Where do most people buy concert tickets?
Which Site People Mainly Use to Purchase Concert Tickets?
Concert tickets seem to be the ‘it’ thing today, with new artists such as Beyonce, Taylor Swift, and The Rolling Stones filling up their tours with sold-out arena and stadium tickets often in minutes. But where can you look for tickets when there is a concert by your favorite musician? Here is a brief description of the major methods through which individuals procure their concert tickets and their advantages and disadvantages.
Online Ticket Retailers
The most dominant source through which people purchase their event tickets at the moment is through online ticket-selling platforms such as Ticketmaster, Tixbag, SeatGeek, StubHub, Vivid Seats, and others. Such sites have direct contracts with most of the premiere venues and artists, who can sell most of the tickets themselves.
The main benefit that can be expected from the use of online ticket retailers is convenience. Customers can view its upcoming show, and the availability of seats, and make their purchase within a short period without having to go out. Other pages also contain fan clubs and presales where one can purchase tickets before the public has the chance to. However, such an inconvenience results in rather steep service fees that range from 20 to 30 percent for every ticket. The same can be said for the above-mentioned resale sites, such as StubHub, which often offer extremely overpriced tickets that can be several times more expensive than their face value.
Artist and Venue Websites
If there is an artist that you are particularly interested in and you want to purchase tickets for his or her show, then the best thing to do is to avoid third-party sites and go directly to the artist’s site or directly to the site of the venue where the artist will be performing. More often than not, the venue and/or the artist will surely have a percentage of tickets that they will directly sell, usually over the phone at their designated box office number or through the artists’ website.
The plus here is that the ticket retailer service charge does not reach the actors, musicians, or theater owners, and more money is provided for the performers and producers. The only drawback is that many artists and venues that use this method sell only a portion of the tickets through it and therefore they may be sold out earlier. You also do not get to see a detailed seat map or a seat selection if you place an order over the phone.
Box Office In-Person Sales
When it comes to tickets for concerts of famous musicians at large venues, the receipts at the physical ticket box office account for a negligible percentage of ticket sales currently. However, for minor club performances and local concerts, people can directly purchase a ticket at the box office of the event during the night of the show.
The greatest incentive that people still prefer to purchase their tickets directly from the venue box office is that all the attached charges are missing; the price you are charged is what you have to pay. Another disadvantage of fake tickets is that they are not such a big problem when you purchase them directly from the original sellers. However, the box office could sell out as well, so when it comes to getting tickets for a performance, people should arrive early if the performance is popular. Who needs to stand in a queue nowadays when you have the option of ordering from the comfort of your home?
Fan Ticket Exchanges
If you are looking at a concert that is posted on all major ticketing sites and there is a ‘sold out’ sign next to it, your final hope is to reach out to a fan ticket exchange such as Lyte or Twickets. Here, you can securely purchase secondary market tickets from fans who cannot attend the concerts anymore.
Whereas a standard ticket resale service is usually a business with some people with objectives to make a higher price than what they paid for, the fan ticket exchange is much cheaper since fans are only seeking to recover some of the money they spent just for the sake of it. You also understand that the tickets you will be able to buy are genuine, thus eliminating the chances of being offered fake or void tickets. Of course, one must remember that the selection comes directly from fans, and therefore, the prices may still be greater than the face value of the tickets.
The Secondary Market
Some of the primary discussions cannot be held without touching on secondary markets, which are online platforms such as StubHub and Vivid Seats, where season ticket holders and scalpers sell tickets to high-demand shows. Prices on these sites may go as high as Ksh 5,000 after a sell-out event and then drop to Ksh 2,000 nearer the show time.
As a result, the opportunity to acquire tickets to some incredibly popular events is the main benefit of acquiring tickets from a secondary market reseller. These sites also seem to offer the greatest number of tickets available. Just be prepared to be billed – sometimes hundreds and even thousands of dollars above face value for front-row access. But don’t forget to be cautious of ticket resale platforms and not fall for a ticket scam.
In Summary
As for the strengths and weaknesses of each of the methods for purchasing concert tickets, the availability of online ticket retailers is the best option for the largest number of buyers, as they balance reliability, the range of the offered tickets, and accessibility. Artist websites, venue box offices, and fan exchanges are used well enough for more targeted roles. If cost is not an issue, the secondary resellers can provide access to the much-needed tickets whenever all other options have been exhausted. No matter the outlet you decide to shop from, you have to be swift, as we all know great tickets sell out quickly!
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