Facebook has become a popular platform not just for connecting with friends and family, but also for discovering events and buying tickets. With over 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook offers event organizers and ticket sellers a huge potential customer base. However, Facebook’s policies around ticket sales are somewhat restrictive. So can event tickets actually be sold directly on Facebook? Let’s take a look.
Can You Sell Event Tickets Through Facebook?
The short answer is yes, event tickets can be sold on Facebook, but with some limitations. Facebook does not allow users to sell tickets directly through their personal profiles or Facebook pages. However, Facebook does allow official event pages to integrate with approved third-party ticketing services to sell event tickets directly through the Facebook platform.
Some of the popular services that integrate with Facebook for event ticketing include:
- Eventbrite
- Ticketfly
- Eventfarm
- Ticket Tailor
- Picatic
So in order to sell tickets on Facebook, event organizers need to first create an official event page and then integrate with one of these supported ticketing services. The integration allows the event page to have a “Tickets” tab that links out to the ticketing provider to handle all ticket sales.
This keeps the actual transaction off Facebook while still leveraging the platform for discovery and promotion. Facebook receives a small commission on each ticket sold through these integrations.
The Benefits of Selling Tickets on Facebook
There are a few key advantages to leveraging Facebook for ticket sales:
- Huge potential audience – You can promote your event to a large user base of over 2 billion people.
- Targeted promotion – Facebook’s advertising tools allow you to target ads based on demographics, interests, location, and other criteria to reach your ideal audience.
- Viral reach – Events can spread quickly as people share with friends or RSVP.
- Convenience – Native integration allows for a smooth user experience.
- Cost-effective – Facebook advertising and boosting posts can be relatively affordable.
Essentially, Facebook provides a major platform to increase exposure and make it easy for interested users to learn about your event and buy tickets.
The Limitations of Selling Tickets on Facebook
However, there are also some limitations to be aware of:
- No sales directly on Facebook – Transactions must happen through a third-party provider.
- Commissions and fees – Facebook and ticketing providers take a commission on sales.
- Less control – You have to work within the framework of Facebook’s policies and features.
- Technical integration – Integrating ticketing services takes some technical knowledge.
- Potential reach limits – Facebook may limit the reach of your promotions without boosting posts with ad spend.
So while Facebook provides a powerful platform, organizers give up some control and incur costs. Significant ad spending may be needed to see meaningful reach and engagement.
Step-by-Step Guide to Selling Tickets on Facebook
If you want to leverage Facebook for event ticketing, follow these steps:
- Create an official Facebook event page for your event.
- Choose an approved ticketing provider like Eventbrite or Ticketfly and create a ticketing page on their platform.
- Integrate your ticketing page with your Facebook event page, following the instructions from the ticketing provider.
- Add a “Tickets” tab to your Facebook event page that links out to your ticketing page.
- Customize ticket pricing, sales dates, inventory tracking and other settings in your ticketing platform.
- Promote your event and ticket sales by sharing posts, running ads, inviting friends, and other tactics.
- Manage ticket sales through your ticketing platform’s dashboard and process ticket orders.
- Continue posting event updates and reminders leading up to your event date.
Be sure to give yourself plenty of lead time to allow for integration, promotion, and ticket sales. Ongoing monitoring and boosting of posts is key to driving ongoing ticket sales.
Top Tips for Selling Tickets on Facebook
To maximize success, keep these tips in mind:
- Choose the right ticketing partner – Consider features, fees, integration, and support.
- Price tickets strategically – Offer early bird pricing or tiered pricing to encourage sales.
- Boost key posts – Use Facebook Ads to increase reach and engagement.
- Retarget website visitors – Remarket to visitors who left your event site.
- Post consistently – Share event details, artist announcements, reminders, etc.
- Segment audiences – Create separate ads targeted to different demographics.
- Offer discounts – Run promo codes and deals to incentivize sales.
- Monitor analytics – Track sales, clicks, reach, and other data.
Popular Event Categories on Facebook
Facebook is widely used across different event categories. Some of the most popular types of events promoted and sold on Facebook include:
- Music concerts and festivals
- Comedy shows
- Food and wine events
- Races, runs, and fitness events
- Tech conferences
- Fan conventions
- Performing arts and theater
- Book signings and readings
Facebook is extremely effective for events with broad appeal or events targeting specific demographics that align with Facebook users. Niche events may have a harder time gaining traction.
Success Stories of Events Using Facebook Ticketing
Thousands of events of all sizes have found success selling tickets on Facebook. Here are some real examples:
- Life Is Beautiful Festival used Facebook ticketing to sell over $27 million in tickets in 2016.
- Tough Mudder obstacle race events leverage Facebook to promote to their target demographic of fitness-focused 20-30 somethings.
- The New York Comedy Festival uses Facebook ticketing to drive sales and has sold over 200,000 tickets to comedy shows.
- Essence Festival drew over 500,000 attendees in New Orleans in 2019 after boosting Facebook posts to target their female African American demographic.
- Proctors Theatre in New York sold over $250,000 in tickets to a limited run of Hamilton in 2019 thanks to Facebook ads and ticketing integration.
These examples demonstrate the potential for events both large and small to tap into Facebook’s marketing and ticketing capabilities.
Conclusion
In summary, selling event tickets directly through Facebook does come with some limitations and requirements. Organizers cannot directly sell tickets from their Facebook presence alone. However, they can integrate with supported ticketing platforms to sell tickets from their official Facebook event pages.
This allows them to capitalize on Facebook’s massive reach while still using a dedicated ticketing solution for transactions. With the right preparation and promotion, Facebook ticketing can significantly boost ticket sales and turn Facebook’s users into attendees. While Facebook ticketing has some drawbacks, the benefits generally make it a worthwhile marketing and sales channel for many events.