Sell Tickets to a Book Club Event: Introducing Meeting Tickets

You can now sell tickets to a meeting or an event through Bookclubs. Whether you're charging for your monthly meeting or a special event like an author visit or holiday party, members pay by card and Bookclubs keeps track of who's paid, so you're not chasing Venmo requests the week of the event.

Sell tickets to a meeting

Upgrade your club to sell tickets for any meeting. 

• Collect payment ahead of time. Members pay by card, and the money goes to your club's Stripe account.
• Your guest list builds itself. Buying a ticket RSVPs the member automatically, so everyone marked Yes has paid.
• Check people in at the door right from your attendee list, or download it as a spreadsheet from the website.
• See exactly what your club keeps before you set a price. Buyers pay the price you set, with no surprise fees at checkout.
• Members get a confirmation email with their receipt and a calendar invite, so the meeting is already on their calendar.
• If plans change, refunds happen automatically when you cancel.

How to set up a ticketed meeting

You can sell tickets to a meeting from the website or the app. The first time, your club also connects a Stripe account so you can get paid. That step happens on the website, and if you start in the app, it'll take you there.

On the website:

1. As a club admin, create a new meeting or edit an upcoming one.
2. Just below Limit the number of RSVPs, check Sell tickets to this meeting.
3. If your club hasn't connected Stripe yet, pick a finance admin, then click Connect Stripe to connect a bank account. Stripe opens in a new tab, and your meeting stays where you left it. When you're done, come back and click Check connection status.
4. The first time, choose your club's currency (US dollars, Canadian dollars, or British pounds) and click Save currency. This applies to all of your club's payments and can't be changed later.
5. Enter a Ticket price (minimum $5.00). As you type, Bookclubs shows what the buyer pays, Stripe's processing fee, the Bookclubs fee of $1 per ticket (a fixed equivalent for Canadian and UK clubs), and what your club receives.
6. Save the meeting.

In the app:

1. When you create or edit a meeting, turn on Sell tickets to this meeting.
2. If your club hasn't connected Stripe yet, tap Create on website. The meeting form opens on the website, already signed in, so you can connect Stripe and finish the meeting there. Next time, you can do everything in the app.
3. Once Stripe is connected, enter a Ticket price, check what your club will receive, and save the meeting.

How members buy a ticket

On the website, members click Buy ticket on the meeting, either on your club's meetings page or the meeting's own page. They pay on Stripe's checkout page and come back to the meeting with their ticket confirmed and their RSVP set to Yes.

In the app, members tap Buy ticket on the meeting, then Continue. The app opens the meeting in their browser, already signed in, where they finish checkout. Back in the app, the meeting shows Purchased.

How to see who's paid and check people in

Club admins and the meeting's creator and host can see every ticket holder on the meeting's attendee list. Names on the list match the name on the card each person paid with, which makes checking people in at the door easy.

On the website:

1. On the meeting, click the attendee count (for example, 12 people attending) to open the attendee list.
2. As people arrive, tick the box next to their name in the Check-in column. The top of the list keeps count, for example "8 of 12 checked in."
3. To print a door list or keep a record, click Download CSV. You'll get a spreadsheet with each person's name, RSVP, ticket status, and whether they've checked in.

In the app, open the meeting and scroll to the attendee list. Tap the box in the Checked in column as each person arrives.

Common questions

Do members need a ticket to RSVP?
Yes. On a ticketed meeting, members need a ticket to RSVP Yes, and buying one RSVPs them automatically.

Does the host need a ticket?
No. The meeting creator and the meeting's host attend free. Other club admins buy a ticket like any other member.

How do RSVP limits work with tickets?
If you limit RSVPs, that limit is the number of tickets for sale. The meeting creator and host don't use up a seat.

Can I sell tickets to a virtual meeting?
Yes. With Bookclubs video meetings, members need a ticket to join the video room. Anyone who tries without one is sent to the meeting page to buy a ticket. Guests from outside the club, like a visiting author, can still wait in the waiting room for you to let them in. If you use your own Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams link instead, Bookclubs can't stop people without a ticket from joining, so choose Bookclubs video if you only want ticket holders in the room.

What happens if I cancel the meeting?
Delete the meeting and confirm with Delete & Refund. Everyone who bought a ticket gets a full refund automatically, plus an email letting them know. Refunds go back to the card they paid with and can take a few business days to show up.

When do members get a calendar invite?
Only after they buy a ticket. For a regular meeting, the calendar invite goes out with the new meeting and reminder emails. For a ticketed meeting, those emails show a Purchase your ticket button instead, and the calendar invite comes with the purchase confirmation. That way the meeting only lands on the calendars of people who are coming. If you later change the date, time, or location, ticket holders get an update email with a refreshed invite.

Can I change the ticket price?
Yes, until the first ticket sells. After that, the price is locked.

Can I sell tickets to a recurring meeting?
Prices are set one meeting at a time, so you can't put a price on a whole recurring series. Create the series first, then price each meeting.

Meeting tickets are available to clubs upgraded to our highest tier, on the website and in the iOS and Android apps.

Have a special meeting coming up? Put a price on it. 📚

Not a Bookclubs member yet? Join Bookclubs and find or start a book club today.