If you’ve ever promoted an event, you’ll know the feeling. You’ve spent hours getting the artwork and promo video right, locking in the lineup, pushing live on your ads, then you refresh Skiddle or Eventbrite and nothing’s moved.

Most promoters blame the algorithm or think they need to “spend more on ads”, but that’s rarely the issue. What actually kills sales is poor pacing, bad targeting, and inconsistent follow-through.

At Driven by Digital, we’ve managed over £3M in event specific ad spend for festivals, day parties, club shows, and touring brands across the UK. We’ve seen what works, what doesn’t, and what separates the sell-outs from the cancellations.

Here’s what we’ve learned about running event marketing that actually sells tickets.

1. Ticket Sales Follow Momentum, Not Logic

Ticket sales don’t come in evenly. They spike at key moments launch, lineup drops, payday weekends, and low-ticket warnings. The goal isn’t to make people buy every day. It’s to plan those moments intentionally and build momentum around them.

What works:

• Start strong with pre-sale urgency and clear early bird deadlines

• Create new peaks through artist announcements or content drops

• Use your data to see which audiences buy early vs last-minute

The best promoters pace their campaigns like they pace the DJ lineup of their event, it builds energy over time, not all at once.

2. Paid Ads Are Your Engine, Not a Panic Button

Too many events only run paid ads when sales slow down. By then, it’s already too late. Paid ads should be part of your year-round engine, collecting data, growing audiences, and warming up attendees long before the next launch.

What works:

• Always-on Meta campaigns to grow followers or newsletter sign-ups

• Retargeting people who engaged with previous shows

• Testing creative early so you know what converts before launch

When you treat your ad account like an engine, not a fire extinguisher, every new event gets easier to sell.

3. Your Ticketing Page Sells the Ticket, Not the Ad

Your ads grab attention. Your landing page closes the sale. If you send people to a cluttered ticket link with no context or poor visuals or confusing ticket pricing, you’ll lose nine out of ten potential buyers.

What works:

• Clear event name, date, and location above the fold

• Strong imagery or short video that shows the experience fast

• One clear call to action: “Buy Tickets” or “Join Waitlist”

• Optimise for mobile, most ticket buyers are on their phone

Your ticketing page is your storefront. If it doesn’t build trust and excitement, no ad will fix that.

4. Data Is Your Best Decision-Maker

Every click, impression, and conversion tells you something if you know what to look for. Stop guessing and start using your numbers. Data shows you who buys, where they’re from, and what content drives action.

What works:

• Track cost per purchase, outbound CTR, and ROAS weekly

• Use conversion tracking through Meta, Tiktok & Google Ads

• Build lookalike audiences from real ticket buyers

Once you base decisions on data, scaling stops being risky and starts being repeatable.

5. Build a Community, Not Just an Audience

The biggest promoters don’t just sell tickets. They build brands. People come back because they feel part of something. not because of one artist or venue.

What works:

• Recap content that makes people proud to be part of your crowd

• Facebook groups or WhatsApp communities for loyal fans

• Email and SMS updates that sound like you, not a robot

Community is what turns one-off buyers into lifetime attendees.

6. Consistency Beats Virality

One viral clip won’t build a brand. Consistency will. The most successful promoters don’t rely on one lucky post; they repeat what works, week in, week out.

What works:

• Set a rhythm: one paid campaign, one organic post, one email a week

• Keep promoting between events to stay visible

• Reuse high-performing content with new edits or captions

Your goal is brand recall. If someone in your city thinks “what’s on this weekend?” and your name comes to mind, you’ve already won.

The Takeaway

Event marketing that works isn’t about spending more. It’s about structure. Get your pacing right, use paid ads as an engine, track data properly, and build community. When you do that, selling tickets stops feeling like luck and starts feeling like a system.

At Driven by Digital, we help event organisers, festivals, and touring brands sell more tickets through data-driven strategy, Paid Social, Google Ads, and full-funnel support that delivers real ROI.

Book a free discovery call to see how we can help your next event sell out.