Dave Wakeman's The Business of Fun Podcast

Brando Rich stops by today and we talk about Phish! Cash or Trade started as a passion project founded on a desire to re-create the community of picking up a ticket to a show you don't have a ticket for.  At the heart of Cash or Trade is a fan to fan ethos.  Today, we discuss a bunch of stuff: Building a community online. Innovation The importance of getting fans into seats so that the seat isn't empty "Slow Ticketing" Possible reforms And, more... Check out Cash or Trade at www.cashortrade.org Visit my site at www.DaveWakeman.com Get 'Talking Tickets' at https://talkingtickets.substack.com Join our Slack Channel.

Eric Rubio checks in from DC!  We could have have, should have, done this in person... Eric is in non-profit theatre finance and wanted to come on to talk about some of the misconceptions folks have with the idea of being a non-profit.  We talked about some really good stuff on this one: Customer Orientation!  Market research The lens that finance looks at programming through Sustainability Scarcity mindset And, a lot more... Check out my site at www.DaveWakeman.com Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at https://talkingtickets.substack.com Join our Slack Channel! 

My guest today is Jessica Poole.  She's a long time friend of the podcast, the newsletter, and me! So I wanted to have her on to talk about the work she is doing with the Jessica Poole Communications Collective.  https://thepoolecollective.com We got into it: We talked about the state of NIL Jessica tells me that NIL and revenue can co-exist.  She says that student athletes have to think about their personal brands even if they don't think they will play after college.  We discussed the idea of "The Pivot" And, much more! Fill out the Talking Tickets 2025 global survey!  Over 10% of folks still price based on putting their finger in the air.  Ha! There's a lot more to learn from the survey. So help me do that by sharing your insights.  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter: https://talkingtickets.substack.com   

Richard Howle returns!  Richard has started a new business called RH Insights.  He has trained an AI to think and speak about tickets just like him.  Amazing!  We had a great conversation about all kinds of things.  A few highlights: Richard tells me about a 15,000 word stream of consciousness chat he had with his GPT.  We talk about being customer focused and how that's been a theme of all of our conversations.  Richard tells me how his early career set the stage for everything he has done.  We discuss surprises when you reflect on your career experiences.  Richard talks about the insight areas, 20, including yield management, pricing pressure, sales velocity, house composition, and more.  Check out Richard's site at www.rhinsights.co.uk  I'm offering up new value in the 'Talking Tickets' Slack Channel including new ideas, updates, and opportunities to connect.  Check us out Don't miss anything I'm working on by visiting my site at www.DaveWakeman.com Start 2026 off on the right foot with The Fans For Life Fan Base Audit with me!  Check out the companion newsletter, Talking Tickets!   

"What do scalpers really like to see when a ticket goes on-sale?" That question popped up in my inbox about a week ago. It got me thinking about the questions that people ask me when they want to know how to "stop" the secondary market or whether or not to work with the secondary market.  So, I had Martin Haigh from Total Tickets come on to discuss this topic since he's just put together a special report on the secondary market.  Martin and I try to come at this topic from a neutral point of view, but Martin's thinking on the subject has changed over the years to be more pro-secondary and I mention that my thinking on the secondary market has changed because I was involved in the secondary market at a different time and different space.  In today's episode we cover ideas like: Good bots v. Bad bots Blockchain and the claim it will eliminate the secondary market Creativity and why the secondary market will always find a way to get tickets Distribution and how the secondary market can be a powerful tool in your distribution plan. Why you may not want to eliminate all resale, even if you can.  You can get the information on Martin's report here!  Get 'Talking Tickets' my ticket newsletter.  Visit my website: www.DaveWakeman.com  Don't miss 'First Wednesdays with Dave' on January 3rd, 2024 at 1 PM Eastern. We will be talking about getting 2024 off to a fast start.  I want to include your voice in the podcast. So send me a note and tell me what challenges you are dealing with.  Is there a specific topic you want to learn more about? Do you have a guest you'd like to hear me talk with?  Let me know. 

I'm my own guest today with an audio version of my "2023 Numbers to Know" webinar.  This is something I started during the lockdown year of 2020 and I'm back with a lot of intersting stuff like: What the 60% projected drop in GDP means for Australia. And, how this will help you look at numbers.  1 and what Return to Work policies have really looked like.  63% of Americans want to take a vacation in the next 6 months. What does that really mean? Are there more gamers under 18 or over 45? Or, is the in-between the big area?  This is one of my most popular presentations.  Give it a listen.  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com Check out the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter: https://talkingtickets.substack.com 'The Business of Value': https://businessofvalue.substack.com Check out my friends at Booking Protect, a Cover Genius company: www.BookingProtect.com  We will be at INTIX in Seattle. So be there! 

My guest today is Bruce McTague.  Bruce is a first in two ways for the podcast: A think tank person A futurist This opens up the door to a really new type of conversation for listeners.  We discuss things like: Adding value Lack of innovation in the economy Why large companies can have similar challenges Cruise lines and "butts in berths" "us v. them" narratives And, a whole lot more.  Get my weekly newsletters: https://talkingtickets.substack.com  https://businessofvalue.substack.com Visit my website at www.davewakeman.com  Email me: Dave@DaveWakeman.com  If you dig the podcast, share it.  Or, rate it and review it on your favorite podcast location.  I thank you!  Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! 

My guest today is Dave Harland...the Wordman himself. Get his excellent newsletter: The Word!  This is an excellent conversation about things like: Dave's Uncle Tony, Gary V, and Simon Sinek and what all three of them have in common.  Why being a trained journalist helps Dave be a better copywriter. How to not take yourself seriously as a marketer. What a perfect email might look like... And, more.  Check out my website at www.DaveWakeman.com Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter for FREE each Friday: https://talkingtickets.substack.com Send me a note at Dave@DaveWakeman.com Check out my friends at Booking Protect: www.BookingProtect.com Now, a Cover Genius company. Booking Protect will be at INTIX in Seattle, January 23-26.  The Booking Protect team has more insights to share, more data to help understand customer behavior, and the same great service that will help you offer the best experience to your guests.  Find the podcast valuable: Share it with your colleagues or friends. Rate it. Review it. Subscribe to it.   

My guest today is Eduardo Lebre from Circular Unity. www.circularunity.com We discuss sustainability in the live entertainment business.  Eduardo teaches us about things like: Why Coldplay's touring habits are so important to a sustainable touring business.  How likely ticket buyers are to pay for more sustainable events.  Why you need to consider things like travel in the environmental impact of your event.  Check out my website: www.DaveWakeman.com Join me for my annual Numbers to Know webinar to help sell more tickets in 2023: 13 December 2022 at 11 AM Eastern.  Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter each Friday: https://talkingtickets.substack.com Check out my friends at Booking Protect: www.BookingProtect.com Now a Cover Genius company, meet the team at INTIX in Seattle. The Booking Protect team has been developing new insights into customer behavior, buying habits, and more that will help you better serve your guests and offer your organization more opportunities.  There is also a rumor of a juice bar in Seattle. But you have to be there to find out.  Let me know what you are up to by sending me a note at dave@davewakeman.com   

A little different episode today, but Sheryl Lynn from Joyley comes on and teaches me a mindfulness technique that might be useful to y'all during the holiday season.  Her take on mindfulness is called "The Chair of Joy".  We discuss mental health, mindfulness, negativity, and getting your mind right.  Check out my friends at Booking Protect at INTIX in Seattle in January. Booking Protect is now a Cover Genius company. Since the lockdowns have finished we've seen incredible growth in the number of people taking up refund protection. Give them a look at www.bookingprotect.com Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at https://talkingtickets.substack.com it is my ode to marketing and selling live events. You can also get my weekly strategy note at https://businessofvalue.substack.com Visit my website at www.davewakeman.com  Sign up for my webinar on the numbers you need to know to help sell more tickets in 2023: Numbers You Need to Know

My buddy, Simon Severino, is back!  We wanted to discuss planning for 2023. We also talk about his new book, Strategy Sprints. Simon gives away some valuable resources...and more.  Visit my website: www.davewakeman.com Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at http://talkingtickets.substack.com New stuff for 2023 on the way.  Visit my friends at Booking Protect. www.bookingprotect.com They had a great time connecting with people at the Ticketing Professionals Conference last week. Now they are preparing to go to INTIX in Seattle in January.   

My guest today is Simon Weber, Co-Founder of Vivenu!  We had a great talk. It was really nice to get to know Simon.  We covered: The importance of controlling your brand.  Data. The power of market research.  I pushed back on Simon's talk of Vivenu being "product oriented" because the amount of research they did into developing the product says that they are market focused.  www.vivenu.com Check out my friends at Booking Protect. Hayley and Joe will be at the Ticketing Professionals Conference in Parramatta on 1-2 November. Give them a quick hello and check out what they are up to.  www.bookingprotect.com I'm running my annual NPS survey to help me create the next year's newsletter and podcast. 4 questions and it helps a lot. The 4th question: drop any guests you might like to hear from in the box. Thanks for checking this out.  https://forms.gle/pCG1ZCY8gHaPWwjG8 https://talkingtickets.substack.com 

My guest today is the 800 pound guerilla, Bill Guertin!  I should have asked why it isn't the thousand pound gorilla!? Save that one for the second conversation!  I'm surprised that I haven't had Bill on before this, but the conversation we had is worth the wait.  We discuss the costs of bad sales hires. We talk about how successful the ISBI has been developing sales leaders.  We cover a lot of territory on sales training, market research, and leadership.  This is a top notch episode.  Check out the ISBI at www.isbi360.com Visit me at www.davewakeman.com Talking Tickets: http://talkingtickets.substack.com Hook up with me on the socials:  Twitter: https://twitter.com/dave_wakeman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dwakeman/  

My guest today is Scott Goodacre.  Scott runs a website www.theonlinerule.com that focuses on marekting football clubs.  We had a great chat about brands, marketing, and football.  We cover why red should be everywhere when Man U does anything. Why the Spurs cockerel matters and a lot more.  Check out my 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at http://talkingtickets.substack.com  Visit my site at www.davewakeman.com Connect with me on social media:  Twitter: https://twitter.com/dave_wakeman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dwakeman/ Rate, Review, and Share the podcast! It helps! 

My guest today is Aren Murray from Tix Ticketing.  We chat about new technologies, the pandemic, and being customer focused.  Aren shares her experiences with INTIX. We discuss what matters about a cloud based ticketing solution. Aren gives me some examples of how ticketing can be fun and intuitive for the folks that work in box offices and a lot more.  Check out my friends at Booking Protect. www.bookingprotect.com Visit my website: www.davewakeman.com Fill in that pop-up and get my newsletters. Or, go to http://talkingtickets.substack.com or http://businessofvalue.substack.com  

My guest today is Matt Zarracina from True Tickets.  We talk about the Spurs, obviously. We also hit on True Tickets' announcement of their new offering around "Rules Based Ticketing".  Matt shares with us his ideas about NFTs and Blockchain in ticketing and offers up a slightly different take than we typically hear when discussing this topic.  We discuss brand impact, the secondary market, relationship building, the volume of tickets moved through the True Tickets platform, and a lot more.  Check out True Tickets at www.true-tickets.com Get my weekly ticket newsletter at http://talkingtickets.substack.com and visit my website at www.davewakeman.com If you dig the podcast, let me know who you'd like to hear from by sending me an email at dave@davewakeman.com     

Today, my guest is Martin Gammeltoft from Activity Stream.  We talk about Activity Stream's buying spree and mergers. We talk about technology, marketing, and a lot more.  Visit my friends at Booking Protect and find out why refund protection is a valuable tool as businesses in entertainment continue to recover. www.bookingprotect.com Check out my weekly ticket newsletter at http://talkingtickets.substack.com   

My guest today is Brett Goldberg, Co-CEO of TickPick.  On today's episode we find out the origin of TickPick's name. We also cover how he managed his business during the pandemic and why being lean helped them react effectively.  We get into all-in pricing. We cover market fragmentation, market power, and how to win business.  We also hit on NFTs, Blockchain, and spec selling.  Check out my website and get 'Talking Tickets' my weekly newsletter at www.davewakeman.com  Partner with my friends at Booking Protect to generate new revenue, protect your brand, improve your customer service and experience, and more. Visit them at www.bookingprotect.com   

My guest today is Amanda Lester. Amanda is a former performer and is now a marketer.  This is a really great conversation around marketing research. We cover how to use market research to uncover actionable insights. We talk about pricing research. And, we cover the ideas that drive audience development.  Visit my website: www.davewakeman.com Check out my friends at Booking Protect to help you offer your customers refund protection. Since we've seen ticket sales re-open, we have seen uptake on refund protection increase, telling us guests want the option of security for their purchases.  More importantly, having a refund protection partner can help protect your brand and improve your customer service.  Check them out at www.bookingprotect.com

This was a great conversation with Paul Williamson from Two Circles.  Paul mentioned to me recently that every project he works on has the feel of a startup and we explore that idea.  Along the way, Paul teaches us how to think through complex projects. He talks about market research, using pricing to create opportunities, and how to balance attendance and revenue.  Check out my newsletter at http://talkingtickets.substack.com  Look at the work being done by Booking Protect. Refund protection has become a more important part of the customer journey since lockdowns from the pandemic have eased or been removed. We've seen people take up refund protection at up to twice the rate they were taking it up at before the pandemic.  www.bookingprotect.com Visit my website and find out everything I'm up to on the 2022 world tour: www.davewakeman.com