Getting tickets to a big concert can be a difficult and frustrating task. This page will offer tips and tricks on learning how to buy presale concert tickets. Ever try to call in when the tickets go on sale, and everyone floods Ticketmaster at the same time and all you get is a busy signal. Or, if you're trying online, by the time your ticket search goes through there are three seats left and they're on opposite sections of the stadium. If you miss out, getting good seats from a re-seller is expensive and prone to risk. Official resellers set their prices way above what the average person wants to pay. And if you buy from the secondary market through Ebay or Craigslist, you could end up paying a lot of money for fraudulent tickets.

Have you stood outside the stadium, trying to talk a scalper down to a reasonable amount, all the while jealously watching those lucky few who have front row tickets as they enter the VIP line? Want to be one of them? The secret is pre-sales. Nearly every big name concert sold through Ticketmaster offers advanced ticket sales to people who have the right password or presale code. And while it may seem like insider information, there's always someone willing to share their password, if you know where to look.

The first, and usually the most helpful step, is to join the Fan Club of your favorite band, solo artist, or theater troupe. The U2 fan club, for instance, offered members a password that gave them access to 4 tickets to their 360 tour, before the general public.http://www.u2.com/service/subscribe/ People who were members before the tour was announced got access even sooner.

So take a look for a Fan Club, sign up and start getting email updates. You'll want to make sure you find the official Fan Club. This is nearly always linked to from the artists web site, and will often be tied into the act's promoter (Live Nation for instance). Don't join some random Facebook group, that calls itself a Fan Club but is run by a 12-year old girl living in India.

Fan clubs often require a membership fee to be paid. U2, for instance, charges $50 a year. Now some of you are thinking "that's a lot of money to pay", and you're right, it is. But keep two things in mind. One, not all Fan Clubs cost that much. Two, if you can't get the tickets you want, and have to buy from a re-seller, you're going to pay a lot more that $50 extra for the tickets, so consider the Fan Club membership cost a savings on what you'd have paid a scalper.

If there's no fan club, or you don't want to pay the membership fee that some clubs charge, there are other email lists you should be on. Local radio stations and entertainment newspapers often have newsletters or mailing lists that you can subscribe to. You'll have to find a radio station that frequently plays the music of the artist you're interested in. Getting on Country FM's mailing list isn't going to help you if you want to see Adam Lambert when he comes to town. Why are you subscribing to mailing lists that will fill your inbox with junk mail you ask?

Well, local radio stations and entertainment newspapers are often given the ability to promote local shows by offering a presale password. This is especially true for groups or acts that don't have organized Fan Clubs. But make sure you get on the mailing list. The radio station or newspaper sites will rarely put the password on their website, so that it can't be searched through Google. They want you to subscribe, and the passwords are your bonus. You should also look at following the Tweets or blogs of local entertainment reporters, as they might be given the information themselves.

If local mailing lists and fan clubs have left you password less, there's still time to search out a password, and get you tickets in your hand before the concert date. Check local chat groups forums that deal with entertainment or the venue you're planning on attending. A quick search for a band name or performer can often lead to a thread discussing the presale date and password.

You can also try websites dedicated to posting passwords. Be warned, many of them try to charge a fee, or are attempts to trick you into something else. One site that has proven itself is Presalepros.com.http://www.presalepros.com/ You'll have to search out your act and city, but usually the information can be found. There may be multiple passwords, and some may not work, but Ticketmaster doesn't punish you for trying different passwords, so don't be afraid to plug one in, and see if it's real.

Sometimes, you can also find people trying to sell their password on Ebay or on Craigslist. It's an option, but there's certainly a risk of fraud when giving this a try. If you're searching on Craigslist, take a look at all the postings. Lots of people get annoyed that someone is trying to sell a password they probably got for free, and will frequently put a post up giving away the password, so that people aren't forced to pay.