Leadership / 01.14.19

Sponsor Spotlight: After Rapid Expansion, Patron Technology Gives Back at INTIX 2019

Doug James and Christine Payne

Brian Arnone first started selling tickets when he was just 19 years old. At the time, he was incredibly excited about getting into an industry where he could quickly find out where all the hot concerts were taking place. And how does he feel 23 years later?

“I really am more excited today to be a part of the industry than I was back then,” he says with earnest pride. “Who wouldn’t be thankful to be part of all this?”

All this is Patron Technology. Patron describes the company as enabling live event organizers to create better, more customized experiences for their ticket buyers and deeper, more profitable relationships with their sponsors through an integrated, industry-leading event technology solution. They have multiple product lines including ShowClix, Greencopper, Thuzi, Marcato, PatronManager, Ticketleap, FISH and SeatAdvisor.

“What makes Patron Technology so exciting is that it has a variety of products that help an event organizer support the entire lifecycle of their business and their events,” says Arnone. “Our business has expanded into a large variety of verticals that we reach worldwide with our mobile app technology and our plugin activation technology, as well as through fan and brand activation tools and our logistics products that help organizers manage their events from beginning to end.”

Patron Technology has come a long way and so too has Arnone. He is now President and Chief Revenue Officer for the company but has never forgotten his roots along the way.

Arnone recalls attending his first INTIX conference and exhibition in 2001 – new to ticketing but eager to learn as much as he could from his colleagues and others in the industry. Today, he is committed, both personally and as a corporate leader, to giving back to an industry that has been so good to him.

“As thought leaders in the industry, it is our responsibility to share with others and to learn from others. We’ve been in the industry for a long time, and we care about it. I believe thought leadership drives the industry further and it’s something that we want to be a part of, sharing our knowledge and obviously learning from others as well,” he said. “It’s a big reason just in general to attend and support the INTIX conference each year. We have a lot of people, not just from technology but from throughout the industry who have a lot of great ideas, who are doing interesting work and its important to share that.”

As a platinum sponsor and sponsor of the ENTERTAINMENT Village, the Patron Technology team will be sharing its expertise in a variety of ways at the 40th Annual INTIX Conference & Exhibition in Texas. The themed Villages take the highly popular INTIX ‘breakout by venue type’ sessions and re-envisions them to give attendees a better opportunity to zero in on their specific vertical-centric topics and spend more time, than just one session, developing deeper connections with their peers.

As part of the ENTERTAINMENT Village, attendees can learn about Special Exhibits and Pop-ups: Creating Emotional Attendee Experiences. In this interactive session, Patron Technology Vice President of Strategic Partnerships Jason Mastrine joins Jeff Lind of the Color Factory, Tammy Enright of National Veterans Memorial and Museum and Rebecca Throne of Burning Man to explore one of the hottest trends in brand marketing – interactive exhibits combining music, art, virtual reality and more in an immersive, hands-on experience.

“Special exhibits and pop-ups have taken the industry by storm,” says Arnone. “I really think it’s exciting to experience and learn about. We think it is important to share this at INTIX because of what we’ve learned about the ways these organizations are engaging with their audiences. There will be lot of interesting takeaways for those who attend.”

Other sessions featuring participants from Patron Technology include an Inspiration Stage presentation on Digital Habits of Arts Ticket Buyers: The Newest Insights, during which Michelle Paul, Managing Director of PatronManager, will reveal four years of new data, insights and lessons on the online habits, social media usage and ticket buying preferences of arts patrons.

While education has always been an essential part of the INTIX annual conference and exhibition, Arnone wishes he had attended more panels when he was first starting out in the industry – and as an INTIX attendee.

“I didn’t really go out of my comfort zone and take in other panel sessions or presentations that didn’t fully pertain to me. That’s one thing I would share – find at least one or two things that you really feel you have no business attending because they don’t affect you. If you go, I promise you will appreciate it,” he says.

As examples of topics that may not seem like they impact you directly, Amy Kline, INTIX Board member and Senior Client Support Manager for Patron Technology’s ShowClix product, will participate in two sessions that highlight important issues of safety and security. The first is all about Naloxone and will teach attendees how to recognize an overdose, explain how Naloxone works and illustrate how to use the medication. Kline is also scheduled to join a representative from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for Run, Hide, Fight: Preparing for and Reacting to an Active Shooter Incident.

Reflecting again on his own beginnings in ticketing, Arnone says he always took his work seriously even though, at the time, he didn’t realize or could not imagine just how important it is.

“What we do actually does have a major effect on the world around us,” he says. “I believe live events have the opportunity to change our lives. It’s not just the teams and the bands but really the people around it. For me, I know that, because I’m part of it. It’s from the people who sold me the ticket to the people who assisted me in entering the venue.”

Arnone continues, “I think it’s easy to say there are a lot of other industries that are doing a lot of important things in the world, but I really think the live event experience and being with people is so critical to our growth as human beings – especially with everything being so digital today, [with us all spending] so much [time] on our phones and being online. So, my advice is to take this seriously, take your part in this seriously. Whether you are the president of a company or the marketing agent for a variety of businesses or the person taking the phone order or the person selling a fan a ticket at the gate – you all play a major role in creating an experience that may change a person’s life.”

Connect with Brian Arnone and the Patron Technology team by visiting booth #407 at INTIX 2019.

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Tags: Security , Mobile , Consumer Preferences