Stop Using Spreadsheets for Online Ticketing for Events

You’re probably tired of the "shakedown."

You do the work. You book the venue. You market the event. You sweat the details. Then, a software platform comes along and slices 3% (or more) off the top of every single ticket.

It feels like a tax on your own effort.

If you are running a workshop, a pop-up dinner, or a community meetup, you don't need enterprise software. You don't need a "platform ecosystem." You just need a way to trade a ticket for money without losing your mind—or your margin.

This guide isn't for giant festivals with six-figure budgets. This is for the rest of us. The people who just want the tech to get out of the way.

Why "Good Enough" is better than "All-in-One"

There is a tendency to over-buy software. We think we need features we will never use, just in case. But in the ticketing world, complexity is the enemy.

The right tool isn't the one with the most bells and whistles. It's the one that lets you launch before your coffee gets cold.

Here is what actually matters when you pick a system:

• Speed: You should have a page live in ten minutes. No code. No manuals.

• Identity: It should look like your event, not a billboard for the ticketing company.

• Respect: Your money should hit your bank account immediately. No weird "holding periods."

• Clarity: A flat fee. No percentage cuts.

If you feel behind because you aren't using a complex system, relax. Most of those tools are designed to extract value from you, not add value to your event.

The truth about ticket tiers (and how I messed them up)

Your event page is a storefront. It doesn't need flowery copy. It needs clarity.

When setting prices, avoid the "Paradox of Choice." If you give people ten options, they buy none. Three is the magic number.

1. The Early Bird (Cash Flow)
This is for your superfans. It rewards them for commitment and puts cash in your bank account immediately.

• Tip: Limit the quantity, not just the time window. Scarcity drives action.

2. General Admission (The Anchor)
This is your standard price. It serves as the anchor that makes the Early Bird look like a steal and the VIP look exclusive.

3. The VIP (pure Margin)
Offer something that costs you little but offers high perceived value. A front-row seat. A signed book. A dedicated check-in line. Even if only 5% of people buy this, it subsidizes the rest of the event.

A cautionary tale

I learned this the hard way. For a fifty-person workshop, I tried to get clever. I wanted to sell twenty "Early Bird" tickets at $45 in week one.

The result? I sold eleven.

I panicked. I almost slashed the price. Instead, I sent one honest email extending the deadline by 48 hours. That pushed me to eighteen sales. It saved me from blowing $315 on panic-ads I couldn't afford.

Here is the simple framework I use now:

Ticket Tier Name	Price ($)	Quantity	Strategy
Super Early Bird	$45	25	First 7 Days. Creates initial momentum.
General Admission	$65	100	Standard Entry. The bulk of your sales.
VIP Experience	$95	15	Pure Profit. Includes a drink ticket & preferred seating.

(If you are stuck on writing the descriptions for these, we put together a simple ticket description guide with fill-in-the-blank templates to get you unstuck.)

Getting paid without getting robbed

This is the part that usually hurts.

Most platforms operate on a "percentage + fee" model. It looks small—maybe $1 + 2.5%. But do the math. On a $100 ticket, that’s $3.50. On 100 tickets, you just gave the platform $350 for... what, exactly? Processing a database entry?

The three models you'll see:

1. The Percentage (The Silent Killer): They take a slice of every sale. As your ticket price goes up, they make more money for doing the exact same amount of work. Avoid this.

2. The Pass-On: You can pass fees to the customer, but it increases the checkout price and leads to cart abandonment.

3. The Flat Fee: You pay a predictable monthly rate (or a tiny flat fee per ticket).

I once hosted a series of three workshops using a "popular" major platform. They charged 3.5% + $1.59 per ticket. I sold 120 tickets at $75 each.

I lost $481.80 to fees.

I hadn't budgeted for that. That was my catering budget. Gone.

For the next event, I switched to a platform with a flat monthly fee of $99. I saved over $380. Same revenue, same event, significantly more profit.

(We have a full breakdown of free and flat-fee event ticketing software if you want to compare the math yourself.)

Managing the "Day Of" chaos

The event is live. People are buying. Now what?

You need to step away from the spreadsheet. If you are manually tracking payments in Excel at 2 a.m., you are doing it wrong. A decent tool handles the administrative hell for you: sending branded confirmations, syncing lists, and tracking revenue.

The Check-In
When the doors open, your goal is speed.

• Small events (<50 people): A printed list is fine. Seriously. It’s charming and personal.

• Medium/Large events: Use a mobile scanning app.

You don't need to rent expensive laser scanners. In 2024, 59% of tickets are sold and stored on mobile. A simple app that uses your phone camera to scan QR codes is all you need.

Our honest take on our own tool

We built Ticketsmith because we hated the percentage model.

I’ll be direct with you: Ticketsmith isn't perfect. It’s not for stadium concerts. Our reporting dashboard is still pretty basic compared to the enterprise giants. We're working on it.

But for our last event, it cost us exactly zero in surprise percentage fees. That saved us $623 compared to the previous platform. That is real money we put back into the experience for our attendees.

We believe software should be a flat rate. You wouldn't pay your landlord a percentage of your revenue just to rent a building; you shouldn't pay a software company a percentage just to sell a ticket.

Commonly asked questions

Can I sell tickets at the door?
Yes. Look for a tool with a "Point of Sale" (POS) feature. It lets you take cash or card at the door and syncs those people to your digital list instantly.

How much should I pay in fees?
As little as possible. If you sell high-priced tickets ($100+), run away from percentage fees. Stick to flat-rate tools.

What matters most for SEO?
If you want your event to be found, focus on your event page copy. Be clear about the "Who, What, Where." And use a ticketing platform that allows your page to be indexed by Google (some hide pages behind weird logins).

Ticketing doesn't have to be a headache. Keep it simple, keep your margins, and focus on the guests.