Takin' a T/O With BT: Max Deale—Fan, Author, and Sports Strategist

When I asked how he can get away with charging so little, he told me that he makes such a killing on the tickets that people buy up when they first become 'sold out', that everything towards the end is just gravy. His biggest clients are big corporations who would rather have the tickets in hand to give to clients or whatever, so he will have business for life. He told me flat out that the way I was working the angles was the way to score deals though.

Another example of just how much these ticket brokers make: I was talking with a guy who was a close personal friend of one of the biggest brokers in town. It was just as the 2008 NBA finals were about to start this past June. This guy knew I was writing Sold Out...SO WHAT?! but still chose to tell me that at this particular broker, a game 5 (Games 3-5 were in LA) was worth $800,000 profit to their company—PROFIT! Had either team swept the series and there was no game 5, that's how much they would have lost out on. And that's just one broker.

So these guys aren't going to lose any sleep over my book. They'll still be raking in the dough for a long time coming—just not off me or anyone who reads Sold Out...SO WHAT?!

BT: What were some of the biggest challenges you encountered throughout the process?

MD: The biggest challenges came from the business end of producing the final product. The research and writing were the easy and fun parts—making sure I did the appropriate business details correctly was new to me. I had a great support team though that helped me see it through. All in all, it was a blast writing this book.

BT: How long did the entire process take: The research, the actual writing, attaining the publishers contract, ect.?

MD: I put my first pen to paper in November of 2007. After writing, I hired a talented team of editors, cartoonists, designers, etc to come in and help me produce the final version of what you see today.

I did a lot of research on the subject of publishing, and after reading all the fine print, I decided to open my own publishing company and make my book available via my website as well as on the internet via online distributors such as Amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

The book will be in select stores in the near future and we look forward to expanding based on demand.

BT: As you say on your website, there has never been a "How-To" book dealing with ticket purchasing. What do you think the public's reaction will be, and do you think you may be a trailblazer for others who want their own lesser-known strategies to become more well-known.

MD: The public reaction has been overwhelmingly positive. Even if you know some of the strategies I outline in the book, you're bound to pick up some new ones as well.

The book easily pays for itself the very first concert or sporting even you go to after reading it. My decision to price the book less than a single "convenience" charge that you would have to pay on Ticketmaster or through a broker was on purpose. I've gotten emails from all over the country in a short amount of time saying that they wish they had this information years ago. It's all good and I love the feeling of being able to service my fellow fans.

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