--- title: "Run ticketing for events at your bar or small venue | Ticket Fairy Guides" description: "Start each event from a template, keep free RSVPs honest with a refundable deposit, take table bookings, sell tickets on your own website, give your bar staff a door role and turn the people who come into a list you can invite back." canonical: "https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-a-bar-or-small-venue" --- 1. [Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/) 2. [Guides](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides) 3. Run ticketing for events at your bar or small venue Playbooks by event type # Run ticketing for events at your bar or small venue Bars, lounges, rooftops, restaurants and small rooms put on quiz nights, live music and DJ sets beside their everyday trade. You can set a night up once, copy it for the next date and let a bartender scan tickets at the door from their own phone. The guests who come end up on a list you can invite back to your next event. Takes: 14 minutes [Watch the video: Run ticketing for events at your bar or small venue](https://d3lcdr963b5ubl.cloudfront.net/uploads/guides/video/run-a-bar-or-small-venue/776d0886422d8c6a45a641fa2488fceee125d44aaddbd659508cfb9bb120be52/52bab5518e977141/guide.mp4) · [English](https://www.ticketfairy.com/resources/captions/guides/guide-run-a-bar-or-small-venue-52bab5518e97.vtt) ***Watch how it's done** 2 min 52 s, with captions.* - [Start the night from a template](#step-1) - [Keep a deposit on every free RSVP](#step-2) - [Take bookings for your tables](#step-3) - [Sell tickets on your own website](#step-4) - [Give your bar staff a door role](#step-5) - [Copy the night for its next date](#step-6) - [Add your guests to your mailing list](#step-7) - [See who keeps coming back](#step-8) ## Before you start - You're a brand owner or admin. You can create events, change tickets and tables, and invite your team. - You know your room's capacity and whether each night is free with a deposit or has a ticket price. - You have a Mailchimp account if you want the people who buy tickets added to your mailing list. 1. ## Start the night from a template [Play from here](#guide-video) Select **Create Event** and choose the template that matches the night. - **Freefund RSVP**: A free night where each guest pays a refundable deposit that comes back when their ticket is scanned in time. - **Club show**: A ticketed night with cheaper early tickets and a door price, plus a guest list ticket and VIP booths when you ask for them. - **Concert**: A live music night with general admission and merchandise, standing or seated, with a VIP ticket when you want one. [Create an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/create-an-event) ![Event template gallery with the event assistant and built-in event setups](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-event-templates--gallery.png) *Create Event, template gallery.* 2. ## Keep a deposit on every free RSVP [Play from here](#guide-video) If the night is free, open **Tickets**, then **Settings**, turn on **Make every admission ticket free when the attendee checks in**, then turn on **I confirm that tickets not scanned in time are charged** and save. **Note:** Each admission ticket's price is its deposit. A guest whose ticket is scanned by the cutoff you choose gets it back, and a ticket nobody scans in time is charged. [Use Freefund to reduce no-shows at free and RSVP events](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/reduce-no-shows-at-free-rsvp-events) ![The Freefund event setting with its check-in cutoff and confirmation together](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-freefund--event-settings.png) *Tickets, Freefund.* 3. ## Take bookings for your tables [Play from here](#guide-video) Optional: On **Tickets**, select **Create** under **Table Types** for each table or booth, with its price, party size and the deposit taken online. **Note:** Every table booking asks the buyer for an identity check, and Ticket Fairy charges the online share once they pass it. You collect the rest at the venue. [Sell VIP tables and bottle service through your promoters](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-vip-tables-and-bottle-service) ![The Create Table Type form with the name, price, stock, guest limits and online deposit for a booth](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-table-tickets--vip-booth.png) *Tickets, Table Types, Create.* 4. ## Sell tickets on your own website [Play from here](#guide-video) Optional: Open **Website Embeds** in your event's Marketing menu, open or create an embed, and copy the snippet from the **Install** tab for a buy button, the full checkout or a list of your upcoming events. **Note:** Buyers then choose tickets, pay and receive their confirmation without leaving your website. [Sell tickets on your own website](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-tickets-on-your-own-website) ![Website embed install page with ready-to-paste checkout code](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-event-embeds--install.png) *Website Embeds, Install.* 5. ## Give your bar staff a door role [Play from here](#guide-video) Open **Team** on your brand, select **Add Team Member** and invite whoever works the door as **Door Staff**. **Note:** Someone with the Door Staff role can open the scanning app and nothing else in your dashboard, so a bartender can scan tickets from their own phone. [Scan tickets at the door](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/scan-tickets-at-the-door) ![The Add Team Member dialog with the email addresses field and a card for each permission level](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-brand-team--add-team-member.png) *Brand, Team, Add Team Member.* 6. ## Copy the night for its next date [Play from here](#guide-video) In **Events**, open the menu on the night and choose **Duplicate Event**, then enter the new name, date and web address. **Note:** The copy keeps the ticket types, table types and settings, and stays a draft until you publish it. [Duplicate an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/duplicate-an-event) ![Duplicate event dialog with the new event name, dates and the choice of what to copy across](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-nightclub-operations--duplicate-night.png) *Events, Duplicate Event.* 7. ## Add your guests to your mailing list [Play from here](#guide-video) Open **Integrations** on your brand, select **Connect** on the Mailchimp card, then choose the audience buyers join. Buyers who agree at checkout to hear from you are then added to it. [Sync your ticket buyers to Mailchimp](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sync-buyers-to-mailchimp) ![The Integrations card for Mailchimp before it is connected, with Connect and Use an API key instead](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-platform--connect-provider.png) *Brand, Integrations.* 8. ## See who keeps coming back [Play from here](#guide-video) Open **Customers** on your brand. Each row is one person, with **# of events** showing how many of your events they have bought for and what they spent. **Note:** Complimentary tickets do not add the recipient to **Customers**. [Understand who buys tickets across your events](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/understand-who-buys-tickets-across-your-events) ![The Customers page, one row per customer with order totals, the events they ordered from and tickets ordered](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-customers--customer-list.png) *Customers, the list.* ## Or have it done for you Fai, your AI teammate, can check sales, update your event or change a ticket when you ask. Fai can start a night from a template, turn on the refundable deposit for free RSVPs, create your table types, copy a night to a new date, invite your door staff and find the people who keep coming back. She shows you each change and asks you to approve it first. ### In your dashboard, with Fai ``` Set up a free quiz night at on for people with a refundable deposit on each rsvp, and show me the setup before you create it ``` ## From your terminal Install the CLI from [our CLI page](https://www.ticketfairy.com/cli), sign in with `ticketfairy auth login`, and choose the brand you are working on with `ticketfairy brand use `. `ticketfairy brand list` and `ticketfairy event list` show the IDs the other commands use. Use the command line to copy a night for its next date, add a table type, publish it and list the people who buy from you. You set up the refundable deposit, your website checkout, the door roles and the Mailchimp connection in the dashboard. ### Copy last week's night as a draft with its ticket and table types, team, promotions, emails, contacts and FAQs. Enter the start and end as local date and time, such as 2026-10-10T22:00:00; sale windows and door times move by the same number of whole days. ``` ticketfairy event clone --body '{"data": {"displayName": "", "slug": "", "shortName": "", "startDate": "", "endDate": "", "ticketTypes": true, "team": true, "credentials": false, "preRegistration": false, "promotions": true, "delegations": false, "emailTemplates": true, "contacts": true, "faqs": true}}' ``` ### Add a booth that takes a 25% deposit online. ``` ticketfairy table create --body '{"displayName": "Booth", "price": 20000, "maxInventory": 4, "minGuests": 4, "maxGuests": 6, "guestPrice": 4000, "depositPercent": 25}' ``` ### Publish the night. ``` ticketfairy event publish ``` ### List the people who have bought tickets from your brand. ``` ticketfairy customer list ``` ## Questions you might have **What happens to a guest's deposit if they don't turn up?** Ticket Fairy charges it. If a ticket isn't scanned by the cutoff you chose, the deposit isn't returned, and a guest who arrives after the cutoff still gets in without the deposit coming back. **Can a group book a table online and pay the rest at the bar?** Yes. Set the online deposit below 100%, and Ticket Fairy charges that share online once the buyer passes the identity check, while you collect the balance at the venue. Ticket Fairy's ticketing fee is charged on the amount paid online, not on the balance. **Do I need a separate door team?** No. Anyone on your staff can scan tickets from their own phone with a Door Staff role, which opens the scanning app and nothing else. Because each person has their own login, every admission shows who scanned it. **Do I have to set up the same night again every week?** No. Duplicate last week's night and change the name, date and web address. The ticket types, table types and settings come with it, and the copy waits as a draft until you publish it. **Can people who bought a ticket hear about my next event?** Yes, when they agreed at checkout to hear from you and your brand is connected to Mailchimp. They join your Mailchimp audience, and your campaigns reach them. ## Still have a question? Book a demo and we will answer it on a call, on your kind of event. Or create your account and see it for yourself. [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) No setup fees. No monthly fee. No credit card required. ## Related guides - [More ways to use Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/solutions/nightclubs-and-club-nights) - [Use Freefund to reduce no-shows at free and RSVP events](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/reduce-no-shows-at-free-rsvp-events) - [Sell VIP tables and bottle service through your promoters](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-vip-tables-and-bottle-service) - [Sell tickets on your own website](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-tickets-on-your-own-website) - [Duplicate an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/duplicate-an-event) - [Sync your ticket buyers to Mailchimp](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sync-buyers-to-mailchimp) - [Understand who buys tickets across your events](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/understand-who-buys-tickets-across-your-events) - [Run ticketing for a nightclub](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-a-nightclub) - [Every Ticket Fairy guide](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides) ## Do this on your own event Create your account, build your event and follow the steps in your own dashboard. You do not need to book a sales call. [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) ## Sell tickets with Ticket Fairy Start free with unlimited events and no monthly fee, and choose a paid plan when you need more. - Set up your event in minutes - Free events are free - Fai, your AI teammate, is built in [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) No setup fees. No monthly fee. No credit card required. ## See it on a call Book a demo and we will show you how Ticket Fairy handles your kind of event. [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) [More ways to use Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/solutions/nightclubs-and-club-nights) ### Tips for selling more tickets Practical advice from working event organizers, and every new guide as it is published. We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime. --- This page is on Ticket Fairy, a ticketing, marketing and operations platform for live events and the venues that host them: festivals, club nights, concerts, conferences and tours, and night clubs, beach clubs and concert venues. It grows revenue with fan rewards that turn an audience into a sales channel, and runs the money side with payments and payouts, Vault business banking, and working capital advanced against ticket sales. [How Ticket Fairy ticketing works](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing) · [Ticket Fairy for AI assistants](https://www.ticketfairy.com/llms.txt)