How We Priced Our Pay-Per-View Live Stream Events
We have decided here at Saultsports TV (TruHous Media) that pay-per-view (PPV) live streaming is a good strategy for our organization, and that’s great—it means you have confidence in the value of our content and its ability to contribute to the bottom line. But pulling our PPV off successfully depends in large part on one thing: our price point.
How did we set event prices that maximize customer satisfaction and engagement, yet bring in enough money to make it all worthwhile? From experience I can tell you it’s not always easy, but it is absolutely possible.
4 Considerations For Accurately Pricing Our Pay-Per-View Live Stream
This is how we came to set an appropriate price for our live stream content you need to consider the following:
- Who is your target audience?
Will those watching your PPV primarily be locals (i.e. people who would attend in person but can’t for a specific reason), or will our event have national appeal? Our anticipated audience plays into the amount you can charge.
-> If our event will attract mostly locals, our pricing should be equal to or cheaper than the actual event. You can’t reasonably charge more to watch a live stream than it costs to attend the event in person, or people simply won’t watch. Our PPV should be offered at somewhat of a discount to make it worthwhile for people to stay home vs. going. If your event is free, however, there will always be people who want to attend but can’t; in that case, a fair price—usually erring on the lower side—will attract viewers. Some youth, high school, and college sports, regional events of all kinds, or small entertainment events featuring local performers are all examples of live stream events that have local appeal.
-> If our event has national appeal we have priced it as low as possible to encourage a greater number of viewers. Having a low price point has an added benefit: it helps avoid any potentially negative backlash on social media that naturally takes place if people think something is too expensive. Too-high pricing is also more likely to dissuade people from viewing any of our organization’s future live streaming events. - What are our viewers willing to pay?
There will always be people who object to paying for content, and some audiences may be tougher than others. You won’t be able to please everyone, so the best strategy is charge what the majority of viewers would consider to be a reasonable price at the start. Remember, for many people our live stream is the only way they can get access to an event, so they will be willing to pay. - What is the value of your content?
Having said the above, people will be willing to pay if they see value in our content. Think about it this way: If you compare our production to one taking place in a multi-level theatre, is our the one with low audio, where the camera sits in the balcony seat not zoomed in all the way? Or is it the one that switches between cameras to get up close and personal with the action? In other words, if our production is really impressive, some viewers may appreciate watching a well-done live stream more than watching the event in person. It takes time to work our way up to this kind of high-quality production, but before you start charging, be sure our product will at least leave viewers satisfied. - What are our PPV live streaming goals?
Some organizations charge for their live streaming content to generate revenue; others do it to cover the costs of production and equipment. We reinvest the money we earn back into their programs, buying new equipment little by little to increase both the quality and quantity of their productions. Over time, those small investments will make their live stream content even more valuable in the future. With this in mind, consider what our own organization’s goal is for pay-per-view live streaming. If the revenue from PPV is intended to cover the costs of our production, you can set lower a lower price than if we looking to make enough to buy new equipment.
Want some help finding our pricing sweet spot?
Pricing a pay-per-view live stream can be a challenge, which is why we work closely with all our clients to help determine fair prices and assess how their monetization strategy is progressing. We can also help you create monetization packages, which give our viewers the flexibility to watch as much or as little as they want—and maximize the revenue potential. Remember when youth, high school, and collegiate sports are covered by other media outlets, they are selling advertising to their clients to cover the cost of the production of their coverage to your event.
Saultsports TV Subscriptions
- $79.99 yearly ($6.67 per month – $1.32 per month savings)
- $31.99 specific sport season
- $7.99 monthly (cancel anytime)
- $3.99 per game
We Offer a High School Support Program and why should you join in?
The High School Support Program will distribute $0.79 per monthly for every subscription to the school you choose to support while when you choose to purchase an annual subscription the school will receive $7.99 for every annual subscription that is purchased as well as $3.99 for every specific sport season subscription you choose to support.
Listen Live
Saultsports Radio will be launched on September 2021. All Saultsports TV events will be able to be listened to for FREE on our Saultsports Radio Mixlr app and Saultsports Radio webpage.
