My guest today is Solene Jimenez. She is Head of International Development for arenametrix. www.arenametrix.com This is Solene's first podcast appearance and we had a good time.  Of course, she didn't tell me it was her first podcast until we'd finished recording. I like to make the first podcast appearance fun and easy for folks.  We talked about culture especially from Solene's unique experience of being from France living abroad, working for a French company, returning to France, and now focusing a lot on North America.  She offers up some unique takes on how you have to understand different cultures to build relationships, develop a sales pipeline, and grow a business.  All of them are relevant as my business is more global and you might have a similar situation.  We discuss how Solene approaches bringing a personal touch to a tech business and a lot more.  Visit my website where I am going to be posting some upcoming workshops, happy hours, and events in: London on 2 JulyNYC in SeptemberMelbourne and Sydney in November If you are this far and you haven't signed up for 'Talking Tickets' what's going on with that? You can get that newsletter here: https://talkingtickets.substack.com Yesterday, I had a guest post from Bryan Ralston on group sales and I want to know what else you would find valuable.  You can let me know by sending me an email at dave@davewakeman.com

I have a good conversation for you today with Alasdair Crawley from FanBase.  We had a great time talking about sports business including: Why sports business is at a crossroads.The challenge of getting the basics right. Data v. researchBalancing the short term and long term in fanbase building. The power of experience... And, much more.  I'm going to be on tour this year... On sales will be available on my website in a few days, but you are a listener of the podcast so I want to let you know first.  I've rebuilt 'Fans for Life' for 2024 and it is better than ever.  I'll be hosting two sessions: Wednesday, September 4, 2024 in NYC. Tuesday, 19 November 2024 in Melbourne.  Obviously, these sessions coincide with the 2024 Pearl Jam world tour...but if they didn't, what would I even be doing?  I'll get the full details up in the next few days, but we are going to cover things like: Developing insights and understanding of the market using free and publicly available data. How to balance pricing, brand, and sales to achieve the maximum impact of your fan building efforts. Establishing your brand so that your fans have an identity to latch onto. The fan lifecycle and how to understand that so you can maintain a relationship with your fans, even in down times.  And, more... Send me a note with the city you are interested in and I'll do a pre-sale for 'The Business of Fun' listeners... Dave@DaveWakeman.com  I'll also be in London from 28 June to 8 July... A mix of business and pleasure with the Pearl Jam concert at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, The National at Crystal Palace Park, and, hopefully, Wimbledon.  But I also want to set up a time for us to get together and have a pint or a drink. Let's tentatively schedule it for 2 July, Tuesday.  Thank you for being here and listening.  I want your voice to be a bigger part of the podcast going forward. So send me your questions, ideas, guest suggestions, and other feedback...on social media, in the Slack Channel, or via email.  Get 'Talking Tickets' if you don't already at: http://TalkingTickets.Substack.com

I haven't always been a champion sleeper.  Like a lot of my friends, I haven't always had a regular bedtime due to work, school, social life, whatever.  In college, at the University of Alabama, I couldn't be torn from the things going on in my dorm. I was so excited to see everything...I didn't want to miss a thing.  Later on, I was working 3 or more jobs to pay for school including working nights at several nightclubs.  During those years, I'd catch sleep whenever I could.  Including underneath the desk in the recreation center or the tennis courts that I worked at.  To say that my sleep schedule was screwed up would be doing a disservice to the term "screwed up".  Eventually, I got my sleep in order.  I'm often in bed right at 11PM and I'm out of bed sometime around 645AM.  You'll learn that this fits right into the natural sleep rhythm our bodies have.  Dr. John teaches us about things we can do to sleep better.  He also covers where we might be having problems sleeping.  And, he goes over his SLEEP NOW formula. --- You can follow Dr. John: TwitterLinkedInInstagram Visit Dr. Sleep Fix: 'Nobody's Sleeping' Dr. John's new book.The Sleep AssessmentGet Dr. John's newsletter and be the first to know when his sleep course drops!  --- Keep up with me at my website: www.DaveWakeman.com  You can find all of my stuff like newsletters and more at my Linktree.  Do me a favor and rate this episode on your favorite podcast platform. Share it with your friends and colleagues as well. Okay, that's two favors!  --- I want to get your voice into the podcast this year: so send me your questions about strategy especially around overcoming complacency in your business... Or, if you have a guest suggestion, let me know what you want to learn more about and from whom by sending me an email at Dave@DaveWakeman.com  -- Thanks for being here today!  I appreciate you!

Today's episode is personal because it is about the proposed arena in Northern VA.  My guest is Brian Hess from I Street Advisors. Like me, Brian lives in the area.  We discuss the arena at length: The nature of the market and where attendance comes from. Public subsidies.The 50/50 bet at the heart of the deal. Whether or not the District's offer to Monumental makes sense. Traffic. More!  Do me a favor, I want you to be a bigger part of the podcast this year:  Send me your questions on revenue, strategy, and audience building to dave@davewakeman.comVisit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com and sign up for my newsletters so you won't miss out on my upcoming visits to London, NYC, Seattle, Sydney, and Melbourne.  You love the podcast! Share that love by leaving a rating, review, and sharing this episode with your colleagues... Join the 'Talking Tickets' Slack Channel and say hello to me and over 325 ticket folks from around the world.

Jeffrey Shaw, author of The Self-Employed Life, teaches me some great lessons about positioning, strategy, marketing, branding, and sales.  Listen and find out how selling eggs explains all of this.  I'm hosting a FREE strategy webinar on 31 January 2024 at 11 AM Eastern called 'Beyond Boom and Bust'. Join the 'Talking Tickets' Slack Channel.  Send me your questions about driving attendance in 2024. I'm going to use a few in an upcoming episode of 'The Business of Fun'. We want to get you into the podcast a lot more this year.  I'm planning a new sponsored event right now, a FREE day in Chicago that will be invite only...I'm working out the details now, but if you are interested in learning more and hearing about the application process when the time comes, send me an email at dave@davewakeman.com

This is a me episode with a recording of my 'First Wednesday with Dave' session from December where we talk about planning for 2024.  I'm hosting a FREE strategy webinar on 31 January 2024 at 11 AM Eastern called 'Beyond Boom and Bust'. Join the 'Talking Tickets' Slack Channel.  Send me your questions about driving attendance in 2024. I'm going to use a few in an upcoming episode of 'The Business of Fun'. We want to get you into the podcast a lot more this year.  I'm planning a new sponsored event right now, a FREE day in Chicago that will be invite only...I'm working out the details now, but if you are interested in learning more and hearing about the application process when the time comes, send me an email at dave@davewakeman.com

"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 botsBlockchain and the claim it will eliminate the secondary marketCreativity and why the secondary market will always find a way to get ticketsDistribution 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.

My guest today, Caspian Turner, helps me answer that question and shows us how you can take some easy steps to solve the problem for yourself.  I want you to be more a part of 'The Business of Fun'.  What does that mean?  Send me your questions about strategy: Is there an issue you are constantly struggling with?Is there something going on in your business that you don't think people are paying enough attention to? Do you feel like your organization is in danger of failing because everyone is always running around putting out fires with no focus? Send me those questions. You can email me: Dave@DaveWakeman.com You can DM on LinkedIn or Twitter. You can send me a letter, my address is on my website.  You can even send me smoke signals or carrier pigeons.  Just get me your questions.  I'll take the best ones I use them in future episodes of the podcast.  You can also see my handy, dandy list of new ways to work with me right here. I've gone all the way by allowing Apple Pay!  If you know someone that is asking questions about strategy, share 'The Business of Value' with them.  If you have a friend in sportsbiz, theatre, or other live entertainment...share this podcast episode with them, obviously, but you can also share 'Talking Tickets' with them. I offer some good ideas.  Join in the fun in the 'Talking Tickets' Slack Channel. Because I'm sucking on my own exhaust here, I've set up a strategy Slack as well. I want you to always be able to find me and with all of the changes to the algorithms and such. There's no better way to do that than by setting up our own community.

I've got the TiqAssist guys on today.  Chris Babu and Jamie Zimmerman.  www.tiqassist.com  We got into a bunch of stuff like: How feeling pain as STHs led them to start TiqAssist.Jumping careers to get into sports. The "strain" of resale for season ticket holders.The cash offer that TiqAssist makes to help make people have a bit more "peace of mind" Let me know what you think: Dave@DaveWakeman.com  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com Talking Tickets: https://talkingtickets.substack.com Business of Value: https://businessofvalue.substack.com  Sign up for the 20 April FREE webinar: "Filling Your Seats NOW!"

My guest today is Drew McManus from UpStage CRM: www.upstagecrm.io  We had a great time catching up in Seattle at INTIX and now we've gone and done a podcast!  We hit on a lot of topics like what led Drew to start UpStage.  I put Drew on the spot and make him define "one size fits none". We discuss where he gets his ideas from.  Why focusing on the minimum amount of functionality is magic.  And, a lot more.  Hook up with my friends at Cover Genius in Birmingham for the Ticketing Professionals Conference.  www.CoverGenius.com I've been paying special attention to the CFAR (Cancel For Any Reason) product because the data becomes more compelling everyday.  Guests want peace of mind in their purchases and are willing to pay for it. We've seen that really clearly at the Playhouse Theatre in Ohio where 48% of guests have taken up refund protection as the weather can be challening in the winter.  The idea applies to health, economic issues, and THE WEATHER!  So talk to Joe, Hayley, Chris, and the team.  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com  You can go to my shop and get a "Pick My Brain" session.  Keep an eye out for workshops in NYC, London, Sydney, and more!  Get 'Talking Tickets' for my weekly ticketing thoughts: https://talkingtickets.substack.com Get 'The Business of Value' and learn strategy, branding, and marketing: https://businessofvalue.substack.com  Rate the pod! Review the pod! Share the pod!  SUBSCRIBE!!!!

I have Mark Herschberg back today to talk about his new app, Brain Bump.  This is a really cool tool that lets you bring learning with you wherever you are. I've been taking part in the launch and it enables me to provide bite sized nuggets and insights to you so that you can access the ideas that you want to use when you need them.  Check out my friends at Cover Genius: www.covergenius.com Pay special attention to the CFAR (Cancel For Any Reason) product. As we get more data, we are finding that peace of mind is an even bigger factor in people's purchase decisions than it has been at any point since we've started measuring the number.  At the Playhouse Theatre in Ohio, we've seen 48% of ticket buyers take up refund protection.  This is stuff to pay attention to.  Hook up with Joe, Hayley, Chris and the Cover Genius team in Birmingham at the Ticketing Professionals Conference.  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com. You can find some new stuff in the shop including a situational consulting offer that is an hour to pick my brain.  Also, I'll be dropping new workshops in places like London, NYC, Melbourne, and Sydney. I'm on the road, y'all.  Get my newsletters:  Talking Tickets: https://talkingtickets.substack.com The Business of Value: https://businessofvalue.substack.com  Please rate, review, and share the podcast!

I'm talking with Paul Bailey from Halo in Bristol, UK today.  We are discussing brand and this is a great one because we set out to hit on a few really important topics: ResearchBrand PurposeTop of Funnel Activity Paul was kind enough to come on to be the first guest to talk about brand exclusively so that I would have some conversations that I directed to include as resources for my upcoming applied brand management class for executive MBAs.  We hit on the 95/5 rule that comes out of LinkedIn's research. The Long and Short of It. The challenge of last click attribution. Brand as a tool to generate future demand...and a lot more.  Check out my friends at Cover Genius: www.CoverGenius.com  The CFAR product is very helpful to folks now because peace of mind is showing up in purchase habits around the world meaning uncertainty is showing up as a driver for customers holding off from buying their tickets/trips/entertainment.  https://covergenius.com/any-reason/ Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com. I have some upcoming workshops that will be dropping for NYC, London, Melbourne, and Sydney.  Plus, I'm looking at Singapore, but I haven't been able to lock those dates down just yet.  Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at https://talkingtickets.substack.com and 'The Business of Value' at https://businessofvalue.substack.com  Rate! Review! Share!  These things help me out!

My final conversation from the floor of INTIX at the Booking Protect booth.  This time I catch up with friend of the podcast, Christy Grantham.  We talk about why she goes to INTIX.  Christy talks about how INTIX helps her learn about new tech, new ideas, and avoid burnout.  One of the important things Christy learned was around the shift from "no refunds, no exchanges".  She also highlights the importance of meeting the customer where they are. Giving people more options gives you a higher NPS number... We also hit on how Christy could do customer tags right away in her hotel room...we will have to check in later to see if she followed through.  Give this one a listen and let me know what you think.  Check out my friends at Cover Genius. Building on this conversation, check out 'Cancel For Any Reason' the ultimate in peace of mind. Visit their website at www.covergenius.com  Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at https://talkingtickets.substack.com  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com Share the podcast. Rate it! Review it!

Here's another conversation live from the Cover Genius booth at INTIX 2023 in Seattle with Casey Thomas of AudienceView.  We talk about what Casey likes about INTIX. We hit on things she's learned. And, why we are snazzy dressers.  Check out AudienceView at www.audienceview.com  Hook up with my friends at Cover Genius and find out how they've helped folks like AudienceView and the Playhouse Theatre deliver a better customer journey. And, you can find out why 48% of people taking up refund protection is such an incredible number.  Make sure you connect with them at the Ticketing Professionals Conference in Birmingham in March.  Visit me at www.DaveWakeman.com I'm doing a workshop in NYC on April 11 on marketing and strategy in challenging times. Sign up for the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter so you don't miss the chance to sign up. You can get the newsletter at https://talkigtickets.substack.com

I did some quick podcast conversations at INTIX that I loosely called, "8 minutes at INTIX" from the Cover Genius booth.  This first one is with Angela Higgins. Along with Jo Michel, Angela does the Ticketing Professionals Conference of Australia.  The conference is in October this year. Check out my friends at Cover Genius: www.CoverGenius.com We did a really interesting panel at INTIX with Jo-Ann from AudienceView, Kelley from Playhouse Theatre, and Joe from Cover Genius that focused on how much embedded protection helps accelerate the customer journey.  Along the way, we uncovered that 48% of people are buying refund protection in at Playhouse right now. That's a number that points out that people want peace of mind and they are willing to pay for it.  We also found out that 61% of people are buying strictly for the content and that pricing is a secondary or non-factor in the buying journey.  And, we uncovered that people feel better about the entire process when they are offered refund protection and this shows up with big jumps in NPS score.  Find out more at www.CoverGenius.com  Get my newsletter, 'Talking Tickets' at https://talkingtickets.substack.com  Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com  I'll be traveling this year with upcoming dates for workshops in DC, NYC, London, and Sydney. Find out more in this week's Talking Tickets newsletter.

REPOST WITH REPAIRED FILE Totally new idea this week.  Chris Furnell offered up the idea of a conversation centered entirely on the process of change and making change stick in our organizations.  I jumped at the chance because I've been talking with y'all about change for years.  So we dug in deep on change.  We cover things like: Dealing with constant change. Leaders wanting to shorten the distance between ideas and results. Why you can't "tell" someone into changing. Why it is that old patterns die hard...And, a lot more. I'll be in Seattle from 23-26 January at INTIX. You'll see me at the Cover Genius booth on Wednesday and Thursday recording some live podcasts under the banner: "8 minutes at INTIX".  I'll also be leading a panel on Thursday at the Inspiration Stage at 10:45 AM called "Enhancing the Customer Journey with Embedded Protection". This panel will include Joe from Cover Genius, Jo-Ann from AudienceView, and a special guest! You'll learn about new data that helps understand people's purchase decision. We will also share data around people's perception of the event, pre and post purchase...and more.  Send me an email: Dave@DaveWakeman.com and I will make sure you don't miss us.  Take my pricing survey: https://forms.gle/Dc5FVHB93A9GGx9p9  Lots of interesting data about where folks are struggling with price, who makes the decision, and why the decision is being made poorly.  I'll be sharing that in the weeks ahead.  Get the 'Talking Tickets' newsletter at https://talkingtickets.substack.com Visit my website at www.DaveWakeman.com  Share! Review! Subscribe to the newsletter and the podcast!  Love y'all for being here.

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 personA futurist This opens up the door to a really new type of conversation for listeners.  We discuss things like: Adding valueLack of innovation in the economyWhy large companies can have similar challengesCruise 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