Brighton hosts festivals year-round. The Brighton Festival and the Fringe fill May, the Comedy Festival takes over the Dome each October, Brighton’s Early Music Festival fills the churches in the same month, and Cinecity follows in November.
The programmes themselves are very strong. However, the pricing pages don’t seem to have any “exciting” deals up front. They’re straight ticket purchases; no welcome offers, return promotions, or group deals are immediately available. So, what could these festivals do differently to draw in the crowds?
What’s On and What It Costs
The Comedy Festival is held every October, and this year’s tickets run from £6 to £44, with headline nights at the top end and free workshops alongside.
The hosting venue, The Dome, does run a multi-buy of 10% on three events and 20% on five or more. However, it’s for members only, on selected events, and can only be booked by phone or in person.
Early Music Festival tickets are also booked by show. There’s a 10% season-ticket discount, but only if you book more than six events in one transaction. Again, however, the deal sits on a booking-information page, not the official payment tab.
Neither of these is a bad deal. The problem is that these deals aren’t advertised where it matters most.
Lessons They Could Learn From Other Businesses
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Online entertainment brands live or die based on the first interaction – if that doesn’t grab your attention, you’re likely to simply click away. So how can they catch your eye? One tactic is to present you with deals that remove the reason not to choose them.
They do this in one of three ways:
- Trials with Only One Condition: Amazon Prime’s 30-day trial and Audible’s first free book each carry a single term stated up front. They do this because they know every hidden clause is another reason to dismiss the deal. Simple deals like “£5 off your first festival ticket” should be applied automatically at checkout without extra effort, or hiddern terms.
- Discounting the Best-Known Product: Online casinos offer bonuses like 200 free spins on their most popular games, such as Double Bubble. Simply put, newcomers try what they recognise, so festivals could consider discounting the headliner’s opening night, not an unknown act. Once they’ve watched one thing and enjoyed it, they’re likely to come back.
- Membership That Improves With Use: Picturehouse memberships, which cover the Duke of York’s on Preston Circus, give four free tickets up front and a discount on every one after. This means the second visit is cheaper than the first, enticing members to revisit the venue.
Why It Matters This Year
A festival with a strong programme will do well, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t do better. The hard part, building the event, is already complete. Next, they need to give a reason for people to join them or to return, which could be done by promoting the irresistible offers they already run. Hidden deals only draw in those in the know. If you want to bring in newcomers, place them front and centre.
All the deals need a bit of visibility. Once they get the visibility they need, the people of Brighton and the surrounding area will be able to use these deals to their advantage and enjoy the events even more.
