“The Wagner Noël Performing Arts Center is so young, not even hitting four years old. For this reason it was important that our website be clear in its branding and easy for patrons to purchase tickets. Rockhouse made that a reality through an uncomplicated process that included constant communication, hands on testing and training prior to its launch. In the end giving us a great product.”

– Stephanie Rivas, Senior Marketing Manager

From SEO to sales conversions, we know that building a successful website is no easy feat. For Rockhouse Partners, building clients successful websites that allow them to sell more tickets and build brand awareness is an something they do every day.

Building a website or considering an update? Check out these top 5 things to keep in mind when building your site, featuring our client Wagner Noël.

1. Optimize Search Results

Although keywords are still important, optimizing search results has become much more, especially for venues, festivals, and ticketing companies.

Since Schema.org was announced in 2011, Etix and Rockhouse Partners have been working with Google to increase event ticket sales through improved search results. On average, Rockhouse Partners venues websites have seen a 25% lift in organic Google search traffic.

In addition, components of your search results are now featured on the Google Knowledge Graph which can be used to your advantage. An example of this would be your upcoming events displayed directly on the search results page, increasing ticket visibility and reducing the number of clicks required for a customer to purchase tickets.

Lastly, make sure to get those sitelinks in order. According to Google, sitelinks “are meant to help users navigate your site … to save users time and allow them to quickly find the information they are looking for.” Sitelinks are automated, and Google doesn’t display them for all sites, but yours can be improved by:

• Having a unique brand name
• Creating a clear site structure.
• Using a sitemap.xml.
• Having internal text links.
• Developing solid and accurate page titles.

With the improvements in Wagner Noël’s new website (including the Google Knowledge Graph, Schema.org, and improved sitelinks), organic Google search now accounts for 65% of their site traffic.

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2. Be Mobile-Friendly

In 2014, 25% of all ticket purchases on Etix.com were made on a mobile device. Therefore, it is critical to evaluate your own mobile experience. Put yourself in the ticket buyer’s shoes and ask yourself: how do I feel when I visit a site that isn’t optimized for mobile? Frustrated and annoyed are likely at the top of your list.

If your site doesn’t look good on mobile, you are losing sales. It’s that simple. But, if your site is optimized for a smaller screen you could start to see it pay off. Wagner Noël saw their mobile traffic grow to 60% of all site views, well over the average for performing arts centers. Thanks to their newly responsive site, fans are happy and sales are converting.

3. Incorporate Clear Calls-to-Action

We have all experienced the power of a button just begging to be clicked. When designing your site, make sure your CTAs are creating this effect–ensure they are properly sized, have clear messaging, are well-placed and use a contrasting color so that they stand out.

Next, make sure they are featured throughout the site. Can you identify your site’s top 10 pages? If not, it’s time to make Google Analytics your new best friend. These pages account for a large percentage of your site traffic, so each one should be optimized for ticket sales.

4. Use a Design that Creates an Optimal User Experience and Captures Data

Highly successful websites seamlessly integrate user and business goals. So what defines these goals?

User: buy tickets, view upcoming shows, and find important information.

Business: sell tickets, capture prospects, and increase sponsor value.

Notice that these two goals are very similar. If you help your users meet their goals, then your goals will be met as well. It’s quite simple. Here are a few ways to reach these goals:

• Optimize navigation, focusing on the top ten pages. Wagner Noël found that their top ten pages accounted for 75% of all pageviews.
• Feature key upcoming shows on a homepage slider.
• Use a sidebar to include upcoming events across the site.
• Add additional email signup opportunities throughout the site.

Thanks to an improved site and purchase process, an incredible 15% of Wagner Noël’s overall ticket sales can be tracked back to their website.

5. Maintain Brand Consistency Throughout the Purchase Process

When completing an online purchase of any type, we rely on the website we are using to be secure. Imagine how you would feel if during the majority of your shopping experience you saw pages that all had the same formatting, and then the ‘checkout’ page looked completely different? You probably wouldn’t feel very confident in the purchase and are likely to back out.

To avoid this, it is important to keep all of your pages consistent. Almost all ticketing is done through your ticketing provider’s site, not yours, but Etix ensures that you maintain consistency throughout the entire process by creating custom co-brands that make the Etix site look like your site. This increases fan confidence and strengthens your brand.

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