Seeing the forest through the fees
We know you've come to expect Fee Free Fridays to be a written account of the week's wins and losses from the war on unreasonable per-ticket fees - But sometimes a picture says a thousands words. This week we overdose on infographics for a fresh look at just how awful outrageous fees and services charges can be. Plus we find a good kind of ticket fee (yes, you read that correctly) and tally the week's assaults on the hapless ticket buyer.
Are you ready to take the Fee Free Friday Rorschach test?
Seeing the forest through the fees
Sometimes infographics are kinda like Rorschach test, a subjective see-what-you-want-to-see experience - But make no mistake, these info graphics are nauseatingly objective. While you stare at them, be sure to take the wider view and see the forest (long term profitability) through the fees (small, short term profit from an unreasonably high ticket fee).
Note - click on the thumbnail version of all the infographics to open them full size in a new browser tab
First up is our perennial heroes over at the Fan Freedom Project and the illustration of how they caught a troll in their midst. In the post the project describes how they came upon an odd option among the rancor about ticket fees and scalpers. Some old fashioned sleuthing took place and it was revealed that an employee of TicketMaster had signed up as a project member! The graphic below shows how the Manchurian candidate was discovered.
Next is a time capsule of sorts. This infographic is made from the ticket prices for the Olympics in London as they first went on sale in 2010. Poignant to look back and see the calm before the storm. Hindsight may be 20/20, but as shown below, the data from two years ago is a far cry for the realities of today.
Finally an alternative perspective that ends up striking a familiar tone. The overall patron experience at any ticket event can be appreciated in Food & Beverage industry infographic for the cost of going to a baseball game. While ticket fees are not mentioned specifically, it does show all the other costs of an event. What really caught our attention is the data indicating that when ticket prices go up, attendance goes down.
When ticket fees are a good thing
One for the win column and an example of when tickets are a good thing (yes you read that correctly). Earlier this week Insomniac Events made a $115,000 donation to several Las Vegas area charities. The donation was collected via a ticket fee for the Electric Daisychain Music Festival held last month.
So not all ticket fees are the source of negative perception by consumers, done correctly they can be a welcomed addition to the purchasing process. Not a single negative sentiment could be found for the charity fee in the timeline leading up to the festival - some ticket buyers even asked how they could pay more.
We applaud Insomniac for this altruistic pursuit, and we hope to be able to report on more charitable uses of ticket fees in the future.
Rogues gallery
The Tickemonster twitter account has been on a roll recently, re-tweeting every anguished voice that can be heard on Twitter.
Knowing who is behind the account, but we cannot help but follow it. If you don't think social media has an impact on event purchasing decisions, you should reading through Ticketmonster’s tweets. The sheer volume of complaints made about ticket fees on social media platforms is beyond the scope of a single blog post, but some low lights are:
$15.15 in fees for a $21.50 ticket
https://twitter.com/RicMachinima/status/228566984416194560
$20 in fees for a $32 ticket
https://twitter.com/CarleighSchae/status/227628962136879105
$8.25 in fees for a $10 ticket
https://twitter.com/the_jamezp/status/228632692013555713
Those tweets are just a tiny fraction of what is in the hearts and minds of event patrons as they are assaulted by unreasonable per ticket fees.
Your ThunderTix account gives you all the tools you need to charge tickets fees that are equitable for you and the ticket buyer, including the ability to go fee free! If you're not sure about charging ticket fees, read our newest guide - To Fee or not to fee. That is the question.
Be sure to take a look at our features and sign up for a free trial today!
