Hey there 👋
Welcome back to another edition of Event Dispatch.
Ticket prices keep climbing, fans keep expecting more, and the gap between events that deliver a real experience and ones that just tick boxes is getting harder to hide. This month's stories all circle back to that same pressure point.
In this issue, we look at how connected fan data is reshaping stadium engagement, why fake tickets are becoming a bigger risk as prices climb, and how corporate AV is turning into a creative strategy tool rather than a spec sheet. We also hear from Melissa Levy on why experiential marketing is having its moment, and get our founder's take on cutting through event tech sprawl.
Let's get into it.
🧠 Event Industry Intel You Need To Know
The Blind Spot Costing Events Their Best Fans
A new feature from MARKETECH APAC looks at how major sporting events, including the FIFA World Cup, are using marketing tech to win fans before, during, and after the big moment. Organizers are sitting on more fan data than ever, but most of it never gets connected into a single view of who that fan actually is.
Key insights from the report:
Fragmented systems: Ticketing, merch, apps, CRM, and concessions rarely talk to each other.
Fewer and better messages: Unified fan profiles mean fewer emails sent with more relevance, and better loyalty, sales, and sponsor value.
AI depends on clean data: Predictive tools only work as well as the fan data feeding them.
Seattle Sounders and Oakland Roots both saw the payoff of fixing it firsthand, with stronger email performance, higher ticket intent, and record attendance numbers to show for it.
For event leaders, this is a shift worth planning for. Fan data is now shaping how the experience itself gets built, right alongside staffing, sponsorship, and programming decisions.
Curious how deep this goes? MARKETECH APAC's full piece breaks down how sports organizations are turning connected data into long-term fan loyalty.
Protect Fans From The Fake Ticket Trap
As ticket prices climb, more fans are hunting for cheaper seats outside official channels, and fraudsters have noticed. A Surfshark survey run in May 2026 found that nearly one in three consumers have bought event tickets from unofficial sources, and 26% of those buyers ended up with a fake at least once.
Key insights from the report:
Sports fans hit hardest: They account for 35% of reported ticket scam cases.
Concerts close behind: Concertgoers make up 25% of cases, confirming that high-demand live entertainment remains a prime target.
AI is raising the stakes: Scammers are using realistic websites, polished social ads, and convincing promotions to build trust fast.
Fake ticketing sites are particularly easy to create in times of artificial intelligence.
Fake tickets don't just burn the fan who got scammed. They land on your ticketing, security, and guest services teams too, in the form of gate disputes, angry fans, and last-minute scrambles to sort out who's actually holding a valid ticket, right when you need everything running smoothly.
Want the full picture? Interaksyon's coverage breaks down how rising prices, resale habits, and AI-powered scams are reshaping risk for live events.
From the Founder's Desk: The Tech Stack You're Paying For But Never Open
There's a difference between a tool you use and a tool you bought because you were scared not to have it.
The tricky part is that this instinct isn't unreasonable on its own. Being under-prepared for a crisis is a real risk, too. The issue is what happens after the crisis passes: the tool stays, nobody revisits whether it's still needed, and it quietly becomes permanent clutter instead of a one-time decision.
For event teams, it's worth periodically asking which tools in the stack are still earning their place, and which ones are just sitting there adding cost and login fatigue.
Join the conversation on LinkedIn and share how your team decides what actually earns a place in your stack.
Why Delegates Are Judging Your Event Before the Keynote
For years, planning AV meant walking in with a spec sheet. The 2026 AV Trends Review from Olympia Events and Aztec Event Services suggests that conversation is changing. Organizers are starting with a different question: what should delegates feel, remember, and talk about once they leave?
Key insights from the report:
AV as storytelling: Lighting, content, stage design, and sound are working together to shape mood, not just cover the basics.
Competing with the home office: Delegates need a real reason to travel and stay for the day, so atmosphere, interaction, and networking now carry as much weight as the main stage.
Earlier creative input: Production partners are getting involved sooner, shaping flow and engagement rather than just quoting equipment.
None of this means bigger budgets. It means using the same tools with more intention, so the event earns its place against every webinar and on-demand recording competing for a delegate's day.
If AV budgets are on your radar for next year, Event Industry News's full piece is worth the read before you lock anything in.
🎤 Featured Voice: Melissa Levy on Why Experiential Marketing Is Having Its Moment
Melissa Levy, president of experiential agency Sparks, is watching live experiences move from a nice-to-have into the center of the marketing mix.
You have to create that emotional bond in order for someone to be brand loyal or have brand love, and that is directly connected to why you're seeing a rise in experiential.
The numbers back her up. 85% of consumers say they're more likely to buy from a brand after attending a live event. Pizza Hut has leaned its rewards program toward experiences, and Heineken tapped into World Cup fever to get people watching together.
Levy points to three drivers behind the shift:
Visual platforms that reward shareable moments
A post-pandemic pull toward being in person
Sports are becoming one of the few things that still bring fragmented audiences together.
Measurement is the harder part. Digital-trained marketers expect instant, trackable results, but experiential success often shows up in slower metrics like brand awareness and repeat purchase. Levy's case is that these deserve the same weight as a click-through rate; marketers just need to build the patience and the reporting to back it up.
Read Levy's full interview on Marketing Dive for more on where she sees experiential heading next.
📺 Deep Dive: SEO Is Your Secret Registration Engine
In our latest piece, we break down why SEO isn't just a blog tactic anymore. For event teams, it's what links discovery, trust and ticket sales together, often before an attendee even lands on your page.
Top SEO moves driving results:
Match real search intent: Think "B2B networking in London," not internal campaign names like "annual flagship experience."
Front-load the essentials: Date, location, format, price, audience, and CTA should all be visible high on the page.
Win local and mobile discovery: Fast pages, clear venue details, and "near me" relevance matter more than most teams realise.
Reduce friction end to end: Event schema and clean checkout flows keep people moving from search result to confirmed ticket.
Mobile deserves special attention. More than half of event seekers use mobile to find information and buy tickets, so a slow page or buried CTA isn't a small UX issue, it's lost revenue.
Paid search gets expensive fast on popular event keywords, but strong SEO gives your best landing pages a longer shelf life and steadier registrations over time.
Want the full breakdown? Read the complete guide on LinkedIn.
Your Exhibit Hall Is Teaching More Than Your Keynote
New research from Freeman, reported by Skift Meetings, confirms something planners have suspected for years: Attendees learn more outside the session room than inside it. Based on responses from over 3,300 attendees and exhibitors, peer conversations and exhibitor moments now rival, or beat, traditional sessions for perceived value.
Key insights from the report:
Unstructured learning wins: Attendees want 54% of their learning time outside formal sessions, rising to 64% at trade shows.
The show floor is a classroom too: Exhibitors and peers are seen as real learning sources, not just sales stops.
Sponsorship isn't a dealbreaker: 84% of attendees view sponsored content neutrally or positively when it's disclosed and genuinely useful.
We can't just rely on the serendipity of the moment. We have to present those opportunities, market them, and put them in front of attendees like breadcrumbs throughout an event.
For organizers, the fix is designing the exhibit hall and networking spaces as part of the experience, not the leftover space around it.
Want the full picture? Skift Meetings' coverage digs into how Freeman's research is reshaping what "learning" means at live events.
Until Next Time!
That wraps up this edition of Event Dispatch. From connected fan data to fake ticket risk, tech sprawl to learning that happens off the agenda, one thread runs through all of it: the events that stand out are the ones built around trust and real human connection.
Have thoughts on any of these stories? We'd love to hear from you, especially if you're rethinking your tech stack or looking for new ways to prove the value of your events. Continue the conversation with us on LinkedIn or explore more insights on the Eventcube blog.
Here's to building events people actually remember. 🥂
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