Proper Research is the key to Success

One of the easiest ways to fail at this business is to not do proper research. Many people become excited to make money, buy a bunch of tickets that they expect to resell for a profit, and end up with a bunch of tickets no one wants to buy. This happens to newbies ALL THE TIME. Why? They don't do proper research!

Want an example? Jimmy Buffet tickets are a pretty safe bet; he has a pretty loyal fan base. However, he tours every year and guess what? Some venues are more popular than others EVERY SINGLE YEAR. If you do your research, you will realize that for some venues you purchase any tickets you can get, other venues you only buy tickets if they are close to the stage, and some venues you don't purchase at all. Doing this kind of research doesn't take that long, but it will definitely save you from losses and multiply your profits.

On the other hand, a band like U2 is huge and only tours once every 3-5 years. With a band like theirs, you may want to purchase any tickets you can get. With them, you can rest assured that you will AT LEAST make your money back, but much more likely will make some big profits.

So how are some ways to do some research?

1. Regularly check on sites like pollstar.com or ticketnews.com. These sites are great for tour announcements, ticket news, and more. With the kind of information they provide, you can much better figure out the demand of upcoming shows so you can make smarter purchasing decisions.

2. Keep records of how your past ticket sales have done. This obviously be extra work at the beginning with no immediate reward, but a year down the line, you will have some great information that can help you make better decisions. You will also start to notice trends, like how some cities generally pay better overall, some venues pay better overall, or certain bands have higher demand in certain cities (like if there is a concert at a band's hometown). How else would I know about the Jimmy Buffet concert trends? And its exactly that kind of information that will distinguish ticket brokers who do OK at this, and those who make really great money.

The Ebook I personally wrote after years of experience has more information like this, but in much greater detail. For more information, read about A Day in the life of a Ticket Broker.