5 ways to boost ticket sales
(sports, events & attractions)

Maximizing revenue in the sports, events, and attractions industry goes beyond simply selling tickets. By offering a range of upselling and cross-selling options, organizations can significantly enhance customer experience and drive profits. 

At Venue Manager, we’ve helped more than 150 clients increase their revenue and profit, selling over 4 million tickets in a single year, in the process. With this experience, we’ve seen firsthand what works best when it comes to maximizing sales in the sports, events, and attractions industries. 

Below, we’ll share five proven strategies that will help you boost your ticket sales and increase your profits.

1. Upselling with Food, Drinks, and Merchandise

One of the most effective ways to boost revenue is by offering customers the opportunity to purchase food, drinks, and merchandise alongside their ticket. By bundling these items at the point of sale, you enhance the overall experience for attendees while increasing your average transaction value.

Top-performing events and venues can double their revenue by offering these options, with the best in the industry achieving sales that add up to 100% of the ticket price.

For example, many venues offer meal deals, exclusive event-branded merchandise, or drinks vouchers as add-ons during the checkout process. This not only improves the convenience for the customer but also encourages them to spend more in advance, reducing the chances of opting out once at the venue.

Offering food, drinks, and merchandise during ticket purchase is a simple way to boost revenue. It enhances the customer’s experience while increasing the average transaction value.

🗝️ Key benefits:

• Boosts revenue by up to 100% of the ticket price.
• Increases the likelihood of pre-purchase add-ons.
• Improves customer satisfaction by offering convenience.

🎁 What to offer:

• Meal deals for event attendees.
• Branded merchandise exclusive to the event.
• Drinks vouchers to pre-purchase and redeem at the event.

👍 Best practices:

• Bundle food and drink packages with tickets.
• Promote exclusive merchandise during the checkout process.
• Send reminder emails for pre-purchasing deals after tickets are bought.

By bundling these items, you can double your revenue for each ticket sold.

2. VIP Upgrades: Enhanced Service and Exclusive Experiences

Another powerful upsell is offering VIP upgrades. Fans and attendees are often willing to pay a premium for a more luxurious or exclusive experience.

A VIP package could include priority seating, early entry, or access to exclusive areas such as a pre-game event with food, a speaker presentation, or even a backstage tour of the venue, such as locker room visits.

This type of upgrade adds value without significantly increasing operational costs. In the most successful cases, top organizations can sell these VIP upgrades for up to 50% more than the original ticket price, providing an attractive revenue boost.

Offering these upgrades during the booking process or closer to the event can capture the interest of those looking to elevate their experience.

VIP packages allow you to sell an upgraded experience at a premium price. This is a win-win, as customers receive more value and you generate additional revenue.

🎉 Why VIP upgrades work:

• Adds significant value for a modest additional cost.
• Appeals to fans seeking a premium or exclusive experience.
• Generates up to 50% more revenue per ticket sale.

🎈 What to include in a VIP package:

• Priority seating or front-row options.
• Early access to the venue or event.
• Exclusive access to areas like backstage or locker rooms.
• Pre-game meals or special events featuring speakers or celebrities.

👍 Best practices:

• Offer upgrades during the initial ticket purchase.
• Send targeted emails or app notifications with VIP offers as the event date approaches.
• Provide limited-time discounts for VIP packages to create urgency.

By offering a VIP upgrade, you can increase ticket revenue by 50% while giving customers a memorable experience.

3. Convert Tickets into Season Passes

Giving customers the opportunity to convert their single event ticket into a season pass or membership can be a highly effective strategy for building long-term relationships and securing future revenue.

During or after the event, you can offer attendees a discount or incentive to upgrade to a season ticket, ensuring their return for future events.

The best-performing venues and sports organizations are able to convert up to 15% of single ticket holders into season pass members, ensuring recurring revenue and building a loyal fan base.

This can be done via digital prompts during the event, through the app, or even with on-site representatives encouraging attendees to make the switch.

Converting single-event tickets into season passes or memberships is an excellent way to secure future revenue and build customer loyalty.

🗝️  Key benefits:

• Locks in repeat business for future events.
• Converts up to 15% of single-ticket buyers into season pass holders.
• Encourages longer-term relationships with customers.

🎁 When to offer season pass upgrades:

• During checkout: Present season pass options when customers are most engaged.
• At the event: Set up booths or staff who can offer upgrades to attendees.
• Post-event follow-up: Use emails, apps, or SMS to follow up with customers after the event.

👍 Best practices:

• Offer an attractive discount to incentivize the switch.
• Highlight exclusive perks for season pass holders, such as VIP access or early ticket sales.
• Allow customers to apply the value of their single ticket toward the cost of the season pass.

By offering a clear upgrade path, you can convert up to 15% of ticket holders to loyal season pass members.

4. Second-Day or Next-Event Ticket Offers

Offering attendees the chance to buy tickets for the next event, concert, or game—either on the day of their visit or while they are on their way home—can drive repeat visits.

Providing a discount or a special promotion for purchasing a second-day ticket or future event ticket encourages guests to return.

Top venues achieve sales of up to 10% through these second-day or next-event ticket promotions.

These offers are most effective when they are time-sensitive, creating a sense of urgency and encouraging customers to book their next experience right away.

Offering second-day or next-event tickets during or after the initial event can help you secure repeat visits and increase sales.

🗝️  Key benefits:

• Creates a sense of urgency to purchase future tickets.
• Increases overall revenue by up to 10% with additional ticket sales.
• Encourages attendees to return for the next event or day.

🎁 Best ways to offer these tickets:

• Offer time-limited discounts for next-event tickets during the current event.
• Provide attendees with special promo codes or deals to use when buying a second-day ticket.
• Set up push notifications or emails for guests as they leave the venue, reminding them to book their next visit.

👍 Best practices:

• Use app notifications to send offers directly to attendees' phones.
• Promote the next event on-site with banners, digital screens, or during live announcements.
• Include discount codes in follow-up emails for attendees who didn't purchase on-site.

By targeting attendees while they’re still excited, you can secure up to 10% more ticket sales for future events.

5. Sell Additional Products: Accommodation, Parking, and Transport

To create a seamless and more enjoyable experience, many venues now offer additional services such as hotel stays, parking, or transportation options at the time of ticket purchase.

These complementary offerings can significantly enhance convenience for attendees while providing a substantial boost to revenue.

The most successful venues can sell additional products and services amounting to up 10 times of the ticket price, doubling their revenue potential.

Bundling these services during the ticket purchase process, or offering them as post-purchase upsells, ensures that customers can easily make their visit stress-free while increasing overall spending.

Offering additional products like accommodation, parking, or transportation options can significantly increase the overall transaction value.

🎉 Why this works:

• Provides convenience for attendees and makes planning easier.
• Increases overall revenue with up to 100% more per ticket.
• Encourages guests to spend more by offering bundled packages.

🎈 Examples of add-ons:

• Hotel stays for out-of-town guests.
• Parking passes to secure convenient parking spots.
• Shuttle services or transportation options to make attending stress-free.

👍 Best practices:

• Bundle accommodation or parking with tickets for one-click purchases.
• Offer discounts for combining services like tickets and parking.
• Promote these options through follow-up emails or app reminders after the ticket purchase.

By offering these services, you can double your revenue per ticket while providing more convenience to your guests.

Conclusion

By implementing these strategies, sports, events, and attraction venues can significantly boost their revenue while offering a more complete and enjoyable experience to attendees.

From upselling food and merchandise to converting tickets into season passes, each tactic presents an opportunity to add value and drive higher profits.

The key is to present these options in a way that feels seamless and convenient to the customer, enhancing their experience while maximizing your business’s potential.

Through these strategies—upselling, VIP upgrades, ticket-to-season pass conversions, next-event offers, and additional services—your venue or event can significantly increase both ticket sales and overall revenue.

At Venue Manager, we’ve helped over 150 clients achieve these results, selling more than 4 million tickets in a single year, in the process.

When implemented effectively, these strategies not only boost your bottom line but also enhance your customers' experience, making them more likely to return again and again.

How to Get Started:

1. Identify your upselling opportunities: What products and services can you offer alongside tickets? Consider food, drinks, merchandise, or other add-ons.
2. What products and services can you offer alongside tickets? Consider food, drinks, merchandise, or other add-ons.
3. Design VIP experiences: Create exclusive VIP packages that will appeal to your audience. Think about priority access, premium seating, or backstage tours.
4. Create exclusive VIP packages that will appeal to your audience. Think about priority access, premium seating, or backstage tours.
5. Build a season pass offering: Develop an attractive season pass program that encourages single-ticket holders to upgrade for long-term benefits.
6. Develop an attractive season pass program that encourages single-ticket holders to upgrade for long-term benefits.
7. Plan future ticket offers: Create discount promotions or exclusive offers for second-day or future event tickets, sold during or immediately after the initial event.
8. Create discount promotions or exclusive offers for second-day or future event tickets, sold during or immediately after the initial event.
9. Offer additional products: Make the event more convenient by offering extras like accommodation, parking, or transportation that can be purchased along with tickets.
10. Make the event more convenient by offering extras like accommodation, parking, or transportation that can be purchased along with tickets.
11. Use data to optimize: Analyze your sales and customer data to see which strategies work best and where you can improve.
12. Analyze your sales and customer data to see which strategies work best and where you can improve.

By following these steps, you’ll quickly get started on maximizing revenue while enhancing the customer experience.