After months of weak sales (and cold sweats), attendees finally start registering for your event.
Don’t you wish there was a way to drive registrations earlier on to boost turnout?
With early bird registrations, you can do just that. After all, nothing drives registrations like incentives and FOMO (fear of missing out).
One way to do this is to provide amazing incentives for those who register for your event early. Using smart tools like Eventbrite’s event management platform can help you set this up.
In this post, we’ll share our experience and provide you with:
- The most advanced techniques to increase early bird registrations to attract more attendees
- All you need to know about the types of early bird registration discounts and how to use them in your event promotion
- How to maintain momentum once these tickets are sold out
Let’s get to it.
Accelerate sales and attendance with early bird registrations
If you’ve never experimented with early bird registrations before, you’ve been missing out on an effective way to sell more registrations. They incentivize event attendees to register early by offering an exclusive discount to these “early bird” purchasers.
You can set a certain time period for your early bird (say, the first week of sales), or limit the number available for purchase (say, the first 50 registrations). By rewarding attendees who buy before the deadline with a discount, you can motivate them to commit sooner.
How early bird registrations create FOMO: The words “sold out” are like gold for sales. Once people see that your early bird registrations are snatched up, they’ll rush to sign up before other tickets are gone. That means you’ll sell more registrations and increase your profit.
Types of early bird incentives
While you might have just one idea of what an early bird incentive can be, you can reward attendees for registering early in lots of ways. Below, we’ve provided examples of different incentives used by Eventbrite creators, so you can choose the best fit for your next event.
Price discount (with tiers)
Adding a discount to your registration fees is probably the most common kind of early bird incentive. Consider setting it up in tiers, where the discount value decreases as the event approaches.
Tiered pricing creates a sense of urgency for event attendees to register early on for a bigger discount.
But don’t stop there; partner with discount-focused platforms like Groupon to amplify your reach. Market these tiered discounts aggressively, highlighting the benefits of early ticket purchases to create FOMO.
For example, Good Mood Comedy sets an early bird ticket price, a pre-purchase price, and a much higher door price for their shows. Alternatively, you can set other kinds of tiers. Bowman Consulting Group gives a low early bird price for individuals and an even steeper early bird discount for groups that register early!
Exclusive experiences
Offering exclusive experiences can be another great marketing strategy to boost early bird registrations. Think along the lines of backstage passes or a meet-and-greet with the guest speakers or performers. Your event attendees could earn these experiences through early registration.
It even works for smaller-scale events: At Larissa Loden’s garage sale events, people who buy their tickets ahead of time get first pick of the goods before the others are let in!
To make the most of this incentive, highlight these exclusive offerings in your promotional materials. Showcase testimonials or visuals of past events to give potential attendees a sneak peek of what they can expect. Leveraging social media to build hype around exclusivity can also be a game-changer.
Bonus merch
Boost your early bird registrations by offering bonus merch or exclusive early access to a limited stock merch store. For instance, at some of the San Diego Moms’ events, they’ll give free swag and samples to attendees who register early. You can even make special edition merchandise that echoes the spirit of the event, like themed T-shirts, mugs, or tote bags.
Promote this exclusive offer through various channels, utilizing Eventbrite’s integrated email and social media marketing tools to create a sense of urgency for your attendees. Additionally, collaborations with influencers can expand your reach, showcasing promotional items in real-life settings, thus enticing potential attendees.
Ticket tier availability
Exclusive access to premium ticket tiers, such as VIP, can be a powerful tool to drive early bird registrations. Take the Richmond Main Street Initiative’s Spirit & Soul Festival as an example; offering VIP tickets exclusively to early bird purchasers not only creates a sense of exclusivity but also adds a layer of excitement and anticipation.
To leverage this, highlight the unique benefits of the VIP tier in your ads and social posts, showcasing the special amenities and experiences that come with it. Use vivid imagery and testimonials to paint a picture of the elevated experience attendees can expect.
Newsletter subscriber discounts
Only making early bird offerings available to newsletter subscribers is a fantastic way to foster loyalty and build a dedicated community around your event. It not only rewards your loyal followers but also encourages new subscribers to join your mailing list.
To amplify this strategy, consider launching a referral program where existing subscribers can earn additional discounts or perks by bringing in more subscribers. Highlight this opportunity in your newsletters, encouraging your audience to spread the word and share the love.
This strategy is a great way to organically grow your audience while keeping the excitement alive, ensuring a successful event with a community of engaged and enthusiastic attendees.
Want to make it easy to build all these incentives and ticket types?
Raffle entry incentive
Adding a sprinkle of excitement with a raffle entry incentive can be a game-changer in boosting early bird registrations. For instance, the convention created by That Witch Life Podcast offers a free raffle ticket with every pre-sale ticket purchase, creating an additional layer of anticipation and value.
To maximize this incentive, make sure to spotlight the raffle prizes in your promotional materials, giving viewers a glimpse of what they can win.
Most importantly, be sure to keep up the hype by clearly stating how many winners will be announced and the draw date. This way, everyone is kept in the loop and doesn’t miss out on the chance to win!
Once your early bird registration sells out
Early bird savings aren’t the only registration type worth trying. In fact, once it’s sold out savvy event creators use lots of creative registration strategies to maintain momentum during their on-sale.
Here are two more that are worth testing out with your events:
VIP packages
According to our research, a third of VIP attendees say the lack of a VIP package influences whether they’d attend an event. And 45% of VIP buyers are willing to spend 50% more than the cost of a regular-priced registration to upgrade.
Premium registration tiers can help you attract new attendees who are also big spenders — and make more money from your current audience. You just need to make sure the experience they pay for is worth the extra cost — you can’t afford to disappoint their high expectations.
How a VIP registration creates FOMO: Offering a VIP experience increases your attendees’ perceived value of their experience — even if they purchased a regular-priced registration.
When Downtown Crawlers offer VIP experiences, they make sure to emphasize the limited availability of VIP tickets, along with their benefits. That way, people feel more urgency and FOMO around the upgraded registrations. In the end, attendees will be more likely to take the plunge and purchase a pricier ticket.
Coded discounts
Coded discounts give specific groups of attendees the option to purchase their registration at a reduced price with a special promotional code. These registration types work best when offered to those who can help your event reach a broader audience — like social media influencers or event sponsors.
This registration type also allows you to offer exclusive discounts to groups and organizations that purchase registrations in bulk — like companies and universities.
How a coded discount creates FOMO: Coded discounts are only good for a certain period of time, which means the pressure is on attendees to act by a certain date. Just like early birds or VIP tiers, coded discounts help create urgency that helps you drive registrations earlier in your event on-sale.
If One Step Events wants to boost attendance, they offer a coupon code in a “flash sale.” That creates FOMO because people don’t know how long the sale will last, but they’re sure it won’t be around forever. The result is that people feel a sense of urgency and a fear that they’ll miss the discount, so they buy their tickets right away.
How to manage different registration types with Eventbrite
Navigating through different registration types can be a breeze with Eventbrite, a platform designed to streamline your ticket sales process with ease and efficiency. Whether it’s early bird specials or VIP packages, Eventbrite offers a user-friendly interface to set up and manage various ticket types seamlessly.
At Eventbrite, we have a step-by-step guide to encourage attendees to make a purchase right away. Start by creating a new ticket type labeled ‘Early Bird’ and define the discounted price for this category. You can then set a specific start and end date for this pricing tier, encouraging attendees to grab the opportunity within the stipulated time frame.
Eventbrite also allows you to monitor ticket sales in real time and provides insights to help you strategize your promotional activities effectively. For example, if sales start to fall more rapidly than expected when the early bird offer expires, you can respond by extending the time frame for your early bird pricing.
The platform also facilitates easy customization of ticket types, enabling you to tailor the offerings to suit the preferences and expectations of your target audience. You can even offer a variety of early bird tickets, such as VIP, group, or extra-early discounts.
Design perfect tickets to boost sales now!
Early bird registration FAQs
Here are a few quick questions to clarify everything you need to know about early bird registrations with Eventbrite.
What is the meaning of early bird booking?
Early bird booking is an advanced sale of tickets for an event. It’s often offered at a discounted price to those who purchase them in advance.
What is the early bird period?
The early bird registration period is the time frame when the early bird tickets are available. You can customize this time frame depending on your promotional strategy and event goals.
What is the difference between an early bird ticket and a regular ticket?
Early bird tickets are usually discounted to encourage attendees to book in advance. Regular-priced tickets, on the other hand, are applicable after the early bird registration phase ends and the prices have increased.
How much should an early bird discount be?
It depends on your event and promotional strategy. Early bird discounts can range widely: The World Korean Business Convention Organizing Committee discounted their exhibition’s tickets from $50 to free for early bird registrants.
But more modest discounts are common, such as the 11% early bird registration deal at the University of Michigan School of Business’s annual conference.
If you’re having trouble figuring out how much yours should be, take advantage of the analytics built into Eventbrite’s ticketing software, and test a few discounts out!
Use your early bird registrations for a greater turnout
In conclusion, maximizing your early bird registrations is all about understanding your target audience and offering them value that appeals to their interests. From exclusive access to VIP experiences and bonus merch to discounts for newsletter subscribers and exciting raffle entries, there are all kinds of ways to incentivize early registrations.
But remember, the key lies in promoting these offerings effectively through various channels and maintaining a sense of urgency. Using a platform like Eventbrite can simplify the process, providing you with valuable insights to fine-tune your strategies and boost your overall ticket sales.
