Toppers in Concert ticket sales: five years from reach to ticket

Toppers in Concert is the annual concert series by René Froger, Jeroen van der Boom, Gerard Joling and Jan Smit in the Johan Cruijff ArenA. For five years we have looked after the online presence around those concerts, and so the online side of Toppers in Concert ticket sales too. From the first reach to the ticket sold.

I call this one of the most enjoyable projects we have. Not because it is the most complex technically, but because every year you see again whether it works. There is one night that counts, and the venue has to be full for it. Below you can read what that yearly rhythm looks like.

What do Toppers in Concert ticket sales need online?

A concert series that returns every year has its own rhythm. The announcement, the start of ticket sales and the weeks before the concerts each ask something different of the online presence. Between two editions, the audience mustn't lose sight of Toppers either. In the end, one thing counts: that people buy a ticket.

That last point sounds harsh, but it's true. Reach without sales gets you nothing. Sales without reach stay small. That is why we never treat visitors or clicks as a goal in themselves. A nice traffic spike looks good in a screenshot. A full ArenA is the real result.

The tricky thing about a yearly rhythm like this is that you don't get a second chance within the same edition. An online store with a bad week has customers again the next week. A concert series with a bad start to ticket sales can't get that moment back.

Why does the whole route sit with us?

Because reach and sales need each other. For Toppers, the whole route sits with us: from the moment someone comes across Toppers online to the moment that person buys a ticket. So nobody has to wait for another agency.

I believe strongly in that setup. As soon as reach sits with one party and sales with another, they point at each other when the numbers disappoint. When everything sits with one party, there is only one address. That is sometimes uncomfortable, but it is honest.

How does the online presence move with each edition?

Each edition has its own theme, and the online presence follows it. In 2026 that was 'The Summer is Magic', on Friday 19 and Saturday 20 June in the Johan Cruijff ArenA. Online, the theme, the dates and the guest artists then take centre stage, so a visitor knows at a glance what it is about.

In 2026 those guest artists were Londonbeat, La Fuente, Anita Meyer, Jason Donovan, Mart Hoogkamer, Effe Serieus, Frans Bauer and Emma Heesters. A list like that is more than a line-up. For part of the audience, a guest artist is exactly the reason to go this year.

The start of ticket sales

Ticket sales for 2026 started on 22 December 2025. From that moment, everything online revolved around one question: when do you buy your ticket? The top of the site read 'Tickets nu verkrijgbaar' (tickets now available), with the 'Koop tickets' (buy tickets) button right in view. No hunting through menus, no text to read first.

On a day like that, less often works better. Anyone who comes to the site wants just one thing. So you have to give it to them straight away.

Before, during and after the concerts

After the concerts, the tone changes. Then there is a thank-you: 'Thank you for two amazing concerts! See you next year!' That keeps the audience engaged until the next edition is announced. Then the cycle starts again, with a new theme and a new kick-off of Toppers in Concert ticket sales.

That rhythm carries through on the phone as well. The ticket sales, that year's edition and the thank-you page look just as clear on mobile as on a laptop.

Why does the atmosphere need to come across online?

Because people don't buy a ticket for a seat, but for a night out. A Toppers concert is a night in a packed Johan Cruijff ArenA, with an audience that dresses up to the theme and sings along all night. That atmosphere has to come across online, long before the first visitor walks into the venue.

That is why images from earlier editions work so well. A photo of a full ArenA in 2025 says more than a paragraph about how much fun it will be. Anyone who has stood there recognises it straight away. Anyone who hasn't sees what they are missing.

It works the same way for other music projects we have built, such as the demo upload platform for ADE and VIRPP. You sell music through feeling, and that feeling starts on the screen.

What did Toppers in Concert ticket sales deliver?

Every year the same brief: build reach and turn it into tickets sold. That brief has been with us for five years, and every edition it starts again. A client who still calls after five years for the next edition is, to me, the most honest result there is.

What I've learned from it myself: the online presence around an annual event is never finished. After the last encore, the work for the next edition has already begun.