PRICED OUT: Ways to save money on concert tickets music to the ears
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Columbus is a red-hot concert market right now, according to Dave Redelberger, aka 'Dave the Arena Dude'.
Redelberger is the director of communications and interactive marketing for the Schottenstein Center, Nationwide Arena, and Ohio Stadium, taking care of all the big events and shows.
"Columbus loves live music," he said. "So for a lot of tours, Columbus is outselling Cleveland, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati."
But many of those red-hot concerts come with red-hot, high-priced tickets, leaving many people feeling priced out.
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These days tickets for most big-name shows start at three figures.
But Redelberger said it’s not just a concert ticket.
"It’s a memory. It is an experience," he said.
Redelberger said there are ways to get that experience without breaking the bank.
"What you really want to do is try to be in on the tickets when they go on sale, or better yet be a part of the pre-sale," he said.
He said sometimes you can get deals not offered to the general public by liking the venue's social media pages.
"We will have special offers. Around the holidays recently, we did a $25 concert week that we do annually for people to buy tickets for several shows. We sold thousands of tickets for $25, that’s all including ticketing fees and everything."
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Sometimes ticket prices to concerts in smaller cities can be cheaper.
Some TV shows, like Good Day Columbus, or local radio stations give away free tickets.
He said another option is getting a job at the arena.
"My dad loved live music, " he said. "Wanted to be around it, but it wasn’t always in the budget to do as many shows as he would like. So he got a job as an usher."
He said sometimes concert fans can take advantage of the 'day-of' deal, too.
"Depending on where the stage goes, some seats open up. And so we have a couple hundred seats open up on the day of the show. On the day of the show, you can come down and buy tickets from our box office, and when you do on-site at the box office, you can save a few bucks on those ticketing fees that can definitely add up."
As far as Dave the Arena Dude is concerned, nothing beats live music.
"There’s nothing like that live experience of sitting shoulder to shoulder with your best friend or your kid or your spouse and you’re singing along to your favorite songs and you know surrounded by you know 10- 15,000 other people," he said. "That’s truly a unique experience."
He called it a musical memory worth every penny.
