Earlier, people had to stand in long queues to get tickets for events and movies. But with
the advancement in technology, you can do the same from the comfort of your home. Just
go to the app and book tickets of your choice.
Online ticket booking apps are proliferating at a fast pace and there is tremendous scope for growth in this segment. Automation of ticket booking offers advantages to both theaters and customers.
Though the coronavirus pandemic has proved a dampener for cinema theaters, things are returning to normal with the government starting to allow people to watch live events and movies in theaters.
As per Entrackr, India is the quickest growing mobile app market in the world. Indian users downloaded 19 billion apps in 2019. So, if you are wondering about developing a ticket booking app, BookMyShow can serve as an ideal example.
Table of Contents
Overview of the BookMyShow app
Launched in 2007, BookMyShow is today the biggest online ticket and movie booking brand in India. It initially started with films but has now expanded to many types of events booking across the country. BookMyShow has grabbed all of the event spaces now. May it be concerts, stand-up comedy shows, parties, fairs, international events, or anything else that invites the crowd, you get it on the platform.
Since the start, this application has seen massive upwards growth in terms of innovations and trends. In 2012, BookMyShow finally evolved with the convenience of users and launched its iOS and Android application. And that was the time when BookMyShow took a leap and never stepped down on the success graph.
As per Alexa, BookMyShow is the world’s 34th largest website. Even if people don’t intend to book tickets online, as they can get the passes to their favorite show offline, they still go around the application to check the events that are happening or about to happen around them. And this is where BookMyShow is acquiring a great audience base.
It is like a marketplace for entertainment, as you get to see the movie trailers, timings, seat availability, Housefull status, and reviews to help you decide on whether to book the tickets to the movie or show, or not.
The app is currently available in over 350 cities in four nations. There have been over 50 million downloads of the app till date and it has entered into partnerships with leading screening houses to sell their tickets.
A look at BookMyShow’s business model
Here’s how BookMyShow monetizes the app to generate ROI.
Advertising
Though online booking apps are popular, heavy traffic does not assure booked tickets. So, it has adapted to an effective advertising model to keep the users engaged, which is banner advertising or paid promotion! BookMyShow shows the poster of upcoming or latest trending movies on its website and mobile application.
It acts as promotional material for movies or shows. Thus, it helps the ticketing platform earn great revenue, as the movie franchise pays them for the promotions of some of their events or films. As more and more people come over BookMyShow to check the available events or movies available for them to enjoy, these banners help promote specific entertainment materials to them.
Thus, the event or movie franchise pays the ticketing platform for spreading the word about their new release.
Ticket booking commission
BookMyShow is one of the most liked platforms for you to sell tickets and charges a commission from the event organizers and cinema halls. It is calculated based upon the gross amount of the total number of tickets that were sold through BookMyShow. The commission fee will depend solely upon the popularity of an event or movie.
For instance, if it is a Marvel movie, then the commission fee will increase as the ticket booking rates will be beyond the charts for the cinema halls. But, the cinema halls play smart in order to save some of the money on this commission. They put up only a small fraction of available seats over BookMyShow, while they keep the rest to be booked through the counters or official websites. It levies a commission on each ticket booked by customers. This promises a good amount for every investment done.
Distribution of merchandise
BookMyShow has partnered with brands to sell its merchandise. For instance, it has partnered with Fanhood Store, where movie buffs can browse through a variety of Marvel, DC, Disney, and Movie Superheroes. The specific movies that have a lot of buzz over social media and the entertainment world are opportunities for BookMyShow to earn more money.
Merchandises that BookMyShow sells are not catered to just for the kids, even the adults buy them to get a more lively movie experience.
When you walk into the movie hall, everyone should know whose fan you are. So, this is one business model that BookMyShow leverages on priority. For everyone who is seeking for a ticket booking app development, this is one of the business models which will help you earn well!
Revenues from event management
Besides movie ticket booking, BookMyShow also provides a facility to book tickets for the events happening around the city. This adds to its business revenue.
For some of the local events such as comedy shows, privately hosted festival parties, online shows, music concerts, and others, there’s a provision and fixed amount for the organizers to list their event on BookMyShow, for customers to buy tickets. The event organizers will be charged based on the commission system.
So, if you are planning on developing an online ticketing application to take part in this industry and play along with the big and small players, then it is a perfect idea.
As you have already understood how your ticketing app can make immense profits by adopting various business models. You can definitely take time in order to set yourself up, just like BookMyShow did.
There are multiple ways for you to recoup the investment cost, and earn profitability when you start a well-thought ticket booking application.
Features of online ticket booking app
If you are keen on learning how to create an online ticket booking website or application, then get insight into the features it should have:
For users
1. User registration & Log-in
To book a ticket, users are required to register with your app. They need to enter some basic details like name, phone number, email address, and password. Users can use these credentials to log-in and book tickets.
2. User location
This is an essential feature as it enables the app to show events happening around the user. Location can be set either manually or automatically through GPS.
3. Homescreen
Home Screen displays the list of events and shows. You can further categories the type of events and movie shows to enable your users to find whatever they desire in a snap. The more simple the UI/UX, the more easier for users to adapt to the application. While you develop online ticket booking app, you can facilitate your users with varied filter options like location, ratings, price, offers, etc. to help them make the best choice/
4. Booking screen
Once the user clicks on the ‘Book Now’ button, he/she will be directed to the booking screen. For movie shows, they can select the seat of their choice here. Besides, a lot of other information like ticket price, venue, etc. appears in this window.
5. Payment
Users prefer different modes of payments. So, make sure you offer them with varied options – netbanking, wallet, credit/debit card, payment gateways, etc. This provides flexibility to users and they don’t return without booking a ticket.
6. Write a review
Encourage your users to leave a review or rate your services or app. This helps you build a genuine customer base, which you can leverage for marketing and other benefits.
For Admin
1. Log-in
Similar to users, admins also require to log-in. So, provide your admin panel a log-in access to control events.
2. Dashboard
The dashboard is a crucial feature for your online ticket booking app. It provides insights into your business, app performance, and more. Thus, you can make informed decisions.
3. Management
As an admin, you are entitled with a number of responsibilities, including the management of shows/events, users, bookings, customers, and earnings. So, you need to define separate sections for managing each aspect.
4. Notifications
This adds a touch of personalization to the user experience you offer. Admins must be given the rights to send notifications to users – upcoming shows/events, app update, etc.
In addition to all these features, it is always good to offer something like rewards or loyalty points to customers. This helps you make them return to your app, increasing user retention.
But what benefits can an online ticket booking app bring to you? Let’s have a look!
Benefits of online booking systems
For Buyers
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Easy ticket booking
Now, users don’t have to travel all the way to the movie theater or event venue to book tickets. All they require to do is log in to the app to view the show timings and venue and book tickets with preferred sittings.
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Select from multiplexes to single screens
Users can avoid the disappointment of a sold-out house after reaching the venue. They can use the app to select from multiple or single screens to find the entertainment they require and also determine if seats are available.
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Find the closest theater or event
Users need not travel to distant places as the app indicates the nearest location to enjoy movies and events.
With the advent of online booking systems, people no longer need to talk over the phone to make bookings. This impacts a business positively – well, it can boost sales. This is not all! An online ticket booking app can benefit your business in several ways. Here’s a rundown of some of its prime advantages.
24/7 reservation
When you have an online booking system in place, you have your business available 24/7. Users can reserve their spot for various events or movies whenever they want. It can increase your sales in just no time.
Predictive growth
With an integrated built-in analytics tool, you can fetch insights like user behavior. This helps predict your business growth and sales. Moreover, you can utilize the data to give offers to your users.
Get paid faster
Online ticket booking helps you get paid even before the service is used by consumers. Thus, it helps your business stay away from fake customers.
Accessible by the common man
Expert developers can create a simple yet effective app that can be easily understood and utilized even by lay persons without technical knowledge. The professionals will take care of all the development technicalities and let you focus on boosting sales and revenue, while providing a convenient booking experience to users.
Automation
Online booking apps facilitate automation and enable users to digitally send and receive messages on reservations, cancellations, etc. It can take a lot of time and money for theaters to communicate this information to users. Thus, a mobile app automates and simplifies the important task of keeping users updated.
Promotional purposes
You can use the online ticket booking app to reach a massive target audience, saving yourself the cost and effort of reaching each individual user. Further, you can target promotions and packages at this user base to enhance sales and revenue.
Integration
Today, you don’t have to use multiple apps for various services. Apps are connected to each other which reduces the pain of managing different platforms. You can integrate different payment gateways and relative apps to help your users complete their task without shuffling between apps.
As all features are synced, it would be easy to resolve issues concerning bookings, payments, and cancellations. Thus, users can get rapid resolution to their issues.
Reviews and feedback
Businesses can capture user feedback and reviews, and use them to make the needed improvements to provide better service to customers.
Now that you have analyzed the features and benefits of an online booking system, let’s head over to its development cost.
While you develop an online ticket booking app, it is important to determine the factors that will affect the development cost. BookMyShow app development
Factors affecting the cost of BookMyShow like app development
Platform
The Android platform is cheaper for app development compared to the iOS system. However, to reach a larger audience, you should ideally release your app on both platforms even if it costs more.
Design
You need to hire experienced developers who can create an app with an attractive and user-friendly interface to retain customer interest.
Features
For more number of features, you’d need to shell out extra. If you have a limited budget, opt only for a few key and unique features that will make your app stand out among the competition.
Developers
The location and experience of the developer team also impacts the cost. A high-cost team does not ensure a quality product. Therefore, test their aptitude and skills before hiring them to get a high-quality app.
If you are looking to develop an online ticket booking app that supports a single platform, the costs may vary from $10k to $30k. For multi-platform app support, you may need to shell out as high as $45,000. However, you can connect with the industry experts at leading mobile app development companies like TriState Technology to determine how much it would cost you for BookMyShow like app development.
