SELL SELL SELL (more tickets)

What We Learned from Last Week’s Ticket Sales Dip

Last week, we saw a 20% drop in ticket sales across all comedians on Punchup compared to the previous week (March 30 – April 5 vs. March 23 – March 29). The timing tracked almost perfectly with a broader stock market correction, which makes sense—live entertainment is a discretionary expense. When economic uncertainty hits, people tend to hold off on non-essentials like comedy shows.

But here's where it gets interesting: not everyone was affected equally.

While the overall average dropped, two groups of comedians bucked the trend:

• Comedians who sent at least one email to fans promoting a show only saw a 3.41% decline in sales.
• Comedians who uploaded content on Punchup saw a 41% increase in ticket sales.

Even I was skeptical when I first saw these numbers. But the more we dug in, the more it started to make sense.

Why Email Still Works

Emails are powerful for driving ticket sales—but usually for specific dates. Most comedians send their emails midweek (Tuesday or Wednesday) to promote that weekend’s shows. It’s effective, but often targeted to a single show or short run. So while emails helped cushion the dip, they weren’t enough to counteract the broader market pullback.

Why Posting Content on Punchup Is a Game-Changer

Comedians who posted content had two major advantages that drove their spike in sales:

1. Cross-platform promotion: Many comedians promoted their new Punchup content on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube. This brought fans over to watch the content—where they were also exposed to local tour dates and ticket links.

2. Punchup’s growing audience: Last week, Punchup had 179,663 unique visitors. Freshly uploaded content was featured at the top of our feed, getting major visibility. In fact, 13% of ticket buyers for those comedians over the last week came directly from this organic Punchup traffic.

The Takeaway for Comedians

If you're trying to fill a specific date:
Send that email. It still performs 20x+ better than a high-performing Instagram Story, TikTok, or YouTube post.

But if you're looking to grow your audience and sell more tickets overall:
Post content on Punchup. It gives your current fans a reason to leave social media and actually engage with your work—plus, it helps new fans discover you on Punchup’s own feed.

Better yet...do both :)

Want help getting started with content or email strategy? Reach out to Hello@punchup.live. We’re here to help you turn followers into ticket buyers.