Ticket Velocity

Ticket velocity is a term used to describe how fast tickets are sold. This is critical for several play strategies, so it’s important to understand and to know how to estimate it. There are several factors that influence ticket velocity. Most important is how busy the retailer is. If it’s a large gas station right off the interstate, then the ticket velocity will be very high. If it’s a small country store outside of a small town, then ticket velocity will be very low. The next most important factor is the price of the ticket. In general, low priced tickets, $1-$5, have higher sales thus higher velocity than high dollar tickets $10 and up. The last major influence on velocity is the age of the game. New games start a little slow until tickets are distributed through the system, then they increase, as they increase velocity of older games start to decline. When a game approaches end-of-life, >95% tickets sold, sales decrease since many stores have sold their inventory and begin stocking new games. The theme of some games can also influence velocity. As we get towards November, winter and Christmas themed tickets sales will be high, but when July gets here, no one will want to play them. Finally, the number of tickets available at a retailer can influence velocity. Some stores may just have a small display with 10 or 12 tickets, while other stores may have well over 50 different games open. As you review the various strategies available, you’ll begin to see how important knowing the ticket velocity is.