Selling event tickets online in Kenya isn’t always smooth. Many organisers still prefer direct sales, fraud is common, and most ticketing platforms don’t offer much beyond processing payments. GiG, an event ticketing platform launched in 2018, was created to address these challenges.
“We started GiG after realizing a lot of the ticketing solutions simply ended at providing tickets and left event organisers with a hard time handling the rest of the attendee management process,” David Reed, co-founder and CEO of GiG, told . “We built GiG to solve this by helping event organizers build communities instead of starting the journey at the ticket purchase.”
With tools for messaging, polls, and audience analytics, the platform allows organisers to build communities around their events. Instead of treating ticket sales as a one-time transaction, organisers engage attendees before, during, and after an event.
“Our focus is mostly on event organisers who wish to build a community of their attendees,” Reed added.
Competing with rivals
Kenya already has ticketing platforms like TicketSasa and Eventbrite in the market. So what makes GiG different?
“Unlike other ticketing platforms, we focus on using the data collected and volunteered by the attendees to build interest-based profiles for them and link them with similar events and other like-minded individuals, making events a more social experience,” Reed explained.
GiG tracks attendee data to build interest-based profiles, using algorithms to predict future events attendees might be interested in. This allows organisers to send targeted event invitations based on individual preferences and past behaviour.
In addition to concerts, organisers can also list free events, conferences, and corporate gatherings.
Other ticketing platforms, such as Eventbrite, offer ticketing for both entertainment and corporate events, but their focus rarely goes beyond registration and basic promotion. GiG claims it is structured differently since it combines ticket sales with advanced audience engagement tools, fraud prevention measures, and post-event analytics.
Attendees can interact through chat forums, photo sharing, and live streams. Each event also comes with its mobile app, allowing organisers to gather feedback, view attendee data, and stay connected after the event ends. The goal is to make the event more than just a one-off experience.
“They do have options for further communication with guests such as surveys and texts post-event,” Dayvee Murebu, who used GiG twice to organise a game night with Kenyan tech publication Techweez, told .
How GiG makes money
Reed admitted to that revenue is inconsistent throughout the year. Some months are packed with events, while others are slow.
GiG’s packages range from a free basic tier with ticketing—the platform charges 6% on ticket sales—SMS, and check-ins, to paid plans starting at KES 8,700 ($67). Higher tiers add email and social media tools, analytics, custom event apps, badge printing, and on-site support. An enterprise plan (from KES 27,000 or $208) offers full white labelling and extended technical help.
Unlike other ticketing platforms that rely solely on transaction fees, GiG lets organisers use its tools between events for communication and audience management, though this is not available on the free basic tier.
The technology behind the platform
The platform gives organisers full access to ticketing and attendee data, with tools to segment users based on past attendance and stated interests.
According to Reed, a background algorithm checks for unusual purchase patterns by comparing transactions against event-specific thresholds. These thresholds, which define acceptable ticket quantities per buyer, are adjustable on request.
The system uses real-time payment APIs for M-PESA and card transactions for instant reconciliation and fund access. Once an event is marked as cancelled, refunds are processed directly through the organiser dashboard, and logs are maintained for traceability.
Preventing ticket fraud and scalping
Kenya is no stranger to several high-profile ticket fraud cases, including the recent Kenya vs. Gabon football match, where tickets were hoarded and resold at inflated prices. A similar issue occurs during holidays, when demand for Madaraka Express tickets between Nairobi and Mombasa increases, leading to scarcity. Some people buy tickets in bulk and resell them at higher prices to travellers who missed the official sale. The lack of strict resale restrictions allows this to happen.
GiG employs a data-driven approach to monitor transactions, with specific mechanisms in place to detect and prevent fraud based on user behaviour and purchase patterns. These include blocking or limiting ticket access when the system detects purchasing patterns common with ticket fraud, according to Reed.
“The platform flags suspicious purchases with each event having a preset number of purchases that are within the safe threshold of purchase. This can be adjusted by the event organiser on request as well,” Reed explained.
Some ticketing platforms hold customer funds until after the event, which can lead to disputes. GiG uses real-time reconciliation to process transactions for immediate fund access and to reduce potential disputes. “This reduces disputes. If an issue arises, we have logs to resolve it quickly.”
Payments are not limited to M-PESA, as the platform also supports card payments.
Growth and funding plans
Most of GiG’s growth has been driven by referrals and word-of-mouth, with customer acquisition costs kept low at $5 per organiser. The platform claims it has handled over 500 events, sold over 80,000 tickets, and processed over $200,000 in revenue, with the majority coming from corporate clients.
The company has been bootstrapped but is now looking at raising external funding to expand.
Kenya’s ticketing fraud problem is still a challenge, and many organisers want better audience retention tools. GiG believes that modern event ticketing requires more than just ticket sales; it needs tools for ongoing audience engagement and post-event analysis.
