Partners Archives - Page 2 of 2

SPARXO MAKES IT EASY TO ADD AN EVENT CALENDAR TO YOUR WEBSITE

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH ATTENDANCE BREAKDOWN

WHERE SHOULD YOU POST YOUR EVENT? EVENTBRITE, MEETUP, OR FACEBOOK?

A MEATING OF MINDS — HOW THIS COMPANY IS CHANGING THE WAY MEAT IS CONSUMED

LEARN WHAT TICKETING COMPANIES ARE HIDING – A COMPARISON

EVENT PROMOTER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EMAIL PROMOTIONS

HOW CREATIVE STARTUP LABS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT THEIR SECRET UNDERGROUND POP-UP EVENT USING SPARXO

HOW THE NIGHTWOOD SOCIETY TOOK CONTROL OF THEIR EVENT EXPERIENCE

NONPROFIT EVENTS: 5 REASONS YOU NEED MOBILE TICKETING

HOW THE HOLLAND DRAG SHOW SOLD OUT EVENT TICKETS DESPITE CRITICAL MAYOR

DATA SHOWS THESE NON-PROFIT EVENTS RASIE THE MOST MONEY

TOP 10 FUNDRAISING TRENDS FOR 2019

3 NON-PROFIT EVENT TRENDS TO GET MORE DONATIONS

BEST EVENT TICKETING SOFTWARES 2019

HOW TO INCREASE ATTENDANCE AT YOUR NONPROFIT EVENT

SPECIAL EVENT INSURANCE: DO YOU NEED IT

BRAND AMBASSADORS AND INFLUENCERS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

1 Nov 2019

Special Event Insurance: Do You Need It?

While it’s probably not a part of organizing an event you want to think about, planning for the worst is vital for minimizing the financial impact of an accident or other unforeseen events to your business or organization. While most businesses and organizations carry a general liability policy, special event insurance is an add-on that can help protect your company in case of an unforeseen accident at your fundraiser, gala, concert, or other types of events.

Reasons to Get Special Event Insurance

General liability insurance may not cover the unique factors involved with special events. For nonprofits and other organizations, this can make them vulnerable. Heather Brown of The Nonprofit Insurance Program, an organization that helps nonprofits obtain insurance, warns, “Typically, these policies [gen liability insurance] only provide coverage and protection for normal daily operations.”

If you’re hosting an event where alcohol will be offered, your organization can be held liable for accidents that happen as a result of underage drinking or drinking to excess, which can lead to accidents. You can get special event insurance that specifically covers serving alcohol at the event.

What will you do if your star has to go in for surgery and can’t make your event? Cancellation insurance can help stem the losses.

Unfortunately, accidents happen. Gale-force winds may suddenly come up at your fun run fundraiser, causing a structure to collapse, possibly injuring participants. Special event insurance will help if any claims are filed against your organization for bodily injury or property damage.

If you’re renting from a venue, it may require it; make sure you read the contract carefully.

Where To Buy Special Event Insurance

Special event insurance must be obtained before the event and can be purchased from your insurance agent or company. You can also purchase it from a variety of online insurance vendors. You will need to provide information about the event, like what type of venue it is, how many attendees you expect, and if alcohol will be served. If your organization runs several events, multiple event coverage is also available.

How Much Will Special Event Coverage Cost?

The cost of special event coverage will vary by state, the number of participants and guests, type of event, and other factors. Here are just a few examples of some quotes. These are only examples; you should contact your insurance agent or investigate some possibilities on your own for your specific needs.

*Indoor auction, 150 participants, $250

*Fun run, 200 participants: approximately $300

*Outdoor concert, 500 guests, $450

Note: These are estimates provided by online insurance companies. Actual results may differ.

Experts say that special event insurance is vital for any organization that puts on events. When you consider the protection it gives your organization from a bigger financial impact due to circumstances out of your control, talking to your agent about whether this coverage is needed is an essential item on your event-planning to-do list.

There are many details to take care of when planning an event. Let Sparxo help by being your online ticket provider. Using the latest tech to make it easier for you and your guests, Sparxo provides an easy-to-use online platform for selling tickets, managing your event, and staying in touch with your followers. And, unlike other ticketing platforms like Eventbrite or Ticketmaster, we won’t take huge portions of your ticket sales or promote competing events. Plus, Sparxo is committed to giving back – we donate part of our proceeds to nonprofits.

Get started with building your event here.

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER BLOG POST ARTICLES:

SPARXO MAKES IT EASY TO ADD AN EVENT CALENDAR TO YOUR WEBSITE

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH ATTENDANCE BREAKDOWN

WHERE SHOULD YOU POST YOUR EVENT? EVENTBRITE, MEETUP, OR FACEBOOK?

A MEATING OF MINDS — HOW THIS COMPANY IS CHANGING THE WAY MEAT IS CONSUMED

LEARN WHAT TICKETING COMPANIES ARE HIDING – A COMPARISON

EVENT PROMOTER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EMAIL PROMOTIONS

HOW CREATIVE STARTUP LABS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT THEIR SECRET UNDERGROUND POP-UP EVENT USING SPARXO

HOW THE NIGHTWOOD SOCIETY TOOK CONTROL OF THEIR EVENT EXPERIENCE

NONPROFIT EVENTS: 5 REASONS YOU NEED MOBILE TICKETING

HOW THE HOLLAND DRAG SHOW SOLD OUT EVENT TICKETS DESPITE CRITICAL MAYOR

DATA SHOWS THESE NON-PROFIT EVENTS RASIE THE MOST MONEY

TOP 10 FUNDRAISING TRENDS FOR 2019

3 NON-PROFIT EVENT TRENDS TO GET MORE DONATIONS

BEST EVENT TICKETING SOFTWARES 2019

HOW TO INCREASE ATTENDANCE AT YOUR NONPROFIT EVENT

8 Oct 2019

HOW TO INCREASE ATTENDANCE AT YOUR NON-PROFIT EVEN...

If an incredible event happens in a forest, and nobody attends, does it make a sound? An impact? Certainly not as much as it would have made with stellar attendance. You could plan the most incredible non-profit event imaginable, but with low attendance, you’re not going to meet your fundraising goals or spread your message of change. This makes non-profit events something of a numbers game. More attendees mean more donations and more support. Not only does low attendance means limited support, but it also fails to offer social proof for your events, making your brand seem lagging and unpopular. Good attendance is a barrier to entry, a requirement every event needs to meet for even planning to even matter. Okay, so attendance is important. But how do you get attendees non-profit event? Never fear, because Sparxo is going to share 4 ways to get more attendees to your non-profit events.

Supercharge Your Social Media

Our first stop: Social Media. But we’re not talking posts and emojis. No, we’re talking metrics and measurements, to not only raise awareness, but understand what can be improved, and how to optimize for awareness with data in mind. We know that writing long posts only to get no likes and five views can feel like shouting into the void. So let’s work smart, not just hard.

You’ll want to start by finding your core audience. Who has engaged with your posts already? What hashtags do they use? What are their interests? Find these core fans and consistently engage with their post. Taking it one step further, follow and interact with users these core fans follow and interact with. This way you can build an audience with similar interests. You’ll want to stay within a niche – stick to one to two relevant hashtags maximum, ideally with medium or low search traffic. You don’t want to be competing with the whole Twitterverse for views. With your posts, you’ll want to focus on telling a compelling story, not just facts on your organization. Try to attach names and faces to the work your non-profit does. This will connect with readers on a deeper level than bombarding them with simple statistics and details.

Next, find out when your followers and this core audience are the most active on the platform. Maybe they like to use Instagram before work and Facebook before bed, checking their email before work. Free tools like Audiense can show you exactly when your audience is on social media like Twitter, and MailChimp will allow you to see when your newsletter emails are opened. Once you know when to post, schedule your posts. Write them in advance, and use free tools like Hootsuite to post automatically. On Instagram, be sure to take advantage of the “Stories” feature, so that users can see your content when they view your profile, rather than depending on a finicky algorithm. Planning your posts this way, even if you only have a small audience, all of them will actually see your message. This can mean you actually get more eyes on your posts than big accounts who post willy nilly, they’re core audience not online when they are.

Last, give your audience an incentive to actually attend your events. Going from a screen to a live event can be a big jump for some. Many huge accounts fail with attendance because they offer no value proposition, just providing entertainment rather than an incentive to take action and come to an event. Stress the networking opportunities, the community, and experience at your events, not to mention the good they’ll be doing. You should also consider reaching out to influencers in your nonprofit’s niche to help you promote. Their endorsement could be enough to convince hesitant attendees to show up!

Tackle Ticketing

More ticket sales not only means more attendance but greater revenue for your non-profit. Tackling ticketing should be a no-brainer. Unfortunately, it will take a little brain work first. You’ll want to start by analyzing the data from your ticket and registration platform. Determine where your conversions are actually coming from, that way you can who to market to, which demographics to shoot for. Ticket Software like Sparxo offers you a complete array of ticketing analysis tools, allowing you to determine exactly who your attendees are so you can reach them. The real them, not just points on a graph.

Your next step will be to write the best copy description for your event that you can. Is it simple? Does it offer a clear, concise, value proposition for attendees? Check out this template for event descriptions.

Once you know exactly who your target attendee is, and you’ve written a killer description to reach them, you’ll want to look for ways to streamline the ticketing process. What’s the experience like for a potential attendee? Go through the ticketing process yourself on both mobile and desktop, taking note of how much time and effort it takes just to buy a ticket.

Finally, consider switching software. As an event planner, you’re looking for a free way to sell as many event tickets as possible and keep as much revenue as you can. However, most ticket sales software like Eventbrite or Ticketmaster take huge portions of sales, cost too much, promote competing events, and eclipse your own brand. You can use Sparxo to post your event and sell tickets for your event anywhere, letting you sell tickets online with no redirects – all for free!

Import your guest lists and sales lists from other systems
aggregate all of your customer data in one place
Keep 100% of your ticket sales
White Label, greatly improves SEO and Brand

Master Messaging

Create a responsive landing page for your event, optimized for mobile and desktop, including desktop, platforms is a powerful step toward master your messaging. We recommend putting your ticket funnel front and center, linked to a mailing list, along with a description of your event and eye-catching media. This way if potential-attendees can’t commit to buying a ticket right away, the funnel will squeeze their email. Your non-profit will then have the chance to build a relationship over email, your company’s message of change and story’s convincing email sign-ups to buy a ticket in the future.

Remember to optimize your page for SEO so interested parties can actually find your event. You can bet your bottom fundraising-dollar that people are searching for fun events in [city name]. You’ll want to want to make sure your event shows up. One way to enhance your SEO is to make sure your event page, ticketing page, and description are all in one place and hosted on your own site. Many ticketing software that claims direct integration (Looking at you, Eventbrite) redirect to their own website when customers buy their tickets. Others even host your description on their site, only with your event’s extension. Whitelabel software like Sparxo allows you to sell tickets directly from your site, with no redirects, meaning that all traffic you get will go to boosting your SEO, not your ticketing company’s SEO.

Consider running pay-per-click social media ads, aimed at your target demographic nearby your event location. These social media ads are both more affordable than traditional billboards and banners, and pay-per-click, meaning you only pay if someone actually engages with the ad. If you’re on a truly tight budget, stick with low-cost guerilla marketing tactics, like chalk and flyers in high traffic areas. Get creative with your event’s messaging and you’ll get more attention! Check out some of these low-cost guerilla marketing campaigns for nonprofits.

Nail Networking

Event data seems to get better and better every year. Modern ticketing software like Sparxo can give you boatloads of data on your attendees the moment they purchase a ticket, or even if they just consider buying one! This means you can know your attendee’s demographics, background, and past of engagement with your non-profit. Not only will you be able to organize your networking, but you can come into interactions knowing what you might have in common with specific attendees, and how best to tailor a pitch to their interests. In addition to making fundraising more successful, this will personalize and improve the attendee experience, encouraging retention and greater attendance

You should always be following up with attendees after an event, with plenty of “Thank Yous,” memories from the events, and possibly a call to action. But one of the most neglected and most important components of a follow up is the ever-elusive post-event-survey. These can not only show you what’s working at events, but how to feature these positives, and fix flaws. This focus on feedback is key for building a loyal audience and retaining them. If you’ve been conducting surveys after your past events (which, again, you should be doing), you’ve probably gotten some negative feedback. It hurts, we get it. But these can often be some of the most valuable responses, as these dissatisfied attendees can exactly what your non-profit can improve on to deliver an even more incredible event next time. Look for trends in surveys, both what’s been done well and what’s been done less-than-well. If something tends to come up in review after review, brainstorm a solution with your team, and feature the change in your next newsletter. Not only will this let attendees know you’ve improved your events, but it also shows that you’re listening to your attendees and care about their experience. It’s a great way to boost retention and ultimately attendance at future events.

There you have it, four ways to boost your attendance. While anyone could improve attendance using these steps, very few actually would. It’s up to you to put in the time for your non-profit, even if it can feel like nobody is there to hear your event fall in the crowded forest of events. But follow these instructions and when you’re event drops, it won’t just make a sound – it’ll make an impact.

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER BLOG POST ARTICLES:

SPARXO MAKES IT EASY TO ADD AN EVENT CALENDAR TO YOUR WEBSITE

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH ATTENDANCE BREAKDOWN

WHERE SHOULD YOU POST YOUR EVENT? EVENTBRITE, MEETUP, OR FACEBOOK?

A MEATING OF MINDS — HOW THIS COMPANY IS CHANGING THE WAY MEAT IS CONSUMED

LEARN WHAT TICKETING COMPANIES ARE HIDING – A COMPARISON

EVENT PROMOTER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EMAIL PROMOTIONS

HOW CREATIVE STARTUP LABS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT THEIR SECRET UNDERGROUND POP-UP EVENT USING SPARXO

HOW THE NIGHTWOOD SOCIETY TOOK CONTROL OF THEIR EVENT EXPERIENCE

NONPROFIT EVENTS: 5 REASONS YOU NEED MOBILE TICKETING

HOW THE HOLLAND DRAG SHOW SOLD OUT EVENT TICKETS DESPITE CRITICAL MAYOR

DATA SHOWS THESE NON-PROFIT EVENTS RASIE THE MOST MONEY

TOP 10 FUNDRAISING TRENDS FOR 2019

3 NON-PROFIT EVENT TRENDS TO GET MORE DONATIONS

BEST EVENT TICKETING SOFTWARES 2019

23 Aug 2019

Top Ten Fundraising Trends 2019

Charity events are not going anywhere – everyone loves to party for a good cause. But understanding some of the current trends in fundraising can help you amplify your cause, target the right donors, and create attractive ways for people to give.

Go for the high earners.

Tax policies in the U.S. have shifted, making it less likely middle and lower-class individuals will be donating – and they’ll be donating less. Researchers at Indiana University predict that organizations will be more dependent than ever on individuals with high net worth – partly because they’ll still see big benefits on their taxes when they do. Still, the outlook is positive for individual donations from all levels: giving in this sector is predicted to rise by 3.4%.

2. Use insight into diverse communities.

People with different backgrounds and identities tend to give differently. According to Philanthropy Outlook 2019-2020, a report published by researchers at Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, African Americans are more likely to give back to their own communities than whites. They are also more likely to give to basic needs charities than the overall population of high-net-worth donors (72% of African Americans versus 54% of all donors). Researchers have also noted differences between male and female donors, and generational differences as well, with women more likely to actively volunteer and to prefer impact investing at a higher rate, and older women more likely to choose just a few causes to support. Find more information in their report, available at www.philanthropyoutlook.com.

3. Harness social media for peer-to-peer fundraising.

If you’re on Facebook, you’ve probably seen people asking for money for a cause on their birthday. Giving on Facebook is easy, and having a friend recommending a cause employs one of the most successful, tried and true fundraising tactics – peer-to-peer fundraising. It’s not all just Facebook charity requests, though. People are running online games and competitions – think virtual race- to raise money for their favorite causes. Make sure you have a strong online presence, with easy-to-navigate pages and a convenient method for accepting donations to take advantage of this trend.

4. Set up a recurring giving program.

Donors who give to recurring donation programs – where they give a set amount monthly – tend to give more on average than one-time donors. Recurring donations are ways people who aren’t in the high-net-worth category can give on a budget. Recurring giving also gives organizations a way to keep in regular contact with their donors, giving them reports on where their money goes, which helps retain donors by creating a deeper connection with the cause.

5. Jump into virtual reality.

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are being employed by businesses, schools, and organizations to enhance and extend their mission. VR can provide ways to connect people to the causes they care about; to explain a procedure that is being funded, and to give insight into the work your organization does. A study in Nonprofit Management and Leadership which looked at the effects of using virtual reality on donor behavior found that donors were more engaged through VR and therefore more likely to give.

6. Use the right tool for communication.

Email is still one of the best ways to engage donors. That’s because people are often overwhelmed by social media and often dismiss what comes up in their feed, and it can be hard to find later. Email can be personalized but also very efficient, and it can be easily forwarded and shared. Crafting attention-getting emails that are mobile-friendly are key.

7. Pursue new opportunities for corporate giving.

Corporate giving is hot. As corporations fight for talent, they are looking for ways to present their businesses as socially minded and ethical, and engaging in a charitable cause is a popular way to do this. Some places of business also encourage volunteers to donate their time – sometimes giving them time off to do so. This can be a great way to build a relationship with individuals as well as the business.

8. Build a planned giving program.

Long popular with big charities, more and more nonprofits are realizing it’s to their benefit to build programs for planned giving. “Small and mid-sized nonprofits can no longer afford to ignore planned giving, and many don’t know how simple it can be to get started,” notes the National Council of Nonprofits.

9. Chat with a bot.

Organizations that use chatbots – digital artificial intelligence responders – recognize them as invaluable tools for connecting with potential donors and volunteers, whether they want to know how to donate, need help buying a ticket to the latest event, or directing them to more information. Chatbots are programmed to run with programs like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Slack and can even tell stories to help engage viewers – as Charity:Water does with their Facebook messenger bot, which enables viewers to follow a girl as she searches for water. Chatbots can help save money and reduce staff time answering questions.They are also a gold mine for data, notes nonprofit expert and consultant Allison Fine in The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

10. Show ‘em what you got.

Donors always like to know where their money is going and see it make a difference. Charity:Water started out with a party where everyone donated $20 each. All the attendees received information about how their $20 went directly towards providing a community with clean water – and as a result, donations started pouring in. So make sure you’re not only sharing the story of what’s needed but also share how donors have made an impact. This might include videos, photographs, interactive storytelling and Q & A, as well as providing hard facts and figures. Fortunately, in today’s world of a wealth of data and inexpensive digital tools that quickly connect people anywhere in the world, transparency is easier than ever.

You can apply many of these tips to planning events, too. Chatbots can make it easier for people to ask questions and connect, and understanding your target demographics better can help ensure the right people are seeing your promotions.

Another key to solid fundraising? Having the right event ticketing platform to sell your tickets online. Sparxo is designed to make it easy to reach and track your attendees, so you can follow up for other programs, like planned giving and recurring donations. Unlike other platforms, Sparxo puts your cause and your event front and center without impacting your bottom line.

Sparxo harnesses the latest tech to make it easier on you and your followers, translating to more dollars for your cause.

While most ticket sales software like Eventbrite or Ticketmaster take huge portions of sales, cost too much, promote competing events, and eclipse your own brand. You can use Sparxo to post your event and sell tickets for your event anywhere, letting you sell tickets online with no redirects – all for free! Plus, Sparxo offers a non-profit program where the company makes a donation.

Import your guest lists and sales lists from other systems
Aggregate all of your customer data in one place
Keep 100% of your ticket sales
White Label, greatly improves SEO and Brand

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER BLOG POST ARTICLES:

SPARXO MAKES IT EASY TO ADD AN EVENT CALENDAR TO YOUR WEBSITE

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH ATTENDANCE BREAKDOWN

WHERE SHOULD YOU POST YOUR EVENT? EVENTBRITE, MEETUP, OR FACEBOOK?

A MEATING OF MINDS — HOW THIS COMPANY IS CHANGING THE WAY MEAT IS CONSUMED

LEARN WHAT TICKETING COMPANIES ARE HIDING – A COMPARISON

EVENT PROMOTER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EMAIL PROMOTIONS

HOW CREATIVE STARTUP LABS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT THEIR SECRET UNDERGROUND POP-UP EVENT USING SPARXO

HOW THE NIGHTWOOD SOCIETY TOOK CONTROL OF THEIR EVENT EXPERIENCE

NONPROFIT EVENTS: 5 REASONS YOU NEED MOBILE TICKETING

HOW THE HOLLAND DRAG SHOW SOLD OUT EVENT TICKETS DESPITE CRITICAL MAYOR

DATA SHOWS THESE NON-PROFIT EVENTS RASIE THE MOST MONEY

22 Aug 2019

4 Event Ideas for Fitness Classes

Master Meet-Ups

A wonderful way to boost your brand is by partnering with another brand. Celebrity trainers and influencers often meet up with their followers, be it for a Bootcamp or just to engage with their audience. Many of these influencers are eager to partner with a fitness event or venue planner to streamline their event, someone who can get their equipment, space, and safety accommodations set up long in advance. For example, Brandon Carter often runs Bootcamp meetups from his youtube followers in parks and outdoor venues, where getting fitness materials and permits can be tricky. This is where you come in. Reach out to local influencers you know host meetups and propose a partnership. You can also offer them exposure, help teaching, and even some free materials. Partnering on influencer meetups will not only boost your class’s reputation, but it will draw fans of the guest to your class, improving your visibility and attendance.

Hosting fitness supply meetups is also a great avenue to take advantage of another brand in your niche. Many sporting goods and fitness merchandising stores like Sports Basement organize community events with various fitness-geared activities, sometimes even fitness classes. Offering to teach a guest class at these events is a great way to introduce yourself to an audience of fitness enthusiasts while increasing your visibility via the sporting goods stores advertising and promotions.

Meal Prep Masterclass

Diet is as, if not more important than exercise. Odds are that your class attendees are just as eager to learn about clean meal prep as they are exercises. Consider hosting a class on preparing healthy, easy to make foods, either taught by yourself from what foods have worked for you, or by partnering with a cooking or nutrition instructor. Partnering with a nutritionist could not only boost attendance but could introduce your class to the nutritionists’ clientele.

Bring it with Bootcamps!

Hosting a Bootcamp is a great supplement for your fitness class, improve awareness, and even raise some extra funds for your class. Bootcamp group exercises, separate from your class, can offer an opportunity for attendees who may have missed some classes to catch up, and for those who’ve never attended a class but may be interested in a sample.

Bootcamps are also incredibly high yield for the amount of energy put in, both for planners and participants. All you need to start a Bootcamp is a logo, access to the web, and a park. Advertise your Bootcamp online, and walla, you have yourself a proper Bootcamp. You don’t even really need permits if attendance is low, depending on your city that could be 20 people or less. Consider pulling the old ‘We’re just a group of friends working out in the park, officer!’ if anyone asks. Point being, Bootcamps cost almost nothing to plan but can bring in significant income for your fitness business. But the buck doesn’t stop there. No, Bootcamps are incredible for attendees as well, a rare opportunity to experience both one-on-one attention on their exercise form and regime while being pushed to their limits. A great way to encourage a commitment from attendees is via theme. For example, New Years Bootcamps are extremely popular because they empower attendees with the exercises and routines they’ll need to achieve their fitness resolutions, whether with a trainer or by themselves. You could also focus on imparting information at your Bootcamp, attendees leaving with key nutritional and exercise knowledge rather than just muscle burn. Goals are born at Bootcamp. One taste of proper exercise, of pushing themselves past perceived limitations, and Bootcamp attendees will be sure to be signing themselves up for more classes and more programs. If nothing else, they’ll have learned low-maintenance exercise techniques they can do themselves, anytime, with almost no equipment. It really is a win-win.

But what software will you use to sell tickets to the Bootcamp, or even sell tickets for your class? As a fitness event planner, you’re looking for a free way to sell as many class tickets as possible and keep as much revenue as you can. However, most ticket sales software like Eventbrite or Ticketmaster take huge portions of sales, cost too much, promote competing events, and eclipse your own brand. You can use Sparxo to post your event and sell tickets for your event anywhere, letting you sell tickets online with no redirects – all for free!

Import your guest lists and sales lists from other systems
Aggregate all of your customer data in one place
Keep 100% of your ticket sales
White Label, greatly improves SEO and Brand

Run a Fun Run

A fun run is exactly that – fun. Even if your class isn’t explicitly about cardio workouts, helping to host a fun run, an informal run for charitable purposes, is a great way to go the extra mile in raising awareness for your fitness class.

Fun runs are typically geared toward a particular charity, with lots of attention and care put into their planning. This leaves you two options – reach out to a smaller fun run and offer to help them organize, usually by volunteering or by creating your own run. Assisting an existing run will be far less of a time commitment, and can still give you a great chance to engage with your class attendees, acquire new students, potentially establish a permanent partnership. If you can find a fun run that may be in need of your class supplies or expertise, you could greatly enhance your exposure by offering them a partnership, donating your time as a teacher and supplies in exchange for the run promoting your class to their attendees. Also, by encouraging your class attendees to attend an existing fun run, you’ll get exposure to their friends and plus-ones, many of whom will likely have a similar interest in fitness classes.

Your other option is to create your own fun run. While this is a much larger time commitment, it can greatly enhance your visibility as a teacher. Like with most events, success will all depend on proper planning. Your first step will be to set a goal for the run, typically charitable. Then you’ll want to put together a capable team, ideally with event planners who’ve previously assisted with fun runs. With a team and a goal, you’ll then have to iron out the details, like venue, funding, and supplies. Here’s a great guide on how to handle all the logistics of hosting a fun run.

One of the secrets to a successful fun run is your theme. As an event planner for this run, you want to narrow down your target audience to a specific niche, that way you’ll know how to make an event appeal to them. Is this going to be an epic professional race, with high tech times? A stroller-accessible run for families? An office-getaway for corporate employees? The better you understand your target attendees, the better equipped you’ll be to design your event and eventually market the event as something that these attendees actually want to go to. With this in mind, brainstorm a theme, a kind of overarching message and style to your event that aligns with your audience’s interest. Not only will this spice up attendee experience, but it will differentiate your fun run, standing out from what’s already a very large crowd. IIn the end, whether you choose to host or help out, market to families or pros, fun runs will help your brand and a good cause.

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER BLOG POST ARTICLES:

SPARXO MAKES IT EASY TO ADD AN EVENT CALENDAR TO YOUR WEBSITE

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH ATTENDANCE BREAKDOWN

WHERE SHOULD YOU POST YOUR EVENT? EVENTBRITE, MEETUP, OR FACEBOOK?

A MEATING OF MINDS — HOW THIS COMPANY IS CHANGING THE WAY MEAT IS CONSUMED

LEARN WHAT TICKETING COMPANIES ARE HIDING – A COMPARISON

EVENT PROMOTER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EMAIL PROMOTIONS

HOW CREATIVE STARTUP LABS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT THEIR SECRET UNDERGROUND POP-UP EVENT USING SPARXO

HOW THE NIGHTWOOD SOCIETY TOOK CONTROL OF THEIR EVENT EXPERIENCE

NONPROFIT EVENTS: 5 REASONS YOU NEED MOBILE TICKETING

HOW THE HOLLAND DRAG SHOW SOLD OUT EVENT TICKETS DESPITE CRITICAL MAYOR

DATA SHOWS THESE NON-PROFIT EVENTS RASIE THE MOST MONEY

10 Aug 2019

How to Sell Out Fitness Classes

1. Slay Sales with Software

Trying to sell tickets to your fitness classes? Your first stop is the web. Duh, you’re online now, aren’t you? And isn’t ‘use social media’ what everyone else preaches these days? Don’t worry, we’ll give you simple, practical steps you can take action on immediately. Right now, you have the potential to access millions of Facebook users, totally free. Invite all your Facebook friends to your class by creating a Facebook Event. Ask your friends to share the class’s Facebook event, and consider reaching out to influencers (especially those you already follow or interact with!) for a share.

If you have the funds, consider running targeted Facebook advertisements for class. Target people in your area who have attended similar classes, limiting the scope of your ad to appear only to those who are very likely to potential sign up. While Facebook ads take a little bit of capital to run, they’re comparatively much cheaper than most advertising and publicizing freelancers, meaning you’ll get a good bit of bang for your buck. You also get to set the budget of the ad, meaning this is sort of paid advertising is likely more accessible than you think. We also recommend you not only utilize social media like Instagram and Twitter, but we recommend you interact on those platforms, personally liking and responding to comments. Over time this could build relationships that turn into signups.

We also recommend you promote your classes by developing and using a Mailing List. This an excellent way to keep in touch with past attendees, while also pulling new students. Think about it. If you could get everyone who’s ever been to a class with you or your friends, and you could get them coming back, your attendance would be in great shape, right?

An email list is all about establishing a personal relationship with potential attendees. Often, a personal connection makes the difference between attending your class rather than a better-known chain class like Soulcylce or Equinox. A regular, friendly email is a great way to establish this relationship while seriously boosting retention. First, you’ll need to set up a newsletter system with a service like MailChimp is free up to 2,000 contacts and unlimited emails. This will help you craft personalized messages and allow anyone interested in your event to stay up to date. Then, reach out personally to friends and past students who you think may be interested. Then ask them if they’d like to join your email list, for regular updates and potential freebies. Even if they aren’t ready to commit to signing up for your class yet, getting regular emails with class updates could change that, while also spreading awareness.

You should also consider using a free website builder like Weebly or Strikingly to create a landing page for your class, where you can put key info and promotional pictures. A personal site will keep all your information in one place, plus you’ll get more eyes on your brand, a key advantage when selling tickets. This helps your overall SEO.

But how will you sell class tickets? As a fitness event planner, you’re looking for a free way to sell as many class tickets as possible and keep as much revenue as you can. However, most ticket sales software like Eventbrite or Ticketmaster take huge portions of sales, cost too much, promote competing events, and eclipse your own brand. You can use Sparxo to post your event and sell tickets for your event anywhere, letting you sell tickets directly from your website with no redirects – all for free!

Import your guest lists and sales lists from other systems
aggregate all of your customer data in one place
Keep 100% of your ticket sales
White Label, greatly improves SEO and Brand

Offer Value Upfront (Freebies!)

Free gets people in the door. Excellent quality of service keeps them coming. As a fitness event planner, a great way to get people into your class is to offer free ‘value’ upfronts. These are things like offering a free trial for a day or giving out branded water bottles.

You could also stress something valuable they’ll gain in just one day or weak. Will they learn a skill? Become more flexible? Advertise these tangible, upfronts on your events page, and you’re sure to increase class signups.

Partnerships

Leverage platforms like a Class Pass and Dabble get you new users and then convert them into members of your own gym. Using these sites as ‘partners’ will dramatically increase your sales. See, hundreds of thousands of potential attendees are on these websites, already searching for you. Rather than you actively seeking attendees, these platforms will allow you to connect with people actively seeking you, making things much easier. Leads coming from sites like Dabble will convert at much higher rates as you have the ability to screen for specific interests, like fitness and fitness classes.

Another successful partnership strategy is inviting in influencer or even celebrity teachers. Can you find a fitness influencer in your city to teach a class? You can offer exposure and a stipend in exchange. Guest teachers will not only boost your class’s reputation, but it will draw fans of the guest to your class, improving your visibility and attendance.

Sponsorship could also be a route for your fitness classes. This doesn’t even necessarily have to be monetary sponsorship – a local company providing free health drinks, free fitness mats, or even just their logo could make your event considerably more attractive to attendees. If you can find a company that will benefit from sponsoring your class, you could greatly enhance your budget for advertisements and form a long-lasting partnership that helps both parties. You’ll want to build a list of potential sponsors, businesses whose customers’ interests align with your class. These would be things like sporting goods stores, energy drink companies, or even clothing lines. Reach out to the companies on your list with a friendly email or call, explaining why this company would benefit from sponsoring your fitness class. These are usually things like increased exposure and brand awareness. You can find a sample event sponsorship request letter here.

Rave Reviews

Great reviews will make a big difference in selling your fitness class. Not only will most potential attendees search for reviews, in 2019 many potential attendees will search for classes on reviews sites. Much of the traffic to your event page will come directly from sites like Yelp and FourSquare, attendees first impression of your class coming from reviews. And you want to make a good first impression, right?

The key is to have as many high-quality reviews as possible. Create a Yelp page, a FitResever page, a Business.com page – as many review sites as you can. Then reach out to previous attendees of your classes and ask for reviews, as well as offering freebies or a discount for current attendees who write a review. Not only will this boost your visibility, but your credibility as well, which will seriously improve your sales.

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER BLOG POST ARTICLES:

SPARXO MAKES IT EASY TO ADD AN EVENT CALENDAR TO YOUR WEBSITE

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE WITH ATTENDANCE BREAKDOWN

WHERE SHOULD YOU POST YOUR EVENT? EVENTBRITE, MEETUP, OR FACEBOOK?

A MEATING OF MINDS — HOW THIS COMPANY IS CHANGING THE WAY MEAT IS CONSUMED

LEARN WHAT TICKETING COMPANIES ARE HIDING – A COMPARISON

EVENT PROMOTER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EMAIL PROMOTIONS

HOW CREATIVE STARTUP LABS COMPLETELY SOLD OUT THEIR SECRET UNDERGROUND POP-UP EVENT USING SPARXO

HOW THE NIGHTWOOD SOCIETY TOOK CONTROL OF THEIR EVENT EXPERIENCE

NONPROFIT EVENTS: 5 REASONS YOU NEED MOBILE TICKETING

HOW THE HOLLAND DRAG SHOW SOLD OUT EVENT TICKETS DESPITE CRITICAL MAYOR