Part I – Ticket Purchase

I want to start by saying BEFORE you buy tickets to any show or event, RESEARCH THEM first. Check out current and closed eBay auctions. See how many listings there were, where they ended up, and their locations. If it’s your first time, I’d suggest buying tickets to something you’re familiar with. A particular band, a sports team, etc. Then set a BUDGET for yourself. It’s easy to get too excited and buy too many tickets to too many shows. If you can’t download them, you’re out of cash. It is also easy to buy junk. I see far too many vendors asking big bucks for bleeding seats to shows that aren’t even SOLD OUT. Don’t fall into that trap. Believe it or not, if I can’t get something in the first 15 rows, I usually don’t buy them (my rule of thumb at reserved seating concerts).

Okay, you researched that program and found that you could make a lot of money with it. how do you get tickets? I’m going to give you some sources here, but I’m not going to say that they don’t all work every time. I use different techniques each time. I’m also not going to tell you how to get seats on FRONT ROW. That is not the intent of this guide, it doesn’t even happen that often.

1. Ticket Master. Believe it or not, this is the usual source of my purchases. I haven’t had that much luck online (except for pre-sales), so here’s my secret. If you live in a fairly large city, or have one nearby, there’s a good chance they have a Ticketmaster store. After researching the software I want to buy, I visit the outlet on sale days. I live in New York. I almost NEVER buy tickets to a show in New York. Because? TOO MANY PEOPLE IN A LINE! I buy tickets for shows in Chicago, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Kansas City, St Louis, Minneapolis, Indianapolis and others. Except for die-hard fans, there is usually NO ONE ON THE LINE! That’s how it is. I am FIRST online. I usually end up with tickets in the first 10 ROWS! Now think about your research. How much the tickets that were in the first ten rows were sold… CHA-CHING! Try to be nice to the employee, they will remember you.
2. Pre sales. This is another technique that has helped me receive good tickets. There are a couple of types of presale. There is public pre-sale, or no password is needed. There’s the local or radio pre-sales, and then there’s the fan club, AOL or American Express pre-sales. In most cases, you need a password to enter the sale. Look ahead online and see if your event offers a pre-sale and what type it is. I have FRONT ROW seats before with presale. There are many websites that want you to PAY for passwords, but you can get them all here for FREE.
3. Season tickets. This is another way to get tickets, although a little more expensive. I’m not a big ticket broker, so I don’t have a ton of money to throw away in the spring and sit around until August/September. I try to get decent seats for a team that always sells out. If there is at least one Monday night game in the package, you can usually win some decent money. I try to buy for my favorite team, or one close to it. Worst case scenario… I go to some games.
4. College bowling games. This is a GREAT way to generate amazing Christmas income. It’s a little known fact that many college bowl game tickets go on sale in the summer and early fall. Try to stick to the big games that will be played from December 30 to January 8. The Rose and the Fiesta Bowl are the 2 hardest to get. The Fiesta Bowl has a waiting list that you can sign up for on their site. The Rose Bowl is on public sale in December, usually only online and by phone. Orange and Sugar go on sale between July and September. Go to Ticketmaster and search for “Bowling Games.” (If nothing shows up, keep checking back periodically) Now for the best part. For most of these bowling games, once you get tickets, you can renew them every year (except The Rose Bowl), and you can usually upgrade your location or add more seats. If you have purchased Orange, Sugar or Fiesta in the past… you will receive the offer to purchase tickets to the BCS Finals with regular bowling. Even the bleeding seats for the championship game bring profit.
5. NCAA/Regional Basketball Final Four. Most people don’t realize that there is a lottery system in place for Final Four tickets. Every March, the NCAA has an online application for available tickets to the next few years’ Final Four. Registration is usually until the end of May. The only problem is that you have to pay in advance!! This year’s application (for 2008) is $170 per ticket for the upper tier or $140 for far view (next year it’s at the Alamo Bowl Dome) You can only complete one application, but you can submit it up to ten times to increase your chances of winning. be elected. (BUT, you have to PAY every time). If your application is not pulled, your money will be refunded. Take a look at their website for all the details. Tickets are also available for the Regional Games every year, usually through Ticketmaster.
6. Super Bowl The Super Bowl is available to the public every year. How do you ask? Through a lottery system. Less than 10% of Superbowl sponsors are public seats. You can be considered for the lottery by submitting an entry (on a 3×5 card or on a piece of paper). Entries are accepted between February 2. June 1 and 1 of the year prior to the game and must include your name, address, telephone number, and email address, and must be sent by certified or registered mail. You will be notified in October/November if you are eligible to purchase tickets. Applications should be sent to: Super Bowl Random Drawing PO BOX 49140 Strongsville, OH 44149-0140

I hope some of these methods work for you. Remember, this is what has worked for ME. I think the most important rule is to stick to your budget. Don’t spend a couple thousand dollars on tickets if your mortgage is past due. It’s like the stock market. Every purchase can be a potential risk.