Blog, Calendar Marketing, Digital Marketing, News, Press Releases, Right-time Marketing 9 August 2023

Top Trends In Calendar Ep 3: Commercialisation

ECAL’s Top Trends In Calendar continues! This special 4-week series showcases the latest techniques and strategies used by the most progressive brands in calendar marketing at ECAL. This week we focus on trends in Commericalisation.

Ticketing

Ticketing is one of ECAL’s most popular use cases, and when done well, can double the normal ticket purchase rate. Very often, when an event such as a music concert is announced, a fan is excited to attend but is simply not ready to buy. Or indeed, an event may be announced, but tickets may not yet be on sale. ECAL’s solution for ticketing allows fans to easily sync single upcoming events into their personal calendar, or their favourite events by category or type (e.g.: favourite sports, teams, music events by genre, events at a venue or in a city etc.). Dynamic updates and sophisticated logic keeps fans informed of any relevant ticket on-sale dates, special ticket alerts or offers, latest event details, ticket pricing, and even ticket status, with direct access to purchase directly from the convenience of their personal calendar.

Knowing when and where to purchase event tickets can be a stressful experience, just ask any parent of a Taylor Swift fan! ECAL’s calendar marketing software allows publishers to communicate directly with an engaged audience, and present the right information, at the right time, to drive action and response.

ECAL’s ticketing solution also extends to the post-purchase journey, adding events just bought straight into the buyer’s calendar, complete with all the latest information to make the most of their event experience, with direct access to upgrades and add-ons. Equally, ECAL’s ticketing solution is used for member groups, to inform them of important ticket access or ballot windows, and to deliver member specific information around an event, such as dress regulations, access to menus, book dining, guest passes and so on.

Check out how Premier League giants Arsenal FC and Tottenham Hotspur FC use ECAL to engage and service their membership groups with Ticket On-Sale Dates and Ticket On-Sale Window events into the user calendar.

Arsenal: Ticket On-Sale Dates

There’s no bigger ticket in English Football than watching the Gunners at The Emirates. Each match at the venue is fully ticketed, with Arsenal providing certain Members with a designated window to enter a ballot to attend a Premier League, FA Cup or European Cup match. Knowing exactly when and how to enter the ballot is super important for Members wanting to see their team in action. Arsenal’s ‘Sync to Calendar’ service provides Red Members with the opportunity to receive these ticket on-sale events directly into their calendar, each with specific match information and direct access links to Arsenal’s ticketing site to enter a ballot and secure tickets.

Tottenham Hotspur: Ticket On-Sale Window

For Spurs ‘One Hotspur’ members, they need to know the exact windows for ticket purchase and ticket exchange, specific to their membership type. Depending on the level of membership, members have priority ticket access to upcoming Spurs fixtures, and receive ‘On-Sale Window’ events so they know exactly when and what tickets they can purchase. These entires are packed with the relevant fixture information, with purchase dates, price category and one-click direct access to purchase. This is a hugely valuable service for members, who often find it very difficult to keep track of these ticket access dates.

Latest Accomodation Deals

ECAL boasts a global partnership with online accommodation booking giant, Booking.com. Under the banner of ‘Stay ‘n Play’, the ECAL platform is able to deliver the latest accommodation deals for an upcoming event, for that date, near that venue, directly into the user’s calendar event. For professional sports teams, venues, festivals, community sports and ticketing clients particularly, this is a wonderful way to enhance the event experience and offering for fans, and to unlock an additional revenue stream from success accommodation bookings.

Stay n’ Play messaging is integrated into existing client events, and can be delivered as standalone entries, providing detailed accommodation information, recommended properties, pricing, property ratings and reviews, with a direct link to browse and book the best available stays… from hotels, homes, apartments and other unique places to stay.

The ‘Stay ‘n Play’ offering also includes the option for clients to host embeddable booking widgets on their website, to extend the reach and impact of the accommodation booking service to site visitors. Stay ‘n Play is a free feature for Professional level clients of ECAL, and a sure-fire way to drive the passion and participation of fans, and drive new commerce.

AFC Bournemouth: Stay ‘n Play after the whistle

AFC Bournemouth fans can take their support beyond the pitch, by booking accomodation near to the venue, and taking advantage of the very best deals, directly from their calendar. Cherries match entries include ‘Stay ‘n Play’ “after the whistle” promotional messaging, with a direct action link straight to the ‘Stay ‘n Play’ booking portal, to browse all the best accommodations deals nearby.

Ticketek: Make a night of it!

Australia’s leading ticketing provider, Ticketek, delivers a dedicated, personalised ‘Stay ‘n Play’ event entry into the calendar of a ticket buyer, two weeks prior to attending the event. Ticketek encourages fans to “make a night of it”, and provides additional support, to help enhance the overall event experience. These entries are specific to the upcoming event, and list the very best accommodation deals available at the time, for this particular event, near to the venue. Fans can easily browse the range of accommodation options available, and proceed to book online via the ‘Stay ‘n Play’ branded portal, powered by Booking.com.