The best way to get people excited about your non-profit is to sell out your fundraising event. The more demand you can drive for your event admissions, the more money you’ll raise. But selling out an event isn’t easy. These tips will help you create a sense of urgency and drive demand for your next fundraiser:
Sell event admissions early to insiders
The first thing you should do is identify who your super fans are and make sure that they know about all ticket sales opportunities. Next, think about what those super fans would want: whether they are looking for the best seat in the house or simply want access now so they can buy without delay.
Since they’re super fans, they will help you start spreading the word to their friends and coworkers also. Knowing that your event will likely sell out quickly helps you offer them exactly what they need when it’s time for purchase decisions—and helps ensure that everyone has a chance at being part of something truly amazing!
Create a sense of urgency
There are two sides to the urgency coin. One side is the fear factor: you want your audience to feel like they need to buy now or they’ll miss out on something great. The other side is more positive, where you’re giving them a deadline by which they can take advantage of an offer or special opportunity. Either way, it works best when you create a sense of urgency in your message by using words like “limited time” or “limited availability,” and phrases like “offer expires soon.”
A Sold Out event offers exclusivity
One of the easiest ways to create a sense of urgency is by offering something exclusive in your PSAs. This can be as simple as saying that there are only 100 tickets available for your event, or you could offer bespoke experiences like VIP seating or an insider experience, such as backstage access during a rehearsal. For example, if you’re hosting an outdoor concert with multiple stages, make all VIP passes good for every stage. Or if you’re hosting an art show with several artists, give sponsors access to one-on-one sales meetings with each artist so they can get the chance to make their own connections.
Package up sponsorships to make them more tantalizing
To make the most of your sponsorship opportunities, you should consider offering a number of different levels of sponsorship. This way, you can give your supporters more value for each level and tailor perks to match their desires.
By offering multiple levels with different benefits and price points—and by providing opportunities for everyone from major donors to attendee tables—you’ll create packages that are tantalizing enough for potential sponsors while still making sense as part of your budgeting process
Offer last-minute event admissions
Last-minute tickets are a great way to fill up your event, especially if it is a popular one with a lot of people who like to buy their tickets in advance. They can also be successful for events that require an upfront payment and have limited seating capacity (like plays, concerts, and similar). You can also partner with local media to generate publicity for your event by giving away an event admission.
These tips can help drive the demand for your event.
To drive the demand for your event, make sure to use urgency in your sales language. Offer time-sensitive ticket deals or VIP events that are only open to people who have already supported you.
Make it a limited availability event by selling a percentage of tickets at a different price point. Use sell early bird tickets or last minute deals to fill the seats.
With so many things to do and a limited budget, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all of the responsibilities that come with running an organization. However, we hope that these tips will help you stay organized and lead you to a sold-out fundraising event!
Assigning admissions to in-person event attendees – ahead of event day is a key step to successfully executing table assignments, inviting guests to bid online (both ahead of and during the event), and keeping your check-in line moving quickly. Join us on February 1st, 2023 for a LIVE webinar to learn All About Admissions in Greater Giving.
