings.
An inactive package can remain configured without being available for new reservations.
Step 11 — Add an Option
Within the package, select:
Add Option
For example, the Conference and Accommodation package might contain:
- Single Room
- Double Room
- Twin Room
Each option is configured separately.
Step 12 — Enter the Option Name and Description
Give the option a clear name.
For example:
Double Room
Add a useful description where required.
For example:
Double room suitable for two guests.
This helps Cognivox explain the option to customers.
Step 13 — Enter the Price
Enter the option price.
For example:
450.00
Select the appropriate currency, such as:
GBP
The way this price is applied depends on the selected Price Basis.
Step 14 — Select the Price Basis
Choose the pricing method appropriate to the option.
The available pricing bases are:
- PerPerson
- PerUnit
- PerBooking
PerPerson
Use this when the price applies to every attendee.
For example:
£100 per attendee
Two attendees would therefore be priced using two per-person charges.
PerUnit
Use this when the price applies to an allocated unit.
For example:
£450 per Double Room
Two attendees sharing one Double Room would have:
Attendees: 2
Units: 1
PerBooking
Use this when the configured price applies once to the entire booking.
Step 15 — Set the Option Capacity
If the option has limited availability, enter its capacity.
For example:
Double Room Capacity: 15
This means no more than 15 Double Room units can be allocated.
Option capacity is separate from overall Event Capacity.
Step 16 — Make the Option Active
Ensure the option is:
Active
when it should be offered to customers.
Inactive options remain configured but should not normally be offered for new bookings.
Step 17 — Add Additional Options
Add any other choices required within the package.
For example:
Single Room
Double Room
Twin Room
Each can have its own:
- Description
- Price
- Currency
- Price Basis
- Capacity
- Active status
Step 18 — Add Additional Packages
If the event has another way of attending, add another package.
For example:
Package 1
Conference and Accommodation
Package 2
Conference Only
The Conference Only package can then have its own options and pricing.
Step 19 — Review the Configuration
Before making the event available, review the complete setup.
Check:
- Event name
- Description
- Venue
- Start date
- End date
- Booking opening date
- Booking closing date
- Event Capacity
- External Attendees
- Package names
- Package descriptions
- Package Active status
- Option names
- Option descriptions
- Prices
- Currency
- Price Basis
- Option capacities
- Option Active status
Incorrect configuration can result in incorrect availability or pricing being presented to customers.
Step 20 — Make the Event Active
When the event is ready to accept bookings, ensure:
Active: Yes
Making the event active does not override the booking window or capacity rules.
The event must still satisfy the other booking conditions.
Step 21 — Save the Event
Select:
Save Event
The event configuration is now stored.
If you are editing an existing event with bookings, Cognivox preserves booking-managed Reserved and Confirmed occupancy when normal event configuration changes are saved.
Step 22 — Check the Capacity Display
After saving, review the event capacity information.
For a new event with no bookings, you might see:
Capacity: 100
Reserved: 0
Confirmed: 0
External: 0
Occupied: 0
Available: 100
If you entered 10 External Attendees:
Capacity: 100
Reserved: 0
Confirmed: 0
External: 10
Occupied: 10
Available: 90
Step 23 — Check Your Packages and Options
Before accepting live bookings, confirm that all required packages and options are present.
For example:
Conference and Accommodation
- Single Room
- Double Room
- Twin Room
Conference Only
- Conference Delegate
Check that the prices and capacities are correct.
Step 24 — Test an Availability Enquiry
Before relying on the event for customer bookings, test a realistic enquiry.
For example:
2 attendees
Conference and Accommodation
1 Double Room
The availability check should consider:
- Two places from overall Event Capacity
- One unit from Double Room capacity
Confirm that the result matches the event configuration.
Step 25 — Test the Price
Check that the booking total behaves correctly for the selected Price Basis.
For a PerPerson option, changing the attendee count should affect the calculation appropriately.
For a PerUnit option, check that the Unit Count is being used correctly.
For a PerBooking option, check that the configured price applies to the booking as intended.
Step 26 — Test a Reservation
Create a test reservation using valid customer information.
After successful reservation creation, check:
- Booking reference was generated
- Customer details are correct
- Event is correct
- Package is correct
- Option is correct
- Attendee Count is correct
- Unit Count is correct where applicable
- Total is correct
- Status is Awaiting Payment
- Reservation expiry is present
- Required capacity has moved to Reserved
Step 27 — Check Reserved Capacity
If the test booking contains two attendees, the overall event should now reflect those reserved places.
For example:
Before
Reserved: 0
Available: 100
After a two-person reservation
Reserved: 2
Available: 98
For a PerUnit option, also check that the appropriate option Reserved Occupancy has increased.
Step 28 — Check the Reservation Email
If an email address was supplied, verify that the reservation email contains the expected information.
Check:
- Customer name
- Event
- Package
- Option
- Attendees
- Units where applicable
- Total
- Booking reference
- Payment-required information
- Reservation expiry
The email should make it clear that an Awaiting Payment reservation is not yet fully confirmed.
Step 29 — Test Recording a Payment
For testing, record a payment against the reservation using an appropriate payment method.
Check:
- Amount
- Payment method
- Reference
- Payment date
- Payment history
- Amount Paid
- Balance
If only part of the balance is paid, the booking should remain outstanding.
Step 30 — Confirm the Booking
Once the full required payment has been recorded, check that the booking becomes:
Confirmed
The event occupancy should move from Reserved to Confirmed.
For example:
Before payment
Reserved: 2
Confirmed: 0
After confirmation
Reserved: 0
Confirmed: 2
The overall occupied capacity remains two.
Step 31 — Check Money Received
Open:
Money Received
Confirm that the recorded payment appears in the payment ledger.
Check:
- Payment date
- Booking reference
- Customer
- Event
- Payment method
- Payment reference
- Amount
This confirms that the payment is visible both against the booking and through the central payment view.
Step 32 — Your Event Is Ready
Once the configuration and test workflow behave as expected, the event is ready for normal use.
Cognivox can then use the configured event information to:
- Identify the event.
- Explain packages.
- Explain options.
- Establish attendee requirements.
- Establish unit requirements where applicable.
- Check availability.
- Determine the booking total.
- Collect customer details.
- Create the reservation.
- Reserve capacity.
- Provide a booking reference.
- Send reservation information.
- Accept recorded payments.
- Confirm fully paid bookings.
Important Ongoing Tasks
Once bookings are being accepted, remember to keep administrator-controlled information current.
In particular:
- Update External Attendees when places are allocated outside Cognivox.
- Update event capacity if the true physical capacity changes.
- Monitor limited package options.
- Review Awaiting Payment reservations.
- Review payments received.
- Check outstanding balances.
- Review Money Received where required.
Cognivox maintains Reserved and Confirmed occupancy automatically during normal booking activity.
Further Help
For detailed information about individual parts of the event booking system, see:
- Event Booking Overview
- Managing Booking Events
- Event Packages and Options
- Event Capacity and Availability
- Event Bookings and Reservations
- Event Booking Payments
- Money Received
- Event Reservation Expiry
- Handling Event Enquiries with Cognivox
- Event Booking Administration Guide
- Troubleshooting Event Bookings