No, You Shouldn't Run Your Summit Through ThriveCart or WordPress
Kris Broholm
Virtual Summit Strategist · 20 March 2026 · 6 min read
Since I began organising virtual summits back in 2019, I have seen almost every possible approach to delivering the event itself.
The worst option, by a wide margin, is building on WordPress with a custom checkout like WooCommerce or ThriveCart. The experience tends to be poor for everyone involved.
The WordPress Summit Experience
I have registered for summits where the delivery was simply this: a WordPress page with eight embedded YouTube videos. No schedule, no speaker profiles, no session pages. Just a list of videos.
It delivers the content, and it is undeniably cheap compared to purpose-built platforms. But that saving comes at a cost: lost conversions, weaker branding, and participants who never become long-term customers.
Because that is the whole point of running a summit. Getting people in the door is just the start.
Why I Use a Dedicated Platform Instead
I only use HeySummit for my own events and my clients'. I am obviously biased. But here is what a purpose-built platform actually delivers, and why I think it more than justifies the cost.
It Feels Like a Real Conference
Because of the way dedicated platforms present content - from speaker profiles to session pages to sponsor booths - registrants feel like they are signing up for something significant. There is a proper schedule, every session has its own home, speaker bios are linked throughout. It mirrors attending an in-person conference, which sets the tone for how participants engage with everything that follows.
A More Professional Experience for Speakers and Sponsors
Speakers get their own dashboard. Their headshots and bios appear across the event site, and they can link directly to their products or offers. This matters when you are recruiting high-profile speakers: it signals that you run a professional operation.
Sponsors are featured consistently across the site with their own booths, direct lead capture, and the ability to promote products or services to exactly the audience they came for.
Better Connectivity and Interaction
Every session includes a live chat and comments module. Participants see each other's names throughout the event, and speakers can continue the conversation directly on their session page long after the broadcast ends. This builds connections faster and increases the conversions that follow.
Higher Conversion Rates
Dedicated platforms offer far more sophisticated access control than a WordPress page. You can selectively lock sessions, customise ticket tiers, and surface prompts that nudge participants toward upgrading without feeling pushy. It is an organic, experience-led way to make more sales.
More Convenient for Everyone
Managing a summit on a dedicated platform is significantly less work than wrangling a WordPress setup. Promoting sessions, generating affiliate links for speakers, managing sponsor assets - everything is in one place, designed for exactly this purpose.
For participants, a well-organised schedule and seamless replay access makes it easy to find and consume the content they came for.
Better Outcomes for Participants
Session downloads, ticket-based offer segmentation, and no artificial cap on event size - dedicated platforms create genuine value for participants in ways a list of embedded videos simply cannot match. Higher content consumption means more qualified leads for your backend offers and future programmes.
Easier Evergreening
Setting up a replay on a dedicated platform takes almost no additional work beyond the original setup. Adjust the access settings, promote it, and you have an evergreen product. You can even bundle previous summit sessions into new ticket sales, so your entire library compounds over time with minimal ongoing effort.
The Honest Downsides
I said I would be objective, so here are the genuine drawbacks of using a dedicated platform:
- Price: Full access costs significantly more than a DIY WordPress setup.
- Learning curve: The flexibility of a platform like HeySummit can be overwhelming at first.
- Design constraints: Fixed templates mean your customisation options are limited, and getting the visual details exactly right can take time.
As a consultant, points two and three are exactly where I help clients get up to speed. On the first point: in my experience, the conversion gains from a professional platform outweigh the subscription cost within a single event.
The Bottom Line
If you are serious about running a virtual summit that builds your audience and generates real revenue, a purpose-built platform is not a luxury - it is the foundation.
WordPress can host a summit. But it cannot create the experience that turns first-time registrants into long-term customers. Give HeySummit a try and see the difference for yourself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I run a virtual summit on WordPress?+
Yes, technically. But WordPress lacks native summit features like speaker dashboards, session scheduling, and ticket tiers. You can add these with plugins, but the result is usually fragmented for both you and your participants, and the experience rarely matches what a dedicated platform delivers.
Is a dedicated summit platform worth the cost compared to WordPress?+
For most summit hosts, yes. The conversion gains from a professional, purpose-built platform typically outweigh the monthly subscription within a single event. A WordPress setup might save you money upfront, but if it costs you upgrade sales and all-access pass revenue, the maths rarely works in its favour.
What does it mean to evergreen a virtual summit?+
Evergreening means making your summit available for ongoing replay access after the live event ends. On a dedicated platform like HeySummit, this requires minimal extra work - adjust the access settings and promote the replay. On WordPress, it usually means manually managing pages and access levels, which adds significant ongoing overhead.
Do I need a dedicated platform for my first virtual summit?+
In most cases, yes. The learning curve is front-loaded and pays off quickly. Starting on WordPress to save money often costs more in lost conversions and extra setup work than the platform fee would have been.
What other dedicated summit platforms are available besides HeySummit?+
Other options include Hopin, Airmeet, and Whova, though these are more general event platforms. HeySummit remains my top recommendation for online business owners because it is purpose-built for virtual summits, with affiliate tracking, ticket tiers, and all-access passes built in from day one.
About the author
Kris Broholm
Virtual Summit Strategist
Kris Broholm is a virtual summit consultant with 7+ years of experience helping online business owners plan, launch, and profit from virtual summits. He has served over 100,000 participants and generated $250k+ in front-end ticket revenue for his clients.
He is the creator of the Total Summit System and a recommended consultant for HeySummit.