Email Marketing
for Events

Social media reach is declining. Paid ads are getting more expensive. But email still delivers the highest return on investment of any marketing channel for event organisers.

The reason is simple: your email list is made up of people who have already shown interest in what you do. They opted in. They attended your last event, or they signed up because they want to hear about the next one. That makes them fundamentally different from a cold social media audience.

Email open rates for event announcements typically range from 25% to 45%. Click-through rates to ticket pages run 5% to 15%. Compare that to organic social media posts, which reach 2-5% of your followers and drive click-through rates under 1%.

The other major advantage is ownership. Your email list belongs to you. If Instagram changes its algorithm or Facebook deprioritises event posts, your list is unaffected. For more on the broader marketing strategy, see our event marketing tips.

If you do not have an email list yet, start building one today. Every event you run is an opportunity to capture email addresses for the next one.

Ticket purchase capture: Every person who buys a ticket gives you their email address. Make sure your ticketing platform lets you export this data. Some platforms restrict access to buyer information. tickts gives you full access to all customer data.

Event page sign-up: Add an email capture form to your event page or website. Offer early access or a small discount as an incentive. “Join our mailing list for pre-sale access to all future events” is a strong hook.

At the event: Capture emails at the door or via a QR code at the bar. A simple sign-up board near the entrance with “Get notified about our next event” works well. Physical capture at events has very high conversion rates because people are already enjoying your event.

Social media link in bio: Your Instagram and Facebook bio should link to an email sign-up page (or your next event page). Drive social followers to join your mailing list for priority access.

GDPR compliance: Always get explicit consent. Use a clear checkbox that says “I would like to receive event updates by email”. Never pre-tick it. Include an unsubscribe link in every email. For a full overview of data protection requirements, see our GDPR guide for event organisers.

Every event needs a minimum of three emails. Master these before adding anything else to your sequence.

Email 1 - The Launch: Subject line: “Tickets live: [Event Name] - [Date]”. Send this the moment tickets go on sale. Keep it focused: event name, date, venue, one compelling sentence about why it is unmissable, and a big, obvious buy button. Do not bury the link. Do not write an essay. One email, one action.

Email 2 - The Midpoint Update: Send this 2-3 weeks after launch or when you hit a meaningful sales milestone. Subject line: “Over half sold: [Event Name]” or “Early bird sold out, standard tickets now live”. Share any new information like lineup additions or support acts. Include social proof and another buy link.

Email 3 - The Final Call: Send 48-72 hours before the event or before the last ticket release closes. Subject line: “Last chance: [Event Name] nearly sold out”. This is your most urgent email and consistently drives the highest single-day sales. Short, direct, with a clear deadline.

These three emails are the backbone of your campaign. If you have a larger list and more content, you can add emails between these, but never skip any of the three.

Your subject line determines whether your email gets opened or ignored. Your send time determines whether it gets seen at all.

Subject line rules: Keep it under 50 characters. Lead with the most important information. Use the event name or artist name, not your brand name. Create urgency where genuine: “Last 30 tickets” works; “Do not miss out!!!” does not. Never use all caps or excessive punctuation.

Personalisation: If your email platform supports it, use the subscriber's first name. “Sarah, tickets are live for [Event]” outperforms generic subject lines by 10-20% on average.

Best send times: For UK audiences, Tuesday to Thursday between 10am and 12pm sees the highest open rates for event emails. Thursday evenings (6-8pm) work well for weekend events. Avoid Monday mornings (inbox overload) and Friday afternoons (people are switching off).

Mobile optimisation: Over 70% of event emails are opened on mobile. Keep your email layout simple, use a large readable font, and make your buy button thumb-friendly. Test every email on your own phone before sending.

Once you have the basics working, segmentation is how you level up.

Past attendees: People who came to your last event are your warmest audience. Send them a personalised email with “You came last time, here is your early access”. Offer a loyalty discount or a promo code.

Opened but did not buy: If someone opened your launch email but did not click, they are interested but not yet convinced. Send a follow-up with a different angle. New information, a testimonial, or a discount can push them over the line.

Never opened: Try a completely different subject line. Sometimes the email was fine but the subject line did not land. Resend to non-openers with a new subject line 48 hours after the original send.

Geographic segments: If you run events in multiple cities, only email people about events near them. Nobody in Edinburgh wants to receive emails about a London club night.

Automation: Set up a welcome sequence for new subscribers. Email 1: Thank you for signing up, here is what we do. Email 2: Our next event. Email 3: Past event highlights and testimonials. This nurtures new subscribers without manual effort.