Why January is the Best Month to Sell Music Festival Tickets.

European and North American music festival organisers tend to launch marketing campaigns for early bird tickets in January. Organisers find this is one of the best months to announce their ticketing options and it generates much needed sales revenue well in advance of the festival’s live dates. Why do organisers focus so much on January as a key month to sell tickets?

There is no single element that drives demand for music festival tickets in January but it is more likely a combination of factors. Seasonality timing, consumer behaviour and favorable marketing conditions are the most likely factors influencing ticket sales. Organisers have usually announced their line-ups in December so they are fully prepared for ticketing launch campaigns in January. 

The Psychological Impact of Winter. 
For European and North American regions the holiday period during Christmas and New Year is a time for relaxation and time off work. Early January will see many return to work and combined with the cold winter weather and short dark days can have a depressing impact. The thought of summer music festivals can be very appealing to those suffering from the winter blues. Researching potential summer music festivals to attend is a great form of escapism for many and purchasing an early bird ticket will give them something to look forward to and they can save money on the numerous early bird offers circulating. For organisers they have a captive eager audience and ticket buyers are more inclined to share their excitement on social media channels giving them great festival-goer engagement. 

Planning Cycles. 
Most summer music festival organisers make their line-up announcements in December and launching early bird ticket campaigns in January can be a great way to maintain momentum with potential ticket buyers. January can be financially good for many who may have received year-end bonuses or be in possession of gift money. This means they have funds available to consider spending on a music festival ticket combined with attractive pricing and installment plans on offer form organisers. Early bird offers are generally time limited and festival-goers will often need to commit to a ticket purchase before the end of the month. This tactic can help boost music festival ticket sales revenue in January and allows extensive time for planning attendance. 

Strategic Marketing Opportunities. 
Organisers can often find attractive advertising conditions in January because of the post-holiday lull in general advertising noise which has now subsided. This makes it easier to gain the attention of potential tickets buyers especially when combined with great early bird offers and well targeted campaigns. Time limited offers and ticket number restrictions can help reinforce the FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) factor which can generate quick sales. Whilst many music festival organisers are now concentrating on launching ticketing campaigns in January it is far from a saturated market place because many organisers  of late summer festivals are still planning line-ups and operational logistics and are unable to announce their ticketing prices and availability. This situation may change over time as more organisers realise that January is an optimum month for ticketing launch campaigns. With most larger advertisers spending their budgets in the run up to the holiday period there are also media cost opportunities for festival organisers who may be able to obtain favorable rates reducing their overall advertising spend. 

For festival organisers planning their next events using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, cashless payments and contactless ordering. 

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