Why Ticket Tree is a Winner

Hey everyone, this will be a longer, more informative read on why Ticket Tree is primed for success. The vision is big, I hope this makes it clearer.

The History of Sports Trading Cards

Sports trading cards have long been a beloved cornerstone of fan culture, and today, they represent a thriving $10.71 billion industry. Across baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey, and football, trading cards serve as cherished keepsakes and investments. But their journey to this point has been anything but smooth.

In the 1950s, Topps emerged as the leader in the trading card industry, securing exclusive rights to MLB and shaping the modern trading card market. By the 1980s, companies like Donruss and Fleer entered the market, leading to its rapid expansion. However, overproduction in the 1990s created market saturation, causing many collectors to lose interest. The market was revived in the 2010s with innovations like limited-edition cards, autographs, and memorabilia, which reignited excitement among collectors.

The digital age brought further transformation. Platforms like eBay and StockX revolutionized how fans trade cards:

• In 2021, eBay processed $871 million in GMV from trading cards.

• By 2023, its collectibles category surpassed $10 billion in GMV, highlighting the enduring appeal of this market.

Despite this success, a critical flaw persists: teams and issuing companies earn no royalties from fan-to-fan trades, where 90-95% of lifetime trading value for rare and high-value cards resides. Instead, platforms like eBay capture the majority share of this revenue. For teams and leagues, this represents a massive missed opportunity.

The Transition to Digital Collectibles

The rise of digital collectibles has further reshaped the trading card market, for example, NBA Top Shot. Launched by Dapper Labs, Top Shot allows fans to purchase and trade NBA highlights stored on the blockchain.

Fans purchase collectibles through “packs,” which are priced based on rarity and content, but purchases are randomized. A fan-to-fan marketplace enables trading using Dapper Balance or credit cards, making it accessible to a tech-savvy audience. Once acquired, these collectibles are stored on the Flow Blockchain, offering proof of ownership and a digital showcase for fans to display and share.

While imaginative, Top Shot has faced significant challenges:

• Market Volatility: The unpredictable value of Moments has frustrated collectors, many of whom saw their investments devalue as supply grew.

• Accessibility Challenges: High demand for limited Moments led to distribution issues, leaving many fans disappointed.

• Lack of Real-World Utility: Fans expected tangible benefits like event access or gamified experiences, but these features have been sparse. Additionally, host organizations have seen no direct impact on attendance rates or ticket sales, limiting Top Shot’s broader value.

Solana: The Superior Blockchain for Fan Engagement

One of the core issues with NBA Top Shot and similar platforms lies in the limitations of their underlying blockchain technology. Flow Blockchain, while functional, struggles to match the performance and scalability offered by Solana, the blockchain Ticket Tree leverages.

Comparing Blockchain Performance:

• Transaction Speed: Flow’s maximum recorded TPS (transactions per second) is 103, while Solana achieves a staggering 7,300 TPS under real-world conditions.

• Theoretical Capacity: Flow’s theoretical maximum is 3,900 TPS, far below Solana’s potential of 65,000 TPS.

Why Solana Matters for Fans and Hosts:

• Scalability: Solana’s high throughput ensures seamless experiences during high-demand events, such as ticket drops or collectible sales.

• Low Costs: Transactions on Solana are significantly cheaper, reducing fees for both fans and host organizations.

• Reliability: Solana’s infrastructure is designed for speed and efficiency, preventing the bottlenecks and delays that plague other platforms.

By choosing Solana, Ticket Tree ensures a more robust, scalable, and cost-effective ecosystem for digital ticketing and collectibles. This superior technology underpins Ticket Tree’s ability to offer an unparalleled fan experience.

The Current State of Ticketing

Ticketing, much like trading cards, is fraught with inefficiencies and frustrations for both host organizations and fans. Traditional ticketing systems come with a host of pain points that undermine the fan experience and limit revenue potential.

For host organizations, the challenges include:

• High Costs and Revenue Sharing: Incumbent providers charge exorbitant fees, often eating into profitability.

• Minimal Control Over Pricing and Distribution: Hosts have little flexibility to manage ticket access, pricing, or resale markets.

• Fragmented Systems: Poor integration with CRM tools leads to gaps in fan data, limiting personalized marketing opportunities.

• Fraud and Scalping: Counterfeit tickets and bot activity undermine trust and fairness in ticketing.

• Outdated Technology: Clunky, inefficient platforms make ticket sales cumbersome for both hosts and fans.

Fans face their own set of frustrations:

• Frustrating Purchase Experiences: Long queues, hidden fees, and technical glitches leave fans dissatisfied before the event even begins.

• Perception of Unfairness: Scalping and opaque pricing practices create resentment toward ticket providers.

• No Added Value: Traditional tickets are transactional, offering no lasting keepsakes, loyalty rewards, or real-world perks, leaving fans feeling underappreciated.

The result? Host organizations lose potential revenue, and fans feel disconnected, making it harder to drive attendance and build loyalty.

Why Ticket Tree is the Solution

Ticket Tree bridges the gap between the innovation of digital collectibles and the inefficiencies of traditional ticketing.

For host organizations, Ticket Tree represents a transformative opportunity:

• Revenue Optimization: Tickets are transformed into digital collectibles that continue to generate revenue through secondary market royalties.

• Data Ownership: Host organizations retain full access to fan data, enabling targeted marketing and improved engagement.

• Fraud Prevention: Built on blockchain, Ticket Tree ensures secure, transparent transactions that eliminate counterfeiting and scalping.

• Enhanced Fan Profiling: By incentivizing fans to share digital collectibles on social media in exchange for points toward their next ticket purchase, Ticket Tree helps hosts gather valuable insights, including social media profiles and engagement data, for deeper fan profiling and tailored outreach.

For fans, Ticket Tree reimagines the ticketing and collectible experience:

• Lower Barriers to Entry: Fans automatically receive unique, authentic collectibles with their initial ticket purchase, eliminating the need for additional spending as seen on platforms like Top Shot.

• Collectibility and Gamification: Tickets become digital keepsakes with gamified features, fostering deeper emotional connections.

• Real-World Perks: Collectibles unlock tangible benefits, such as future ticket discounts, loyalty rewards, and exclusive experiences.

• Streamlined Purchases: A seamless, user-friendly platform ensures fans can purchase tickets without frustration.

Ticket Tree isn’t just a ticketing platform; it’s a gateway to the future of fan engagement and sports memorabilia. By blending the best of trading card innovation with a fresh approach to ticketing, Ticket Tree is positioned to redefine how fans and host organizations connect.

I hope this helps you see why Ticket Tree is a golden ticket.

Talk soon,
Elijah