choose how much of your event program Sway runs
Four options, from a 10-inquiry test to the whole program run for you.
Open is available to buy online. Each Engine begins with a short fit confirmation.
what you pay and what Sway runs
open
$2,000
one-time · advertising included
Ten qualified inquiries and a clear read on your market, before any monthly commitment.
- 10 qualified inquiries, usually starting within 30 days
- Advertising and campaign management included
- Each inquiry assessed and warmed before it reaches your team
- Final report with every inquiry, outcome, and market pattern
- $150 back for each missing inquiry if fewer than 10 arrive
- Every Open engagement so far has delivered all 10
lead engine
$2,500
a month + advertising budget
Sway brings qualified inquiries every week. Your team takes them to the finish.
- Original advertising creative and campaign management
- Custom inquiry pages in your venue’s name
- Every inquiry answered within five minutes, by text and email
- Qualified conversations passed to your team to close
- Your venue keeps 100% of booking revenue
- One venue’s team received 101 qualified inquiries in three months
sales engine
$1,800
a month + 12% of events booked
You already get inquiries. Sway answers, follows up, and confirms the booking.
- Response within five minutes, in your venue’s name
- Qualification and persistent follow-up
- Proposals using your menus, rates, and branding
- Contract, deposit, and date confirmation
- Repeat bookings from your established client list stay 100% yours
- Includes the Sway Bridge, a seasonal fee pause
growth engine
$1,500
a month + advertising budget + 15% of events booked
The Lead Engine advertising and the Sales Engine booking work, run as one program.
- Original creative, advertising, and custom inquiry pages
- Response within five minutes, in your venue’s name
- Qualification, proposals, and follow-up
- Contract, deposit, and confirmed date
- Repeat bookings from your established client list stay 100% yours
- Includes the Sway Bridge, a seasonal fee pause
real 2026 results
advertising handled, bookings signed
Portfolio figures: booking rate measured on resolved inquiries, booking value tracked in our booking records. Case month: advertising under $1,000 across Google and Meta, billed to the venue’s own account and excluding Sway’s fees; booked revenue reflects confirmed event value, not revenue recognized during the month. One strong month at one venue, not presented as typical or guaranteed. See the case studies behind these numbers.
compare all four options
| compare | open $2,000 one-time · advertising included | lead engine $2,500 a month + advertising budget | sales engine $1,800 a month + 12% of events booked | the complete program growth engine $1,500 a month + advertising budget + 15% of events booked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| best for | Testing demand or filling a defined window | Teams that close well and need more qualified inquiries | Venues that already attract inquiries but lose them in response and follow-up | Venues that want advertising and booking handled together |
| who brings inquiries | Sway | Sway | your venue | Sway |
| who confirms bookings | your team | your team | Sway | Sway |
| variable costs | None. Advertising included. | Advertising budget, minimum $1,000 a month | 12% of each event booked during the term. Repeat bookings from your established client list are excluded. | Advertising budget, minimum $1,000 a month, plus 15% of each event booked during the term. Established-client repeat bookings are excluded. |
| build fee | None | $3,000, billed in month four | $3,000, billed in month four | $3,000, billed in month four |
| commitment | One-time project with a 90-day delivery window | Six-month minimum, then 30 days’ written notice | Six-month minimum, then 30 days’ written notice | Six-month minimum, then 30 days’ written notice |
| buy open | start lead engine | start sales engine | start growth engine |
open
- best for
- Testing demand or filling a defined window
- inquiries
- Sway brings them; your team closes them
- fixed fee
- $2,000 one-time
- variable costs
- None. Advertising included.
- build fee
- None
- commitment
- One-time project with a 90-day delivery window
lead engine
- best for
- Teams that close well and need more qualified inquiries
- inquiries
- Sway brings them; your team closes them
- fixed fee
- $2,500 a month
- variable costs
- Advertising budget, minimum $1,000 a month
- build fee
- $3,000, billed in month four
- commitment
- Six-month minimum, then 30 days’ written notice
sales engine
- best for
- Venues that already attract inquiries but lose them in response and follow-up
- inquiries
- Your venue brings them; Sway confirms the booking
- fixed fee
- $1,800 a month
- variable costs
- 12% of each event booked during the term; your established client list is excluded
- build fee
- $3,000, billed in month four
- commitment
- Six-month minimum, then 30 days’ written notice
growth engine
- best for
- Venues that want advertising and booking handled together
- inquiries
- Sway brings them and confirms the booking
- fixed fee
- $1,500 a month
- variable costs
- Advertising budget, minimum $1,000 a month, plus 15% of each event booked during the term; your established client list is excluded
- build fee
- $3,000, billed in month four
- commitment
- Six-month minimum, then 30 days’ written notice
what Sway handles, and what stays yours
Everything that happens on a screen or phone can be ours. Everything that happens in the room remains yours. There is no new system for your team to learn, and reporting lands against booked revenue, not clicks.
Tania Anderson leads event booking, and her team answers in your venue’s name. Sway also operates PrivateEvents.co, so we see what hosts search for, ask about, and book.
the details venues ask before starting
what counts as a qualified inquiry?
A real, reachable person with a real event. A qualified inquiry has a defined event, date or timing window, expected headcount, acknowledged budget, and a location inside the venue’s relevant market. Inquiries that do not meet the agreed qualification standard do not count toward Open’s 10-inquiry target.
how fast does it start?
Kickoff is immediate. We gather your spaces, menus, pricing, and priorities, prepare original creative within seven days, and launch. Early inquiries can arrive in the first weeks, and most Engine programs hit their stride across the first 60 to 90 days as the learning compounds.
how do the Open refund and Lead Engine credit work?
Open includes 10 qualified inquiries, and they usually begin arriving within the first 30 days. If fewer than 10 are delivered within 90 days, the venue receives $150 back for each missing inquiry, up to $1,500. So far, every Open engagement has delivered all 10. The venue keeps every delivered inquiry and still receives the final market report. If the venue starts Lead Engine within six months, $1,500 of the Open investment is credited against Lead Engine’s $3,000 build fee.
how is the advertising budget set?
Together, starting from $1,000 a month. Lead Engine and Growth Engine require at least $1,000 a month in advertising spend, and the final budget is agreed against the venue’s event revenue goals, local demand, inventory, and likely booking value. Advertising is billed directly to the venue’s own advertising account, so the media budget remains separate from Sway’s fee.
how do the 12% and 15% fees work?
Sway earns a share of every event booked while an Engine is running: 12% on Sales Engine, 15% on Growth Engine. Before work begins, the venue gives Sway a list of its established past clients, and repeat bookings from anyone on that list are 100% the venue’s own. The fee is settled when a booking confirms and itemized on the venue’s monthly statement.
why is the Engine build fee billed in month four?
So the work comes before the bill. The $3,000 build fee covers the original campaign, inquiry, response, and operational setup. It is deferred until month four so the initial build and first three months of work are already behind the venue before the fee becomes payable.
what is the Engine commitment?
Six months minimum. From month six onward, the agreement can be ended with 30 days’ written notice.
can we pause during a slow season?
Yes. Sales Engine and Growth Engine include the Sway Bridge. Once in any rolling 12 months, the monthly fee drops to zero for up to two months while the work continues at full speed: every inquiry answered, every live conversation worked. Sway’s share on events booked during the window is 20%. Where Sway manages the advertising, a $500 monthly minimum keeps campaigns warm, billed at actual spend. Standard terms resume when the window closes, and full terms appear in the agreement.
do you work with nonprofits?
Yes. Sway works with nonprofits and mission-driven venues and adjusts the arrangement to fit. Tell us about your organization and we will put together terms that work.
choose the amount of help your calendar needs
Buy Open online or begin the fit confirmation for any Engine.
