Product Overview

Summary: This Ticketing Operations Standard Operating Procedure provides a clear, end‑to‑end framework for managing ticket sales, allocations, refunds and customer enquiries across your events or services. Designed for Australian organisations, it standardises how staff handle bookings, payments and compliance requirements, improving customer experience while protecting revenue and brand reputation.

Ticketing is often the first and most frequent touchpoint between your organisation and your customers. Whether you are running a performing arts venue, stadium, festival, tour operation, transport service or corporate events, inconsistent ticketing practices can quickly lead to overbookings, revenue leakage, privacy breaches and dissatisfied patrons. This Ticketing Operations Standard Operating Procedure brings all of your ticketing activities into a single, coherent framework so every team member knows exactly what to do, when to do it and how to document it.

The SOP covers the complete ticketing lifecycle, from event set-up and seat mapping in your ticketing system, through to sales channels (online, phone, in-person), payment handling, concessions and discounts, refunds and exchanges, accessibility bookings, and reporting. It has been developed with Australian consumer law, privacy obligations and financial controls in mind, helping you manage risk while maintaining a smooth customer journey. By implementing this SOP, organisations can reduce errors, shorten training time for new staff, and gain clear, auditable processes that support growth and repeat business.

Key Benefits

• Standardise ticketing workflows across online, phone and in‑person channels to ensure a consistent customer experience.
• Reduce financial and reputational risk by clearly defining approvals, refund rules and reconciliation processes.
• Improve operational efficiency by giving staff step‑by‑step procedures for common and complex ticketing scenarios.
• Enhance compliance with Australian consumer, privacy and financial record‑keeping requirements.
• Shorten onboarding and training time for new ticketing and front‑of‑house staff with clear, role‑based instructions.

Who is this for?

• Ticketing Managers
• Box Office Supervisors
• Venue Managers
• Event Managers
• Customer Service Team Leaders
• Front-of-House Coordinators
• Call Centre Supervisors
• Business Operations Managers
• Systems and CRM Administrators

Included Sections

• 1.0 Purpose and Scope
• 2.0 Definitions and Key Terms
• 3.0 Roles and Responsibilities
• 4.0 Ticketing Systems and Access Controls
• 5.0 Event and Service Set-Up Procedures
• 6.0 Seat Mapping, Capacity and Allocation Rules
• 7.0 Sales Channels (Online, Phone, In‑Person, Third-Party Vendors)
• 8.0 Pricing, Discounts, Promotions and Concessions
• 9.0 Bookings, Reservations and Payment Processing
• 10.0 Refunds, Exchanges and Cancellations
• 11.0 Accessibility, Companion Cards and Special Requirements
• 12.0 Customer Enquiries, Complaints and Escalation
• 13.0 Financial Reconciliation and Cash Handling Interfaces
• 14.0 Data Protection, Privacy and Record-Keeping
• 15.0 Reporting, Reconciliation and Audit Trail Management
• 16.0 Business Continuity and System Outage Procedures
• 17.0 Training, Competency and Review of the SOP

Legislation & References

• Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010)
• Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and Australian Privacy Principles (APPs)
• Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) – financial records and reporting obligations
• ASIC Regulatory Guide 000-series (as applicable to financial record-keeping and consumer disclosure)
• AS ISO 10002:2018 – Quality management – Customer satisfaction – Guidelines for complaints handling in organizations