Nightlife Terms Every LA Promoter, DJ and Venue Should Know: Door Deals, Guarantees, Comps and More

Hand pushing a fader on a sound mixing console lit by orange and red buttons

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It’s 2:15 a.m., the lights are up, and the venue manager slides a sheet across the bar with a line that reads “bar min shortfall.” If you nodded along to the deal two weeks ago without knowing what that meant, this is the night it costs you.

Promoters, DJs and venue staff use the same shorthand in texts, emails and settlement sheets, and the words carry money. Below are the terms you’ll hear on an LA club night, each with a plain definition and a line on why it matters.

Deal terms

Door deal. The artist or promoter gets a share of the door, meaning ticket and cover revenue, instead of a flat fee. Why it matters: you carry the risk of a light night, so agree in writing on what counts as “the door” and whether costs come out first.
Guarantee. A fixed amount agreed before the night and paid no matter how many people show up. Why it matters: whoever pays the guarantee, usually the venue or promoter, absorbs a slow night.
Versus deal. A guarantee “versus” a percentage of the door, where the artist takes whichever is higher. Why it matters: it protects the artist on a slow night and pays them more on a big one, so run the numbers at a few attendance levels before you agree.
Costs (or expenses). What comes off the top before any split: sound, lights, security, door staff, sometimes promo spend. Why it matters: a split “after costs” is only as good as the cost list, so get it itemized up front.
Bar split. The venue shares a percentage of bar sales with the promoter. Why it matters: on some nights the bar earns more than the door, so ask whether the percentage applies to gross sales or to sales after tax and costs.
Bar minimum. The promoter commits to a minimum amount of bar sales. If the night comes in under it, the promoter covers the gap, often out of their door share. Why it matters: a free-entry night with a high bar minimum can still leave you owing the venue money.

Ticket terms

Presale. Tickets sold before general sale, often to a mailing list or text list. Presale numbers show you early demand while you still have time to adjust your promo.
Early bird and price tiers. A cheaper first release with a limited quantity or end date, followed by tiers that step up in price. Why it matters: tiers give people a reason to buy now instead of on the day of the show.
Promo code. A code that applies a discount or opens a specific ticket type. Why it matters: give each promoter or DJ their own code and you can see who sold what at settlement.
Sell-through. The share of available tickets you’ve sold. If you released 200 and sold 150, that’s 75% sell-through. Track it week by week to decide whether to push harder, open a new tier or leave the price alone.
No-show rate. The share of ticket holders or RSVPs who never arrive. Why it matters: free RSVPs tend to have more no-shows than paid tickets, so your own history tells you how many RSVPs to accept for the room you have.

Door terms

Guest list. Names admitted free or at a reduced price, usually guests of the artists, promoters or venue. Why it matters: every name on it is a ticket you didn’t sell, so set a cutoff time and a cap per person.
Comp. Short for complimentary: a free ticket or free entry. Why it matters: untracked comps throw off your capacity count and your settlement.
Plus-one. One extra guest attached to a name on the list. Decide in advance who gets plus-ones and how many, so the door person isn’t negotiating at midnight.
Walk-up. Someone who pays at the door without buying ahead. Why it matters: your walk-up share tells you how much of the crowd decides on the night, which shapes how hard you push presales.
Door manager. The person who runs entry: scanning tickets, checking the list, handling problems. Why it matters: one person with authority at the door keeps the line moving and stops comps from multiplying.
Capacity (fire cap). The maximum number of people allowed in the room, set by the local fire authority and usually posted in the room. Why it matters: once you hit it, the door goes one in, one out, and selling past it is a safety problem for everyone inside.

Microphone on a stand lit by a purple stage light on an empty stage

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Night-of terms

Load-in. When artists and crew bring gear in and set up. Why it matters: a late load-in eats into soundcheck, and a short soundcheck shows up in the first set.
Soundcheck (or line check). Testing levels and monitors before doors. A line check is the quick version, confirming each input works. Why it matters: a dead cable is easier to fix at 8 p.m. than in front of a crowd.
Run of show. The night’s schedule in one document: load-in, doors, every set time, changeovers, last call and lights up. Why it matters: when the door, bar, sound and artists all work from the same sheet, nobody is guessing when the headliner goes on.
Set times. The start and end of each act’s slot. Fans plan their arrival around them, and artists plan their sets around them.
Changeover. The gap between one act ending and the next starting, when gear swaps. Why it matters: two DJs on a shared setup can hand over mid-track, while live acts need time you have to build into the run of show.
Opener, headliner, closer. The opener plays first and warms up the room. The headliner is the draw on the flyer. The closer plays last to the people who stayed. Why it matters: each slot calls for a different kind of set, so pick each DJ for the slot they’re best at.
Last call and hard out. Last call is the final round at the bar. A hard out is the time the music must stop, set by the venue. Why it matters: build the run of show backward from the hard out so the closer gets their full set.

Empty glass on a wooden bar counter under deep red light with bottles blurred behind

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End of night

Settlement. The end-of-night accounting where the venue, promoter and artists add up the door, the bar and the costs, then pay out according to the deal. Why it matters: bring your own ticket, guest list and comp numbers to the table so you’re checking the venue’s math against yours.

Set up tickets and the door

When you set up your next night on Beatmatch, Create Ticket Options covers early bird tiers, sale windows and per-order limits, Create a Promotion (Discount Code) covers promo codes with their own usage limits and dates, and Check In Guests covers scanning tickets and checking guests in by name at the door.

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Deal terms

Door deal. The artist or promoter gets a share of the door, meaning ticket and cover revenue, instead of a flat fee. Why it matters: you carry the risk of a light night, so agree in writing on what counts as “the door” and whether costs come out first.
Guarantee. A fixed amount agreed before the night and paid no matter how many people show up. Why it matters: whoever pays the guarantee, usually the venue or promoter, absorbs a slow night.
Versus deal. A guarantee “versus” a percentage of the door, where the artist takes whichever is higher. Why it matters: it protects the artist on a slow night and pays them more on a big one, so run the numbers at a few attendance levels before you agree.
Costs (or expenses). What comes off the top before any split: sound, lights, security, door staff, sometimes promo spend. Why it matters: a split “after costs” is only as good as the cost list, so get it itemized up front.
Bar split. The venue shares a percentage of bar sales with the promoter. Why it matters: on some nights the bar earns more than the door, so ask whether the percentage applies to gross sales or to sales after tax and costs.
Bar minimum. The promoter commits to a minimum amount of bar sales. If the night comes in under it, the promoter covers the gap, often out of their door share. Why it matters: a free-entry night with a high bar minimum can still leave you owing the venue money.

Ticket terms

Presale. Tickets sold before general sale, often to a mailing list or text list. Presale numbers show you early demand while you still have time to adjust your promo.
Early bird and price tiers. A cheaper first release with a limited quantity or end date, followed by tiers that step up in price. Why it matters: tiers give people a reason to buy now instead of on the day of the show.
Promo code. A code that applies a discount or opens a specific ticket type. Why it matters: give each promoter or DJ their own code and you can see who sold what at settlement.
Sell-through. The share of available tickets you’ve sold. If you released 200 and sold 150, that’s 75% sell-through. Track it week by week to decide whether to push harder, open a new tier or leave the price alone.
No-show rate. The share of ticket holders or RSVPs who never arrive. Why it matters: free RSVPs tend to have more no-shows than paid tickets, so your own history tells you how many RSVPs to accept for the room you have.

Door terms

Guest list. Names admitted free or at a reduced price, usually guests of the artists, promoters or venue. Why it matters: every name on it is a ticket you didn’t sell, so set a cutoff time and a cap per person.
Comp. Short for complimentary: a free ticket or free entry. Why it matters: untracked comps throw off your capacity count and your settlement.
Plus-one. One extra guest attached to a name on the list. Decide in advance who gets plus-ones and how many, so the door person isn’t negotiating at midnight.
Walk-up. Someone who pays at the door without buying ahead. Why it matters: your walk-up share tells you how much of the crowd decides on the night, which shapes how hard you push presales.
Door manager. The person who runs entry: scanning tickets, checking the list, handling problems. Why it matters: one person with authority at the door keeps the line moving and stops comps from multiplying.
Capacity (fire cap). The maximum number of people allowed in the room, set by the local fire authority and usually posted in the room. Why it matters: once you hit it, the door goes one in, one out, and selling past it is a safety problem for everyone inside.

ALT

Night-of terms

Load-in. When artists and crew bring gear in and set up. Why it matters: a late load-in eats into soundcheck, and a short soundcheck shows up in the first set.
Soundcheck (or line check). Testing levels and monitors before doors. A line check is the quick version, confirming each input works. Why it matters: a dead cable is easier to fix at 8 p.m. than in front of a crowd.
Run of show. The night’s schedule in one document: load-in, doors, every set time, changeovers, last call and lights up. Why it matters: when the door, bar, sound and artists all work from the same sheet, nobody is guessing when the headliner goes on.
Set times. The start and end of each act’s slot. Fans plan their arrival around them, and artists plan their sets around them.
Changeover. The gap between one act ending and the next starting, when gear swaps. Why it matters: two DJs on a shared setup can hand over mid-track, while live acts need time you have to build into the run of show.
Opener, headliner, closer. The opener plays first and warms up the room. The headliner is the draw on the flyer. The closer plays last to the people who stayed. Why it matters: each slot calls for a different kind of set, so pick each DJ for the slot they’re best at.
Last call and hard out. Last call is the final round at the bar. A hard out is the time the music must stop, set by the venue. Why it matters: build the run of show backward from the hard out so the closer gets their full set.

ALT

End of night

Settlement. The end-of-night accounting where the venue, promoter and artists add up the door, the bar and the costs, then pay out according to the deal. Why it matters: bring your own ticket, guest list and comp numbers to the table so you’re checking the venue’s math against yours.