Ticket Factory shines on Take That strategy
CLEVER use of social media enabled Midlands-based national ticketing agent The Ticket Factory to smash its own sales records.
The agency, owned by the NEC Group, was one of just four UK distributors for tickets for Take That’s Progress 2011 tour.
It was allocated tickets from promoter SJM Concerts and handled standing and reserved seating for concerts in Glasgow, Cardiff, Sunderland, Manchester, Birmingham and London.
On the day the tickets went on sale – October 29 – The Ticket Factory website received more than 10m hits from buyers in 41 countries. Of the record sales made on the day, 83% were carried out online.
It said social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Posterous were key in keeping customer response in line with the speed of its on-sale business.
It was boosted by many fans retweeting positive experiences, while it also posted ‘behind the scenes’ vodcasts – video podcasts – of its call centre.
The agency said it had achieved heightened levels of customer service through these online channels. In particular, it sent millions of direct messages to customers who had queries about the orders they had placed, without them needing to go back on the phone to the call centre.
“The success of our approach is evidenced by a 50% increase to both our Twitter and Facebook accounts,” said the agency.
Will Quekett, General Manager of The Ticket Factory, said: “This was one of the biggest on-sales in history. The Ticket Factory smashed its per hour sales record by 50% and its overall day sales record by 100%. Demand for tickets was extraordinarily high. Our website received over 10m hits and handled 82% of the day’s sales to buyers from 41 different countries.”
He said the fact the agency had been able to cope with such volumes was testament to its prominent position in the UK ticketing market.
“With our exceptional data analysis tools and electronic marketing support together with dedicated staff and a good reputation in the market, The Ticket Factory is fast becoming the national ticket agency of choice for promoters, producers and event organisers,” he added.
The Ticket Factory is now a leading national ticketing agent, despite only being launched three years ago. During that time it has tripled its business and is now expanding to sell tickets for events throughout the UK.
The company’s reputation has been enhanced after it won the contract to operate Bookings Direct, making it the national ticket agent for all 3A Entertainment’s roster of artists, including Kylie Minogue, Paul Weller, WWE and X-Factor. The Ticket Factory is also the UK box office for Haymarket exhibitions, with a portfolio including Autosport International, Clothes Show Live, Clothes Show London and the BBC Good Food Shows in Birmingham and Glasgow, and official ticketing partner for the Royal Horticultural Society and Badminton England.
