There's nothing quite like the excitement of seeing your favourite musician perform live in concert. However, if your artist of choice happens to have a large fan base, securing a ticket to their gig could be easier said than done.
Photo by Danny Howe on Unsplash
With years of practice, I like to think of myself as a bit of a pro when it comes to buying concert tickets. In fact, I've never missed out on a show I've tried to buy tickets for. My most recent triumph was scoring two kitchen pod tickets for Harry Styles at Wembley, eek! Considering these tickets are now reselling for prices above £2,000, you could say I know a thing or two about securing the bag when it comes to concerts.
But, how have I been so lucky? Well, the truth is, it only requires a little bit of luck. With the right planning and preparation, you can greatly increase your chances of getting that golden ticket without breaking the bank on ridiculous reselling platforms. So, I'm going to share with you my top tips and tricks to buying concert tickets online.
Tip 1: Know What You Want
It's really important to work out the basics before creating your plan of action. For example:
Where is the venue?
What date is the show?
How many tickets do you want?
Who are you going with?
How much are you willing to spend on a ticket?
If you're going with someone, how much are they willing to spend on a ticket?
Do you want seated or standing?
Look at a seating map; what section are you aiming for?
It may sound obvious, but finalising these details ahead of time makes the ticket buying experience a lot less stressful. When you only have three minutes before the tickets are removed from your basket, you don't want to be trying to contact your friend to find out their budget or seat preferences.
Tip 2: Create an Account
Once you've finalised the details, find out who is selling the tickets online. The artist will usually promote the official ticket vendors on their website and social media before the sale begins. Well known ticket vendors include Ticketmaster, Live Nation and AXS. In my experience, AXS has always been the most reliable.
You will want to create an account on each of the official ticket vendor websites before the sale begins. This is so that all of your details are saved into the system ahead of time, which will save you precious seconds when checking out. Also, having an account with multiple ticket vendors means that you can easily switch websites if one crashes for any reason.
Tip 3: Find a Presale
Presales are a great way to secure tickets. A presale is when a proportion of tickets for an event are made available to book before they go on sale to the general public. Usually, the tickets are made available to a small amount of people a few days before general sale.
However, finding a presale can be tricky. My advice is to first check the ticket vendor website. Ticket vendors, such as Live Nation, have been known to offer presale access to those that create an account on their website.
Additionally, businesses that offer 'perks' or 'rewards' provide presale access for certain events. For example, O2 Priority customers are often invited to a presale for events held at The O2 Arena. Other businesses that have been known to provide presales include American Express, Mastercard and Three.
Another way to find a presale is to look on social media. If you search your artists name and 'presale', you may find other fans discussing presale opportunities.
Tip 4: Be Early
When it comes to buying tickets, you don't just want to be on time, you want to be early. Many ticket vendors use a queuing system, so it's a good idea to be on their website a few hours before the sale begins. Although, it's important to remember that this does not guarantee that you will be at the front of the queue.
Even if your ticket vendor does not use a queuing system, it won't hurt to get onto the website early. If a website has too much traffic, it can sometimes deny new people from entering, so it's best to join early to be on the safe side.
Tip 5: Use Multiple Devices
Using two or three devices can really increase your chances of getting tickets. Not only will you have more than one space in the queue, but you will also have a wider selection of tickets to choose from.
Tickets can be bought from a range of devices, including laptops, mobile phones and tablets. It is important to make sure all of your devices are charged up and ready to go before the sale starts, as you don't want to lose tickets due to low battery.
There are, however, a few things to take into consideration when using multiple devices. First of all, if your internet connection is weak, it may hinder your ticket buying experience to use more than one device. Also, trying to keep tabs on multiple devices can be stressful. If you have friends and family available, see if they can help you out.
Remember: communication is key! If there is a group of you trying for tickets, you may accidentally purchase too many. Therefore, be sure to communicate clearly in order to avoid overspending.
Tip 6: Keep Calm
When buying tickets, there is often a time limit in which you have to complete the sale. If you don't manage to checkout in the time provided, the tickets will be lost. This can be really stressful and can cause you to input the wrong information. The main thing is: don't panic! If you have followed Tip 2, you will have less information to input and you are less likely to lose the tickets.
Tip 7: Keep trying!
Sometimes, a ticket vendor will say that they don't have any tickets left at that time; keep trying! Tickets that are left in baskets will be released back into the sale after a certain amount of time. The Harry Styles kitchen pod tickets I bought didn't appear until 20 minutes after the sale began, so it's worth sticking around for a while and seeing if anything gets released.
So, there you have it, you now have all of my ticket buying wisdom! Although I can't guarantee you the concert of your dreams, I really hope these tips will help you on your next ticket buying mission. Whether it be Adele, Eminem or BTS, you'll be more prepared for their next tour now you've read my ultimate guide to buying concert tickets online.
Good luck and, most importantly, have fun!
Comments