Box Office & CRM

DISCOUNTING: Be Proactive, Be Selective, Be Timely

Published Wed, Feb 18, 15 at 2:00 am | Updated Fri, Feb 13, 15 at 2:28 pmby Samantha Teter

Discounting can be a fabulous way of increasing audiences when done effectively and strategically. By offering discounts, you can bring in new patrons to your hall, reactivate patrons who haven’t attended in several years, or even help fill a concert that may not be expected to sell so well. Discounting should not be used as a panic button, however. Think strategically before you even begin your concert marketing to know what discounts you may want to offer, to whom, and when. You need to be prepared to offer the right discount to the … Read more

All About That (Data)base

Published Wed, Jan 14, 15 at 2:00 am | Updated Fri, Jan 9, 15 at 11:39 amby Kim Pensinger Witman

I have a lousy memory but a fabulous database system. Wolf Trap Opera gets frequent inquiries about the tools and processes we use to track the thousands of singers who audition for our company. The answer? A robust Filemaker Pro database. I’ve suffered unhappily through forced usage of Access, Quark and other clunky database programs. Unlike these cousins, Filemaker is customizable, elegant and versatile. Its capabilities far outreach what most of us need, but it is increasingly easy to use on an entry level, and it can grow with you. The street price … Read more

Building Subscription Renewal Forms Using Adobe InDesign

Published Fri, Jan 9, 15 at 2:00 am | Updated Thu, Jan 8, 15 at 5:10 pmby Samantha Teter

It’s about that time of year for many arts organizations – season subscription renewal time! I always find this a hectic but exciting time of the year – finalizing programming and guest artists, locking in pricing and scale-of-hall changes, firming up packaging, and so forth. What’s not to love?! I know that many ticket systems offer a template invoice for subscription renewal. But I’ve never used one for the three ticket systems I’ve worked with. For the past nine years while working in the orchestra business, I have been using this hack … Read more