Selling workshops without commission means keeping 100% of what the participant pays instead of handing 18–30% to an intermediary platform. In practice: a direct channel — booking and payment you own — used alongside the marketplaces, not instead of them.
Experience and workshop marketplaces (Wecandoo, GetYourGuide, Funbooker…) take a commission on every booking, generally between 18% and 30% of the public price. That is not a hidden fee — it is their business model, funding their audience and marketing.
At 25% commission, a creator doing €3,000 of monthly sales through a marketplace hands over €750 per month — €9,000 a year. If a third of those sales actually come from returning customers — regulars who would have come anyway — that is €250 a month of acquisition commission paid on customers the platform did not bring.
That is exactly where the direct channel earns its keep: not replacing acquisition, but no longer paying an acquisition fee on customers you already acquired.
Leaving the marketplaces overnight is almost always a mistake: they bring visibility a personal site takes years to build.
The goal is not 100% direct sales — it is growing the direct share month after month: every percentage point won is commission saved and a customer relationship you own.
A booking widget embedded on your site (or a hosted storefront if you have none) with online payment. The decisive test: the customer pays and gets a confirmation without any manual step on your side.
One schedule for every source (marketplaces + direct), or double bookings happen fast. Sync marketplace bookings automatically instead of copying them by hand.
The key moment: participants are there, happy, and the relationship is yours. A visible QR code, a card with your booking link in the goodie bag — a simple way to find your workshop directly next time.
A post-workshop thank-you email with the direct link gives a marketplace participant a way to come back without going through the platform — if they come back. Your email list is the one marketing asset nobody can take away.
Workshops are massively gifted. A voucher sold on your own channel is a commission-free sale and a new customer who discovers your workshop through your brand, not a platform's.
| Marketplace | Direct channel | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost per sale | 18–30% commission | 0% (flat subscription or free tool) |
| New customers | Strong — it's their job | Low at first, grows with your brand |
| Returning customers | Commission paid on every return | Full margin, direct relationship |
| Customer contact (email) | Usually kept by the platform | Yours, with consent |
| Brand | Theirs (your workshop among others) | Yours |
| Gift vouchers | Sold under their brand, commissioned | Under your brand, commission-free |
No. The model that works is hybrid: marketplaces bring visibility and first-time customers, the direct channel serves the ones who come back. You cut nothing — you add a channel.
Each platform has its own terms (some impose price parity, others don't). Re-read each marketplace contract before displaying a price gap; offering direct booking on your own site remains your right.
From €0 (form + bank transfer, very manual) to a flat software subscription. Emansy costs €49-69/month for one venue, then €25/month per extra venue, with 0% commission on sales. The math is quick: one group booking taken direct rather than through a marketplace — five people on a €90 class, so €450 of sales — spares you around €99 in commission, and covers a venue's monthly subscription on its own. Every sale you go on to make direct earns you up to 30% more than the same sale on a marketplace.
During the workshop — the only moment the relationship is 100% yours. A QR code on site, a card with your booking link, a thank-you email with the direct link: a happy participant can only come back direct if you have shown them the way — how many take it depends on your workshop and your relationship with them.
Commission-free booking widget, marketplace sync, gift vouchers — one dashboard.