Are you looking for a new ticket system for your theater?
Then the first question is: Are you ready to switch? There are literally dozen to choose from. But what criteria do you use to select the theater ticketing system that is suitable for your organization? How do you find the right ticketing provider? We have a few approaches for you.
First things first: can you love the ticketing system you work with?
Switching to a new ticketing system for your theater is not the hardest thing in the world. But it’s not a leisurely stroll in the park either. You don’t want to go without your historical data, so your old data has to be imported. A professional partner is the be-all and end-all when changing your systems.
As well your employees have to learn to work with the new system. Theater goers need to familiarize themselves with buying a ticket in new ways, etc.
Before you start choosing a new ticket system, you should therefore be clear about your requirements and take your time to look around the market. Hopefully it will help to conduct a comprehensive market research and thus get to know new, previously unknown companies, but also functionalities. We live in a time of rapid developments, in which young companies in particular often have rapid leaps in development. So do your research and be aware of what is important to you.
This is what matters before choosing the new ticketing system for your theatre.
Your requirements are clear, you have an overview over the market and you found a new ticketing software. Then it’s time to talk to your current ticketing provider. Check if they can meet your needs and are ready to respond to you. Perhaps the new function you are looking for is already on the roadmap of your current ticketing system provider. If your current provider can meet the requirements that you place on a modern theater ticketing system, there is no reason to switch!
But it is also possible that you get the feeling that you have exhausted all options of your current ticketing provider. Perhaps you have worked together for many years, your ticketing provider sees no reason to develop something new, because it has worked so far. Or you just want to get a breath of fresh air and are interested in innovative, modern and, above all, sales-promoting functions in your ticketing software.
If so, it is time to consider other systems and dig deeper into the exam.
Attention danger of errors! Try to avoid these mistakes for choosing a new ticketing software.
One of the biggest mistakes promoters make when choosing a theater ticketing system is simply to follow the recommendation of another theater. Sure, it’s an advantage to hear that another theater is mostly satisfied with the ticketing provider. However, such a recommendation usually says little about the functions and features of the ticketing software. Choosing a system that will perform the ticket functions you need is more important than anything else.
Define what the right ticketing system is able to do for your theater.
So the first step is to think about what you are looking for in a new ticket system for your theater.
For example, take part in conferences such as INTIX. This is the world’s largest meeting of the ticketing industry and the world’s best ticket providers gather to present their software. If it should be a bit smaller for the beginning, then we recommend the annual Ticketing Business Forum.
The ticketing industry has been meeting here for 8 years now for mutual exchange, exciting lectures and company presentations. A major advantage of this conference is that it now encompasses the entire ticketing ecosystem and topics such as digital marketing, pricing, analysis and CRM are also covered.
You can find further inspiration by simply looking at various providers of ticketing software for theaters, as recommended in the first section. Of course, you will find these primarily when searching on Google or other search engines. Many providers of software for ticket sales present their functionalities comprehensively on their respective websites.
If that’s not enough for you, just have a look at our demo shop. There you will also find a lot of different functionalities integrated into the various theater ticket shops.
Based on these impressions, you can certainly get a first picture of your individual requirements. You will surely find out more requirements if you deal more intensively with your current processes.
Take some time to do this, get your team and all the interfaces for ticketing within your theater together and consider what is good and what should be better. Take a critical look at your processes and ask yourself the crucial questions.
You should ask yourself these 10 questions regarding the ticketing system for your theatre.
- Do we want an in-house ticketing system or do we need a ticket seller?
- Is it better to put our own brand in the foreground with a white label ticketing system, or do we prefer to link to another ticketing portal?
- Does the ticketing system have to offer the selection and booking of seats?
- Do we want to collect donations?
- Can we increase our revenues through cross selling, such as the sales of merchandising items or drinks?
- Do we want to scan the theater ticket at the entrance?
- Can we bind our guests to us even better through subscription functionalities or memberships?
- Do we want control over advance booking fees?
- What are our best distribution channels? The sale at the box office? Our online shop? Or advance booking offices?
- Is it possible to increase our income through live streaming offers? Your current ticketing and CRM system may provide insights?
Always in view – the Road Map!
You may also find other features that you like as part of your market research. Or you have your own ideas and functionalities in your head that you want, but which are not yet available from any other ticketing provider. At egocentric Systems, for example, we are always interested in feedback from our customers and adapt the development roadmap of our ticket system to the wishes and ideas of our customers.
One thing is for sure, this process should create a set of requirements that you should share with potential ticketing providers via a traditional RFP process.
We always advise you to simply contact the system provider and ask openly and straightforwardly whether they can implement the requirements you place on your ticketing software. Pay close attention to the answers. If a system can’t do what you need, or if you feel like the company is just making promises, there is no point in continuing the conversation with that ticketing provider. Then it’s definitely better to go ahead and check out other providers.
Limit the choice of ticket providers and request software demonstrations.
If you find that some vendors are a good fit for your needs, the next logical step is a software demo. Here you can see the ticketing software in action and get a more detailed picture. Many providers now like to carry out a remote demo for your team, so that the effort is limited. Gather your team and let them ask all the questions. Remember to ask the provider for as many demonstrations of their ticketing software as you need. A reputable provider who is seriously interested in working together will patiently present down to the smallest detail.
Decide on the right theatre and concert ticketing partner.
After the functionalities demos have been completed, the price negotiations begin. The most current price models for ticketing software are presented in our blog post “4 different price models for ticketing software”.
But not only the price of the ticketing software is decisive. Also pay attention to service, support and documentation. Egocentric Systems, for example, offers extensive support for most ticketing functionalities both in its help portal and via the YouTube channel. Regardless of this, our support is also available by phone or for online sessions.
It is also important to find the right contract term and, if necessary, to negotiate additional agreements such as contingents for software development, data transfer, consulting hours or the provision of hardware in the contract.
We therefore recommend that you discuss all details about pricing, the respective services and the implementation schedule in detail with your selected ticketing partner and record everything in writing.
Once all of this has been clarified, nothing stands in the way of working together. Do you feel ready to change your ticketing system? Then you can let the ticketing provider draw up the contract. Then check it again in your own time, see whether all the points discussed are found again and then you can start.
Interest aroused?
You want to sell out your events independently and successfully?
Then learn more about our innovative software solution for ticket sales.