How we keep listings accurate
A card show listing is only useful if the show is really on, on the date shown. This is how listings get here and how we keep them right.
Where listings come from
There are two ways a show gets listed. Organizers submit their own shows through our free submission form, and those are checked by a person before they go live.
We also collect listings automatically from about 40 public sources: show calendars, organizer websites and event pages. Each source is checked on its own schedule, some every few hours and some once a day, depending on how often it changes.
When the same show appears on more than one source, we match it up and keep a single listing rather than showing it twice.
When we have the organizer's website, the listing links to it. Before a long drive, it is worth checking there as well.
Removing shows that moved or disappeared
Organizers move dates and cancel shows, and the source page usually just changes without saying so. If we only ever added listings, the old date would sit on our site and someone would drive to an empty building.
So every time we check a source, we note which of our listings it still shows. A listing that its source has stopped showing for two checks in a row, and that no source has confirmed for at least 48 hours, is taken down.
If a show we took down appears on its source again, it comes back on its own.
Sources break. A website redesign can make a calendar look empty overnight. When a check comes back with far fewer shows than that source normally lists, or with none at all, we do not remove anything from it. We also never remove more than a fifth of one source's listings in a single pass, and we wait until a source has a few good checks behind it before we remove anything based on it.
Cleaning up the details
Automatically collected listings are often messy. Table fees end up in the address, the city is missing, or the venue field says something like "TBA".
Every listing passes through the same set of checks before it is saved. They pull the city, state and zip code out of a jumbled address, clear venue names that are not venues, and reject dates that are impossible or years away.
If a map pin lands outside the state the show is listed in, we do not trust the pin.
These checks run on every listing from every source, so a fix made once applies everywhere.
Organizers stay in control
An organizer can claim their show from its listing page using the "Is this your show?" link. Once it is linked to their account they can change the times, admission, description and flyer, or cancel it.
Any field a person edits is locked against automatic updates. If an organizer corrects a date, our next check of the source will not change it back.
Shows submitted or edited by an organizer or by us are never removed automatically. Only a person can take them down.
Running a show? The organizer guide explains the dashboard, table requests and cancelling. Read the organizer guide
When something is wrong
Every show page has a Report Issue button. Use it for a wrong date, a cancelled show, a bad address or anything else that would send you to the wrong place.
Each report goes into a queue that a person reads. We check it against the organizer's own page and fix or remove the listing.
You do not need an account to report a problem.
You can also email hello@cardshowdirectory.com or use the contact page. Include the show name so we can find it quickly. Contact us
Common questions
How does CardShowFinder know a card show is still happening?
Listings collected from public sources are rechecked on a schedule. When a source stops listing a show for two checks in a row and no source has confirmed it for at least 48 hours, the listing is taken down. Organizer-managed listings are kept up to date by the organizer.
Where does CardShowFinder get its card show listings?
From organizers who submit their shows for free, and from about 40 public sources such as show calendars, organizer websites and event pages, each checked on its own schedule.
What if a card show listing has the wrong date or address?
Use the Report Issue button on the show page, or email hello@cardshowdirectory.com. Every report is read by a person and checked against the organizer's own page.
Will an automatic update overwrite an organizer's changes?
No. Any field an organizer or admin edits is locked against automatic updates, and listings submitted or edited by a person are never removed automatically.
Is it free to list a card show?
Yes. Submitting a show, claiming an existing listing and managing it are all free.