Managing the Music Festival Pre Registration Process.

Most music festival organisers operate a ticket pre-registration scheme where interested festival-goers can register their interest in future ticket purchase. These schemes enable the early capture of ticket buyer data, but how should organisers manage their pre-registration schemes to maximise conversion to actual sales revenue.

A well-run ticket pre-registration scheme can provide organisers with invaluable data on their target audience and provides numerous revenue generation opportunities. Often launched a year in advance of the live event dates such schemes allow organisers to judge initial interest and can help dictate when to run future marketing campaigns. It is essential that a slick sign-up process is set up that is straightforward for users but also provides organisers with high value data.

Why Pre-Registration.
Over the years festival organisers have realised that pre-registration provides them with data that can be used for improved planning processes. It enables them to determine likely ticket demand well in advance of live dates and helps to set ticket prices. If early demand indicates that organisers will exceed venue capacity, they can consider changing the location, increasing capacity, or adding extra dates. High demand can help to more accurately select the best ticket pricing structure. Capturing data from interested festival-goers gives organisers a better understanding of their festival-goer demographics which can help drive improved marketing campaign targeting. The cost of data collection is reduced with pre-registration because organisers don't have to invest large sums in advertising in the run up to the event dates.

Technology Enablers.
Pre-registration is not just about capturing an email address; it requires appropriate back-end technology integration to maximise data capture and usability. A dedicated pre-registration advertising campaign can be run on social media platforms with links to specific landing pages that capture the customer's journey and source of traffic. Capturing mobile numbers can provide contact options so festival-goers can choose to receive messages and updates via email, SMS or their preferred messaging app which potentially increases conversion rates to ticket purchase. Full integration with a back-end CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software system allows all pre-registration data to be captured, which can then be sliced and diced for future highly targeted messaging campaigns.

Data Capture.
The data capture on pre-registration forms should be simple and quick for festival-goers to use with minimal mandatory fields (name, email address and phone number for example). Additional optional fields like gender, age, location and preferred ticket type can be made available, but organisers should emphasise that this data helps them to create a better more tailored festival experience. Increasing mandatory fields to be completed will often cause a drop in registration completion and submission. All data capture should be compliant with the prevailing GDPR rules for the festival's location.

Conversion to Sales Revenue.
Capturing pre-registration data is the easiest part of the process for organisers, it is the conversion to ticket sales that can often be the most challenging aspect. Festival-goers that have pre-registered should be made to feel privileged by gaining access to tickets before the General Admission tranche goes on sale. This is certainly the biggest perceived benefit of pre-registering for any event. Many organisers set up systems where anyone who pre-registered can get access to their personalised account which lists tickets, optional extras and merchandise available to buy along with their purchase history. Using SMS or messaging apps is often more effective at driving rapid ticket purchase because users receive and read messages instantly compared to emails which may be read later in the day, for example.

Common Strategies.
Launching a pre-registration scheme that includes numerous benefits like early ticket purchase before an official launch along with discounted exclusive extras and merchandise can help drive pre-registration traffic. Time limited pre-registration periods can increase the FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) effect further increasing registration numbers. Organisers should use that pre-registration data as an opportunity to regularly communicate with potential ticket buyers, providing them with unique content. This can include details of artist line-ups, artist interviews and a behind the scenes expose; regular newsletters can increase loyalty to the festival even before ticket purchase. Those who have pre-registered provide some of the best opportunities for organisers to convert them to ticket buyers as well as being more likely to buy additional services and merchandise for example.

For festival organisers planning their next event 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, site planning, cashless payments and contactless ordering.

Image by u_fg0tkeqgiy via Pixabay

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