Ticket Price Management

This page has a list of recipes for managing ticket prices. The first entry explains how to manage simple prices. Subsequent entries explain how to manage some intermediate pricing features yourself. The last entry lists some of the advanced configurations that we can set up for you.

To manage ticket prices, click on the Ticket prices link in the Management panel of the Dashboard. The Ticket prices tab allows you to set the pricing for an entire production, and also to set different prices for specific performances.

Use the Select production drop-down at top to choose the production whose settings you want to modify. Then use the Select performance drop-down just below it to have changes apply as the default for all performances in the production, or to select a specific performance to change only its settings.

As in the sample below, prices are presented in tabular form for editing, with the seat types (Balcony, Orchestra) arrayed across the top, and the ticket types (Adult, Senior/Student) listed in the Name column. (For now, ignore the Availability, Max, and /Perf columns.)

After you’ve changed one or more of these values, click on the Submit button to have the changes take effect, or click on the Reset button to cancel the changes.

Types of Ticket Price Availability

The Availability column of the ticket price table contains a dropdown that lets managers choose who will be able to see and use the price in that line. There are three ordinary types of ticket prices:

  • Public ticket prices are available to online shoppers and also to managers via the Manage seats page.
  • Office comp ticket prices are only available to managers via the Manage seats page. They are not visible or available to online shoppers. There can be only one Comp line per pricing table, and it is the only ticket type that cannot have a custom name. Zeros should show in all the boxes on the line; if one is missing, you should add it and submit the update.
  • Office price ticket prices are only available to managers via the Manage seats page. They are not visible or available to online shoppers. These prices can be $0 or other amounts.
  • –Remove–: Select this entry to remove a ticket type. It’s the top one in the list.

All ticket types are available to managers using the Manage seats page after logging in for up to a week after showtime, regardless of when online sales have closed, and regardless of any availability restrictions placed on individual prices.

Known Issues

  • Changes can take a few minutes to percolate all the way through the system.
  • If one of the prices is an Office comp, and some of the boxes on that line do not contain zeroes, you may not be able to save changes. Replace the missing zeroes to fix the problem.

This set of features is complex. Please feel free to tell us what you’d like to accomplish, and we’ll be happy to set it all up for you. If you ‘re feeling ambitious, read on. But if you just want to set an account-wide access code, click here for a simple way to do that.

There are two additional types of ticket price availability: types with a specific code, and types whose availability is set to No code. Coded prices can be used in conjunction with a price code given out selectively to allow only selected shoppers to purchase at a preferential price or in a restricted section.

Note: Price codes only modify access to ticket types; they do not in and of themselves supply a price.

To set a price code:

  1. Click on the Price codes link in the Management panel of the Dashboard.
  2. Type a code (e.g. cast25) in the Price codes field. Codes are case insensitive.
  3. (Optional) Add a start or an end date. If you use those, codes become valid after midnight on the start date, and end at midnight on the end date. Either or both fields can be left blank.
  4. (Optional) Add a list of email addresses. If you do, only those can be used to purchase ticket types associated with this code.
  5. Use the Ticket prices tab to add a price with a name and price of your choosing, for the seat types it can be used for.
  6. Use the dropdown in the Availability column of the line to choose a type of availability. The dropdown has three standard entries, plus at least two more if any codes have been entered on the Price codes page, as follows:
    • –Remove–: Select the top entry to remove a ticket type.
    • Public: Select this entry to make the price available to regular online shoppers.
    • Office comp: Select this entry to use a comp price. Comp prices leave the name column empty. Make sure to add a zero in the column for every seat type for which you want to be able to sell comps from the Manage seats page. Remember that Office comps are never available to regular online shoppers. You can, however, have us arrange for you to offer online comps on a limited basis. Contact us for details.
    • Office price: Select this entry to make the price available only to manager using the Manage seats page. This is the only line other than the comp line for which a price entry can be zero.
    • Code [name of code]: Select this entry to make the price available only to shoppers who have entered [name of code] before they begin shopping, via the landing page.
    • No code: Select this entry to make the price available to online shoppers who did not enter a code when they began shopping.
  7. Submit the update.

Note: Multiple codes can be created and used with a single performance, but shoppers can only use one per shopping session.

Limits for a single ticket type

You can set a maximum number of tickets of a given ticket type per email address, and you can set whether the maximum is enforced per performance, or per production. Here’s how to put this in place:

  • Set the maximum via the Max column on the line for a ticket type.
  • The default is per production. Check the /Perf box to change that to per performance.

Limits for a group of ticket types

In many situations, you want to set a quota for a group of ticket types, instead of a single type. For instance, you might want to allow a family to buy 4 tickets, but let them spread those 4 over different types, e.g. Adult, Child, Senior. You can’t do this yourself; ask us to do it for you.

Strict limits

Limits are enforced by email address, but patrons with two emails can get twice the limit, and so on. See this section for how to add a list of emails to a restriction, so that only shoppers with one of those emails can buy.

You can offer discounted prices to a select group of shoppers via a discount code. We’ll tell you how to create a code (CHEAP2023), and then use it with a group of prices (Adult, Senior, Student).  It won’t be a code to use on the checkout page that subtracts some amount from the total. Instead, it’s a set of prices, parallel to the regular prices, but cheaper.

Let’s assume the regular prices are already in place and are

  • Adult $20
  • Senior $15
  • Student $10

Shoppers who type CHEAP2023 into the price code field on the landing page before starting to shop will get a different set of prices, all $2 cheaper than their public equivalents:

  • Adult $18
  • Senior $13
  • Student $8

Here’s how to put this scheme in place:

Add the price code
  1. Click on the Price codes link in the Management panel of the Dashboard.
  2. Type the new code (e.g., CHEAP2023) into the New price code field.
  3. Click the Add price code button.
  4. [Optional]: Set a start or end date, or both
  5. [Optional]: Click the Unrestricted link in the Emails column and add the list of email addresses that will be allowed to obtain this discount. If you don’t add any emails, any email address can be used, up to the maximum you might set in a later step.
Add the prices
  1. Click the Go to ticket prices button.
  2. Verify that  the three full priced ticket types have their Availability column set to Public
  3. Click the +Add ticket type button.
  4. Set the dropdown in the Availability column to the code you just created (e.g.,  CAST2023)
  5. Type Adult in the name column.
  6. Type 18 in the box in any column you want whose seat type will be allowed for this dicount price.
  7. [Optional]: Set the maximum number of tickets. You can set a number from 1-9 yourself; contact us if you want the maximum set higher.
  8. [Optional]: The default quota is per-production. To change it to be per-performance, check the box in the /Perf column.
  9. Submit the update.

Then repeat for the other two ticket types, using the corresponding name and amount.

Online comps have two requirements that set them apart from regular prices:

  • they must be associated with a price code
  • they must be limited to at most 9 tickets per email address

Here is how to set up an online comp:

Add a price code
  1. Click on the Price codes link in the Management panel of the Dashboard.
  2. Type the new code (e.g., CAST2023) into the New price code field.
  3. Click the Add price code button.
  4. [Optional]: Set a start or end date, or both
  5. [Optional]: Click the Unrestricted link in the Emails column and add the list of email addresses that will be allowed to obtain this comp. If you don’t add any emails, any email address can be used, up to the maximum you set in a later step.
Add the comp price that will be associated with the code you just created
  1. Click the Go to ticket prices button.
  2. Click the +Add ticket type button.
  3. Set the dropdown in the Availability column to the code you just created (e.g.,  CAST2023)
  4. Set the maximum number of tickets. You can set a number from 1-9 yourself; contact us if you want the maximum set to larger number.
  5. The default quota is per-production. To change it to be per-performance, check the box in the /Perf column.
  6. Type the name for your comp into the Name column (e.g. Free – limit 2).
  7. Type a zero in the box in any column you want whose seat type will be allowed for this comp.
  8. Submit the update.

You can set an automatic price change without having to have shoppers type separate price codes for the earlier and later prices.

Note: The change from the earlier price to the later price can only happen on a midnight boundary.

Add two special price codes
  1. Click on the Price codes link in the Management panel of the Dashboard.
  2. Type NOCODE_EARLY into the New price code field.
  3. Click the Add price code button.
  4. Type NOCODE_LATE into the New price code field.
  5. Click the Add price code button.
  6. Set an end date for the NOCODE_EARLY code.
  7. Set the start date for the NOCODE_LATE code to one day later then the end date for the NOCODE_EARLYcode.
Add a pair of prices
  1. Click the Go to ticket prices button.
  2. Click the +Add ticket type button.
  3. Set the dropdown in the Availability column to NOCODE_EARLY.
  4. Add the name (e.g. Early bird) of the ticket type.
  5. Add the price in the box in the column for any seat type you want this price to be available for.
  6. Click the +Add ticket type button.
  7. Set the dropdown in the Availability column to NOCODE_LATE.
  8. Add the name (e.g. Full price) of the ticket type.
  9. Add the price in the box in the column for any seat type you want this price to be available for.
  10. Submit the upate.

Restriction to a list of designated email addresses

Limits can be set for any ticket type, coded or public. But shoppers with two email addresses can get double the limit, and so on. You can prevent shoppers from getting round the limit with extra email addresses by associating a price with a specific list of email addresses. This approach only works for prices whose Availability is a code. Once you’ve associated the list of emails with a price, only shoppers using an email on the list can buy tickets using that price, and whatever limit associated with the price will be enforced.

Here’s how to add a list of emails to a price whose Availability type is a code:

  • If you are already on the Ticket prices tab, click the dark blue Price codes button near the bottom of the tab. If you are on the dashboard, click the Ticket prices link in the Management panel of the Dashboard.
  • Find the line associated with the code used by the ticket type you’re setting the limit for.
  • Click the link in the Emails column of the line.
  • Add the email addresses you want to the field and submit the update.

Special “NO_CODE” codes

You may want to limit a ticket type to a list of email addresses you supply, but don’t want the shoppers with those addresses to have to type a code.

There are things the system can do that you can’t set up yourself. This page describes some of those things, but you may not find a match here for the setup you want. If that seems to be the case, don’t assume it’s something we can’t do; email us what it is you want, and we’ll try to put it in place for you. If we can’t come to full mutual understanding in a small number of email exchanges, we’ll suggest scheduling a phone call.

Here are some of those things:

  • Quantify discounts: we can set a minimum number of tickets that must be purchased in order to get a specific discount. The most common example we see is for banquets, where it’s cheaper per seat to buy an entire table.
  • Ticket limits spread over a group of ticket types: we can set a ticket limit for shoppers, but spread it over e.g., Adult, Senior, and Student types.
  • Required ticket types: we can set it up so that shoppers can get a specific discount (or comp), but only if they buy at least one other ticket of a specified type. The most common example is that children are free, but only if accompanied by an adult or senior.
  • Default type: The system defaults to allocating all seats in the shopping cart to the highest priced ticket. We can set a different default for you.
  • Per-click max: The system will usually allow the seat number dropdown on the sales page to allow the number of vacant seats for GA events, or the length of the longest stretch of contiguous vacant seats for reserved seating. We can change this setting to a lower value for you. Bear in mind that shoppers can add to the shopping cart as many times as they want, so a lower per-click max is just an inconvenience for someone bent on getting a lot of tickets.

Please note that we can’t do true season tickets, although we can do some varieties of flex pass. Email us if you do season tickets, and want the system to provide help, even if it can’t do it all for you.