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5 Ways Zoo Software Can Simplify Ticketing
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Purchasing a ticket will most likely be a visitor’s first interaction with your zoo, and a smooth and simple ticket purchasing experience will have you off to a good start. Zoo software facilitates a more positive overall experience for both visitors and staff during your ticketing process. Why is it important to create a good customer experience? Because good experiences make your customers more valuable. They are more likely to spend more in the gift shop, return for another visit, and spread the word about how stellar your zoo is. Every good experience makes the case for your zoo’s cause, and when visitors see the value of your cause and believe in it, they are more likely to become members. Most people believe memberships are superior to a donation in supporting a nonprofit’s mission. Members are more likely to donate more on top of their membership fees, and they may even champion your cause in their corporate and personal lives. This is a broad view, but it’s true. Your most loyal members start out as satisfied visitors. And every visit begins with a ticket. Table of Contents 1. Purchasing Tickets Online Enhances the Process for your Visitors 2. Zoo Software Integrated with Square Boosts On-Site Ticketing 3. Your Staff and Visitors Save Time with Zoo Software 4. Zoo Software Offers Flexible Ticketing 5. Streamline Entry with Zoo Software Purchasing Tickets Online Enhances the Process for your Visitors With zoo software, your guests’ zoo visits start at home. They can conveniently purchase their tickets at home any time of the day, any day of the week. When visitors arrive for their much-anticipated zoo day with their tickets already purchased, they can skip the line at the ticket booth and head straight to the entrance, tickets in hand. These advance tickets will...
SimpleTix: The Simpler, Cheaper Alternative to Eventbrite
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SimpleTix: An Alternative to Eventbrite If you’re looking for an alternative to Eventbrite, SimpleTix offers a straightforward option: $0.79 + 2% per ticket, same-day payouts, solid payment integrations, and no contracts or subscriptions. In addition, SimpleTix charges no fees on free events. Get started — $0.79 + 2% per ticket Why organizers look for an alternative to Eventbrite Eventbrite is well known. But depending on the kind of events you run, you may need more control over how you sell, scan, and manage tickets. If you run recurring events, timed entry, reserved seating, memberships, or box office sales, SimpleTix supports those workflows without adding contracts or subscription fees. You can sell online, sell in person, scan tickets offline, use Square or Stripe, offer PayPal and Venmo checkout, and get same-day payouts. You can also explore our full Eventbrite alternatives guide or read the deeper SimpleTix vs Eventbrite comparison. Alternative to Eventbrite pricing Pricing is where many organizers start. SimpleTix charges $0.79 + 2% per ticket. There are no contracts, no subscriptions, and no fees on free events. You can also choose to pass fees to attendees or absorb them yourself. See full pricing here: SimpleTix pricing Alternative to Eventbrite feature comparison Pricing matters, but features matter too. Feature SimpleTix Eventbrite Per-ticket pricing $0.79 + 2% 3.7% + $1.79 per ticket + 2.9% processing per order Contracts No No Subscription required No No (optional Pro plan from $15/mo) Fees on free events No No Same-day payouts Yes No — payouts sent 3 days after event, then up to 5 business days to arrive Stripe integration Yes No — Eventbrite Payment Processing only Square integration Yes No PayPal and Venmo checkout Yes No Reserved seating Yes Yes Timed entry / capacity management Yes Limited Season tickets Yes No Memberships Yes No Offline...
The Simplest Alternative to Eventbrite for Running Your Event
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You’ve got your event planned, your venue secured, and your dates locked. Your initial thought may be to sell tickets through the ubiquitous Eventbrite; however, with a high cost burden and lack of control, it will be in your best interest to seek an Eventbrite alternative. The ideal ticketing platform should be easy to use, accessible to all, and puts the event organizers and attendees first. An alternative to Eventbrite will make pulling off your event easier than before, because you get to throw your event your way. With the right ticketing platform, you can save money and pull off the perfect event for your attendees. Table of Contents 1. Organize Your Event with Ease 2. Events Should be Fun for Everyone – Including the Organizers 3. An Alternative to Eventbrite Pays Out Instantly with Lower Fees Organize Your Event with Ease An alternative to Eventbrite should give you more control for different aspects of your events while still being user-friendly. Ticket Customization Custom ticket prices, bundles, and discounts will give your event an edge to potential guests. With infinite options and add-ons, ticket purchasers can find the right fit for their wants and needs. SimpleTix allows for an infinite number of custom ticket discounts, bundles, and other modifications. Your event is unique, and you should be able to structure ticket pricing as you choose. Event Website or Widget SimpleTix offers users a straightforward event website to sell tickets or a widget to embed on their own page. Guests don’t need to download an app or look at branding that is not your own, or events you are not advertising like other platforms will do. You can also update the website yourself should anything change. Purchasing tickets will often be the attendees’ first point of contact with your event, so...
Labor shortage leaving you short-handed? SimpleTix helps you cover the gaps.
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If you’ve driven past a strip of fast food restaurants lately, you’ve probably noticed how many of them have “HIRING NOW” signs in the window. Some may have even reduced their operating hours due to being so short-staffed. The restaurant industry isn’t alone. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the number of job openings in America hit an all-time high of 9.1 million in June. Trucking companies, farms, manufacturers, retail stores —businesses of all types are struggling to attract workers following the COVID-19 pandemic. Colin Davis helps run the Chico Hot Springs Resort, just north of Yellowstone National Park. During the pandemic, he was forced to shut down the resort for three months and lay off 150 of his 180 employees. As the world opens up again, the boom season he looked forward to has become a challenge all its own. “The stats from Yellowstone National Park pointed to probably the best financial year we would have ever had. I was like, ‘Wow, we’re going to come back rolling out of this’ and we’re just going to crush it… Everyone needed a win, then we phased into this labor crisis, Davis told The Daily podcast for its August 3 episode. “It’s honestly more stressful and harder to manage than COVID was.“ Shannen Tune, chef and owner of Craft Burger in Houston, has had to re-think his business model to survive the changing dynamics of his industry. Before the pandemic, Tune paid inexperienced, entry-level staff $12 per hour. Now applicants want $20. “I’m not a big corporate restaurant. I don’t have the funding and backing to where I can offer people $500 for interviewing or taking a job,” he said, in the same podcast. “One thing the pandemic taught a lot of restaurant owners is that your margins are...
Buncombe County Switches to Local Event Tech Provider, Saves Hundreds and Sees...
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Buncombe County switched to SimpleTix, a local tech company, for the county’s annual Lake Julian Festival of Lights celebration. Ultimately, the county saved hundreds of dollars in fees and saw a record turnout for opening weekend attendance. Asheville, North Carolina December 9, 2019 – Buncombe County’s annual Lake Julian Festival of Lights was just a bit more festive this year. The county switched to a local tech company to provide the eTicketing service for the event and ultimately saved hundreds of dollars on fees and saw the highest attendance ever for opening weekend. The annual celebration is always a huge draw for Asheville, NC, residents, as well as those across the state. The drive-through only tour includes thousands of dazzling lights and displays carefully choreographed and installed around Lake Julian Park. Each year, 20% of the proceeds goes to support the Buncombe County Special Olympics, as well. For 2019’s event, county organizers switched from Eventbrite to SimpleTix, a local ticketing technology company based in Asheville. The decision was made for multiple reasons, including saving money on fees, but also to help support a local company and bolster the area economy. The result was a record turnout, with almost 1,300 people visiting on Sunday alone, a new single-day record. Part of the increased attendance was due to lower ticket prices. Because the county saved money on fees, it was able to pass those savings along to eventgoers in the form of lower ticket prices. Chris Bubenik, Buncombe County Recreation Services’ Marketing Generalist, stated, “It couldn’t be easier to run an event with SimpleTix. From setting up our festival to scanning tickets, every step of the process is intuitive. The SimpleTix team also provided personal attention to ensure success. Plus, we were able to receive instant payments instead of waiting weeks for a check.” The partnership was so successful that Buncombe...
Zapier now features SimpleTix
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Automate repetitive tasks! Do you use other CRMs, email tools, or even Google Sheets? You can now find SimpleTix in the Zapier app list. Currently the most common SimpleTix Zaps are: Google Sheets - automatically add all new orders into a Google Sheet as the come in. Gmail - automatically email a copy of the order details to other members of your team. Slack - add new orders into Slack, this is ideal if you need to take care of mailing them a welcome packet. MailChimp - automatically add attendees to your email list. SalesForce - automatically add ticket buyers as an opportunity.
Pop-Up Dinner Ticketing: How to Plan, Price, and Sell Out Your Event
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Pop-Up Dinner Ticketing: How to Plan, Price, and Sell Out Your Event Pop-up dinner ticketing gets messy fast. You have limited seats, dietary needs, no-show risk, and guests who all want the 7:00 PM slot. The good news is you do not need a complicated system to run it. You need timed entry, clear ticket types, custom checkout questions, and a simple way to manage capacity. That is where SimpleTix can help, especially for food and drink events. Start your pop-up dinner ticketing setup with the event flow Before you build the event page, map the night. Specifically, decide how guests move through the experience. Are they arriving in one wave for a communal dinner? Or are you running four seatings every 45 minutes? That choice shapes pricing, staffing, and check-in. A simple workflow might look like this: 6:00 PM seating — 24 guests 7:15 PM seating — 24 guests 8:30 PM seating — 24 guests 9:45 PM seating — 24 guests With SimpleTix, you can use General Admission with timed entry and capacity management to cap each seating. This matters for pop-ups because prime time usually fills first. If you do not set limits by entry time, things can get crowded fast. Build pop-up dinner ticketing around timed entry, not one big guest list A lot of organizers still sell pop-up seats as one general pool. That works for a 20-person supper club. However, it gets harder once you have multiple seatings, staggered prep, or different menu windows. Timed entry can help you stay organized across: Kitchen pacing Table turns Staffing at check-in For example, if your chef can plate 30 covers every hour, do not release 50 tickets for the same arrival window. Instead, create separate ticket types tied to each seating. That also makes expectations clearer for...
Taking the Hassle Out of Conference Registration
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Anyone who has ever registered for a conference knows that it can be time-consuming to click through page after page of registration options. For the past three years, the Pacesetter Conference has used SimpleTix to streamline their process for attendees. The conference is organized by Pacesetter Claims, an insurance claims organization based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The company utilize the conference to share updates and best practices with its clients across the U.S. Streamlined Process By having all of the registration information on one page, Pacesetter’s employees can easily make all of their selections at once, or keep the page open and come back to it later. This functionality also allows managers to register more than one employee at once and choose which break-out sessions each team member will attend. CRM Integration Each registration is automatically linked to Pacesetter’s customer relationships management system through Zapier. Data does not need to be entered manually into another system or batch loaded once per day. The transfer happens in real time. This allows conference organizers to track and communicate with each registrant. The SimpleTix integration with Zapier allows ticketing data to be automatically sent to any of the major CRM systems on the market, including Salesforce and Constant Contact. Learn More SimpleTix is a low-cost solution for any conference registration, no matter how large or small the event. All of the features that the Pacesetter Conference is using are included for just $0.99 per registration. Other conference registration services can cost $15 or more for each registrant. Contact us to learn more about how SimpleTix can streamline your next conference or professional development event.
SimpleTix Brings Margaritaville to the Holiday Season
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When you think about Margaritaville, you might picture lazy days on the beach with a cocktail in hand. For one location, the fun extends well into the winter season. SimpleTix is helping them make their events a reality. Margaritaville at Lanier Islands, located near Atlanta, opened License to Chill Snow Island earlier this year. The winter-themed attraction offers an ice-skating rink, holiday lights, and photos with Santa, and more. However, not everyone can have winter fun at the same time. Otherwise, the park becomes overcrowded. The venue uses SimpleTix to control the number of attendees each day by restricting the number of spaces available at a given time. Customers can see which days are available before they buy tickets. Here’s how the process unfolds: Step 1 Customers can pick the type of tickets they want. There’s no limit to how many options you can add here. Step 3 Customers confirm the order total and proceed to checkout. Coming soon to a brewery near you This ticket selection feature works well for tours and other events that require a limit on the number of people participating at a given time. Similarly, it’s perfect for pub crawls or other events held at breweries. SimpleTix is based in Asheville, North Carolina and plans to roll out this feature to the breweries there in the spring. Contact us to learn more about how we can help simplify ticketing for your next tour or group event.
Comedy show ticketing made easy with SimpleTix
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Comedy events are a little different than concerts or other type of live shows. With the focus on one entertainer, there are way more opportunities for meet and greet sessions or other one-on-one fan interactions. Those events are great for the fans, but ticketing them can sometimes be a nightmare for venues. SimpleTix allows for fans to purchase these add-ons at the same time they buy tickets. Everything is included on one price with no hidden charges later. HappySlip at Pheasant Run Resort The Pheasant Run Resort in suburban Chicago is using this feature for an upcoming performance by Christine Gambito, a Filipino American internet personality, actress, and comedian also known as HappySlip. Gambito’s videos have been been viewed over 100 million times across the web. As a pioneer on YouTube in 2006, she was the first personality to create a one woman show, and act as multiple characters in her sketches. Her unique and original comedy led to her being included in the first set of YouTube’s paid partners. She was nominated for YouTube’s Best Comedy award in that same year. Christine Gambito, aka HappySlip One Click Meet and Greet Gambito’s performance at Pheasant Run begins at 7 p.m. with a meet and greet to follow at 8:30 p.m. When fans select their seats for the show, they can choose a $25 or $35 seat with the option to add on $15 for the meet and greet. Gambito’s fans know exactly what they are buying up front. They do not need to worry about coming up with extra money at the show to cover the cost of the meet and greet. This feature in SimpleTix can be used for any event where artists want to have one-on-one time with their fans, or for any other type of bonus feature you can...
No ticketing tricks needed at this haunted attraction
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As the fall season sets in, it’s time to think about Halloween and everything that comes with it. The Haunted Field of Screams in Thornton, Colorado is Colorado’s largest haunted house and will welcome more than 20,000 thrill seekers between September 21 and October 31. That’s a lot of tickets to handle in such a short period of time, but luckily SimpleTix makes it easy for the venue to manage both online an in-person sales. The Haunted Field of Screams includes four attractions that are all covered under a single ticket. Patrons can battle zombies in paintball, find their way through a haunted corn maze, and take in the scary sights at a carnival. The online site offers four ticket options: General admission VIP Fast Pass Instant Access An option to double the ammo for zombie paintball This works just like any other SimpleTix site and provides the option to track sales and contact ticket buyers. At an event like this, though, there’s a demand for people to buy tickets on site. Luckily, SimpleTix makes doing so just as easy for the buyer and the venue. On-site sales made easy Haunted Field of Screams staff can sell tickets on site using any phone or tablet. Credit card payments are accepted through Square and all sales are seamlessly integrated with advance sales online. There’s no upper limit on the number of tickets that can be sold on site, so multiple employees can be taking sales at the same time — something that’s critical when there are thousands of guests coming through each weekend. The SimpleTix app is just as easy to use as the desktop site and can be customized to meet your needs. Contact us today to learn more about how you can simplify your online and on-site ticket sales.
SimpleTix embeddable widget: Sell tickets directly from your website
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The day that many of our customers have been waiting for is finally here: You can now sell tickets directly from your organization’s website without sending patrons to a separate SimpleTix page. The new embeddable widget has a simple, clean design and is fully integrated into your website without any third party branding. There’s nothing to distract users from purchasing tickets. Sites like Eventbrite, TicketWeb, and Brown Paper Tickets all require buyers to go to a separate page. The more clicks someone has to make, the less likely they are to convert to ticket buyers. How it works Draken Harald Hårfagre, which describes itself as “the world’s largest viking ship sailing in modern times,” uses this feature to sell tickets for its East Coast Tour 2018 directly from its website. This event provides an engaging look at the modern-day Viking spirit. Patrons can tour the ship, interact with the crew, explore the free photo and video exhibition, and more. The tour has stops throughout New England and the mid-Atlantic. In total, it will visit 14 locations from Maine to South Carolina through mid-October. As the boat reaches a new destination, tickets for tours and lectures become available through the SimpleTix embeddable widget. Patrons simply need to select what type of ticket they want (lecture, deck tour, or screening), then select the date and time they would like to attend and proceed through the checkout process. All of this happens trough the organization’s website — even entering a credit card and completing the sale. The convenience factor is huge, especially for people who are buying tickets on their phones. Learn more The SimpleTix embeddable widget can work on just about any website and with just about any event in SimpleTix. It’s a small change in your process that can make a...