Have you ever tried to buy tickets for a concert or sporting event only to find that the event sold out in seconds/minutes? The real kicker is that if you were to check the inventory on Stubhub, TicketsNow, or TicketLiquidator, you’d find hundreds if not thousands of tickets available at prices much higher than face value. It sure doesn’t seem fair, but instead of crying and complaining, we should take advantage of a perfect opportunity to earn some money. If you can’t beat them, join them! The only difference between you and them is that they know you don’t.

If you’re willing to put in some time, research, and effort, becoming a full-time or part-time ticket broker may be for you. The barrier to entry is minimal and you can start as slowly or quickly as you like. I’ll provide you with the resources you need to get started. The stockbroking industry is a somewhat secretive society, but the following information should give you a very good background on the things you need to know to become a full-time or part-time ticket broker.

Benefits of becoming a ticket broker

* Very low start-up costs.

* Supplement or Replace your Current Income.

* Learn how to buy event tickets at the lowest possible cost.

* Spend as much or as little time as you like with the business.

THE SECONDARY TICKET MARKET – WHAT IS IT?

The secondary market is created when any ticket for an event is sold by someone other than the primary seller. For example, you could buy a couple of Madonna tickets on Ticketmaster the morning they go on sale, and then sell them on Stubhub for a price more in line with true market value. The top 3 players in the secondary market are Stubhub/eBay, TicketLiquidator (backed by Ticket Network), and TicketsNow (now owned by Ticketmaster.com). I recently read that the events industry is a $10-$12 billion dollar industry. There are many people who make money in the industry, including primary and secondary resellers. Heck, even the guy who works the street corner at your local joint is getting his share of the pie. However, we are not interested in that guy. We want to earn money from the comfort of our homes. I should also point out that selling tickets is not illegal in most states. In fact, many states have written legislation to eliminate these archaic laws. You will need to check with local/state laws to ensure compliance.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER – IT’S NOT WHAT YOU KNOW, BUT WHO YOU KNOW

You are not going to learn how to become a ticket broker by yourself. You will need the support of others in the running community. The first place you’ll want to visit and explore is EventExperts. You will want to learn about the ticketing business from other people who are already in the business. They have a great online community and I HIGHLY recommend that you surround yourself with people who know what they are talking about before buying and selling your first tickets. Not only do they offer a strong community, but they also have ‘experts’ who make predictions on whether or not a ticket will sell. As a member of their community, you will have access to request predictions for your own events that you are considering purchasing. Many of the experts have been there for years and have a wealth of information to share. There is a minimal monthly subscription fee, but I think that is a very small price to pay for the information you will receive, especially if you are new to the business. There is an excellent article on their site called HOW TO BECOME A TICKET BROKER that you should read if you want to learn more about the site.

You’ll also want to know when the events will go on sale. Ticketmaster is the largest primary seller of tickets, but it’s certainly not the only way to make money in this business. There are several websites that aggregate sales data from the different top sellers and make it much easier to determine what you’d like to buy on any given day. Many of them also offer presale passwords which will usually give you an advantage over the average Joe concert goer.

subscription sites

* PresalePassword – Managed by the same people who manage EventExperts. You will have the option to purchase a combo package upon registration that will include this site.

* ShowsOnSale: This site has some stricter guidelines to be approved as a member. If you don’t already have a history of selling tickets, I don’t think it’s worth applying too. Although the information is excellent! The app can be found on their site.

* OnsaleDate – Free trial available. Daily emails showing all Ticketmaster sales for that day can be set up for email every morning. The site is minimal but does its job well.

* Scourlist – Monthly subscription. This site has listings/passwords for many of the top sellers including Ticketmaster, LiveNation, Tickets.com, House of Blues and many more.

Free Sites Onsale/Password

* WiseGuys – A bit ugly due to the blog format, but does a good job of posting information to the site.

* TicketHorde: again, the format is not the best, but the information is good.

* SlickDeals – This is a message board thread, but it contains a lot of good presale passwords.

* LiveDaily – This site is owned by Ticketmaster and does a good job of bringing you the latest concert announcements etc.

* TicketNews – Ticket News is a blog sponsored by Ticket Network that contains articles on upcoming tours and industry news.

WHERE DO I SELL MY TICKETS?

The question should be where do you NOT sell your tickets. As a broker, you will want your tickets in as many markets as you can. The more visibility your tickets have, the better your chances of selling them. Most professional brokers have their tickets listed in all major markets. You may see the exact same tickets on Stubhub that you will see on Ticketsnow.com. This is very common. A broker will remove your tickets from the list in all markets once he receives notice that they have been sold. You may be wondering: “What if they sell in two places at once?” This is possible, but it doesn’t happen often. In the ticketing business this is known as “double selling”.

Cheap/free markets

* Stubhub: Every broker must have an account with Stubhub. They have become a household name and generate a ton of traffic. Stubhub keeps 15% of every sale, so make sure to price accordingly.

* eBay: eBay is still a good place to sell tickets, but would list your tickets as a BUY IT NOW price instead of putting them up for auction. You will almost always get more money using BUY IT NOW.

* Craigslist: In the world of ticket brokers, Craigslist is often a good place to download tickets for last minute events. The amount of time you’ll spend going back and forth with a customer looking for a deal will prove too slow for your business as a primary market.

* TicketsNow: Ticketsnow recently changed their business model to allow people to sell tickets on their site. This website has a lot of visibility, especially since Ticketmaster links you directly to it for most of the sold-out events.

Point of Sale System

When your business starts to grow and you have a substantial inventory, it will be beneficial to join one of the major players in the ticket broker industry. You will be allowed to post tickets on exchanges and your tickets will then be broadcast to hundreds of websites. You will also have the benefit of a Point of Sale system that will allow you to accept credit cards and manage your sales/inventory.

* TicketNetwork – For around $2,500/year, you’ll have your own ticketing website, point of sale system, and access to millions of dollars in inventory.

* EventInventory – Until you have an established history and meet someone who can refer you to Event Inventory, you will likely be denied use of your Point of Sale system.