EventSpark vs. AC Events

22 Oct 2026 · @Nicole

EventSpark gives Salesforce teams the full event lifecycle, from invitation to post-event certificate, in one 100% Salesforce-native package. It runs inside your org as a managed package, with no middleware and no sync jobs, at a price that stays affordable and grows with your requirements.

Powerful, affordable and built to grow with you

EventSpark's value comes from four facts working together:

• One package, one license. Invites, registration, ticketing, payments, sessions, automated comms, check-in, badge printing, lead scanning, surveys and certificates all ship together. There are no add-on apps to buy as your program expands.
• Your choice of payment provider. 35 providers through Shuttle, plus SparkSmiths' own gateway, with every transaction recorded on the booking in Salesforce.
• Built for any size. EventSpark clients range from 5-employee organizations to Fortune 500 companies, across Education, Corporate and Nonprofit. The same package handles a single webinar or a multi-day conference with many sessions.
• People who run events. Client Care, a dedicated Customer Success Manager, onboarding, implementation and an in-house onsite events team come with the product.

At a glance: EventSpark vs. AC Events

Both products are 100% Salesforce-native and install from the AppExchange. AC Events' column reflects what Advanced Communities states on its product page and in its AppExchange setup guide.

Same architecture, different starting point

Both products run inside Salesforce with no sync layer, so the difference is not architecture but focus. AC Events is built around Experience Cloud portals for member organizations, nonprofits and higher education. EventSpark is built around the event itself, from first invitation to onsite check-in and post-event follow-up, for any organization running events in Salesforce.

That focus shows most at the event venue. EventSpark covers check-in, badge printing and lead scanning in the same package. AC Events' product page lists QR check-in but does not mention badge printing or lead scanning.

One package, the full lifecycle

EventSpark ships as one package that covers:

• Invitations and RSVP, with approval steps, pre-registration and waitlists
• Ticketing, with ticket types, ticket plans, pricing rules and vouchers
• Group bookings, where one booker registers and pays for several guests
• Payments, with every transaction recorded on the booking
• Sessions, booked individually by each registrant
• Branded microsites and event collections, with themes per department or brand
• Automated communication plans tied to each stage of the registrant journey
• Generated documents: tickets, certificates and calendar entries
• Onsite check-in through the Flock onsite app
• Badge printing through a print server
• Lead Scan, for scanning leads and session attendance
• Virtual and hybrid events, with native Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Webex integrations
• Venues, spaces, staff and speakers, managed on the same data model
• Post-event surveys, with follow-ups triggered by attendance or no-show

AC Events matches EventSpark on several of these: ticket packages, early-bird and bulk discounts, vouchers, multi-day agendas and QR check-in. It also offers audience-based pricing and donations at checkout, which suit membership and fundraising programs.

Payments, contact matching and email

Payments: 35 providers, recorded in Salesforce. EventSpark connects to payment providers through Shuttle, which supports 35 of them, and SparkSmiths also has its own payment gateway. Every financial event is stored on the booking: payments, refunds, discounts, discount reversals, credits and debits, with invoice numbers, PO numbers, transaction status and reversal reasons alongside. AC Events' setup guide configures Stripe; its product page does not list other gateways.

Contact matching is built in. EventSpark's advanced matching criteria auto-map registrants to existing Leads and Contacts behind the scenes, so records stay clean without a cleanup backlog. AC Events' setup guide says guest registration creates either a Contact or a Lead.

Email uses standard Salesforce delivery. EventSpark sends through your org's own email setup, so Salesforce's standard sending limits apply, and every message stays on the record. Automated communication plans cover each stage of the registrant journey, beyond reminders.

Support from people who run events

EventSpark clients work with people, not just a case portal: a Client Care team, a dedicated Customer Success Manager, a dedicated onboarding team to get them live, and our Projects division for implementation and configuration. AC Events offers guided onboarding and a structured implementation of about 3 days.

SparkSmiths also runs events itself. Our in-house onsite events team has delivered more than 1,000 events, and that experience shapes both the product and the support behind it.

Transparent pricing that grows with your requirements

EventSpark starts at 4,800 USD per company per year, and no features are held back. Registration, ticketing, payments, sessions, automated comms, check-in, badge printing, lead scanning and surveys come in one package. AC Events does not publish a price and asks buyers to request a personalized quote.

Which event platform is right for your organization?

EventSpark serves organizations of every size, from 5-employee teams to Fortune 500 companies, across Education, Corporate and Nonprofit. If you want the full event lifecycle in one Salesforce-native package, including onsite check-in, badges and lead scanning, at a published price and backed by a team that runs events, talk to us.