Saffire Blog

Welcome Bremer County Fair

The Bremer County Fair has joined the Saffire family, and we are so excited to announce we’ve made our way into a new state! As Saffire grows and more and more folks hear about the ease-of-use and online marketing benefits of working with us, we find ourselves venturing into new frontiers and we couldn’t be happier to have expanded into the great state of Iowa. We met the team of Bremer County Fair at the IAFE (International Association of Fairs & Expos) Convention in Las Vegas this past December, and it didn’t take long for them to make the decision that was oh-so Saffire smart!

Welcome Celebrate Napa Valley – Arts in April

We’ve got another 2-for-1 here! Our client, the Napa County Fair, is taking on a new online marketing effort by promoting Napa Valley year-round, particularly this spring with a new site for “Arts in April!” In Calistoga, CA they’ll continue the area’s month-long celebration with a true Napa cultural experience of food, wine and art … Continue reading “Welcome Celebrate Napa Valley – Arts in April”

We’ve got another 2-for-1 here! Our client, the Napa County Fair, is taking on a new online marketing effort by promoting Napa Valley year-round, particularly this spring with a new site for “Arts in April!” In Calistoga, CA they’ll continue the area’s month-long celebration with a true Napa cultural experience of food, wine and art in the last weekend of April. Celebrate Napa Valley will promote tourism and culture in one of the country’s prettiest landscapes, and we hope the addition of a new Saffire website brings much success to our loyal client!

Welcome Fayetteville Dogwood Festival

We are thrilled to begin working with the Fayetteville Dogwood Festival of North Carolina! We met the folks from this three-day event in April at the IFEA (International Festivals & Events Association) convention back in September, and were really impressed with how well they’ve branded their event! This premiere spring festival sets the standard for all of the community’s events that happen in the summer and fall because the Dogwood Festival sets a class-act precedent for the area. Additionally, this event keeps it’s presence year-round with an “After 5” summer concert series and “Historic Hauntings” in October where patrons can experience a haunted hayride and walking tour!

Increase Revenue with Online Ticket Sales & Registrations

We all know that we should be selling online, and if we already are, we know it could be better. We’ve come up with the 3 key places you need to post your tickets and registration forms on your website to increase incremental and advanced revenue. Let’s kick off this discussion with the #1 most important place to … Continue reading “Increase Revenue with Online Ticket Sales & Registrations”

We all know that we should be selling online, and if we already are, we know it could be better. We’ve come up with the 3 key places you need to post your tickets and registration forms on your website to increase incremental and advanced revenue.

Let’s kick off this discussion with the #1 most important place to let people know you have something for sale-your HOMEPAGE:

A BUY NOW button on your homepage is the #1 way to get those hot leads to add a ticket to their shopping cart when they first land on your website! Don’t let a customer who is your strongest lead in the sales cycle get lost because they can’t purchase the first thing they like. For example, you can hover over any of the Delaware State Fair’s off season “Get It Now!” items to “Buy Now!”

A Ticket Mall on your website is another great way to capture those strong leads that know they’re ready to purchase and attend but aren’t quite sure what event or date they want to buy just yet. A call-to-action link or icon on your homepage to access every item available for sale online is the best way to capture someone who brought their pocket book to your virtual front door. For example, Greeley Stampede has 1 rollover but 2 call-to-action links to get customers to click to their ticket gateway!

An image on your homepage that links to a more detailed page of the item you’re selling. (Saffire Tip: Putting plenty of clickable features on your homepage will allow your customer to get more comfortable with your site. Getting them to click anything once increases their likelihood of purchasing!) If your customer is set on attending a specific event, or wants to purchase a specific piece of merchandise that they see on your homepage, then let them get the details by clicking that image.

An interactive EVENT SCHEDULE is the next best place to make your items for sale, because one of the top reasons customers come to your website is actually to find out “what’s going on, when is it going on, and how can I be a part of it?”

A place on your schedule where every event has a BUY NOW button is a great way to secure your customers cash early. Don’t let them get lost in your list of events happening, or space available for rent. Instead, make it easy for them to be confident in the purchase they’re making. Black Hills Stock Show has really put their best foot forward as far as their events schedule goes, and it’s easy for their customers to get what they want from an expanded view of events

Have too much going on? Have a ROLLOVER on events with items for sale. If your customer is interested in the name of an event or item, they’ll get more information as well as the chance to purchase right from your schedule.

Finally, does your customer still have access to that all encompassing Ticket Mall? Don’t allow them to get lost in the midst of the many events on your schedule, if they’re a medium lead we still want them to have access to a page on your website or a page with every item available on your ticket provider’s website.

#3 would be EVENT DETAILS or REGISTRATION PAGE. We have a lot of ideas of how to “close the sale” when even your weakest of leads (with the lowest tendency to purchase) gets to the last page where they can make a purchase.

Keep the event-specific page clean. You want the content or text of that page to be short and to the point. A brief bio of your performer or the type of tour that you have will keep your customer interested without overwhelming them with too much reading.
Be sure that every type of ticket (or registration) you have for sale is available on this details page.
Use imagery and photography to make the page appealing. Action shots, people looking into the camera, or images of iconic symbols from your event will help your customer maintain their confidence as they go through the purchasing cycle on your website.

Final thoughts:

Whether you’re selling tickets, memberships or registrations directly from your website, or you are using a ticketing or merchant services provider, we believe making a “BUY NOW” button available to your customer is a call to action for purchase! Using the right verbiage can give you a better shot of capturing revenue in advance.
If your customer has to leave your website to complete their purchase, be sure your branding is carried across all the way through the buying process. Also, check that any instructions or directions important to the purchase are clearly stated at the point of sale.
Sell packages in advance of your event. Maybe you can’t offer huge discounts for early buyers, but remember they’re more willing to commit to a larger sale when your event is more than a few weeks out. Use this opportunity to increase incremental revenue as your customer’s ticket cost won’t be spent at the gate.

We believe a quick clean up and audit of how your customer goes through the sales cycle is something every event or venue needs to evaluate each year. Now is the time to get your buttons, schedule(s), and pages in order so that you can focus your marketing efforts on getting your audience back to your website where they can have the confidence to purchase from you online!

Saffire Queso Recipe

Here it is! The coveted recipe that we are practically known for. You know; the one that requires we don’t leave home without a crockpot… the world famous Saffire Queso! SAFFIRE QUESO 1 large block (32 oz.) VELVEETA®, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 2 packages of Jimmy Dean Full-Cooked Sausage Crumbles 4 cans ROTEL® 2 … Continue reading “Saffire Queso Recipe”

Here it is! The coveted recipe that we are practically known for. You know; the one that requires we don’t leave home without a crockpot… the world famous Saffire Queso!

SAFFIRE QUESO

1 large block (32 oz.) VELVEETA®, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 packages of Jimmy Dean Full-Cooked Sausage Crumbles
4 cans ROTEL®
- 2 Cilantro/Lime
- 2 Regular
2 packages (16 oz.) PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese

Combine all ingredients into a slow cooker and heat until it’s all melted together, stirring occasionally. Enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips!
Tip: Use a crock pot liner (you can find them in the aisle with Ziploc baggies) so that the queso doesn’t stick and you have any easy clean up process!

Saffire Wins Prestigious Barham Award from WFA

“We absolutely couldn’t have anticipated winning this award, but we’re unbelievably happy to accept it. It means a lot to our team who works so hard. And we are humbled by WFA, for giving companies like ours, that don’t have the tenure of so many incredible people in this room, the opportunity for such a … Continue reading “Saffire Wins Prestigious Barham Award from WFA”

Those were just some of the words spoken by Jeremy Emerson under bright lights as he graciously accepted the 2014 Barham Award from Western Fairs Association on January 8^th, 2014 in sunny Anaheim, California.

The Barham Award is presented in honor of Hot Dog on a Stick founder Dave Barham, and recognizes innovation, quality and leadership in the field of service. The award is extremely high praise and has been presented annually at the WFA convention since 1996. Our team is honored to join the ranks of some pillars of the fair industry.

We were doubly honored to accept the award from WFA’s Vice President, Troy Bowers with Amador County fair, who was Saffire’s 11th client and an early adopter of the Saffire movement.

Jeremy took his opportunity on stage to thank WFA member fairs that use Saffire and talk to the membership briefly about innovation and Saffire’s approach within the fair industry.

We can’t thank WFA enough for this honor and recognition. We would do what we do without the accolades, but this is a great shot in the arm to continue to provide fairs of all sizes with an opportunity to market themselves online smarter.

Saffire is also proud to have WFA on board as a client, along with the following WFA Member Fairs:

Amador County Fair
Napa County Fair
Chowchilla-Madera County Fair
Glenn County Fair
Yolo County Fair
Benton-Franklin Fair and Rodeo
Central Washington State Fair (Coming Soon!)
Arizona National Livestock Show

Saffire Stats: 2013 IN REVIEW

We were blessed to have a wonderful 2013! We wanted to share some of the exciting numbers we found for our clients as well as a few fun stats we had from the year! The most exciting number we found was that over 4.7 million people visited a Saffire website in 2013. From small associations, … Continue reading “Saffire Stats: 2013 IN REVIEW”

We were blessed to have a wonderful 2013! We wanted to share some of the exciting numbers we found for our clients as well as a few fun stats we had from the year!

The most exciting number we found was that over 4.7 million people visited a Saffire website in 2013. From small associations, to venues, to 1 million person events, each of our clients contributed to this number and we are thrilled that the Saffire platform provided their customer with a welcoming online destination. These visitors viewed over 26.2 million pages on our sites and 40% of these visitors came to a Saffire site on their mobile device or tablet (now you know why we constantly teach about the importance of mobile)!

Also in 2013 we gained 58 NEW clients while launching 59 new Saffire websites! Considering we ending 2012 with just 46 clients on our roster we are honored to now have 104 clients in the Saffire family! Finally, you may have seen us in your state or out of state at an association meeting, conference, or trade show and that’s because we attended 16 conventions, more than one per month! Now that is a lot of travelling, but what’s even more interesting is that we believe we made at least 20 crock pots of Saffire queso last year, YUM!

Again, we can’t believe the success we experienced in 2013 but can’t wait to see the continued growth of Saffire and the Saffire family in 2014!

5 Trends That Will Shape Online Marketing in 2014

1. Website Optimization For Multi-Screen Use We might be beating a dead horse on this one, but every website needs to be optimized for mobile and tablet use. Nielson reported that 61% of mobile phone users now use smart phones, so having a mobile-friendly site needs to be your top priority. Additionally, 54% of people … Continue reading “5 Trends That Will Shape Online Marketing in 2014”

1. Website Optimization For Multi-Screen Use
We might be beating a dead horse on this one, but every website needs to be optimized for mobile and tablet use. Nielson reported that 61% of mobile phone users now use smart phones, so having a mobile-friendly site needs to be your top priority. Additionally, 54% of people who frequently make purchases online own a tablet, so you can’t afford not to have a site that’s accessible across multiple screens.

2. Image-Based Content Will Dominate
Consumers are hit with a ridiculous amount of ads every day, so your content needs to be quickly and easily digestible in order to break through the clutter. The rapidly growing success of Instagram and Pinterest are a testament to the power of image-centric content. Not to mention, everybody and their mother uses Facebook, and photos get shared at least twice as much as text posts. That’s not to say that written content is dead, but having images to complement it can be beneficial for your online marketing. Infographics are a good example of combining images with text in order to provide important info or data to your customers.

3. Targeted Emails Will Increase Sales
Consumers are more likely to purchase from a brand they feel connected with. Don’t just send out mass emails and hope that someone responds, provide your customers with custom content based on their behavior. Many email marketing platforms allow you to see how customers have interacted with previous email campaigns, such as who opened them, unsubscribed, or clicked provided links. Use this information to your advantage! The more you pay attention to the success of your email campaigns, the more knowledge you gain about consumer behaviors and trends.

4. Video Consumption Will Increase
We all know that video has been around way longer than smart phones, tablets, and social media, but now it’s actually becoming more relevant to online marketing than ever. Whether it’s fun or educational, consumers are looking at video content to learn about your business. It’s also an easy way to create a relationship between you and your customers – hello, video customer service! Not to mention, videos are also shared 12 times more than text or link posts on social media, giving your content a better shot at going viral.

5. Sponsored Social Advertising Will Rise
Thanks to increasingly sophisticated targeting tools, paid social advertising allows you to place relevant content directly in front of your target audience. According to Adroll, Facebook news feed ads are 49 times more likely to be clicked on than right-side ads. The success of right-side and banner ads has been driven into the ground because they are grossly overused—but this has made way for a new type of social advertising. The success of sponsored Facebook posts will only accelerate this trend as other social platforms like Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram jump on the bandwagon.

Top 5 Resolutions to Market your Event Year Around in 2014

Be bigger than yourself: Show people that you care about more than just your own event. Community outreach, supporting good causes, and promoting other events in the area are a great way to get involved and keep your event’s name relevant to the community year-round. Not to mention, this gives you something interesting to … Continue reading “Top 5 Resolutions to Market your Event Year Around in 2014”

Be bigger than yourself: Show people that you care about more than just your own event. Community outreach, supporting good causes, and promoting other events in the area are a great way to get involved and keep your event’s name relevant to the community year-round. Not to mention, this gives you something interesting to add to your emails and social media posts!
Be active on social media: Don’t just be active, be engaging, because the best way to get your content to go viral is to make it highly interactive. For example, creative Facebook contests are a fun way to encourage followers to interact with your posts.
Use teasers to your advantage: Don’t announce all of your event’s entertainment at once. The performers you’ve booked are one of the most exciting aspects of your event, so keep your audience hooked by releasing entertainment announcements once or twice a week. This will encourage event-goers to frequently check their emails and visit your social media sites because they’re always left wanting to know more.
Keep your email marketing alive: With all the social media talk, it’s easy to forget that email marketing isn’t dead. The truth is, it’s inexpensive and can give you some of the fastest results and highest revenue (even above social media). Strategically plan when you send your emails and who you send them to, you may be surprised by the results!
Have promotional giveaways: Everyone loves feeling like they got a good deal, and that’s no different when it comes to your event’s tickets. Have a one-day sale, or give away tickets at some of your outreach efforts. Kids will always need to bring an adult, so you can almost guarantee that if you give away a kid’s ticket for free, it will be matched by one or two paying adults.

2013 Year in Review

In a similar fashion to Barbara Walters’ most interesting people of 2013, we’ve decided to compile Saffire’s Extraordinary Events of 2013. We’re all a part of a fast-moving industry, and at the end of the year it seems like we can take a moment to reflect on key happenings in our field. A few of … Continue reading “2013 Year in Review”

George Strait Announces Farewell Tour

George Strait officially said in 2013 that he will hang up his boots after this current tour. The die-hard faithful have flocked to ticket outlets, with tickets being sold and resold at record numbers at venues across the country.

Calgary Stampede Traditions Continue, “Come Hell or High Water”

The Calgary Stampede, faced with crippling floodwaters just 14 days before their opening, were able to not only put together an event that Calgarians won’t soon forget, but also raise over $2 million for flood victims through T-Shirts and donations. You can view a short video documentary of the 2013 Calgary Stampede here.

An Iconic Marathon Struck by a Devastating Finish

For many event organizers, safety plans took on a new meaning after a nation watched stunned while police searched for a brother who set bombs to explode on the finish line at the Boston Marathon. 3 people were killed, and hundreds others wounded in an event that won’t soon be forgotten by America.

Big Tex Makes a Triumphant Return

After the beloved icon of the State Fair of Texas tragically caught on fire in 2012, he was back in all his glory for the 2013 fair. Thousands of donors from the community and beyond contributed to the rebuilding effort. Now Big Tex stands just as tall, and even more stylish than ever in larger than life Wranglers and Luccheses.

100^th Client Joins Saffire

With the addition of Extraco Events Center, Saffire reached a big milestone. We’ve come a long way since our first event client in 2009, and reaching the 100^th client only gets us more excited to be a part of the industry. It may not be world news, but it was an extraordinary event for the Saffire team.

The year 2013 was nothing short of eventful. With so many trials and triumphs, it’s awesome to be a part of an industry that celebrates each other’s victories and lends a helping hand during each other’s hardships. With a year like this, it’s hard to imagine what 2014 will have in store!