Show Data Systems Opens its Doors

Show Data Systems opened its doors in 1993, with Tom Woodard leading the launch. The company was formed due to a requirement for more than just badge printing, which was the standard model in the registration industry.

At the start of the 90s, the registration process would include the following: a paper registration form would be brought to the event, a typist would print out the name badge and the attendee would enter the event. The paper registration form would then be returned to the office for data entry. Other events would have registration forms sent in, with badges mailed out.

“The main issue with mailing-out badges was that we needed stamps… and the local post office very regularly didn’t have enough! As mailing was such a vital part of the event, we made sure that we were the final pick-up of the day… any extra minutes we could gain to print every badge were vital. On occasion, we’d need to chase the postman if he ever missed our pickup! However, despite all of this, we continued to persevere and never let the inconvenience get in the way.”
– Tom Woodard

First Show

Show Data Systems’ first-ever show was PCL (an event for the pub, club and licensing industry). The first year went smoothly however, the second year of the PCL show caused the team to navigate some unforeseen circumstances as there was a bit of rowdiness amongst the excitement. Nevertheless, the team handled the challenge with professionalism and efficiency.

First International Show

Our first overseas show was in Belgium. At that time, we had to travel with all the kit packed into one estate car, which Tom drove from the UK. This made for quite a cramped journey!

FoxPro Database Platform

We began using FoxPro as our database platform and Tom wrote some bespoke programming to start using it for registration, including the integration of lead capture via handheld scanners.

Reflecting on the Early Days of Show Data Systems

Tom Woodard reflected on the early years of Show Data Systems and the lead capture solution available to exhibitors prior to the use of handheld scanners, saying:

“In the early days, there were no lead capture devices, this was all done via marketing lists. Exhibitors could purchase attendee lists, address labels or use our mailing options to reach visitors. However, the privilege of using a lead capture device that did this automatically was not yet on the market.”

Vicky Joins the Team

Vicky joined in 1998, initially as an account manager.

“One of the first shows I worked on was the Novell Brainshare ’98 conference in Nice, France. I had previously worked at the Australian Brainshare conference in Sydney, so it was great to attend and work on a European event.

The synergy with the Novell team, spanning across departments from Dublin’s Finance team to Germany’s Event team, was exceptional. As a result, I had the opportunity to visit the renowned US Brainshare conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah, which marked my first exposure to a US event. Attending the conference gave me insight into the orchestration of a large-scale gathering and its registration process. I even managed to fit in a day of skiing!

A lot has changed over the years, specifically the transition from labour-intensive data entry and traditional mailings to a streamlined online service. However, our unwavering commitment to delivering superior customer service to organisers and cultivating strong business relationships has stayed the same.”

Launch of Interchange Communications

Interchange Communications was the first to deliver exhibitor lead recording via a mobile device (using WAP services on mobile phones), offer organiser reporting via the Web and exhibitor lead recording data via the Web.

As a Registration company, Interchange Communications were also the first to do live consumer attendance reporting direct to the organiser and pioneered the development of a registration system that was ticket agent independent – able to understand tickets from ANY third-party agent, not just our own.

Krissy Joins the Team

Krissy, our Account Director joined our team. She has been with us for 20 years, making her our most-tenured employee! Over the decades, she has experienced all kinds of scenarios and changes in the industry, specifically the drastic change from manual systems. Here is her reflection of those times:

“Registration has changed so much over the years. When I started over 20 years ago, it was a very manual process in the office with data entry coming out of our ears! We had a conveyor belt of people printing, collating and hand-fulfilling mailings. Thank goodness for technological advancements – they made it a much smoother journey for visitors, exhibitors and organisers. At the heart of all of it, however, one thing has not changed and that is the need for good customer service.”

Meetings and Demos

The way we do meetings and demos with our clients has evolved over the years. Meetings used to involve bringing all our equipment with us, setting up and demonstrating the printing equipment to our clients. We won several clients by being able to show the flexibility of our onsite systems. E.g. we’d present the standard badging option but if they wanted to see another option (such as a plastic card) we were able to swap it all over in the space of a couple of minutes.

Laura Joins the Team

Laura joined our team as an Account Manager. Over the years, her role developed into an event manager before becoming a project manager.

“When I started we had a much smaller team, only about 8 of us, and my job would also involve creating the online registration forms and the databases for the events. The company and how we work have changed a lot over the years. Even in the late 2000s, we didn’t have the resources we have today and access to the Internet just wasn’t as effective or as popular as it is now. So, a lot of our data entry had to be manual and things like registration forms, even though they were now online, had to be closed by us before the event because there was no such thing as reliable live data.”

Graham Joins the Team

Graham, our Technical Director joined the team.

“Project Managers used to run the numbers every week and send them to the organisers. I came in to turn everything from manual processes to utilise the power of the internet – effectively to webify the business. We created a reporting system that showed all of the live registration details – Event Data was born.”

Interchange Communications Wins EN Award 

Interchange Communications won the EN Award for Most Innovative Product or Service, eBadging and Ticketing which highlighted the company’s efficiency and dedication to creating the most streamlined service possible.

Significant Challenge

2009 marks the year we faced a significant challenge at the Direct Marketing Event at Olympia. An attendee had a character in their name that our systems did not recognise, which caused our systems to crash. At the time, we didn’t know that was the reason for the crash, so we recommended the attendee try again on another printer and another and another; this resulted in the same outcome… and wiped out our terminals! However, this trial-and-error process led us to understand why our systems were crashing and we were able to sort out the issue after a short period of stress!

Launch of New Online Forms System

Moving Offices!

The office, originally based in Chalgrove, moved to the current home of Howbery Business Park in Wallingford. While being in the beautiful area of Wallingford and sharing the park with several other businesses, Howbery Business Park is also dedicated to preserving the environment and promoting biodiversity on its grounds.

Show Data Systems Acquires Interchange Communications

Silvia Joins the Team

Silvia, our Product Owner, joined the team. Thinking about her time at the company, she reflected on her experiences, with one standing out in particular

“I remember going to an event where the organiser was using venue staff to do the entry scanning… but was not doing a very good job of it. As we wanted to make sure the organisers got the right attendance details, we would collect all the tickets (which were placed into specific bins at the entrance once they’d been used) and carry them to a room where a team of us would scan them ourselves. This particular event had thousands of visitors, much more than the organisers anticipated, and we were scanning these tickets until 1 am! However, it did mean that the organiser received all the data. We went above and beyond for that event!”

Matt Joins the Team

Matt joined our team as a Technical Assistant before moving up to Commercial Director in 2024.

Jonas Software Acquires Show Data Systems

Canadian software company Jonas Software bought Show Data Systems.

Engage Scanner App Launch

We launched the Engage Scanner App – our new, high-usability app that allows exhibitors to receive much more information than they would from the traditional handheld scanner. Our development team created ‘NMR’ (New Model Registration) to replace FoxPro with an SQL Server database. Change from a manual process-driven world to an internet, self-help style delivery with great customer service.

Start of Jonas Event Technology

After acquiring both companies, Jonas Software officially rebranded the two companies into what we now know as Jonas Event Technology (JET).

Our First Products

We decided to productise our system which resulted in the creation of JET Forms, JET Onsite etc. This expansion helped us make it easier for our customers to use our various services.

JET Wins EN Elite Award

JET won the Best Event Registration Company award at the EN Elite Awards. The judges were looking for an event registration solution supplier that went above and beyond for its customers which gave us an edge over our competitors. We were particularly proud of this recognition because we were beginning to establish a strong reputation amongst our clients and within the industry.

Oliver Wins ESSA Young Person Award

Oliver Smart, our Managing Director, won the ESSA Young Person Award in 2018, at the age of 21. The Young Person Award is set to recognise the young person whose achievements pave the way for others in the events industry. Oliver ticked all the boxes required to qualify for the award.

Oliver Joins ESSA Future Focus Board

The board meets three times a year to discuss and plan campaigns, initiatives and strategies to promote careers within the event industry.

Most Successful Year

2019 was our most successful year as a company, with our team the largest it’s ever been of over 30 people, we were able to assist with 250 events throughout the year. As a result, we brought in more revenue than ever before.

Natalie Joins the Team

Natalie joins the team as a Project Manager.

COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic affected everyone, especially the events industry. Due to keeping in line with safety regulations, JET’s business had to come to a halt. Throughout the year, we managed to assist with 40 events whilst also abiding by the COVID-19 laws ongoing at the time.

Speedy Recovery

After COVID, JET made a speedy recovery and it scaled back up to over 125 events within the year. We knew that getting back on our feet quickly was vital as the rest of the industry went back to normal, so we made sure to stay ahead of the curve.

There are many changes as a result of the pandemic. Back in the day, self-registration onsite was a much slower process as visitors could take up to 10 minutes to register. Now, with the few onsite registrations remaining, QR codes have almost completely replaced the requirement for self-registration terminals as people can scan a QR and register online with our system utilising quick upload and download for their badge to be printed within seconds.

Welcoming Our Development Team

We started working with a development team in Pakistan, welcoming Ahmed, Fahad, Mustansar, Sundus and Zeeshan.

Expanding to North America

JET expanded its office to the US, opening a new office space based in Houston, Texas. A year prior to the office launch, JET was doing business with American clients and building a reputation on an international scale. However, the official office launch marks an important milestone in JET’s history as we can now reach many more customers and reduce our carbon footprint during the equipment logistics and set-up process.

Martyna Joins the Team

Martyna, our Marketing Executive, joins the team.

Operations Team Expands

Josh, our Support Technician and Louis, our Operations Manager, both join the team in 2022.

Excellent NPS

We ask all of our organisers to provide feedback after their event. Our Net Promoter Score (NPS) has increased to 71, rating us excellent. Only the top percentile of companies reach 80+… but it’s something we’re striving for in the years to come.

Maria Joins the Team

Maria joins the marketing team as a Junior Content Writer.

JET Partners with FFAIR

JET partners with FFAIR to create an exhibitor manual and dashboard. This collaboration aims to strengthen JET’s solutions using FFAIR’s efficient resources.

Headline Sponsors

This year JET became the headline sponsor of the EN Indy Awards and Marketing Awards, which is an important milestone for us since we can now actively encourage the industry’s future success by supporting these events.

Oliver Becomes ESSA Board Member

JET gains representation on the ESSA Board. Oliver Smart, our Managing Director was nominated for the board and appointed board member in July 2023.

JET Partners with LinkedIn

In September, we partnered with LinkedIn and as a result, we started incorporating LinkedIn Community Builder into our registration forms. The partnership allowed us to offer our clients the ability to grow engagement surrounding their events on LinkedIn.

First Time Exhibiting at International Confex 

We exhibited at International Confex for the first time! Equipped with our sustainable, custom stand thanks to Rocket Exhibition Stands, we showcased our solutions and services at ExCeL, London.

JET Partners with Swapcard

In April, we announced our partnership with Swapcard. Swapcard is an easy-to-use, highly customisable event app platform. As a result of this partnership, through JET, organisers can now offer their attendees and exhibitors access to an industry-leading event platform, helping them get the maximum ROI from the event.

Living Wage Accredited

In May, we became a Living Wage Accredited employer after working closely with our staffing agency partners to ensure the best outcome for our clients and staff.

Exhibited at Event Tech Live Las Vegas

Not only was it our first time exhibiting at Confex this year, but it was also our first time exhibiting at ETL Las Vegas! Oliver, Krissy and Matt represented team JET alongside FFAIR, with whom we exhibited.

Welcoming New Team Members

2024 has been all about growth, which is reflected in our recent hires – Lucia, our newest project manager, Stephen, our Software Developer and Simon, our Digital Systems manager.

Expansion to APAC

This year we announced our expansion to the APAC region! As part of this growth, we welcomed Hana, our Singapore-based business manager to the team.