Scanning tickets

If you only have a small number of ticket sales for a session (e.g. less than 50) and you already know your audience well, it may not be necessary to scan tickets at the door of your event. But for an event with a larger number of attendees scanning tickets ensures everyone entering the venue has a legitimately purchased ticket, and each ticket allows access to only one person.

Mobile ticket scanning

Scan tickets quickly & easily using the free Mighty Tix scanning app for iPhone or Android. After downloading the app from the Apple App Store & launching it, start scanning by logging in with your account URL (e.g. "demo.mightytix.com"), your account email address, and your password. Choose a session and start scanning right away.

When you're presented with a ticket, simply point your iPhone camera at the ticket's barcode and the ticket will be scanned. You'll see a confirmation letting you know the purchaser name and ticket type, and you'll hear an audible success beep unless your device is muted. If you scan the same ticket twice, you'll see a visual warning as well as hearing a warning tone to let you know the ticket may not be valid.

Desktop/tablet ticket scanning

You can also scan tickets using any web-connected device with at least one camera. This includes most Android mobile phones, tablets, laptops with built-in cameras, or even dektop computers with a camera attached.

To start scanning simply log into your Mighty Tix administration console and click on the Scan tab. Choose which session you'd like to scan tickets for, and your camera preference.

Camera preference

Many devices have both front-facing and back-facing cameras including most iPhone and Android mobile phones, and tablets such as the Apple iPad. You can choose which of these cameras you'd prefer to use depending on how you'll be scanning tickets for this session.

If you have someone at the door whose role is to hold the scanning device to validate tickets, they'll find it most comfortable to scan using their device's back camera. This will allow them to easily position the ticket behind the device (or move the device in front of the ticket) and see the scan notifications or alerts on the screen.

Alernatively if you have a device set up for self-scanning – for example a tablet by the door – this will be easiest to use when the device's front camera is selected. Attendees will be able to position their ticket in front of the device's camera, and also see the scan result on screen.

Scanning

Each Mighty Tix ticket has a square barcode called a QR Code in the top right corner of the ticket. These codes uniquely identify the ticket and are able to be scanned easily even if they're somewhat folded, torn, or otherwise damaged. The scanning software then verifies whether the ticket is valid for entry to the session, marks the ticket as having been allowed entry so duplicate tickets can't be presented later, and notifies the person scanning of the result.

Feedback

If the ticket that's been scanned is valid for the session a green tick icon will appear on the scanner screen. If sound is on this will be accompanied by a short, high-pitch beep to indicate a successful scan. The ticket purchaser's name will be shown on screen briefly along with the ticket type they've purchased. These details may be used by the person scanning to direct the attendee appropriately and to personalize the experience.

If the ticket presented has already been scanned previously a yellow warning exclamation mark icon will be shown, along with the message DUPLICATE TICKET. This will be accompanied by a long, low-pitched buzz to warn that the scan was unsuccessful. Details of the ticket type and purchaser will also be shown, as with a successful scan.

A ticket that has been refunded, or which was purchased for a different event or session, will show a warning saying INVALID TICKET when scanned. Likewise a ticket for which the code is unrecognised will say UNKNOWN TICKET. Both will be shown with a red icon with a cross, and accompanied by a long, low-pitched buzz.

Reporting

Above the scanner screen is a progress bar which shows the total number of tickets expected for the session, and the number that have been scanned so far.

With this information it's easy to see at a glance how many people are currently already in the venue, and how many more are likely to arrive. This information can be used for safety purposes and depending on the type of event and venue, might also be used for example to decide whether more tickets can be sold – given the current time and the likelihood of some ticketholders not making an appearance.