Picture this. It’s just 10 days before your event and you still have a whopping 40% of your tickets remaining. The staggering number of tickets contrasted against the dwindling time feels discouraging, ominous even. Most event organizers know the feeling all too well—but what do you do?
In an ideal world, every event attendee would mark their calendars for the minute you go live. They would race to buy tickets as soon as they go on sale.
However, in the real world, ticket sales don’t always go as planned. According to our data, 25% of event attendees purchase their tickets within the final four days.
As an event organizer, you can actually use the average person’s procrastinatory tendency to work for you.
So, if your ticket sales aren’t quite “on pace,” don’t throw in the towel. Instead, keep reading this email and get ready to rally for your last-minute sales with these tips.
1. Plan a Price Increase
Contrary to popular belief, it’s not the price drop that drives sales the most, it’s the price increase. Yes, you read that correctly.
Price increases are the single most effective tool to drive last-minute sales. Here’s why.
If there’s no price difference between purchasing seven days before or seven weeks, then there’s little incentive for your attendees to grab their tickets ahead of time.
On the other hand, if the price goes up three weeks out, you can guess what happens. People will scramble to snag their tickets and keep their cash.
2. Announce the Price Increase
While the data tell us that sales typically spike 24 hours prior to the price increase, the strategy only works when people know it’s happening.
Make it clear what kind of discount they’re getting and when the deal will disappear. People hate to leave money on the table as much as they love a good bargain.
Tip: Use actions (automations) to schedule ahead of time.
3. Offer a Referral Program
Referral programs are a fantastic way to boost your ticket sales and improve the attendee experience.
No one wants to attend an event alone, and referral programs incentivize attendees to bring friends. You can incentivize by offering discounted tickets, partial refunds, or BOGOs.
To make it easy for you, we’ve created a referral program and an ambassador program in TicketSpice. Whatever program you pick and promote, your event will benefit from the added exposure and attendees in the door.
4: Create a Give-Away
Run a promotion where some lucky folks will get free tickets to your event. Perhaps you run a contest where people can win free tickets or a drawing to win or maybe you ask your social media followers to tag 5 friends in a post and one lucky winner will get selected.
Better yet, challenge your followers to submit a post on their social media for why they want to attend your event and have them tag you.
You can decide what might fit best for your event. Give-aways create better engagement and interest for your event – and hey, someone is going to be thrilled to attend for free!
5. Offer a Coupon Code
The coupon code never goes out of style. If you’re a week out from your event and scrambling for sales, market a last-minute discount coupon code. TicketSpice allows you to create coupons under the Coupons tab in your page builder.
Inevitably, the discount news will reach some discouraged attendees who thought they missed the window.
But you can give them a welcome surprise and a reason to purchase their tickets now.
For best results, mention that your prices will return to normal or increase within a few days.
6. Don’t Lose Heart
Lastly, don’t give up if your event sales are not yet “on pace.” Late sales and purchasing procrastination are normal across the board, but these practices will help you pick up the pace.
The sales aren’t over until the event starts—and maybe, not even then!
Here to help you host your most successful event ever!
