The days of selling tickets at ticket booths outside of the events are long gone. Most concerts and venues use an online ticketing service for their events. The new-age innovation of online ticket-selling platforms make purchasing tickets to an event easier and more convenient. For the year 2022, U.S. event tickets are projected to reach $26.5B in sales revenue. Whether or not you currently use an online ticketing service, you should know the basics of how to successfully sell tickets online.
As an event promoter or organizer, you know that selling out your events is not an easy task. Luckily, there are many ways to increase your chances by selling tickets online. Here are some steps to help you better understand what it takes to sell tickets online.
Acting as Your Own Online Ticketing Service
1. Establish Your Event’s Online Presence
Your event’s internet omnipresence is the most important factor when it comes to selling tickets online. More than often, a potential ticket buyer will depend on the internet to find and learn more about your event. Even if you just manage local events, you still need an internet presence to bridge the gap between your brand and your customers. Whether you are a new event brand or an existing one, it’s more important now than ever before to be able to communicate and engage with your current and potential customers using the various channels of the Internet, be they social media, online advertising, organic search, affiliate marketing, email marketing and content marketing.
2. Begin Selling Tickets Immediately After Finalizing Your Event
Today’s consumers are savvy independent shoppers who search for information about an event or brand as soon as it is made available. After a potential consumer has done their research, they’ll review your online presence, and then and only then, will they decide whether to purchase a ticket. This means that it is best to have your ticketing up and ready to go ahead of your initial announcement. Selling tickets is just not about using a static approach to online ticketing sales. There are ticketing strategies you should employ for a successful event. You can read more about them here: Event Ticketing Strategy: 4 Tactics to Sell Out.
3. Build a Website as Part of Your Online Ticketing Service Approach
A huge part of building your online presence is building a website. Building your own website is one of the most profitable ways to sell your tickets. This way your brand doesn’t need to share the profit. Although selling tickets through your website is the most profitable, there is no guarantee that your customers will want to purchase tickets through your website — especially if you do not have enough online credibility. Visitors may want to purchase tickets through a trusted source.
There are numerous online ticketing platforms available to choose from. Anyone who regularly goes to concerts is familiar with major online ticketing services such as Ticketmaster and Stubhub. There are many more to choose from.
Some even offer you the option to integrate or embed the ticketing box office within your website to keep everything streamlined. TSE Entertainment offers a robust, easy-to-use, and affordable online ticketing service which provides a simple way to sell tickets online. Whichever you decide, be sure that it is mobile-friendly and easy to use.
Whether or not you embed the online ticketing box office on it, a website is vitally important as a way to find your event. Content marketing your event allow people to find it as the go about searching for events to attend. Be sure to create plenty of website content for your event so search engines know its there.
4. Promote Your Event Frequently on Social Media
Social media is another huge part of your internet omnipresence strategy. Most people use social media every day and this is where most of your current and potential customers will likely discover your event and brand. Gaining interest in your event is key when it comes to selling tickets. Here are some tips to help you generate interest using social media:
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- Create attractive content.
- Include the link to the tickets in your bio and in your posts when permitted
- Create a ticket giveaway competition.
- Post consistently without spamming,
- Collaborate with sponsors or partners of the event and ask them to promote the event on their social media accounts.
- Reach out to influencers who have the audience that you’re attempting to target.
- Run ads on social media with a direct link to the ticket sales.
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5. Do Promotional Offers as Part of Your Ticketing Strategy
Who doesn’t love discounts and offers? Promotional offers are an effective way to reward your existing customers and it is also a way to get new customers. Early bird discounts, multiple ticket offers, and promo code offers can further encourage people to purchase tickets.
6. Use Ticketing Scarcity Tactics
Scarcity marketing is one of the most important tactics to generate ticket sales. Scarcity raises the value. Creating ticket scarcity is going to make people want to buy them. There are two categories of scarcity that can be used to boost sales: quantity and time. Offering a limited number of add-on experiences, VIP packages, or seats can persuade those who are indecisive about purchasing tickets to actually buy them. Creating a time limit will also help fuel ticket sales. If customers know they think they have all the time in the world to purchase tickets, they are less than likely to make the purchase. Adding a countdown clock or displaying the number of tickets that are left can increase the likelihood of a conversion.
7. Utilize Email Marketing Campaigns
Email campaigns are a great way to generate leads from existing customers or a specific subset of individuals. Email marketing is more of a long-term marketing strategy. Not only can you promote your current event, but you’ll also be able to promote future events. Be sure that your email campaign is well-timed. The following list is a few tips to use when setting up email marketing campaigns:
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- Brand your emails with your logo (make sure your branding and logo are consistent with the branding on your website and social media).
- Use a call-to-action button that links to your tickets.
- Do not spam and include an unsubscribe button.
- Be short and to the point.
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There are many ways to attract and convert attendees to your event. While using these steps, closely monitor and analyze the analytics reporting to see what is working and what is not. You will need to be able to quickly reevaluate and change strategies to find the ultimate mix to attract your audience.
Keep in mind that you are also on a time limit to sell out your event. So, before your initial announcement, have a marketing plan in place. Remember, marketing your event doesn’t stop when your event is done. Post plenty of recap images and videos to keep your audience waiting for your next event.
TSE also does event marketing as well as providing an online ticketing service. If you need assistance with promoting your event, selling your tickets, or any other service for your concert or festival, visit our website for more information about how TSE Entertainment can help you have a successful event!
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7 Event Marketing Strategies for Your Next Concert Promotion
