Fanfaire vs 17hats
If you’re a balloon artist or event decorator choosing between 17hats and Fanfaire, the difference isn’t about features.
It’s about where the work happens.
17hats manages workflows.
Fanfaire helps clients decide.
Visually. With pricing. In real time.
Quick Comparison
| 🔥 Fanfaire (Collaborate) | 17hats | |
|---|---|---|
| Core Focus | 🎨 Visual selling + client decisions | 🧩 Workflow & admin automation |
| Collaboration Type | ✅ Clients interact with live designs | 📝 Clients review documents |
| Visual Rendering | ✅ Real-time, editable designs | ❌ Static proposals |
| Pricing Experience | ✅ Pricing updates as design changes | ⚠️ Fixed line items |
| Client Behavior Tracking | 🔥 See edits, upgrades & checkout starts | ⚠️ Track workflow steps & email activity (not design intent) |
| Decision Flow | 🚀 Shared live platform (real-time collaboration) | 📧 Email-driven proposals & workflows |
| Mockup Workflow | 🔥 Build once, stylize infinitely | ❌ Recreate mockups per inquiry |
| Best For | 🎈 Custom visual installs | 📁 Managing operations & tasks |
Workflow tools move clients through steps.
Fanfaire lets clients decide inside the design.
The Client Journey, Side by Side
Same lead. Very different effort.
17hats
WORKFLOW BASED SELLING
Inquiry comes in
You review it
You email back for clarification
You create a mockup or inspiration board (often outside 17hats)
You calculate pricing separately
You build a proposal
You send it
Tracking you get (engagement & workflow)
Tasks completed
Emails sent
Proposal delivered
When changes are requested
You edit the design
You update pricing
You resend the proposal
You repeat
➡️ Great for staying organized
➡️ Selling still requires manual rebuilding
Fanfaire Collaborate
VISUAL SELLING WORKFLOW
Inquiry comes in
You create or stylize design options
From your catalog or custom
You share editable design options with pricing
Tracking you get (intent)
What the client changes in the design
How pricing updates with those changes
When the design was last viewed or modified
Whether the client started checkout
What happens next
Client edits or adds on directly
Pricing stays connected to the design
Client accepts the contract and books
Payment is collected
Calendar invites and reminders are sent
Final design appears in upcoming bookings
➡️ Same lead tracking
➡️ Far less rework
➡️ Decisions happen inside the design
If you want to get paid slowly, do it by email.
If you want to get paid while your client is excited, let them book when the vision is clear.
Why This Feels Different
Fewer tools
Fewer rebuilds
Faster decisions
With workflow-based systems, you’re managing steps.
With Fanfaire, you’re guiding choices.
Design and pricing live together, so clients don’t have to imagine the outcome — they can see it, adjust it, and commit while excitement is high.
That’s why it feels easier.
And that’s why it moves faster.
Already Use 17hats?
If you’re using 17hats today, Fanfaire can still improve how you sell.
Many businesses use the Fanfaire Design Studio to create mockups faster and more accurately — using real balloon colors and built-in pricing — then add that design to their 17hats invoice.
When businesses want clients to collaborate and edit visually, they move to Fanfaire Collaborate, where design, pricing, contracts, and payment all happen in one shared experience.
Stop sending ideas. Start selling decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
Absolutely. Here is the final, woven FAQ output — clean, confident, and aligned with how Fanfaire actually works.
This version integrates the “busy tasks don’t grow the business” idea without sounding defensive or ranty.You can drop this straight into your FAQ accordion.
FAQs
Is Fanfaire a 17hats alternative?
Fanfaire is an alternative for the selling and delivery clarity part of the workflow.
17hats focuses on internal business workflows like tasks, automations, and admin.
Fanfaire focuses on client-facing decisions and delivery details — showing exactly what’s being created, capturing approvals, booking the event, and documenting what needs to be delivered.For custom visual services, that clarity is the workflow.
-
Yes — depending on how you want to sell.
Many businesses use Fanfaire Design Studio to create priced mockups faster using real balloon colors, then add that design to their 17hats invoice. In this setup, clients review the design but don’t edit it.
When businesses want clients to edit designs and collaborate visually, they use Fanfaire Collaborate, where design, pricing, contract acceptance, payment, and booking all happen in one shared experience — without email-based proposals.
-
17hats tracks internal workflows and tasks.
Fanfaire tracks client intent — because design and pricing are connected.Instead of seeing that a task was completed, you can see:
what the client changed in the design
which options they selected
what colors and sizes were chosen
when they last viewed it
and when they’re ready to book
That information directly determines what needs to be delivered.
-
No — and that’s intentional.
Fanfaire is built for high-touch, custom event services, not bulk email marketing. Campaigns and broadcasts are better handled by dedicated tools.
For event-specific details — design confirmation, setup timing, arrival windows — communication works best when it’s personal and immediate, often via phone or text.
Fanfaire focuses on the moment that matters most: helping clients see, approve, and book the right design.
-
Fanfaire uses Stripe for payment processing, and Stripe integrates with QuickBooks Online.
The Stripe–QuickBooks integration supports two-way sync, allowing transactions collected through Fanfaire to automatically sync with QuickBooks and simplify reconciliation.
-
Fanfaire is built for businesses selling custom visual services, including balloon artists and event decorators.
If your work depends on helping clients see and shape their vision before booking, Fanfaire is designed for that moment.
You don’t grow a visual business by managing more tasks — you grow it by helping clients decide faster.