Skip to the main content.
sign up BOOK A DEMO
sign up BOOK A DEMO

Features

How our software can help you, your audiences, and your team

Organizations

Meet our clients and learn what Spektrix could do for you

New Approaches MegaMenu USData-driven MegaMenu US

 

By Topic

Achieve more with Spektrix, with expert training, guidance, and support

By Type

Resources and expertise to inspire arts professionals

How to Choose Best CRM MegaMenu UK

Hubs MegaMenu US-1

 

Improvements

We're constantly innovating to add features and value

Press Center

Latest announcements from the market-leading solution for the arts

Spektrix Community is liveApple Google Pay MegaMenu UK

 

Purpose-driven

Creating social wellbeing by supporting the arts sector

People-centered

Building a positive, diverse team and culture

Social Value MegaMenu US
Security and Compliance

CASE STUDY: Ticketing & Fundraising

How a Reliable Ticketing and CRM System Solved the Freeman Arts Pavilion's Onsales Problems


A smooth experience for their customers and team powered a new era of revenue generation at this premier venue

Selbyville, Delaware
Freeman Arts Pavilion

Freeman Arts Pavilion
Joshua M. Freeman Foundation

Presenting Venue
squiggle-divider-pink

SWITCHED FROM TESSITURA in 2024

Challenge

The Freeman Arts Pavilion's previous ticket sales system had technology limitations that required an overly complex process for patrons and staff, preventing sales and causing frustration.

Solution

With the powerful, cloud-based capabilities of Spektrix, they now sell tickets for all of their programming simultaneously without fear of a system crash. This has unlocked simpler, more impactful show announcements, a trend of selling tickets to multiple events per cart, and an all-around improved customer experience.

Outcome

The Freeman Arts Pavilion’s first major onsale with Spektrix was so successful that customers shared their delight with the new ticketing system throughout social media.

In that onsale:

  • 51,546  tickets sold
  • $3,246,016 gross ticket revenue
  • 400% increase in donation income
  • 7x increase in the size of individual donations

an image of an outdoor symphony performance at the freeman arts pavilion

The summer season makes or breaks the year for the Joshua M. Freeman Foundation.


In addition to the 30,000 patrons and students the foundation serves with their year-round arts programming, each summer they welcome more than 100,000 guests to the Freeman Arts Pavilion - an outdoor performance venue that brings top talent to the region along with local showcases and family events. 

The majority of their tickets are moved during their first onsale in February, determining the overall volume of tickets they sell and the revenue they bring for the year. 
“The big question is always: how many tickets can we sell on opening day?"

Chelsea Turner

Marketing Director, Joshua M. Freeman Foundation

By switching to Spektrix, the Freeman Arts team removed the technological barriers that were holding them back and created a smooth process that made patrons take note. In fact, the experience was social media-worthy, as dozens of purchasers shared their delight across the internet. Meanwhile, their new functionality with Spektrix allowed the foundation to adjust their business model and open up new pathways for revenue growth.

The problem:

The previous ticket sales system couldn’t handle big onsales

With their previous ticketing provider, the Freeman Arts Pavilion experienced persistent problems with system crashes or customers not being able to add tickets to their carts during big onsales. This led to restrictions on their team and patrons:

  • No more than 200 people could browse their website at one time 
  • Customers could not pick their seats and had to use “best available” seating
  • There was no built-in queueing agent to put customers in a virtual waiting room

Because they were so limited by their ticketing system’s capabilities, the box office team could not put up more than a few events at a time.

The resulting process risked lost revenue and eroded patron confidence, which can be especially harmful for a seasonal venue. The team was forced to stretch out their big summer onsales over the course of two days to accommodate their provider’s issues and avoid a website crash. One particularly bad crash in 2022 meant they had to do rolling onsales and limit how many shows patrons could buy at one time.
You only have one chance to make a big, eye-catching (and wallet-opening) announcement. When you make it complex, you are losing ticket sales.
– Chelsea Turner

Marketing Director, Joshua M. Freeman Foundation

Now with Spektrix, onsales are simple and successful
an image of positive social media posts about the onsale stating how smooth the process was and celebrating that they could put multiple shows in their baskets

In February 2025, the Freeman Arts Pavilion launched its first major onsale with Spektrix, announcing their first batch of summer shows in a single day onsale for the general public. There were no system crashes,  no limitations on how many shows they could sell, and no complications for patrons.

In the first week of the Freeman Arts Pavilion's first onsale with Spektrix:

0

customers booked

0

tickets sold

$0

donated

Reliable  technology and dedicated support

With the powerful, cloud-based technology of Spektrix and the expert support that comes included at no extra cost, the Freeman Arts team can confidently put shows on sale and deliver an excellent ticket-buying experience to their customers.
an image of a supportive interaction between a spektrix client success manager and a member of the freeman staff

Full functionality for the optimal experience


While previously their site couldn’t handle more than 200 customers, the team has now seen upwards of 3,000 visitors at a time for their big onsale day.


Visitors to their site now have an excellent user experience:

  • Shorter waits, quicker sales - Because Spektrix can handle such a high amount of sessions, customers can start adding tickets to their cart with minimal delay. In their big February onsale, the virtual queue was cleared in 15 minutes.
  • Easy, user-friendly queuing – A queuing agent comes built into Spektrix, so customers are smoothly moved through the process, with no extra effort from the box office staff. 
  • Ticket-buyers can select their own seats - They no longer have to limit buyers to “best available.”
  • Checkout is simple with smooth, integrated payment processing and features like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
>3K
customers on their site at a time

Active, unlimited support from the Spektrix team


As part of the inclusive support model, Spektrix set up a dedicated Slack channel with a focused cohort of support specialists on hand to answer questions and monitor stats during the Freeman Arts Pavilion’s big onsales. 

The Freeman Arts team has particularly valued receiving a detailed outline of what's going to happen during the onsale, which helps the overall strategic planning and ensures that everyone knows what to expect. 

Bring Us Your Ticketing Pain Points
an image of a supportive interaction between a spektrix client success manager and a member of the freeman staff

An intuitive ticket sales system patrons could use right away

an image of positive social media posts about the onsale stating how smooth the process was and celebrating that they could put multiple shows in their baskets

Like many arts organizations, the Freeman Arts Pavilion’s audience has a large contingency of older patrons, for whom digital change can be intimidating and frustrating. The team was aware of the risk that anxiety about a new process could cause lower sales and a damaged brand reputation.  

Instead of doing a big campaign about their new ticket sales system,  they “soft-launched” it, only mentioning the change as a “by the way” in their newsletter. This approach proved effective, and marketing director Chelsea Turner would recommend it to other organizations switching over to Spektrix.

Why did that work? Because Spektrix is so intuitive that there was no need to pre-educate their patrons on how to use it. Customers simply went to their website and bought their tickets with ease – no fear, just a pleasant surprise.

Meanwhile, when questions did arise, the Freeman Arts team appreciated that Spektrix was available on multiple communications channels to help them meet patrons' needs and address any questions in real time.

EXPLORE USER-FRIENDLY BOX OFFICE SOLUTIONS

Increased  cart value and repeat visits

a graph illustrating how many more multi-show baskets there were in 2025 compared to 2024 alongside a testimonial of someone saying they bought 6 shows

Spektrix data insights revealed a boost in customers adding tickets for multiple shows into a single cart. Because the Freeman Arts team was finally able to release the entire seasonal lineup at once,  customers intending to buy tickets for one show were frequently enticed into purchasing tickets for multiple shows, compounding revenue and providing an early look into upcoming show popularity. 

In addition, because there’s no limit to how many events their site can support at once, they’ve made a change to their business model so that the moment an artist signs, they can get that show up on their website as soon as possible. With the ability for tickets to be on sale earlier and longer, the foundation brings that revenue in sooner, has access to valuable insights, and can give their marketing campaigns room for strategy and growth.

See what Spektrix can do for you

Hands-free fundraising that makes an impact

The benefits of a powerful, intuitive CRM go beyond ticket sales. As part of their improved customer experience, the foundation's development team has unlocked major successes.

VIPs easily get the access they need

The Joshua M. Freeman Foundation has a tiered membership program that is a core part of their revenue model – naturally, bringing value to their members is critical. Serving those needs is simple with Spektrix. The Freeman Arts team uses a segmented list to let members know when shows are going up and give them early access to buy tickets. From there, members can go in and self-serve to take full advantage of this benefit.

 

Higher value donations quadrupled their donation income

With Spektrix, customers can add a donation or even a membership right from their cart, creating an effortless pathway to turn casual ticket buyers into loyal supporters. When comparing this year’s streamlined February onsale with the previous year’s, the amount of their average donation has increased by 7X resulting in nearly a 400% increase in donation income. The smooth experience on their website and purchase pathway drove this success, with 97% of those donations made online.

Part of what makes this feature so effective is that organizations can pre-set specific amounts in their donation ask – the week of this onsale, the foundation received 760 donations of $10, their default amount. When making a donation is just a click of a button, those contributions quickly add up.
400%
increase in donation income

First-time donors became repeat donors

343 donors from the February onsale were contributing to the foundation for the first time. Of that group, 41 already donated again within 8 months, demonstrating a strong loyalty pipeline that not only attracts donors, but builds a relationship with them for sustainable revenue.

How Spektrix Empowers Fundraising
squiggle-divider-pink

Ready to see what Spektrix can do for you?

The team at the Freeman Arts Pavilion has turned their onsales process from a massive headache into a smooth, streamlined revenue generator. Book a demo to learn how Spektrix can make an impact for your organization’s biggest challenges.

Submit your information and we'll reach out to schedule your demo.