How to Increase
Ticket Sales

Before spending more on promotion, make sure your event page is converting the traffic you already have.

Headline test: Does your event title clearly communicate what the event is? “Saturday Night with DJ Shadow at Village Underground” converts better than “XYZ Promotions presents: An Evening of Music Vol. 4”. Lead with the headliner and venue.

First paragraph hook: Your first sentence should answer “Why should I go?” in compelling terms. Not “We are pleased to announce” but “Three hours of live jazz from the best musicians in Manchester, in the city's most iconic basement bar.”

Image quality: A blurry phone photo of an empty venue kills conversions. Use a professional-looking event poster or a high-energy photo from a past event. Minimum 1920x1080 pixels.

Remove friction: Check your checkout flow. Every extra click or form field between “Buy Tickets” and confirmation loses buyers. Platforms with excessive booking fees add friction too. On tickts, there are no surprise fees at checkout, which means fewer abandoned carts.

Mobile optimisation: Over 70% of ticket purchases start on mobile. Check your event page on a phone. Is the buy button visible without scrolling? Does the checkout work smoothly on mobile?

People procrastinate. Urgency and scarcity are the antidote.

Limited-quantity tiers: Release tickets in batches. When the early bird allocation sells out, announce it. The visibility of tiers selling out creates real urgency for the next tier.

Countdown timers: If your event page or email platform supports countdown timers, use them. “Early bird ends in 2 days 14 hours” is more urgent than “Early bird ends Friday”.

Stock level visibility: Show how many tickets are left. “Only 18 remaining” triggers loss aversion. Most platforms display this automatically.

Genuine deadlines: Set real deadlines and stick to them. If you say early bird ends Friday, do not extend it to Monday. Your credibility depends on following through.

For a full strategy on selling out your event, see our sell-out guide.

People look to others when making purchase decisions. Social proof makes buying feel safe.

Sales milestone posts: “100 tickets sold in the first 24 hours” tells potential buyers that other people are committing. Post these milestones on social media and in email updates.

Testimonials: Quotes from past attendees are gold. “Best night out in Leeds this year” from a real person with a real name carries more weight than any marketing copy you write.

Media and press mentions: If a local publication, blogger, or influencer mentions your event, share it everywhere. Third-party endorsement is the strongest form of social proof.

User-generated content: Share photos and videos from past events posted by attendees. This shows what the experience is actually like, not what you say it is like.

Sold-out history: If your previous events sold out, mention it. “Our last three events sold out. Do not miss this one.” Past sell-outs predict future demand.

If your existing audience is not large enough to sell out, you need to reach new people.

Partner promotions: Team up with complementary events, venues, or brands to cross-promote. A craft beer bar promoting your live music night reaches drinkers who like live music but do not follow you yet.

Influencer and DJ shares: Give local influencers, DJs, or scene figures a promo code and ask them to share with their audience. Their personal endorsement reaches people you cannot reach organically.

Facebook and Instagram ads: Even a small budget (£5-10/day) targeted by location and interest can reach thousands of potential buyers. Test multiple ad creatives and scale what converts. See our marketing tips guide for ad strategy.

Event listing sites: Submit your event to Skiddle's discovery page, DesignMyNight, Time Out, and local listings sites. These platforms have audiences actively searching for events.

Venue promotion: Ask your venue to promote via their channels. Most venues have mailing lists and social followings of people who already attend events at that location. UK Venue Guide can help identify venues with strong promotional support.

Many people who start the ticket buying process do not finish it. Recovering even a fraction of these is low-hanging fruit.

Retargeting ads: Install the Facebook pixel on your event page. Run retargeting ads to people who visited but did not buy. These ads are cheap and highly effective because the audience is already warm.

Email follow-ups: If someone opened your event email but did not click, resend with a different subject line. If they clicked but did not buy, send a follow-up with a small incentive or new information.

Reduce checkout friction: The number one reason for cart abandonment in ticketing is surprise fees at checkout. A £25 ticket that becomes £28.50 at the payment page causes buyers to hesitate. Using a zero-fee platform like tickts eliminates this entirely.

Simplify the purchase: Reduce the number of form fields. Do not ask for information you do not need. Name, email, and payment are the essentials. Every additional field loses a percentage of buyers.

For a complete framework on maximising your sales, see our complete selling guide.