Goldstar.com CEO Jim McCarthy

Goldstar.com, the Southern California-based, membership-driven discount event ticket seller made Philadelphia its 21st market in September. Now, Goldstar CEO Jim McCarthy writes about why Philly was the right choice and how the company is differentiating itself.

Studies show most people wish they went out more. Yet most of the time – and the statistics back this up – they do not. They watch movies on the couch instead.

And yet while all of these wannabe ticket-buyers are warming their sofas at home, concert halls, theaters and arenas put on shows to half-filled audiences. A costly business problem, not unlike the plane that takes off mostly empty.

Fortunately, it’s a challenge we’re helping Philadelphia solve with technology. Goldstar.com, which launched in Philly in late September, sells tickets to events and venues like the Philadelphia Film & Music Festival and the Philadelphia Orchestra for half-price, helping people find budget-friendly ideas for going out – and driving additional revenue for the local live entertainment industry.

The site’s features are all designed to make “going out more” as convenient as possible – with a wide range of event options, newsletters personalized to users’ tastes and an extensive user review section.

In fact, in August, just before coming to Philly, we went live with a patent-pending feature called “Sit with Friends,” which sends users a personalized URL after they buy tickets to share with friends – anyone who buys tickets to the same show through that link is automatically seated with their friends. We think it will solve a very common and frustrating problem for groups looking to go out together.

Indeed, we expect overall Goldstar membership and event selections in Philadelphia to double by the end of the year.

So why Philly?

A lot of reasons, not least of which is the city’s active online audience – we found there to be a very active, young, professional crowd with an appetite for making plans via social and review sites. Our greatest city successes have been those where the 20-somethings and 30-somethings are plugged in, and looking for date ideas and nights out on the weekend.

We combined that with Philadelphia’s particularly vibrant cultural and arts offerings. There’s no doubt the place has some of the most spectacular live entertainment options of any U.S. city. People won’t buy just any tickets, after all – we have to provide them some compelling options.

Combine the two, and coming to Philly just made good business sense.

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TicketLeap saved bicycle racing in Philadelphia.

Or at least the Center City-based event-planning ticketing service provider was one of many partners that helped make sure the 25th annual Philadelphia Cycling Championship was possible, even after a city budget hole left the international race short $500,000.

The company doubled their ticketing of VIP seating with merchandising and donation soliciting to help bring cash to the June 7th race, famed for its chase of the “Manayunk Wall”

While they were saving racing, TicketLeap was also introducing Anywhere, which just might be the first product allowing users to create a virtual box office out of an Internet-enabled computer.

The product is aimed at event organizers of any size, helping them handle online ticket sales on the phone, at a venue door or otherwise.

Watch a demo below

The cloud-based software includes bar code scanning, priority seating and other venue customization. The company, whose services are used by more than 8,000 venues and organizers nationwide, charges a fee for each ticket sold. No software, hardware or contracts are required, and setup is free and available online.

“It’s only a matter of time before every ticket you buy comes from web-based ticketing software like this,” TicketLeap CEO Chris Stanchak said in a press release. “There’s really no comparison when it comes to cost, convenience and flexibility.”

And who wouldn’t use a ticketing service that supports athelticism and your right to scream at competitive bicyclists with a beer in your hand at nine a.m.?

TicketLeap has other regional users, including the city’s annual video game expo and the Philadelphia Force — yes, that’s right, your hometown professional women’s softball team, says company spokesman Blake Jennelle.

Get your tickets while you can.