Getting More Supporters to Your Next Event Using Promotional Codes

If you’re on the fence about hosting your next event, you’re not alone. Many charities are creatively shifting from in-person to virtual events to keep up with fundraising changes in today’s environment and continue to engage their supporters even at a distance. Others are postponing events until it’s safe to be together physically.

No matter which direction you choose, you want your event to be successful by making it a “full house”. The good news: adding promotional codes to your sales strategy can motivate more of your supporters to buy tickets.

Promotional codes are alphanumeric codes that act as online discount coupons to motivate people to buy more. With the Promotional Codes feature in CanadaHelps’ Ticketed Events, you can enable discounts on specific tickets or all ticket types by dollar amount or percentage. Plus, drive urgency in your ticket sales by setting an expiry date or limiting the number of times a code can be used (perfect for sparking interest with early bird sales).

Ready to try it out? Take these steps to set up and manage your promotional codes within Ticketed Events available in your CanadaHelps charity account:

1. Log into your CanadaHelps charity account, then go to the Events tab.

2. Click “Edit” on the event you wish to add a promotional code for or create a new event.

3. Once you’re in the edit view of your selected event, go to the Tickets & Tax Receipts tab and scroll down to the Promotional Codes section.

4. When you click on “Add Promo Code”, it will open a pop-up window where you can start setting up the details of your new promotional code.

5. When creating a promotional code, you also have the option of setting the availability start and end date. Create your promotional code by completing the following details:
• A unique alphanumeric name for your promotional code;
• The number of times the code can be redeemed;
• The discount percentage or dollar value; and
• The ticket types the promotional code can be applied to.

6. When you’re done, click on the “Add Promo Code” button. You’ll be taken back to the list view in the Promotional Codes section, where you can manage all your existing promotional codes. You can also see summarized details for each promotional code, such as the discount value, how many are left, and the option to deactivate, edit, or delete the code.

At any time, you can delete promotional codes that haven’t been used yet. If a code has already been used, you can deactivate it to continue selling tickets at the original price and prevent discounting ticket purchases moving forward.

7. When you’re done click on “Save” at the bottom of the page and share your promotional codes so your supporters can start using them!

Follow the steps above to give your supporters an incentive to buy more tickets, and make your next event a success!

Don’t see Ticketed Events in your CanadaHelps account? Upgrade for free to get access to our full suite of online fundraising tools.

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