Event Business

There are a range of Bluetooth card machines available on the market today, way more than there were a couple of years ago. Sidestepping away from the chunky and unsightly chip and pin fixed to a counter, small businesses (typically with transactions less than £20k a month) can now have smaller, sleek, and more functional card readers that work equally as well.

The iZettle is currently the best all-round contactless card machines to use at events. It offers the widest choice of card accepted as well as all the major contactless card services such as Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay.

Card machines are a great, cost-effective, and easy to use tool for any event business. Over the past few years, there has been a steep increase in people using cashless payment whether it’s through their debit/credit card, apple pay (via phone or watch) or Google pay. In today’s society, it’s seen as an inconvenience if someone doesn’t have a cashless payment option. Additionally, in light of current times (whilst we are in a global pandemic) cashless payment is even more desirable and valuable for a business.

When it comes to choosing a card machine for an events business, there are a few things you will want to consider in order to get the most out of it. Firstly, I should point out that different machines work better or worse in different locations so just be mindful of this. For example, your location could be:

• Outside at a festival
• In a warehouse/remote venue
• In an exhibition centre
• In a shop/pop up

The biggest barriers with card machines and locations usually are down to signal for the card machine to make the transaction and also power (to charge the unit and or your smartphone). Another key factor is how often you will be using the card machine for your event or business. Daily, monthly once a year? Depending on different readers available this can affect your value for money and overall cost of your card reader.

How do contactless card readers work?

Contactless payment is taken via an app connected to a Bluetooth card reader. The app is provided by a merchant who will process the payment for a transaction fee. The money taken will usually be available within 1-3 days in the nominated bank account.

As a general rule, you get a small card machine which then connects via Bluetooth to a mobile or tablet. On that device, you will need to download an app which then operates the card machine. You are then ready to use it simply by getting someone to tap contactless or enter their pin, just like your normal card machine. 

Most then don’t have a monthly fee or require a contract (although you can often add in some subscription options with your chosen provider). You just need to purchase the card machine at a one-off cost and pay a transaction fee on a Pay as you go basis.

One thing to point out is that you will need either a Wi-Fi connection or 3G/4G connection for the transaction to be processed.

Below I have listed 5 of the most popular card machines for event businesses, listing out some highlights, things to consider as well as costs to help you make more of an informed decision as to what suits your event business the best.

1. Square Terminal

Highlights

• Accepts Mastercard, American Express and Visa, both contactless and chip and PIN
• Can save cards on file for repeat payments
• Can be used to sell online, collect payments via invoices and by phone
• Fixed rate of 1.75% per transaction
• Remote payment (via a link to a customer @ 2.5% transaction fee)
• No minimum transaction fees

Cost

• £19 + VAT one off cost for the card reader
• No contract or inactivity fees

There are a series of add-ons that Square offer. To list a few:

• Can print receipts from the terminal
• Inventory management via the App
• Can sync other apps to it to help with business paperwork e.g. accounting, analytics etc.
• Can track employee performance using the App

Square reader is a cost-effective and user-friendly reader for any business with the advantages of having integration between payments and accounting across your business.

2. Zettle

Highlights:

• Accepts the widest range of cards out of all 5 in this post (including apple pay)
• You can choose the colour of your card machine (black or white)
• No set up or delivery cost
• Fixed rate of 1.75% per transaction
• Remote payment (via a link to a customer @ 2.5% transaction fee)
• Refunds are free to process (and you get the transaction cost back too)
• Charges via a USB or via a dock (takes 1-2 hours for full charge) and lasts 8hrs or 100 transactions
• Can also be used to sell your items online via iZettle’s ecommerce site

Things to note:

• Minimum transaction fee of £1

Cost:

• Initial card reader £29 + VAT one off payment

Overall, this is a great and low-cost card reader for any small business looking to take card payments. Not being locked into a contract is a great plus point, meaning you won’t have any ongoing costs after your initial investment in the card reader apart from your transaction fees.

3. SumUp

Highlights:

• Accepts all major brands of cards
• Fixed rate of 1.69% per transaction
• Comes with a white card machine
• No setup or delivery cost
• Accepts contactless, chip and PIN and signature cards
• Remote payment (via a link to a customer @ 2.5% transaction fee)
• App automatically connects via Bluetooth with card machine when you pick card as payment method
• Not locked into a contract

Things to note:

• You don’t get the transaction fee back on any refunds

Initial cost:

• Card reader costs £29 + VAT and is a one off cost
• They also offer a 3G card reader (so you don’t need a smartphone) for £69 + VAT

This reader is a good contender with low transaction and initial set up fees. There are just less add-ons and gadgets that work with this reader. However, it comes with a great advantage of not needing a smartphone if you go for the slightly pricier card reader.

4. Worldpay ZINC Reader

Highlights:

• 24/7 phone support
• Accept major credit cards
• Available in black
• Contactless, chip and PIN and apple watch compatible
• Remote payment (via a link to a customer based on a transaction fee – quoted by WorldPay)
• Comes with 12-month warranty for the reader
• Receipt can be issued by email or SMS instantly

Things to note:

• A steeper 2.75% transaction fee unless you pay £5.99 a month which then lowers it to 1.95%
• Fees depend on turnover and a few other variables
• Sign up for a quote on their website for fees
• Require PCI (payment card industry) compliance 

Costs:

• Card reader £39.99 including VAT but has been as much as £79.99
• No set up fees beyond buying the card reader (if you are happy with the higher transaction fees)
• Contract monthly £5.99 if you want lower transaction fees

Although still a highly rated app, the transaction fees are a little steep compared to other competitors in the market. Without any significant plus points over competitors it could be worth looking at others especially if you are on a tight budget.

5.Smart Trade APP

Highlights:

• Does not require a card reader (just scan card with your smartphone)
• Option to pass on the card fees to your customer
• Can be used to pay face to face, over the phone and through paylinks on emails
• Can create customised invoices to send out
• Accepts all major cards as well as foreign cards
• Can send paperless quotes to customers and have a one click button for them to accept
• Allows easy integration for some accounting e.g. Xero, quickbooks etc.

Things to note:

• More aimed at tradespeople
• You are in a contract but can cancel at any time

Cost:

• No card reader needed just the app which is free to download
• They also have a 30-day trial 
• After the trail you will need to sign up to 1 of 3 plans:
  • Business: (up to 15 users) 1.85% plus 20p flat rate per transaction plus £26.99 a month
  • Enterprise: (Up to 50 users) 1.75% plus 20p flat rate per transaction plus £89.99 a month
  • Sole Trader: (one user) 2.15% plus 20p flat rate per transaction plus £9.99 a month

A great choice for those who don’t want to bother with a card machine and for those who want to pass the transaction fee onto their customers. The higher cost transaction fees and monthly payments would mean it is not so cost-effective for business, but a good option for those with relatively limited but high-value transactions.

As you can see from above there are advantages and disadvantages to all of the top 5 card machines. To help you choose the best one for your event/business type I have set out some influencing factors and recommendations on what card machine might work best for your event or business.

Large scale event e.g. outdoor festival, trade show

Things to consider:

• Number of hours trading
  • If it’s a long time you will need a power supply
• Size of event
  • If It’s a large-scale event with lots of other people and vendors, you could be fighting for signal for payments
• Expected number of transactions
  • Some have minimum spend caps on or have higher charges if you do only a few transactions
• Expected use
  • Is this a one off or will you use the card regularly? – If it’s a once in a blue moon you use it consider the fact some charge dormant fees.

Good card reader option: iZettle is a great reader when it comes to the following:

• Battery life and power (charges super quickly and lasts 8 hrs)
• No fees for inactivity/not regularly used
• Flat rate for fees no matter how many, although minimum spent of £1 which most of the time is not an issue

When it comes to signal being an issue there is not a huge breakthrough card machine that can overcome this. Some ways to help with this machine are:

• Send remote payment links (your customer can pay later through a link on their phone if the transaction would not go through).
• Think about getting yourself a remote dongle so you have your own personal Wi-Fi connection. This will boost your chances of being able to take payment quickly and easily.

Charity Event

• Fees/cost
  • You want to be paying as little as possible
  • You can even pass on the fees to your customer to keep costs down as much as possible
  • Similarly, you don’t really want to be locked into a contract unless there are some serious benefits for you.

• Number of transactions
  • Like above, if you rarely plan to use it be careful as some companies charge dormant fees for inactivity.

Based on that, a good card reader option: Although the Smart Trade APP is the best in regards to passing on fees this comes with a monthly minimum cost of £9.99 for a contract. Other competitors for examples square reader don’t have any monthly fees or contract so means you will only be paying a transaction fee, which if you are savvy enough you could include in your selling price to help keep costs to a complete minimum. 

Shop or stall

• Look
  • Your aesthetic and look may be more important here, so the option of colour is nice.
• Online selling options
  • Possibility to use the card reader’s eCommerce site to sell your items on to widen your selling opportunities
• Recurring payment
  • Might want to set up recurring payments if it’s an item someone wants to buy regularly

Good card reader option: iZettle again, is a great option for a shop or stall. With the option to choose white or black carder readers, and the option to sell on iZettle’s eCommerce it’s certainly a good purchase. Although you can’t set up recurring payments you can send regular payment links out manually to customers to get payment. 

To summarise, why are card readers a great investment for your events business?

• Shorter queues due to quicker transaction times
  • Payment in just a tap as opposed to routing through for change
  • More customers served = more cash and quicker waiting time = happier customers
• Safety
  • None/less cash on site
  • Money straight into your account (can’t lose it)
• Easy to track
  • Connect your account to a financal programme, it helps track finance, and pulls out key figures etc. to help you report your business profits and loss.
  • Also helps with business credit rating, which in turn can help if you want to borrow money.
• Add validity to business.
  • Make your customers feel you are more legitimate.
• Recurring payments can be set up.
• Increased spend
  • Your consumer is not limited to just what cash they have on them – they are more likely to splurge a little more!

Conclusion

I can safely say a card reader at your event or for your events business would not be a poor purchase. Although there are many more than the 5 card readers above, these are the ones that have been tried and tested more and therefore have greater reviews. If I had to choose one for my events, as a failsafe and cost-effective way of taking payments however, Zettle would be my option if just the card reader was needed. If more established, and on the lookout for a more middle of the road reader with a few extra add-ons Square reader would a next best great option, with the ability to print receipts from the terminal without the restriction of a minimum transaction fee.

If you are planning a small local event or a large festival, you will want to consider event insurance. Having worked in several event safety roles at events, I’ve seen countless insurance documents of my own, from venues and suppliers.

Event insurance covers several different areas, depending on the policy it can include Public Liability cover, Employers’ Liability cover, event cancellation, financial loss and event equipment cover. 

Event insurance is essential for a variety of reasons and work by offsetting the risk of something happening. While you need to meet all legal requirements in your territory, everyone has a different perception of risk. Some will choose to seek cover against some things, and others may not. Think about how you perceive risk.

There are four key areas that most event insurance companies will cover. Let dive into each in a little more detail to understand what they include.

Event Public Liability Insurance

Depending on where you hold your event, Public Liability insurance may or may not be a legal requirement. However, it’s one of the most critical components of any event insurance as it protects against any claim from a member of the public who suffers injury or loss as a result of your negligence in relation to how you organised your event.

As an example of what this might cover, a common injury that often attracts claims are slip trips and falls. These can be quite prevalent on temporary events sites where you find a lot of trailing cables or track covering.

If someone trips over you could find yourself in court even if it wasn’t your fault. Claims may involve a court, which means legal fees and potentially paid damaged. All of which could be costly.

Public Liability insurance will cover damages claims and any expenses you incur in defending the claim against that member of the public.

Having Public Liability insurance in place may be a condition of using a particular piece of land or venue to host the event. This can particularly be true if you are hosting an event on property that is owned by Local Government agencies. 

They may specify a certain level of Public Liability insurance that is required before they will consider allowing you to use that space.

Event Employers’ Liability Insurance

In many countries, Employers’ Liability insurance is a legal requirement. In the UK, this is the case. In the US it may be known as Workers Compensation and is state-based, so check local requirements. 

Employers’ Liability insurance covers the staff, contractors and volunteers who are working at your event. It will cover costs associated with defending a claim brought against you.

It’s worth noting that this insurance covers paid or unpaid staff under your control. There is a common misconception that it only includes paid staff that you employ.

If you utilise volunteers to deliver your events (something like a community festival), you still need to consider insurance cover for them. Having Employers’ Liability insurance in place also demonstrates that you take the welfare of your staff and volunteers seriously.

Even with the best care and attention paid to risk assessments and health and safety, unfortunately, accidents can still happen. Such accidents might be the result of your negligence, staff members’ fault or just a freak accident, but you still may find yourself in court defending a claim.

Event Cancellation 

Often things happen beyond your control, that means you will have to cancel your event. Event Cancellation insurance will reimburse irrecoverable expenses incurred as a result of having to cancel the event.

The cancellation must be unforeseeable. Events Cancellation insurance will cover losses on areas such as marketing, merchandising, loss of income or venue costs. 

It’s worth checking with the insurance provider and mention when purchasing if there are any specific things you want to be covered.

So what kinds of things does event cancellation insurance cover? Here’s an example list of things you might expect to see on any policy:

• Adverse weather (e.g. flooding)
• A serious crime in your venue that restricts access. (e.g. murder or assault)
• National mourning
• Closed transport links
• Act of Terrorism
• Strikes or labour disputes
• Delayed building work
• Personal bereavement
• Artists cancellation due to accident, death or ill health

NOTE: As a result of the 2020 global pandemic, many insurance providers opted to specify that cover would not extend to contagious diseases, so it is worth asking this question when arranging cover for your event.

Event Equipment Insurance

Event equipment can be costly; you may own the equipment or have just hired it for one event. Either way, you’ll likely be responsible for the cost of replacing it if it gets lost, stolen or damaged. 

This is where event equipment insurance comes in; this cover helps with that cost.

Event Equipment insurance cover will usually ensure your property or the property of others while it’s in transit to the event, during the event or transporting it back afterwards. 

This could also include equipment that you have hired for use at the event and which you are legally liable against any loss or damage to it.

There may be several exclusions from equipment cover, particularly where there is a significant excess on the policy, where a theft occurred because items have lived been left unattended or unsecured or due to faulty installation or dismantlement.

As always, check the cover when you but to ensure it meets your requirements.

When should I buy event insurance? 

You should start arranging your event insurance cover ideally as soon as you begin planning your event. You will undoubtedly want financial protection when you start having to incur expenses or put tickets on sale.

If something happens during the planning process after you’ve taken insurance cover out, this will be covered. Still, anything that happens before will have to be declared to the insurance company during the purchase.

There may be other deadlines for cover such as weather where insurers may not offer insurance within a few weeks of the event.

How can you get event insurance?

Event insurance is widely available through many brokers or Internet-based companies. Some comparison websites offer to search the market for you. 

It can often be a better experience to speak to an insurance broker to be specific about the needs of your event so that you get an accurate policy that reflects your situation. 

See our resources page for our current pick of insurance providers for events.

What does event insurance NOT cover

There are some differences between insurers. However, as a guide here are some of the things that may not be covered.

• War, Invasion, Acts of foreign enemies, Hostilities, Civil war
• Confiscation, nationalisation or destruction of property under order of any government or public authority.
• Communicable diseases (See note above about the 2020 pandemic)

Other considerations

You should consider what insurance does your venue have. A requirement for hirers may be specified in any contract that you have with them and who is responsible for arranging Event insurance cover.

It is also possible to have additional elements added to your insurance policy that could include things like artist cancellation or non-attendance. Again it depends on your own needs.

You should get insurance details from your suppliers. You must obtain insurance documents from all the contractors and suppliers you plan to use at your event. 

Having a record of these is good practise and demonstrates you’re only prepared to use reputable suppliers.

One more thought on this (and a bit of a tip), if you’re unsure over the validity of any insurance documentation, call up the providing insurer and ask if the policy is valid. Believe it or not, I’ve had a supplier send fake insurance documents in a previous event.

Related Questions

How much does event insurance cost? Event insurance may cost less than you think. Given the potential for claims to be in the 000s of £, a basic insurance policy can cost as little as a few hundred £ but will give you complete peace of mind that you have cover in place. 

How do I get a certificate of insurance for an event? Usually the insurance company will email you PDF copies of the insurance documents. You should keep these safe, although many now provide online portals should you need them again. 

We’ve all been to at least one, music Festivals have seen massive growth in the past decade. In England alone, the sector value was worth £2.8bn in 2018. 

Ticketmaster suggests that a third of the UK population have attended a festival since 2016. Despite the 2020 pandemic, this number is expected to rise into the 2020s. 

So, with the number of festivals growing, how do they make money?

Music festivals make most of their money through income generated from ticket sales, sponsorship, advertising, concession fees and merchandise. Additional revenue comes from things like database access, VIP areas, WIFI access, mobile phone charging and chillout areas.

Now let’s dig into how Festivals make that money in a little more detail. 

Ticket Sales

Ticket sales are a significant income for music festivals, and there are a variety of different strategies for pricing tickets correctly and for attracting customers to buy them.

There are several ways festivals will price their tickets.

Cost-based ticket pricing

Cost-based is the simplest way of pricing tickets. The festival works out the total cost of putting the festival on including any profit margin they want to make, then divide that number by the number of expected attendees. 

The advantages of this approach are that it simplifies the process and requires little research. On the flip side, not researching what competitors are charging could be risky. It also doesn’t allow for last-minute costs.

Competitor-based ticket pricing

Competitor-based ticket pricing is different to cost-based. A festival’s tickets price is based on the level of competition around the festival.

Competitor-based pricing may be a strategy that a festival considers when first starting. It would be challenging to remain competitive on reputation alone, so this is reflected with the price of the ticket admission.

Value-based ticket pricing

This approach uses market research of a target audience to determine what the pricing strategy will be. This means understanding what the target audience is prepared to pay for the festival.

Festivals will strategise their ticket sales in several ways. One of the most common ways is to offer tickets on a tiered basis, releasing batches in levels. Releasing batches usually involves cheaper tickets being sold very early on, perhaps straight after the previous event. 

The festival are open with the fact that after a given time or some tickets have been sold the price will increase. Batch-based releases encourages people to buy tickets earlier. 

Sponsorship

Sponsorship is an excellent way for festivals to increase their income and offer higher value to their attendees. 

Festivals will often use assets which they already have for sponsorship such as large TV screens, fencing covers or even the neck lanyards used for staff.

Usually, festivals like sponsorship because they don’t have to provide anything in advance. 

The sponsor gets involved because they see brand or marketing gain from the visibility the festival will afford them. In this respect, sponsorship can be a highly profitable activity for festivals.

When first starting out, however, it can be difficult to attract sponsorship if the festival is relatively unknown. Sponsors will expect to pay less and demand more in return for any agreement.  

Other examples of festival sponsorship ideas can be found in this post.

Advertising (Online and Offline)

Festivals make money from advertising in a number of different ways, and this is often a separate channel away from sponsorship.

With the majority of their marketing now focused on online channels such as social media and email, there are enormous opportunities for would-be advertisers to gain visibility across the festival audience.

Festivals will consider all of the digital assets they have and how they might be leveraged to include some advertising for additional income to the festival.

Digital assets could, for example, include sponsored posts on the festival Facebook group or Instagram, or it could be a specific email sent to all ticket holders mentioning the advertiser.

Many festivals now produce digital guides or brochures for their festival. These digital brochures are another opportunity to sell some advertising space.

Offline channels are still relevant to many markets and target audiences. While it might be that online advertising would return a higher profit. There are many opportunities offline such as physically printed brochures, lanyards, site plans, tickets, banners on fences (and some many more!) which offer opportunities for advertising space at a festival.

Concession Fees

Concession fees are those that charged to food vendors or traders that attend festivals. Depending on the size and reputation of the festival, these fees vary enormously. 

Festivals which are just starting will be unable to charge hefty fees as they cannot guarantee large amounts of football for the trader.

Those festivals that are well established and attract thousands of people will be able to charge extremely high concession fees to all traders attending.

Merchandise

Merchandise is a common way in which festivals make money and will usually be available online before and after the event, plus at one or more stalls dotted around the festival.

It is often split between the event’s own branded merchandise and then reselling stock from any performers for a fee.

The production costs of merchandise such as t-shirts, hoodies or caps are often low when a large number of them is ordered. Bulk buying is an opportunity for the festival to enjoy a healthy profit margin, but can carry a risk if the merchandise doesn’t sell.

Very popular festivals can make a lot of money from selling merchandise.

Database access

Database access is where the festival allows advertisers or partners access to email or mail information they have collected from their audience, usually from a mailing list or from ticket sales.

Database access has the potential to be quite profitable as there is little cost attached to it. It is important to remember that there are numerous pieces of legislation in regards to data protection (such as GDPR in Europe) that make significant regulation of this type of activity.

Smaller Add ons

There are numerous smaller way in which a festival can make money, many of which will largely depend on the type of festival (music, food, arts etc.)

Patreon

Patreon is a relatively new phenomenon and involves people donating to support a festival either as a one-off payment or regularly. The festival can set up payment tiers, (£5, £10, £25 etc.) and people receive something in return. 

For lower-tiers, it would be something as simple as a shoutout on their social media or right up to VIP access to the festival.

Brand new festivals that are looking for community support can use this to generate income to get started. For more information, check out the Patreon website.

VIP Areas 

Charging a premium price for the ultimate premium experience is another way festival can make money. 

VIA access could be an exclusive area that has specific access to some of the performers or activities. It could also just be access to high-quality toilets. People will often pay a premium price for this.

WiFi Access

People crave data access to share their experiences at Festivals, but this can often be let down by weak phone data caused by large crowds or a rural environment. Festivals can provide WiFi access to customers who will then pay for the privilege.

Mobile phone charging

Another common way to make money is to charge for access to phone battery charging facilities. 

In recent years some Festivals have started offering rented power banks so that customers don’t have to leave their phones in a locker while they charge.

So there are some of the ways in which festivals make money, of course, there are plenty of other ideas. Leave a comment below if you’d like to share one.