It's 10 am on the dot. Your new season tickets have just gone on sale. Within seconds, thousands of visitors flood your website, all competing to secure the best seats for your most anticipated performances.
Without proper traffic management, this dream scenario quickly becomes a technical nightmare—slow page loads, frustrated customers, and potentially even system crashes that could impact sales for hours.
In a recent webinar, CultureSuite CEO Coen van der Poll shared valuable insights on how cultural venues can effectively manage website traffic during these crucial high-demand periods. Here's what you need to know to keep your digital doors open when audiences are most eager to enter.
Understanding modern queue management
Today's queue management systems have evolved significantly from their early iterations. "The technology has advanced from requiring careful, incremental increases of just 25 visitors at a time to handling much larger adjustments smoothly," explains Coen. "Both the queuing systems and connected ticketing platforms now easily manage higher visitor numbers."
This evolution means venues have more flexibility in handling traffic spikes—but proper configuration remains essential.
The different types of website visitors
Not all website traffic is created equal. Understanding the various types of visitors helps explain why traffic patterns can be so unpredictable:
- Casual browsers: People clicking through from newsletters and search engines to see what's new
- Search engine bots: Methodically working through your content
- Dedicated enthusiasts: Arriving with specific shows in mind
- Season planners: Organised patrons mapping out their entire cultural calendar
Even when no special event is happening, unexpected traffic spikes can occur due to the wide variety of traffic sources in our digital spaces.
Why analytics and queue numbers don't match
If you've noticed discrepancies between your analytics data and queue system counts, you're not alone. Coen explains: "Analytics focuses solely on active users—those actively engaging with your site. Queue systems, however, cast a wider net, counting every session, including those brief moments when someone quickly checks an article or show time."
This distinction explains why queue numbers typically appear higher than traditional analytics suggest and helps venues avoid making unnecessary adjustments to their queue settings.
Optimal queue settings: a practical guide
For normal operations
For day-to-day traffic management, we recommend:
- Concurrent sessions: 500
- Timeout period: 8 minutes
Our experience with over 100 venues has shown that this proven combination effectively handles substantial traffic during normal operations whilst maintaining a smooth user experience..
The 8-minute timeout provides the ideal balance between maintaining legitimate sessions and freeing up capacity for new visitors. Interestingly, a shorter timeout with a higher concurrent user limit can actually handle more traffic than a longer timeout with a lower limit.
For high-demand sales moments
When it comes to major on-sales, Coen suggests a counterintuitive approach: "Start with zero concurrent sessions, especially when there's a known sale start time."
This strategy creates a level playing field, allowing venues to communicate clearly with visitors before the sale begins. When the virtual doors open, everyone has an equal chance at securing tickets, and venues maintain better control over the initial surge.
Alternatively, you can shuffle the queue just before you open the virtual doors so that everyone enters the queue on an even playing field. However, Coen cautions: "Using this feature during active sales would be like reshuffling a line of people waiting at the box office—it's best used before or between sales periods."
Advanced queue management techniques
Time slots for season sales
Time slots have revolutionised season sales, as evidenced by the success story from de Kleine Komedie. With this system, specific access times throughout the day are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis, creating a more relaxed and organised experience for everyone.
"What we've discovered is even more valuable than expected," notes Coen. "When you remove the stress of competing in a free-for-all sale, patrons actually purchase more tickets and respond better to cross-selling and up-selling opportunities."
The benefits extend beyond just traffic management. If popular shows sell out, venues know exactly which time slot holders didn't secure tickets, enabling targeted follow-up when additional performances are added or alternatives become available.
"The system also provides invaluable forecasting data," Coen adds. "You can see exactly how many time slots have been requested, allowing you to confidently book additional performances even before the first ticket has sold."
The queue messaging feature
The queue messaging feature transforms the waiting experience. It opens a channel of real-time communication with waiting customers, keeping them informed about ticket availability, expected wait times, and other important updates.
Integrating with external ticketing systems
Even when working with external ticketing systems like Tixly, Tessitura, or Ticketmaster, your queue system plays a vital role. It acts as a virtual lobby, managing the initial rush of visitors and providing a platform for communication with waiting customers.
Success lies in maintaining clear messaging about the process and carefully calibrating settings to work in harmony with the external system.
A cautionary tale: what happens without proper queue management
A recent nationwide theatre sale provided a stark reminder of what can happen when queue systems are disabled during peak times. Without proper regulation, the first minute brought an overwhelming surge of visitors.
As loading times increased, frustrated visitors began refreshing their browsers, creating a cascade effect that amplified the server load. What began as a one-minute surge created ripples that affected system performance long afterwards, highlighting the crucial role of proper queue management.
Consider your seat selection process
Seat selection adds another dimension to queue management. "It's like a mathematical puzzle," explains Coen. "If you have 200 visitors and each can book four tickets, that's 800 seats being considered simultaneously."
This relationship between concurrent users and available seats should guide how quickly venues increase their queue limits during sales, ensuring a smooth experience for everyone involved. Or consider time slots to mitigate long wait times for visitors.
Where to get additional support
Support for venues exists as part of our broader community effort. The CultureSuite support team is ready to assist, while the CultureHub platform offers additional guidance. Venues can also stay connected through upcoming events and webinars, creating an ongoing dialogue about best practices in queue management.
With these insights and strategies, cultural venues can transform the potential chaos of high-demand ticket sales into smooth, well-managed experiences that delight patrons and maximise sales opportunities. The key is finding the right balance between accessibility and system stability—a balance that well-configured queue systems help maintain.
Let’s get this show on the road
- Want to see how Peppered manages queues?
We’re proud of how easy we make it for venues to manage their website and queues. That’s why live event venues around the world trust Peppered. Book a personalised demo. - Looking to partner with us?
If you’re a technology provider, design agency or supplier for the arts and culture sector, we’d love to hear from you. Contact us here. - Want to learn more about digital tools for venues?
Explore our industry insights and expert advice by heading over to our articles, events and webinars, Spotify, YouTube channel or subscribe to our newsletter.
