How to Set Up Event Hub

If Event Hub isn't part of your operations yet, we'd love to show you how it works - reach out if you would like a demo!

Event Hub is a brand-new product from Ticketsolve, designed to take the hustle out of event day by allowing customers to pre-order refreshments, merchandise, and experiences. No more long queues or rushed intervals - just a seamless, stress-free experience that keeps everyone happy.

Before your start

You'll first need to request that Event Hub be activated on your account - please drop us a ticket and we'll get everything ready for you. 

Please note that a small 3% charge applies to all transactions through Event Hub, supporting the service while helping you unlock new revenue opportunities.

Build your Product Inventory

We recommend planning out your different Contexts and Product Categories before you start building and tagging products. 

You'll need to consider which items will fall into which Contexts and Product Categories, as well as the unique product tags you'll use to add items into different categories.

Create a Product

1. Go to Manage > Products and select Add New +. 

2. Select your Product Type, e.g. Regular Product, and add your product details. We'd recommend adding the below as a minimum:

• Name
• Comment - product description, especially any allergens, volume details and age restrictions e.g. for alcohol. 
• Active product & Can be sold? - toggle these to on. 
• Price
• Priority - set a number here from 0 - 99 to order the product items online, with 99 being the highest and 0 being the lowest.
• Tags - add a tag here to categorise your items into Product Categories in Event Hub e.g.' icecream'. It's important that you have at least 1 Product Category tag here so that your product appears in Event Hub. 

3. Click Add to save.

 Important

Alcohol, age-restricted items & allergens:

If you're selling alcohol or other age-restricted items via Event Hub, make sure to inform customers about age restrictions, ID checks, and the 18+ requirement. We recommend adding this to the Product Comment.

For food items, include allergen details in the Product Comment or direct customers to full allergen information.

4. Upload a product image. 

5. Navigate to the Settings tab and go to the "display qr code" setting - this should be enabled for all products you are selling through Event Hub so that customers get scannable QR codes in their Checkout Mailer.

6. In the Settings tab there are also some additional options:

• "email note" - add any product-specific text her that you want to be included in the Checkout Mailler.
• " extras" - this allows you to request additional information on a product. (Product Extras are not yet available in Event Hub but will be included in future updates**)

 Ticketsolve Tip

Add the tag 'skip_listing' to products so they don't appear on your main products page online, and only appear in the Event Hub 'Add Items' and preorder page.

To view your regular products page, the URL is in the following format: accountname.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/products/regular (replacing “accountname” with your own account name).

Add stock limits

If you want to track and cap the quantity available of a specific product, you can do so using the Inventory Management tool. Stock limits can be set at a Global / Product level, for example, for bar drinks or merchandise, or set at an individual Event level, for example when you offer a limited number of pre-show dining spots per event. 

To set up stock limits, read our guide on How to Use Inventory Management and then return to this article when complete. 

Set up Event Hub at the Account level

Event Hub must first have Contexts and Product Categories set up and activated at the Account level. This step ensures that Event Hub is ready and accessible across all events, saving you from having to enable it each time manually. You'll then be able to adjust and enable/disable the Event Hub setting at a Program, Show or Event level, allowing you to tailor product options for specific events and customise your customers' experience.

Set up Contexts

Each Context can be named (such as Pre-show or Interval) and assigned start and end times. These times control when items are available for ordering, which helps your team manage stock and avoid last-minute rushes.

Your Event Hub will already be pre-populated with some Contexts, but you can amend or delete these and create your own new Contexts. Any new Contexts will be listed in the order that they are created.

Start times on Contexts don’t apply when selling through Event Hub at the Box Office or Online Checkout.

This means customers can purchase any available Contexts for an event - like programmes, merchandise or upgrades - as soon as tickets go on sale. That way, you can boost secondary revenue from the moment ticket sales begin. Start times for Contexts only apply when customers are accessing their Event Hub experience and placing pre-orders from their Pre-Event Alert email.

End times on Contexts apply Online, and don't apply at the Box Office.

1. Go to Settings > General Settings.

2. Find the "Event hub" setting.

3. Click +Add Context, and you'll see a new tab appear.

4. In the text field that says New Context, click in to edit and give your Context a name, e.g. Pre-show. 

5. Set a Start time for when the Context should first be available to customers.

The options are:

• Start Interval - available in intervals from a minimum of 15 minutes to a maximum of 7 days.
• Before/After - select if the duration should apply before or after the event starts.

Important: The start time of the event is taken from the "Event start time" setting in the Event set-up (Manage > Shows > Runs > Event).

6. Set an End time for when the Context should no longer be available for customers to purchase from. The options are:

• End Interval - available in intervals from a minimum of 15 minutes to a maximum of 7 days.
• Before/After - select if the duration should apply before or after the event starts.

6. Click Update to save the new Context. 

7. Repeat steps 1 - 6 for all Contexts you want to add at the Account level (you can change these at the Show or Event level later).

8. If you need to delete a Context, click on the tab and select the bin icon alongside the context name.

Here are some Contexts suggestions to get started...

• A Pre-show Context to start 2 days before the event starts and end 2 hours before the event starts.
• An Interval Context to start 2 days before the event starts and end 30 minutes before the event starts.
• A Post-show Context to start 30 minutes before the event starts and end 2 hours after the event starts.

Set up Product Categories

Your Event Hub will already be pre-populated with some Product Categories, but you can amend or delete these and create your own.

Creating a Product Category

Your Event Hub will already be pre-populated with some Product Categories, but you can amend or delete these and create your own.

Within the "Event hub" setting:

1. Click + Add Category. 

2. Click into the name field and enter the category name e.g. 'Soft Drinks & Mixers'. 

3. Repeat steps 1 - 3 for all the different Product Categories you want.

4. Click Update to save your categories.

Now you've built the different categories, it's time to sort your products into the categories - this is where Product Tags come in!

Adding items to a Product Category

Each Product Category has a list of Included Tags and Excluded Tags - this is how you organise which products in your Ticketsolve account are assigned to or excluded from each category.

Before you start tagging products, we'd recommend planning your different categories, which items will fall into which categories, and the unique Product Tags you'll use to differentiate between categories.

Here are some Product Categories and Product Tags suggestions to get started...

• Product Category: Alcoholic Drinks
  • Included Tags: 'alcohol'

• Product Category: Soft Drinks & Mixers
  • Included Tags: 'softdrink'

• Product Category: Snacks & Sweets
  • Included Tags: 'sweets' , 'icecream' , 'snacks'
     
• Product Category: Merchandise
  • Included Tags: 'merch'
     
• Product Category: Experiences
  • Included Tags: 'preshowdining'

To add an item to a Product Category:

1. First, if you haven't already, you'll need to add the relevant tag(s) to your products.

2. When you've tagged all your products, return to the "Event hub" General Setting.

3. Click on the desired Context e.g. Preshow.

4. Scroll to the Product Category you want to add the items to, e.g. Soft Drinks & Mixers.

9. Click into the Included Tags field and start typing to find your tag e.g. 'softdrink'.

10. Select the tag from the list by clicking it - when added, you'll see it appear in a blue box.

11. Click Update to save.

Add as many items/tags to the Included Tags and Excluded Tags field within Product Categories as you wish.

 Ticketsolve Tip

Add a tag like 'nostock' to the Excluded Tags field for an easy and quick way to remove item(s) from sale across the Account or on specific Shows or Events.

For example, if a beer keg runs out of stock during the night, or you want to remove a specific product from a category for an event, you can simply go into Manage > Products > add the 'nostock' tag to the product and it'll stop being available for sale in Event Hub until you remove the tag from the product later.

Duplicating Contexts

To save time when building contexts, you can duplicate existing contexts. This will make a copy of the context you duplicate, and include the same: 

• Context starts at and ends at availability times
• Product categories

To duplicate a context:

1. Open the context you wish to copy and click the 3 dots to the right of the context name. A dropdown will open.
2. Click Duplicate context.
3. A copy of the context will open, named "original context name" Copy.
4. Click Update to save the new context and any other changes made.

You can edit the name and make changes to the context availability times and product categories.

Reordering Contexts

Are the contexts in the wrong order? No worries! Rearranging them is quick and easy using the drag and drop function.

To rearrange your contexts:

1. In the contexts tab, click on the context you want to move.
2. Drag the context to the place you want it to appear. As you move it, a blue pipeline will appear to indicate where it will be placed.
3. Release the click to drop the context in its new place.
4. Click Update to save the change.

Customise Event Hub settings

There are a couple of settings and snippets for Event Hub that you need to check and amend as needed. 

"Event hub event information" setting

This is displayed on the Event Information tab of Event Hub. We'd recommend including essential info and FAQs such as directions, transport information, accessibility and venue contact details. We've already populated some text here for you to fill in, or feel free to change it as you like!

1. Go to Settings > General Settings.

2. Find the "Event hub event information" setting.

3. Check and amend the text as required and click Update to save.

"Event hub pickup instructions" setting

This is displayed in both the order confirmation email when the order contains a preorder, and in Event Hub after the customer has placed their preorder. The message should direct the customer to where to collect their items. We've already populated some text to get you started, but feel free to change it as you like!

1. Go to Settings > General Settings.

2. Find the "Event hub pickup instructions" setting.

3. Check and amend the text as required and click Update to save.

"Context and category description" snippet

This is displayed at the top of the Preorder tab of Event Hub. We've already populated some text here to start with, but feel free to change it as you like!

1. Go to Settings > Public Website Snippets.

2. Find the "Context and category description" snippet.

3. Check and amend the text as required and click Update to save.

Venue map

You'll want to make sure that you have the correct location set for your venue(s) to pull through onto the Map tab of Event Hub.

1. Go to Manage > Venues.

2. Select your venue so that you are on the Venue details page.

3. In the map, move the drop pin on the map to the desired location.

4. Click Update Venue to save.

Add Event Hub to your Pre-Event Alert email

To bring in the Event Hub information block into your customer's Pre Event Alert email, you need to add a merge field into the MJML email template. This merge field will bring in a block into the email including information on Event Hub and a CTA button to take the customer to the Event Hub experience. To do this:

1. Go to Settings > Templates > Upcoming Event Customer Alert.

2. Within this page, click on the MJML tab, so you can see a window of MJML code.

3. You will need to add the merge field {{ event_hub }} in the template. This can not sit within an <mj-section> so we recommend adding it just underneath the event details section, like below:

4. Once you have amended the email template code, click Update to save the change.

5. Now send yourself a preview of the template to check that the code isn't broken by clicking Send Preview. (Don't worry if you don't see an Event Hub link in the email - the preview might be for an event where Event Hub isn't enabled.)

If you need a hand to add Event Hub to your pre-event email template, or the preview email sends a blank email, contact our Support Team.

Important: Ensure that the Pre-Event Alert Automation is enabled for any events you want to use Event Hub on.

Check the Event Hub email description

This text is included in the Pre Event Alert email the customer receives, along with the link to click through to Event Hub. It's only editable at the Account level, so we'd recommend keeping it general and applicable to all events. We've already populated some text to get you started, but feel free to change it as you like!

1. Go to Settings > Public Website Snippets. 

2. Find the snippet called "event hub email description html".

3. Check and amend the text as required and click Update to save.

Optional: Pre-Event text automation

We're now in Alpha Testing with a pre-event text Automation.

This automation sends an event reminder and Event Hub link via text, giving customers two pre-event reminders (email and SMS) at staggered times. SMS is quick, direct, and gets attention fast - in our first Alpha test, engagement was three times higher than pre-event emails. SMS is free during Alpha testing, with pricing to follow once the service goes live.

If you would be interested in trialling this new automation, please let us know!

Go live with Event Hub

Once you've built your Contexts, Product Categories and added items at the Account level, your Event Hub is live and ready to go!

To activate Event Hub across all your upcoming events, all you need to do is enable Event Hub at the Account level. 

If you only want to activate Event Hub on specific Shows or Events, do not enable it at the Account level; instead, enable it at the Program, Show or Event level.

Activating Event Hub at the Account level

The setup that you've added at the Account level is what will apply to all events in your account. but you can customise this at a Show and Event level later.

1. Go to Settings > General Settings.

2. Find the "Event hub" setting.

3. Switch the Enable event hub toggle to on (blue).

Your Event Hub is now live across your Account! 

Activating Event Hub at Program, Show or Event level only

1. Go to Manage.

2. Either go into the Programs tab or into Shows (> Run > Event), depending on what level you want Event Hub enabled on.

3. Find the "Event hub" setting.

4. Switch the Enable event hub toggle to on (blue).

Customising Event Hub at Program, Show or Event level

If certain shows need a unique touch – say, a family event with fewer alcoholic options – you can adjust settings at the Show level to match your audience. Just hide or reorder items like alcoholic beverages if needed, making sure the menu reflects what that audience would appreciate most. You can also change the event information, pick up instructions, and even entirely enable/disable Event Hub for specific events.

To customise Event Hub at the Program, Show or Event level:

1. Either go into the Programs tab or into Shows (> Run > Event), depending on what level you want to amend Event Hub.

2. Navigate to the Settings tab.

3. Find the "Event hub" setting and click on it.

4. You can now amend the Event Hub options for this Show or Event only.

The customisation options for Event Hub at the Program, Show and Event level include:

• Change the Context start time and end time.
• Delete Contexts entirely e.g. if the selected Show doesn't have an interval.
• Add or remove Product Categories, e.g., remove the Merchandise category if the Show doesn't offer any.
• Amend the products available in Product Categories by changing the included and excluded tags.
• Amend the "Event hub event information" setting
• Amend the"Event hub pickup instructions" setting.
• Enable/Disable Event Hub entirely.

In this example, at the Show level, we are:

• Adding merchandise for this specific show into the Merchandise category using a specific product tag.
• Add kid's snack boxes for this show into the Snacks & Sweets category using a specific product tag.
• Deleting the Experiences category because we don't want to offer pre-show dining on this show.

Previewing Event Hub

From the Box Office

1. Go to an event that has Event Hub enabled and is listed online.

2. Open an order for that event.

3. If you're a Super user, you'll see a blue hyperlinked 'Event Hub' button in the order.

4. Click the Event Hub button to view the customer-facing Event Hub experience. This is what the customers get access to from the Pre-Event Alert Email. Each Event Hub is linked to the customer's event order and customer record automatically. 

5. If you want to walk through the full journey, including a transaction, just make sure you're doing it on a test order!

In the Online Checkout

1. Go to your Ticketsolve online site.

2. Add a ticket to your basket for an event with Event Hub enabled.

3. Begin the checkout process.

4. On the second step, called ‘Suggestions’, you’ll see the Event Hub experience as it appears to your customers.

Want to know more?

• How to Use Inventory Management
• Selling Event Hub items at the Box Office
• Your Customer's Event Hub Experience
• Introduction to Event Hub