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Digital Ticketing Tips for Winter Sports, Dances, and Performing Arts

Digital Ticketing Tips for Winter Sports, Dances, and Performing Arts

Winter athletics and activities are upon us, and spring will be here before we know it! In the fast-paced world of events, it's never too early to start planning. Now’s the time to strategize for winter sports, dances, and performing arts. Digital ticketing makes it easy to manage your winter events anytime, anywhere. Check out the tips in this guide to get set up for success this winter.

Digital Ticketing for Winter Events

Follow the steps below to save time, increase revenue, and create meaningful experiences for your winter sports and activities.
 

Step 1: Decide What Events to Ticket

Most schools typically sell tickets for basketball games during the winter. Think about all the other athletics and activities you have during this time. Are there any others that could be ticketed?

Along with bringing communities together and fostering school spirit, events are prime opportunities to drive revenue for important programs. School events are a significant draw. People love them. Your fans want to support your school.

Winter activities are almost exclusively held indoors, so the ticketing process can be more streamlined. Setting up points of entry can be challenging at some outdoor events, but indoor facilities have clear entrances and exits. As the event host, this gives you a natural place to validate tickets before guests enter the event. 

To start thinking about all the possibilities for your winter events, check out the list below and see if any stand out to you or spark other ideas.

Winter Athletics

  • Basketball
  • Wrestling
  • Swimming & Diving
  • Hockey
  • Soccer (in California) 

Winter Performing Arts Events

  • Plays and Musicals
  • Band, Chorus, & Orchestra Concerts
  • Speech & Debate Competitions

Winter Dances

  • Winter Formal
  • Sadie Hawkins Dance

You certainly aren’t limited to this list, as every school has unique needs and traditions. By using digital ticketing for all your winter athletics and activities, you can continue to realize greater revenue and time savings while elevating the event experience.

Looking for more inspiration? Read our post on how to elevate all events with digital ticketing.

 

Step 2: Plan a Weekly Promotion to Drive Attendance

When promoting your events, send strategic emails to your community to highlight several upcoming events at once. The winter sports season is particularly busy, with several events occurring in short periods of time. For example, the boys and girls basketball teams of all levels may play twice per week.

Proper distribution of your digital ticket sales links is essential. If you want to reduce work at the gate, you should have a standardized plan that helps people find and purchase tickets before getting to the event. 

The winter schedule presents a unique challenge for promotions because of the sheer volume of events. Schools typically get the word out to their communities through email, social media, and signage around the school. 

Try not to overwhelm your fans with multiple emails each week. Design a weekly message to promote all events in a list with one button that directs to your school ticket sales page. The GoFan team can augment these efforts with automated marketing to your fans as well. 

To take a deeper dive into this topic, visit our blog for ways to promote your events and increase attendance.


Step 3: Set Goals for Attendance and Engagement

Start the winter season with goals for ticket sales and engagement. Create excitement around your attendance. Your fans will feel like they are part of something special. This helps your school in many ways, including greater student participation, community involvement, and ultimately revenue.

How to Set Sales Goals

Start with last year’s attendance. Mark it up by 10 to 20 percent and decide what the expenses and income look like together. Then look at your events and identify any gaps in sales.

To help drive attendance, consider some rewards to incentivize fans. For example, giveaways like a free booster club t-shirt are low-cost ways to get people excited. Local sponsors can donate prizes as well.  

Digital ticketing enables sales and attendance data in real time. With this information, you can plan goals to help your school and find ways to engage fans and get them excited so they keep coming back. This enthusiasm gains momentum quickly and helps sell more tickets.

To learn more about the latest and greatest insights available in the GoFan platform, check out our Product Blog


Step 4: Support Your Events with Volunteers

If you find that you need additional resources to meet your goals, consider asking volunteers to help. Many organizations like the National Honor Society require students to complete a certain number of hours of community service. Supporting events can be a great way for students to meet these requirements and become more involved with school activities. 

Fans in your community may also be interested in volunteering at events to give back to your school. You can recruit volunteers by sending emails or posting on social media to mention specific opportunities for fans to sign up. 

Potential Volunteer Opportunities at School Events

  • Communications Specialist to help with email and social promotions
  • Gate Attendant for all ticketed athletics and activities
  • Event Setup Specialist to hang signs with QR codes and instructions for tickets 
  • Greeter to answer questions and provide assistance to fans
  • Parking Attendant to confirm paid parking and help direct fans
  • Sales Support to assist with concessions and merchandise

For more ideas, check out our recent post on how volunteers support school activities

 

Next Steps

By planning your digital ticketing strategy for winter now, you can save time, increase revenue, and create meaningful experiences throughout the entire season. To see how other schools are using digital ticketing for all different kinds of events, check out the blog post linked below. For more information, contact us to speak with a specialist

How Schools Can Elevate All Events with Digital Ticketing

 

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