I'll put it another way: have you ever been in a band that had to sell tickets yourself in order to get paid for playing a show? Say you're driving everywhere, promoting the heck out of your event, but only manage to sell seven tickets. Everyone else says "Oh, I'll be there, I'll buy one at the door". But then the day of the show comes and they're too busy shampooing their cat, or they oversleep, or they're watching something on TV, and can't be bothered to show up to their friend's gig. Ipso facto, band doesn't get paid, no beer money, and they're not likely to have any more gigs any time soon.
I think you used very bad example. If the band has no confidence to sell tickets it probably should quit playing.
