Selling tickets to your event isn’t the only way to make it pay for itself. Here’s a comprehensive list of methods we’ve used with successful events teams to monetise their event:
1. Advertising
It’s the oldest marketing play there is and still the most successful. Let companies advertise within your communications and charge them for the privilege.
2. Sell tickets to seminars
Your most popular speakers are likely to be overbooked and that’s an opportunity to take advantage of. Guests are likely to pay more for the privilege of attending a keynote speaker they really want to see so charge a premium rate to guarantee access to all the main seminars or allow certain seminars to charge for attendance.
3. Sponsorship packages
Sell the headline name ownership of your event to a key sponsor. Alternatively, you can divide the sponsorship opportunity between a number of sponsors and give them shared billing on your communications. You can even create mini sponsorship packages for specific parts of your event. For example, the Bobs Widgets Keynote stage or the drinks reception brought to you by MightyCorp.
4. Sell the rights to your event app
Event apps are the gateway for your attendees to access your event before, during and after the event. An event that makes the most of its app will stack it with features that make it indispensable to an attendee. All those open and closes of an app can be monetised by selling the naming rights to it and allowing logos and push notification advertising from within the app.
5. Let speakers sell access to documents from within your app
Your key and headline speakers have a wealth of knowledge and only a short time to present their information at your event. Let them sell their speaker notes, presentation, and other literature from within their speaker profile and seminar information areas in your app and take a percentage of these sales.
6. Pay for meeting access
Attendees are likely to want to gain one-to-one access to speakers. Let them arrange meetings by allowing guests to book and pay for appointments. An event app can facilitate this if required.
7. Add ticket pricing tiers
Pricing tiers let guests pay to attend several days, meet headline speakers, vip seating, or have catering included with their ticket.
8. Partner with local hotels
Earn commission from attendees who stay at local hotels for the event. Provide a unique code to attendees in your event communications and benefit from the commissions that hotels will pay you.
9. Database
Selling attendee data is a dicey subject nowadays, but it doesn’t mean it’s not possible to still do. Provided you follow the GDPR guidelines and get explicit permission from attendees to share their data, you could sell database access to exhibitors or other data providers. Alternatively, you could sell the results of surveys or polls held during your event. That information may have a very real value to others in your industry.
10. Merchandise
Plenty of free merchandise is chucked at attendees during an event and loads of it ends up in the bin a few days later. It’s far better to create quality items and link them to ticket purchase. So, if you have a second tier pricing category, attendees booking that level of ticket might receive a shirt and bag. Alternatively, include your book on an upgraded package. You’ll know exactly how many items you need to produce (keeping costs down) and be able to cover their cost from the ticket price too!
11. Sell your products
Your event may be an ancillary part of your overall calendar or it may be the main reason for your existence. Either way, make sure you have available your products or services available to sell during the event. If you produce multiple events, then sell attendees on the next event. If you’re an accounting conference, then sell your magazine or software product. Don’t miss the opportunity to continue to sell just because attendees are there to see a key speaker.
Summary
Event monetisation is more than just ticket sales and exhibitor space. There are many ways to generate an income from your event and we’re here to help if you need. Give us a call on +44 121 796 5800 to discuss options for your next event.
