Theatre Software That Supports Audience Development and Long-Term Success

With the agility, ease, and support of Spektrix, Nottingham Playhouse is driving growth and crafting a stronger audience experience.

One of the UK’s leading producing theatres, Nottingham Playhouse was founded in 1948 and has a long tradition of creating memorable experiences, including drama, music, dance, comedy, and its iconic holiday pantomimes.

Since 2011, they had been part of a consortium of local arts organisations using Tessitura. But the Nottingham Playhouse team saw that this setup was blocking their ability to deliver the audience development strategy they aspired to.

At the beginning of 2020, they took a deliberate change of direction, embracing a forward-looking approach to data, technology, and audience relationships – and they needed theatre software that was up to the task.

Alongside a new website, they wanted a modern CRM that would be easy to use, enable powerful audience segmentation, allow their whole team to access connected data, and drive revenue.

They found all that and more with Spektrix. And when the pandemic hit in the middle of their migration, they did not miss a beat, reaping instant benefits from a cloud-based platform and the support included as part of their relationship with Spektrix from day one.

Now, with their new strategy in full swing, the team reports that they have achieved the goals they set out to accomplish. In fact, they are seeing their highest ever percentage of people booking online – over 80% and steadily increasing.

Some theatre software is so complicated that only a few people in specialised roles know how to use it. They may even require coding experience to operate some aspects of their technology. Spektrix is different; the whole team at Nottingham Playhouse embraced the system, with users throughout marketing, sales, finance, and even production quickly adopting new features.

Everyone is updating the same system and securely inputting valuable information. No spreadsheets floating around, no confusion about which reports were pulled, and no more silos.

Everything is in one reliable system, so there is no need to chase people down for information. Actions can be made quickly and confidently. For instance, if marketing needs to send an email to VIPs, they can do it instantly. They already know exactly who their VIPs are because team members have been regularly tagging them in the CRM.

Every team member can operate with a sense of independence. They are no longer reliant on particular system-savvy colleagues to get things done. Everyone has access to key information, from show production requirements to sales reports.

Because the system is so easy to use, the team at Nottingham is confident that anyone can learn it quickly. That means previous experience with their CRM software is no longer a requirement when they are hiring. They can recruit a wider, more diverse pool of people, and onboarding is painless. They can get new hires using the software right away, without any extra cost.

The Spektrix experience truly feels like a partnership thanks to support and training that are included as part of the relationship. The Nottingham Playhouse team loves that they have reliable access to the Spektrix team, with no additional charges or fees for support. They have worked closely with the Spektrix team throughout a variety of projects and challenges, and they know that they can always call if they need something.

Moving out of a consortium naturally meant that data migration was a big process with multiple stakeholders, including their council.

The organisation set up an internal project manager, who worked closely with the Spektrix implementation team and experienced data migration engineers, trusting in their experience migrating data from Tessitura to Spektrix.

Joanna and Rich felt confident throughout, knowing they had the right team in place to get everything up and running.

The organisation has also tapped into the Spektrix partner network. Its web design team at Cog Design was already familiar with Spektrix when the project began.

Plus, the Nottingham team has been working closely with Spektrix to explore specialised partner solutions.

For instance, they are now working with crowdEngage to strengthen audience development and engagement, and mobile ticket delivery. Plus, they are using Baker Richards’ Advantage Dashboard for even more advanced tracking.

Building on the strong connected data capabilities of their Spektrix CRM, the team can get creative and iterate on their wider set-up to achieve exactly what they want to do.

Nottingham Playhouse is looking towards a bright future. With Spektrix at their fingertips, they have been able to break through barriers to build out an effective digital strategy, and their team is more confident than ever before.