7 Ways to Increase Advance Ticket Sales with Email and SMS Marketing

1. Give Past Ticket Buyers Early Access to Tickets

People who attended your event in the past already know what to expect. Many of them probably enjoyed the event and would attend again (or tell other people about it), so they’re your most promising prospects for advance ticket sales.

Use your existing ticket buyer data from your ticket sales software to create an audience segment of previous attendees in your event marketing platform (ideally, your ticket sales software and event marketing software sync ticket buyer sales data, so you don’t have to do any of this manually).

Then, send an email marketing campaign that thanks them for their past attendance, reminds them how much fun the event was, and invites them to purchase tickets before they’re available to the general public.

For example, a county fair could offer returning attendees a 48-hour presale opportunity. The email should call out the benefits of buying early, such as getting first access to preferred seating. Consider offering discounted tickets or another perk to pique FOMO.

Follow up with a short text message that reminds them when the presale expires, so they don’t miss it.

2. Build Excitement Before Tickets Go on Sale with Multiple Email Messages

One email announcement announcing your event sent to your entire subscriber list is highly unlikely to motivate every recipient to buy tickets. People may miss the message, forget about the event, or need time to talk about it with family and friends.

That’s why it’s so important to keep your event top-of-mind by sending a series of email campaigns. The goal is to keep your event visible and give recipients new reasons to want to attend in each message.

For example, an air show could schedule three weekly emails leading up to the day when tickets go on sale:

1. Save the Date: Announce the event dates and invite subscribers to watch their inboxes for ticket information.
2. Build Anticipation: Highlight returning performers, new attractions, or popular experiences.
3. Announce Ticket Availability: Let subscribers know tickets are on sale and include a purchase button near the top of the message that can’t be missed. Make sure the button links directly to the ticket sales page.

Learn more about planning effective event marketing campaigns in TicketReach’s guide to event email marketing.

3. Use SMS Marketing to Promote Ticket Sale Deadlines

When people know they can buy tickets later, it’s easy to wait, but when they hear a deadline is coming, they have a reason to make a decision sooner rather than later.

SMS marketing is perfect for communicating time-sensitive offers because it creates a sense of urgency.

Consider sending text reminders when:

• Early-bird ticket pricing is ending.
• A scheduled ticket price increase is approaching.
• An exclusive presale is about to close.
• A limited ticket offer is nearing its deadline.
• A specific ticket type is almost sold out.

For example, a rodeo could send this message to its opted-in subscribers: “Last chance for early-bird rodeo tickets! Prices increase tomorrow. Get your tickets today at [link].”

Importantly, only send marketing texts to recipients who have provided the appropriate consent, and always honor applicable opt-out requirements.

For more SMS marketing tips, read TicketReach’s event SMS marketing guide.

4. Segment Your Audience to Make Ticket Offers More Relevant

People have different interests, purchasing habits, and reasons for attending your event. When you actually pay attention to those differences, you can create offers that people pay attention to. As a result, you’ll generate more ticket sales.

With audience segmentation, you organize contacts on your subscriber list into smaller groups of similar people using available information, which could include previous purchases, ticket types, location, and prior campaign engagement.

For example, a motorsports event could create separate campaigns for previous general admission buyers and customers who purchased premium seating. Alternately, families might receive information about family-friendly attractions and ticket packages, while previous VIP buyers receive early access to premium seating.

You can also identify subscribers who haven’t purchased tickets for your upcoming event and send them a reminder or additional information to help them decide. When ticket buyer data is synchronized with your marketing software, you can exclude people who already purchased from campaigns promoting the same tickets.

Audience segmentation makes your messages more useful to recipients and helps you focus your promotional efforts on the right opportunities.

5. Use Email to Answer Questions That May Delay Ticket Purchases

Sometimes people want to attend your event but they need more information before they would consider buying tickets. They might need to know if parking will be available, what happens if it rains, or whether their children need separate tickets. Every one of those unanswered questions can delay a purchase.

With that in mind, identify the concerns your audience is most likely to have and address them in your email campaigns.

For example, a festival could send a planning email that explains:

• Where attendees can park and whether parking passes are available
• Which attractions and activities are included with admission
• What ticket options are available for families
• How weather-related changes or cancellations are handled

Include links to detailed information on your website along with an obvious ticket purchase button that leads directly to your ticket sales page.

6. Automate Follow-Up Messages

Event marketing automation helps you communicate with your audience at the right moments without manually creating and sending every follow-up.

For example, a person who visits a concert website and signs up to get email alerts about the event, should automatically receive a follow-up with information that could convince them to buy tickets. On the other hand, someone who already purchased general admission tickets to the concert should receive a follow-up email highlighting available upgrades or add-ons.

Automation can save a lot of time, improve relevancy, and boost results, especially if your team handles marketing alongside other event responsibilities or manages multiple events.

7. Track Which Email and SMS Campaigns Generate Ticket Sales

You have to be able to track event marketing analytics in order to know if your efforts to increase advance ticket sales are working. Tracking email opens, link clicks, and message engagement can tell you whether people are interacting with your campaigns. However, you need to know which messages contribute to ticket purchases and revenue.

When your ticketing platform and marketing software integrate and support sales attribution tracking, you can connect campaign activity directly to purchase data and measure event marketing ROI and ticket sales attribution.

Use the data to adjust campaign timing, audience targeting, and messaging for your next campaigns. Small improvements can make a big difference to future email and SMS results.

Start Selling More Tickets Before Event Day

Increasing advance ticket sales takes consistent communication with your audience and a clear understanding of what motivates them to buy. Use that information to identify previous ticket buyers, plan a short email campaign, and schedule SMS reminders around important sales deadlines. 

As your campaigns generate results, use audience segmentation, automation, and analytics to improve performance, increase advance ticket sales, and improve your ROI.

For a more detailed look at building your ticket sales and marketing strategy, read The Complete Guide to Selling More Tickets for Outdoor Events.

Frequently Asked Questions About Advance Ticket Sales

How can you increase advance ticket sales for a live event?

To increase advance ticket sales for live events, give previous attendees early access, build excitement through email campaigns, send SMS reminders about ticket deadlines, and target audiences with relevant offers. Tracking campaign performance also helps you identify which activities generate purchases so you can get better results.

Is email or SMS marketing better for selling event tickets?

Both can help sell event tickets in advance. Email marketing works well for sharing event details, introducing ticket options, and building anticipation. SMS marketing is most useful for communicating urgent reminders and approaching deadlines.