How to Sell Tickets Online
in the UK

Your choice of ticketing platform affects everything — how much fans pay, when you get your money, and what tools you have to manage your event. Not all platforms are equal, and fees vary wildly.

The big UK platforms include Eventbrite, Skiddle, DICE, See Tickets, Fatsoma, and Ticketmaster. Most charge between 5% and 10% per ticket, plus a fixed fee on top. On a £25 ticket, that can mean £1.50 to £3.00+ in booking fees your fans have to pay.

Before you commit, compare platforms on three things:

• Fee structure — percentage + fixed fee, or flat rate? Who pays — you or the fan? Use our fee calculator to model exact costs.
• Features — do you need reserved seating, multi-day passes, promo codes, or box office tools?
• Payout terms — some platforms hold your money until after the event; others pay out as tickets sell.

See our full platform ranking for a side-by-side comparison. If you want to eliminate booking fees entirely, Tickts charges £0 — zero platform fees, zero booking fees, zero commission. The price you set is the price your fans pay.

Getting your ticket price right is the difference between a sell-out and a half-empty room. There are two main approaches:

Cost-plus pricing: Add up your venue hire, artist fees, production costs, and marketing spend. Divide by your target capacity and add a margin. This ensures you cover costs, but it ignores what people are willing to pay.

Value-based pricing: Research what similar events charge in your area. Price based on the experience you’re offering rather than just your costs. A well-known headliner in a premium venue justifies a higher ticket price than a new act in a pub.

Whichever approach you use, factor in platform fees. If Eventbrite adds £2.33 to a £25 ticket, your fans are actually paying £27.33. That can feel like a nasty surprise at checkout. You can absorb the fee — but that comes out of your pocket. Or you can use a zero-fee platform and avoid the problem entirely.

Consider tiered pricing to drive early sales:

• Early bird — 10-20% off, limited quantity. Creates urgency and seeds initial buzz.
• Standard — your target price for the majority of sales.
• Final release / door price — a premium that rewards people who bought early.

Your event listing is your shopfront. A weak listing kills sales before they start. Here’s how to make it count:

Title: Lead with the event name or headliner, not your brand. “DJ Shadow Live at Village Underground” beats “Saturday Night Out Presented by XYZ Promotions”. Keep it under 70 characters so it doesn’t get truncated in search results.

Description: Open with the one-line hook — what is this event and why should someone care? Then cover the practical details: line-up, date, doors open/close, age restrictions, dress code if relevant. Break it into short paragraphs. Nobody reads a wall of text.

Images: Use a high-quality event poster or photo. Minimum 1920×1080px. If you don’t have a designer, Canva has free templates that look professional. Avoid stock photos — they scream “generic”.

SEO: Include your city and event type in the title and description. “Live jazz in Manchester” helps people find you when they search for exactly that. Add the full venue address so Google can surface your event in local results.

How you receive money matters. There are two main models in the UK ticketing market:

Platform-held funds: Most traditional platforms (Eventbrite, Skiddle, See Tickets) collect ticket revenue into their own account and pay you out later — often 5-7 business days after the event. That means if your event is two months away, they’re sitting on your money the entire time.

Direct Stripe payments (Tickts model): With Tickts, you connect your own Stripe account. Payments go directly to you. Stripe’s standard processing fee (1.5% + 20p for UK cards) is the only cost, and funds arrive in your bank account within 2-3 business days of each sale — not after the event.

This difference is huge for cash flow. If you need to pay a venue deposit, book artists, or order stock before your event, having revenue trickle in as tickets sell is far better than waiting for a post-event lump sum.

Whichever model you use, make sure you understand:

• Payout frequency — daily, weekly, or post-event?
• Hold periods — how long between sale and settlement?
• Refund handling — who processes refunds and who bears the Stripe fee?

Listing your event is not enough. Even the best events need active promotion to sell out. Here’s a practical promotion playbook:

Social media: Post your event across Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and X. Use a mix of formats — static poster, short video teaser, countdown stories. Schedule posts for peak engagement times (weekday evenings, Sunday afternoon). Create a Facebook Event page — it’s still one of the best discovery tools for local events.

Email marketing: If you have a mailing list, use it. An email to past attendees converts far better than any social post. Send a launch email, a “50% sold” update, and a final-call reminder. Keep subject lines short and direct: “Early bird tickets live — limited to 100”.

Early bird urgency: Limited-quantity early bird tiers create genuine scarcity. When fans see “Only 30 early birds left”, they act. Make the saving meaningful enough to drive action — at least £5 off or 15%.

Influencer and community partnerships: Reach out to local bloggers, DJs, scene pages, or community groups. Offer a small commission or complimentary tickets in exchange for a share. A recommendation from a trusted voice in your niche is worth more than any paid ad.

Paid ads: If budget allows, Facebook and Instagram ads targeted by location, age, and interest can be highly effective for events. Start with a small daily budget (£5-10) and test different creatives before scaling.

Once tickets are on sale, stay on top of things. Good attendee management makes the difference between a smooth event and a chaotic one.

Track sales in real time: Check your dashboard daily. Watch for trends — a spike after a social post tells you what’s working. A flat line means your promotion needs adjusting. Most platforms give you a live sales chart; use it.

Communicate with buyers: Send a confirmation email immediately after purchase (most platforms handle this automatically). A few days before the event, send a “what to know” email covering venue directions, door times, and any last-minute changes. This reduces no-shows and support queries on the day.

Handle refunds promptly: Refund requests are inevitable. Have a clear refund policy visible on your listing — for example, “Full refund up to 7 days before the event”. Process them quickly. A painless refund experience makes someone more likely to buy from you next time.

Check-in on the day: Use your platform’s scanner app (most have one) to scan QR codes or e-tickets at the door. Brief your door staff on how it works beforehand. Have a backup plan (printed guest list) in case Wi-Fi is patchy at the venue.

The event is over, but the work isn’t. Post-event analysis is what separates one-off organisers from people who build a following.

Review your numbers: Total tickets sold vs. capacity. Revenue vs. costs. Which ticket tier sold fastest? Did early bird pricing work, or did most people buy at full price? How many no-shows?

Analyse your promotion: Which channels drove the most sales? If 60% of buyers came from your email list and only 5% from paid ads, you know where to focus next time. Most ticketing platforms show referral sources — use this data.

Gather feedback: Send a short post-event survey (3-5 questions max). Ask what people enjoyed, what could improve, and what they’d pay next time. This is gold for pricing and programming your next event.

Own your customer data: This is critical. Some platforms restrict access to buyer email addresses. If your platform doesn’t let you export your attendee list, you’re building on rented ground. Tickts gives you full access to all customer data — it’s your audience, not theirs.

Iterate: Apply everything you’ve learned to your next event. Adjust pricing, double down on the promotion channels that worked, fix the things that didn’t. Every event should be better than the last.