Analytics tools like Google Analytics tell you what is happening on your website: how many people visit, which pages they view, and how long they stay. Heatmaps go a step further by showing you how people interact with each page. They reveal where visitors click, how far they scroll, which elements attract attention, and which are ignored entirely. For event organisers, this visual data can uncover problems and opportunities that numbers alone would miss.
What are heatmaps?
A heatmap overlays colour-coded data on your web page, showing areas of high activity in warm colours (red, orange) and low activity in cool colours (blue, green). Different types of heatmaps capture different behaviours.
Click maps
Click maps show where visitors click on a page. This reveals whether people are clicking your call-to-action buttons, whether they are trying to click on non-clickable elements (which suggests those elements look like links or buttons), and whether important links are being overlooked. For an event page, a click map might show that most clicks are concentrated on the lineup section while the "Buy Tickets" button at the bottom of the page receives very few clicks.
Scroll maps
Scroll maps show how far down the page visitors scroll. They use a gradient from red (everyone sees this) at the top to blue (few people reach this) at the bottom. For event pages, scroll maps answer a critical question: how much of your event information do visitors actually see? If your key selling points, pricing, or call to action sit below the point where most visitors stop scrolling, they are effectively invisible.
Move maps
Move maps (or hover maps) track where visitors move their mouse cursor. Research suggests that cursor movement correlates loosely with eye movement, so move maps provide an approximation of where people look on the page. These are less directly actionable than click and scroll maps but can highlight areas of the page that attract or lose attention.
Session recordings
While not technically heatmaps, most heatmap tools also offer session recordings: video replays of individual visitor sessions showing every mouse movement, click, and scroll. Watching a few session recordings can be remarkably illuminating. You see visitors struggling to find the ticket button, repeatedly clicking on something that does not work, or abandoning the page at a particular point. It is the closest thing to looking over someone's shoulder as they browse your site.
Setting up heatmap tracking
Several tools provide heatmap functionality. Microsoft Clarity is completely free and offers heatmaps, session recordings, and basic analytics. It integrates directly with Google Analytics 4. Hotjar offers a free tier with limited recordings and heatmaps, with paid plans for higher volumes. Other options include Lucky Orange, Crazy Egg, and Mouseflow.
Installation typically involves adding a small JavaScript snippet to your website, similar to adding Google Analytics. Most tools provide plugins for popular platforms like WordPress, Squarespace, and Shopify. Once installed, the tool begins collecting data immediately, though you will need a few hundred sessions before heatmaps become meaningful.
Be aware of data privacy obligations. Heatmap tools collect behavioural data, and under UK GDPR and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), you need to inform visitors and, depending on the tool and its data processing, obtain consent. Most reputable heatmap tools provide options to anonymise data, exclude sensitive fields, and comply with privacy regulations. Ensure your cookie consent mechanism covers your heatmap tool.
What to look for on event pages
Is the buy button getting clicks?
The most important question for any event page is whether the ticket purchase button receives clicks in proportion to the page traffic. If your page gets 1,000 visitors but only 20 click the buy button, investigate why. The button might be too small, the wrong colour, positioned too far down the page, or not clearly labelled. Your ticketing setup depends on getting people from the event page to the purchase process efficiently.
Where do people stop scrolling?
Scroll maps typically reveal that a significant proportion of visitors never reach the bottom of the page. If critical information (the date, the price, or the buy button) sits below the scroll cut-off point, restructure the page to place it higher up. The most important elements should be visible without scrolling on both desktop and mobile screens.
Are people clicking on non-clickable elements?
Click maps sometimes show clusters of clicks on images, text, or icons that are not links. This indicates that visitors expect those elements to be interactive. An artist's name that visitors click might benefit from linking to the artist's biography or Spotify page. A venue image that attracts clicks could link to venue information or a map.
Mobile vs. desktop behaviour
Most heatmap tools let you filter by device type. The way people interact with your event page on a phone is often radically different from how they use it on a desktop. Mobile users scroll more, tap differently, and have less patience with complex layouts. Check your mobile heatmaps separately and ensure the mobile experience is optimised for the way people actually use it.
Common findings and fixes
The fold problem
The "fold" is the point below which content requires scrolling to see. Scroll maps frequently show that 30% to 50% of visitors do not scroll past the first screen. If your event page has a large hero image that pushes the event details and buy button below the fold, you are hiding your most important content from a large chunk of your visitors. The fix is straightforward: ensure the event name, date, price, and a prominent buy button are visible on the first screen.
Distracting elements
Click maps sometimes reveal that visitors are clicking on navigation links, social media icons, or sponsor logos instead of the ticket button. Every click on something other than the buy button is a potential customer leaving the purchase path. Consider simplifying the page to reduce distractions during the on-sale period. Some organisers create dedicated, minimal landing pages for ticket sales that strip away everything except the event details and the buy button.
Rage clicks
Session recordings and some heatmap tools can identify "rage clicks" where a visitor clicks the same spot repeatedly. This indicates frustration, usually because something looks clickable but is not, or because a button is not responding. Rage clicks are red flags that demand immediate attention.
Ongoing optimisation
Heatmaps are most valuable when used as part of a continuous improvement cycle. Make a change based on heatmap data, collect new data after the change, and verify that the change had the desired effect. Over time, this iterative process produces event pages that are finely tuned to your audience's behaviour.
Combine heatmap insights with your Google Analytics data for a complete picture. Analytics tells you that your event page has a 2% conversion rate; heatmaps show you that only 40% of visitors scroll to the buy button. Together, these data points tell a story and point directly to a solution. For more on building a data-informed event marketing approach, explore our broader guide.
The investment of time in setting up and reviewing heatmaps pays for itself many times over. A single insight, such as discovering that mobile visitors cannot find your buy button, could increase your conversion rate enough to sell dozens or hundreds of additional tickets. That is the power of seeing your website through your visitors' eyes rather than your own.
