How to ISSUE complimentary (free) tickets via Bulk Import
Introduction
Use the bulk import feature to issue large numbers of free tickets at once — for example for sponsors, Companion Card holders, or staff/volunteers.
- No customer or system charges apply.
- Only Free tickets can be issued through the tickets module or via the bulk upload function.
- Free tickets have no checkout, therefore no transaction or order confirmation is generated.
- Free tickets should not be used if you are expecting an incoming payment or you have already received money.
Before you start, you can contact your account manager for help setting up ticket types, configuring a Secret Shop (recommended), and confirming the required IDs (eventId, underShopId, ticketTypeId).
Reference: The underShopId is the unique ID assigned to the associated Secret Shop. Using a Secret Shop (underShopId) will ensure each free ticket has its own name, ticket ID, and price, allowing for better tracking and reporting.
How to create complimentary (free) ticket types and enable via a Secret Shop
Summary of the process
- Create free ticket types in your event (toggle Visibility OFF if these tickets are not intended for public sale)
- Create and configure a Secret Shop (recommended)
- Download, complete, and save the bulk upload template as a .csv
- Import the .csv file via the Tickets module
Help Guide
The following Instructions assume your Ticket Types and Secret Shop have already been configured. How to CREATE complimentary (free) ticket types and enable via a Secret Shop
Step 1 — Complete the Bulk Ticket import template
- Use the following link to access the Import Template: Download the Bulk Ticket Import Template
- Once opened, download your own copy and complete (our link is read only and can not be edited)
- Red columns = mandatory, do not delete
- Green columns = optional, delete if not needed (vs. using a placeholder)
- Each row = one ticket (even if multiple tickets go to the same person, use separate rows)
- Every field must be filled in.
Example: If, Company name is used some rows, but not all. You can use a placeholder (like an asterix * ) in the empty rows to ensure the import is successful
Example: Unknown address details for the ticket holder can be replaced with the event's address
- Country field must use the Alpha-2 country code format (e.g. AU, US)
- “UnderShopID” is the system name for the Secret Shop ID (recommended)
- Save the file as .csv
Refer to the instructions below to locate your eventId, underShopId (Secret Shop ID), and ticketTypeId.
- Example: Company name was not relevant for Peter Smith (line 3), so the placeholder ** was used to complete the field for a successful import as Rows 2 + 4 contained a Company value.
- Example: Street, City, and Postal information were unknown, so the event details were used and repeated for each ticket holder.
Step 2 - Complete the Bulk Ticket Import
Before you begin, double-check that your data is correctly completed and saved as a .csv file.
- Go to the Tickets module and click Import
- Give your import a name to identify the import job later (recommended)
- Click Select and choose your .csv file and select the CSV separator
- Select Customer data (assuming your import is new customer data)
- Toggle Send out tickets via Email on (or off if you don't want emails sent)
- Optionally, toggle Import to CRM and Require personalisation and data fields on or off. (Generally, we suggest leaving these off.)
- Optionally, click the Message field to enable a dropdown box, where you can customise a message
- Map your CSV columns to the system fields (this may auto-map if column names match)
- Optionally set Grouping (we generally recommend grouping by email - see below for more details and ensure this is correct for your usecase).
- Double-check all settings, then click Import
To find your import jobs later, click your name (bottom-left) and select Jobs.
Grouping
Grouping can be configured based on how you want the recipient to receive tickets—for example, as individual emails or as a single combined email when multiple tickets are sent to the same address.
| Grouping | How it works |
|---|---|
| Default - no grouping | Each ticket is sent individually—for example, 20 tickets across 20 rows will generate 20 separate emails. |
|
The system groups tickets by email and sends them in a single email (e.g. 20 tickets = 1 email with 20 attachments). If names differ across rows, the email will default to the first name listed (e.g. “Dear Peter Smith”). Tickets can still be downloaded, printed, or transferred to named individuals (if enabled), making this option ideal when the recipient is responsible for distribution. |
How do I locate my eventId, underShopId (Secret Shop) and ticketTypeId?
Open your event and locate the following:
| ID | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| eventId | Overview tab — click to copy |
| ticketTypeId | Ticket Categories tab — listed next to each ticket type |
| underShopId | Secret Shops tab → open the relevant shop → Information & Sales tab |
