Understanding ticket levies: what they are and how they benefit your organisation

Introduction

Setting up a ticket levy in Ticketsolve offers numerous benefits to you and your customers. A ticket levy is a small, additional charge added to the ticket price, which can help cover various operational costs or be used for another specific purpose within your organistion. In this article, we will discuss the benefits of implementing a ticket levy in Ticketsolve and explore the types of levies you can use.

Benefits of implementing a ticket levy

Ticket levies, might have been at the centre of controversies 10 years ago, but nowadays there is no denying their appeal - and their need. What's more, arts and culture organisations have seen that their customers are keen and eager to support them, so why not make it easy? Even a simple, £1 levy can make an enormous impact - just ask Liverpool's Royal Court that generated £1 million pounds using ticket levy within Ticketsolve. Ticket levies help provide: 

1. Financial Sustainability: Ticket levies can provide a steady revenue stream that contributes to the financial sustainability of your organisation. Allocating a portion of ticket sales to specific areas or projects, you can better manage your budget and plan for the future.
2. Enhanced Customer Experience: Allocating ticket levy funds to improve the overall customer experience is a great way to give back to customers. This may include enhancements to your venue, such as upgraded seating or better sound systems, or investing in new technology to streamline the ticketing process.
3. Support for the Arts and Culture Reach: Ticket levies can be used to support scholarships, educational programs, or community outreach initiatives.
4. Environmental and Social Responsibility: Ticket levies can be allocated to support environmental or social causes, like carbon offset for an event or donating to charitable organisations. 
5. Flexibility: Ticket levies offer flexibility in their implementation, allowing you to choose the type and purpose of the levy that best suits your organisation's needs.

Types of ticket levies

There are many different types of ticket levies that you can implement. We’ve highlighted some of the most common ones used within the arts and culture sector:

1. Restoration: Mostly commonly used for building restorations, especially for older, historical or listed building, this really gives customers a tangible "thing" to see where their levy is helping. 
2. Facilities: Another great and very visible one for customers, is where the levy is used to improve facilities or maintain what is there. This is a great win-win for customers who benefit from a more comfortable and engaging experience.
3. Educational: Educational levies are great if you already have such initiatives, or are looking to expand your community outreach. These levies support educational initiatives, such as workshops, seminars, and other learning opportunities that promote engagement with the arts and culture.
4. Environmental: This is a great way to invest in green initiatives such as ofsetting carbon emissions or waste management. 
5. Charity: A charity levy allows you to allocate a portion of ticket sales to a specific charitable cause or organisation, demonstrating your commitment to social responsibility.

Things to consider before implementing a levy

Before implementing a ticket levy, consider:

• What is the purpose of your levy? It's a good idea to be clear on what the levy will be uses for e.g., a specific project. 
• How will you communicate to customers? Although ticket levies are built into the ticket price that customers see, honest and clear communication is important so that customers understand what is going on. For example, you may need to include information on the charge in your show description and each ticket price description.
• When should you implement a levy? An ideal time could be when you launch a new season, so that you can tie-in the increase in ticket price, and communicate to your customers how important it is to make sure the prices you charge are fair, but also allow your business to be sustainable. 

Best practice checklist for ticket levies

1. Update Terms and Conditions
   Review and revise your organisation's terms and conditions to include clear information about the ticket levy. This should include the purpose of the levy, how the funds will be used, and any additional details relevant to the specific type of levy being implemented. Make sure the updated terms and conditions are easily accessible on your website and at the point of sale.
2. Provide Clear Communication
   Inform your customers about the ticket levy through multiple channels, such as email campaigns, social media, press releases, and blog posts. Make sure to highlight the benefits of the levy and its intended use, emphasising the positive impact it will have on the customer experience or the community.
3. Train Staff
   Ensure that your staff are well-informed about the ticket levy, its purpose, and how it will be applied. This way, they can accurately answer customer inquiries and provide a consistent message about the levy's implementation.
4. Offer a FAQ Section
   Create a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section on your website dedicated to the ticket levy. This can address common questions and concerns about the levy and provide customers with additional information on how the funds will be used.
5. Monitor Feedback
   Regularly monitor customer feedback and address any concerns or misconceptions regarding the ticket levy. This can help you identify areas where communication needs to be improved or clarified.
6. Review and Adjust
   Periodically review the implementation of the ticket levy and make any necessary adjustments based on customer feedback, financial performance and the overall success of the levy's purpose. Keep your customers informed about any updates or changes to the levy.
7. Share Updates and Success
   Make customers a part of the project journey and share progress updates so that they can see they levy funds being used. And when the project is complete - share the success with your customers so they can feel proud in their contribution!

Other important things to note

Refund policy, Ts & Cs, and contracts with promoters

It is worth considering a few other details before you implement any ticket levy.

1. Will you refund the hidden ticket levy to customers in the case of a show cancellation?
2. How should you incorporate the levy into your terms and conditions?
3. How might a levy affect the contracts with promoters and how payments are split?

Discounts

In Ticketsolve, only the ticket price is discounted; it is not possible to discount any kind of booking charge or fee. For example,

• A ticket price of £50 with a hidden levy of £1 is £51 total for the customer. 
• If there is a discount set of 20% on these tickets, only the £50 ticket price will be discounted by 20%. . .
  • £50 - 20% = £40 + £1 (hidden booking charge) = £41
  • From the customer's perspective £41 is not 20% off. 

With ticket levies, the best way to set-up discounts is by a set amount rather than percent discount so that it is clearer for customers. 

For example, if you want to discount your £50 tickets to £40, and have a £1 hidden booking charge set at account level, the "Customer gets" part of the discount would need to be set up as follows:

Customer gets > All tickets for > Show (select your show) > At price (select your ticket price) > With amount off > £11 > Any number of times. 

With the above setup, the £50 ticket price will be reduced to £39 + the £1 hidden ticket price added on, totalling £40 for the customer to pay.

How To Set Up a Ticket Levy in Ticketsolve 

Now that you've got a good understanding of ticket levies and how they can benefit your organisation, it's time to put them into action! Check out our easy step-by-step article:

Using Booking Charges to set up a hidden ticket levy

For more on implementing a hidden ticket levy, take a look at our Ticketsolve Academy webinar

You can also read our article The ticket levy, in Arts Professional