Basic Event Setup Checklist.

Event Checklist

Event Checklist

Often times an event checklist is used to remind us to do things like do social marketing, distribute posters, print tickets, make phone calls and items related to the promotion.  Here is an event checklist that just shares the items related to posting your event with an online ticketing company. Since it is after all an event checklist, there is a place at the bottom of this article you may print this out.

  1. Event Name
    1. Event names should contain the artist(s) name, or perhaps who is presenting the event.
    2. The event name helps people search our site at for your event.
  2. Event Date
    1. Please make sure your event date is correct. Don’t confuse various ticket sales dates with the event date.
    2. 99.9% of event dates are for a single day.
  3. Event Banner
    1. Event banners add style to your event and make it look polished.
    2. Event banners should be 960 pixels wide x 100 to 400 pixels high. Or the width of the red line at the top of your event page.
    3. Some great banners will repeat the event date, show sponsors or presenting organizations.
  4. Event Contact
    1. The event contact will answer questions that AttendStar cannot answer about your event, such as venue, parking, refund, discount information.
    2. You may use “Event Manager” in place of a person’s name.  
    3. The email address should not be @attendstar and should preferably go to someone that checks email at least once a day.
    4. The phone number should not be an AttendStar number and should be formatted like (555) 122-1111.
    5. It is very important that your ticket buyers have a way to contact someone, other than AttendStar if they need help or information.
  5. Event Description
    1. This is where you SELL your event to the public
    2. Use pictures, graphics, video or audio
    3. Great descriptions sell the “sizzle” of an event. Don’t assume because you are a big fan of the artist that everyone else is too.
  6. Venue information
    1. The venue address should be a complete street address so that ticket buyers using mapping software can input the address.
    2. If the venue is on a large campus, you may want to include the name of the building the event is taking place.
    3. If additional venue information is needed, it should be contained in the FAQ/Common Questions section.
  7. Seating Available
    1. Input the number of seats that are available in the venue. This number is used for reporting.
    2. This number will be used to limit the total number of tickets sold and prevent overselling.
  8. Seating Goal
    1. This number is used in your progress reports to show how you are doing sale-wise.
    2. It is also used to compare to other events for future reporting.
  9. Event FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions or Common Questions)
    1. An important part of your event, this section significantly reduces the number of phone calls from ticket buyers.
    2. List AttendStar’s Ticket Hotline number for phone orders as (615) 223-1008 and always mention there is a $3.00 service charge per ORDER (not per ticket).Also mention that we will mail tickets at NO charge, as long as the request is made at least seven days before your event.
    3. Describe any special parking issues (handicap parking, especially) and answer questions about refunds, will call information, discounts, if children need a ticket, etc.
    4. Great FAQ sections come from thinking like a ticket buyer who is not familiar with your event
  10. Search
    1. This is where you will specify any keywords that your ticket buyers might search for on to locate your event.  
    2. It’s also where you will tell Google how to locate your event and describe your event to people.
  11. Ticket Names
    1. Ticket names should not contain the event or artist names. (I.e., General Admission, VIP, Gold Circle, etc.)
    2. Make sure the ticket names are spelled correctly.
    3. Ticket names should be enhanced with things like “General Admission (Save $5.00 over day of)” or “(Early Bird until 8/10)” or “(Skip the line and save online)”
    4. If ticket buyers save money by purchasing a ticket early, be sure to tell them that!
  12. Ticket Availability sales dates
    1. If you have a few ticket types and they are the same price during the entire sales period, this can be easy. If you have various “early bird” levels, carefully review the dates and times ticket prices change.
    2. We allow you to create as many ticket “tiers” as you want in AttendStar. In fact, we HIGHLY suggest it. Why not have a ticket type such as Gold Circle have a discount if someone buys before a certain date?
    3. The more tickets you get into the hands of people early – the more those people will “talk up your event” – that’s free advertising.
  13. Ticket Quantities
    1. Double check the numbers are right. Of course, you can modify them at anytime, but you don’t want to run out (making your event appear as sold out) or oversell.  
    2. Remember that tickets like General Admission and Group tickets may be pulling from the SAME total number of tickets in your venue.  For example, if you have 500 seats and you don’t care how many group tickets you sell then you will have 500 General Admission tickets AND 500 Group tickets available.  If you want to limit Group sales to say 200 tickets, then you can put 200 in the available field.
    3. The total seats available from #7 above is used to not oversell your venue.
  14. Ticket Description
    1. Ticket descriptions are used to SELL the value of a ticket and to convey basic information.
    2. Include information like, where VIP tickets get to sit, what is included with the ticket, etc.
  15. Terms & Conditions
    1. This is often overlooked because no one wants bad things to happen. This is where you try and limit your liability for any accidents that may occur. If you are not responsible for accidents at the venue, it helps to have that in writing.
    2. If you are not giving refunds, you need to say that in writing.
    3. Certain rules may apply to your event. Have all rules and regulations in writing so that your ticket buyer can read and understand what is expected of them.
  16. Agrees to Terms & Conditions
    1. By checking this box, you can make the ticket buyer agree to the terms and conditions. We always recommend you check this box.
    2. Whether the ticket buyer reads it or not, they still agree to the terms and conditions to purchase tickets – helping you if a situation should arise.
  17. Additional Fees
    1. You have the option to add taxes, credit card fees and other fees to the AttendStar fees.
    2. Keep in mind that ticket buyers do not like fees, but if you have a venue fee, or high sales tax you might want to place it here.
  18. Include fees into ticket price
    1. This helps you sell more tickets more than anything else because the ticket buyer does not see a “fee” on the ticket sales page, making them think they are avoiding fees.
    2. Ticket buyers try to avoid fees at all costs. So it is better to raise your ticket price, for example, to $18.00 to cover $2.00 worth of fees, than to have a price of $16.00 plus $2.00 in fees.
    3. Including fees into your ticket price will sell more online tickets, which helps build your email list and reduce advertising cost in the future.
    4. It also enables you to make more money off any pre-printed tickets you sell at area ticket outlets.  
    5. Including fees also allows you to advertise ONE ticket price everywhere. Ticket buyers do not appreciate advertising that says $16.00, only to find out they are $18.00.
    6. This also eliminates phone calls from ticket buyers asking the question “where can I go to avoid the fees?”
  19. Remind Me
    1. Often when you sell tickets several month or weeks in advance the consumer is not yet ready to buy. Our Remind Me feature will encourage the consumer to receive a reminder email every 10 days, until the event date.
    2. Remind Me only required 5 links to cover 50 days, those links may come from YouTube or elsewhere.
    3. Each Remind Me email contains one link and all the tools to share on Facebook, Twitter or via email.
    4. Remind Me is easy to use and has the potential to not only remind your prospects about the event, but causes them to share.
    5. Use cool videos that help sell your event. Try not to include advertisements or links to buy tickets – these people still need to be sold on your event.
  20. Ticket Buyer Buzz
    1. Ticket Buyer Buzz has been proven to increase sales.
    2. An email is sent every 10 days for the 50 days just prior to the event.  In that email, you want to reinforce why the person bought a ticket to your event.
    3. The SAME 5 emails used in Remind Me (#19) can be used here, too. Our system will automatically transfer a person that buys a ticket, using Remind Me, to a ticket buyer that now gets Ticket Buyer Buzz emails.
    4. Always remember that your current ticket buyers are your biggest fans! Why not share content with them that encourages them to share via Facebook, Twitter and forward an email to their friends.

That’s the 20 things on our event checklist to help you towards happiness and success.  If you have any questions please give us a call and we would be happy to help you succeed.

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