Ticket Commissions (also known as ticket fees) are visible charges that can be applied to individual tickets using a Ticket Commission Structure. Multiple sets of Ticket Commission Structures can be built and applied to different Instances.
A Ticket Commission can be set as a specific amount or percentage of the Ticket price, and can be waived automatically for certain customers online and in the Box Office.
Before you read this article, make sure you are familiar with:
TIP: For users in the US looking to learn more about ticket fee legislation, read our blog on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) junk fees rule.
For users in the UK and Ireland, take a look at our blog on Ticket Fee
How do Ticket Commissions work?
Ticket Commissions allow you to be transparent about the fees you charge by clearly displaying them to customers online.
Ticket Commissions are charged per ticket using a Ticket Commission Structure.
A Ticket Commission Structure lets you set fees based on:
- A fixed value (for example, $1.50 per ticket)
- A percentage of the Ticket price (for example, 10% of the Ticket price)
- A percentage or fixed value depending on the Sales Channel, Price band or Ticket Type (for example, $5 if the Sales Channel is Phone)
Ticket Commissions are applied to each ticket when it’s added to the cart / basket. Fees can also be charged per transaction, these fees are called Transaction Commissions.
Using Waive Criteria, you can create exceptions to when Ticket Commissions are charged. When a customer or order meets the Waive Criteria, this will override the commission rule and the commission won't be charged. For example, you may not wish to charge Ticket Commissions to customers with an active Membership.
You can choose to display Ticket Commissions as itemised or not in the Settings Interface and this will inform how Ticket Commissions appear to your customers and Sales Users.
TIP: You may or may not be required to charge Tax or VAT on your Ticket Commissions.
For more information on Tax, read Tax in Spektrix (US and Canada).
For more information on VAT, read VAT in Spektrix (UK and Ireland).
How to set up a Ticket Commission Structure
Before setting up your Ticket Commission Structure, you’ll need to have already set up all of the Ticket Types you need. Take a look at our Ticket Types article for step by step guidance on how to do this.
To set up a new Ticket Commissions Structure, follow these steps:
- Go to the Admin Interface > Pricing > Ticket Commissions
- At the bottom of the page, click Add:
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Give the Ticket Commission Structure a name and description, then choose a type:
REMINDER: When a customer or order meets the Waive Criteria, this will override the commission rule and the commission won't be charged
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Global Fixed Value
The Global Fixed Value applies the same charge to every ticket. The fee will not change depending on different factors.
For example, if you enter $1.50, a $1.50 Ticket Commission will be applied to every ticket with this Ticket Commission Structure. -
Global Percentage of ticket price
The Global Percentage of Ticket price will calculate a percentage of the Ticket price and then charge that as the Ticket Commission for each ticket.
For example, a 10% Ticket Commission on a $10 ticket will be $1 and a 10% Ticket Commission on a $20 ticket will be $2. The Global Percentage will not change based on Sales Channel, Price Band or Ticket Type. -
Custom Fixed Value
This custom setting will let you set a fixed value for each Sales Channel, Price Band and Ticket Type.
For example, $5 if the Ticket is in Price Band A and sold through the Sales Channel of Phone.Enter a fixed value for your Ticket Types and Price Brands for each Sales Channel by clicking into each of the Counter, Web and Phone tabs.
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Custom Percentage
This custom setting will let you set a different percentage for each Sales Channel, Price Band and Ticket Type.
For example, 10% if the Ticket is in Price Band A and sold through the Sales Channel of Phone.Enter a percentage for your Ticket Types and Price Brands for each Sales Channel by clicking into each of the Counter, Web and Phone tabs.
REMINDER: To charge Sales Tax or another type of Tax on your Ticket Commissions you will need to calculate the Tax and set the price as the total value of the commission you want to charge including tax. For more information on Tax, read Tax in Spektrix (US and Canada).
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- Click Next
- Next, specify the Waive Criteria.
Waive Criteria lets you set exceptions to when Ticket Commissions are charged. When a customer or order meets the waive criteria, this will always override the commission.
For example, you may wish to waive Ticket Commissions for customers with certain Memberships. Waive Criteria works in the same way as other Customer Eligibility in Spektrix. Multiple metrics can be combined using the AND or OR rules. To add a metric into the OR section, drag the Metric into the Drop criteria here box:REMINDER: Using the AND rule to combine metrics will only waive the Ticket Commission for customers who meet both of the criteria. Use the OR rule to look for customer who meet either.
- Click Save
Your new Ticket Commission Structure will now be visible alongside your other Ticket Commission Structures.
To edit an existing Ticket Commission Structure, click its name from the Ticket Commissions screen.
Applying Ticket Commissions
You can apply Ticket Commissions to existing or new Event Instances.
When setting up a new Event Instance, add the Ticket Commission on the Instance level using the Ticket Commission dropdown:
If you are editing an existing Event Instance, click through the steps below to learn how to set a new Ticket Commission structure.
Alternatively, you can use the Bulk Instance Updater to update the Ticket Commission Structure for multiple Instances at once.
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Click Next to move the steps and learn how to edit a Ticket Commission Structure.
From the Admin Interface, select the Event you want to update. Then, go to the Instances tab and select the Instance you want to update.
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Go to the Ticket Commission tab and then click Edit.
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Update the Ticket Commission Structure and then click Save.
TIP: You can also create a new Custom Commission Structure from this screen by clicking the Edit Custom Commission Structure button.
Choosing how to display Commissions
You can choose to display Ticket Commissions as itemised or not itemised.
To update these settings, navigate to the Settings Interface.
TIP: To access the Settings Interface, you’ll need the Settings Administrator Role. If you don’t have this Role, ask the Settings Administrator in your organisation to add this Role to your User Account.
Click through the steps below to learn how to update your Ticket Commission settings:
- From the navigation menu, click Configuration > System Setup
- From the menu on the left, click Price Lists:
- Choose from the following options:
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Do not itemise commission
Ticket prices will display as the total including Ticket Commission. For example, if the ticket is $12 and the Ticket Commission is $1.50, the Ticket Price will display as $13.50 (inc $1.50 Commission).
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Itemise commission
The ticket price and commission will display separately. For example, if there is a $37 ticket with a $1 ticket commission, your customers will see a price of $37 + $1.
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Do not itemise commission
TIP: Depending on how you choose to display your Ticket Commission (Itemised or not Itemised) this will display in the same way on any Confirmation emails, Ticket Designs and receipts.
Where are Ticket Commissions displayed?
Ticket Commissions can be visible on your website, in the Sales Interface, Confirmation emails, Ticket Designs and receipts.
Ticket Commissions will display differently depending on how you have configured them to display in the Settings interface.
Regardless of whether you choose to itemise, or not itemise, Ticket Commissions will display on the Seating Plan online and in the Sales Interface.
In the Sales Interface
In the Sales Interface, you can view Ticket Prices on both Reserved and Unreserved Seating Plans.
TIP: Depending on the eligibility criteria of your Ticket Commission Structure, Ticket Commissions may not be applied until you select a Sales Channel.
Click into each tab below to see how Ticket Commissions are displayed.
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Reserved Seating Plan: Itemised
When viewing Ticket prices in the Sales Interface, itemised Ticket Commissions are displayed alongside the price of the Ticket:
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Reserved Seating Plan: Not Itemised
When viewing Ticket prices in the Sales Interface, Ticket Prices are displayed as a total including Ticket Commissions. This is indicated by the use of inc cmsn:
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Unreserved Seating Plan: Itemised
When viewing Ticket prices on Unreserved Seating Plans in the Sales Interface, itemised Ticket Commissions are displayed alongside the price of the Ticket:
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Unreserved Seating Plan: Not Itemised
When viewing Ticket prices on an Unreserved Seating Plan in the Sales Interface, Ticket Prices are displayed as a total including Ticket Commissions. This is indicated by the use of (inc. £2.00 cmsn)*:
Once added to the cart / basket in the Sales Interface, Ticket Commission is shown under the Price column and added into the Total (regardless of itemisation configuration):
Online
Itemised Ticket Commissions can be made visible to customers on iframes or Subsites (which use iframes) on both Reserved and Unreserved Seating Plans.
TIP: Your website will display differently depending on how your website is integrated with Spektrix.
Click into each tab below to see how Ticket Commissions are displayed.
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Reserved Seating Plan: Itemised
The Prices section of the Choose Seats iframe displays the total price of each Ticket including Ticket Commission.
On UK and Ireland systems:
On US and Canada systems:
You can also see the total Ticket price including Commission when selecting Ticket Types on the Edit Tickets iframe.
On UK and Ireland systems:
On US and Canada systems:
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Reserved Seating Plan: Not Itemised
The Prices section of the Choose Seats iframe displays the total price of each Ticket including Ticket Commission. This is displayed without an indication of Ticket Commission.
On UK and Ireland systems:
On US and Canada systems:
You can also see the total Ticket price including Commission when selecting Ticket Types on the Edit Tickets iframe. This is displayed without an indication of Ticket Commission.
On UK and Ireland systems:
On US and Canada systems:
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Unreserved Seating Plan: Itemised
When viewing Ticket prices on Unreserved Seating Plans online the Ticket price is shown as the total including Ticket Commission with (inc. £2.00 cmsn) alongside the price.
On UK and Ireland systems:
On US and Canada systems:
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Unreserved Seating Plan: Not Itemised
When viewing Ticket prices on an Unreserved Seating Plan online, Ticket Prices are displayed as a total including Ticket Commissions without an indication of the Ticket Commission.
UK and Ireland systems:
US and Canada systems:
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Itemised at Checkout
Ticket Commissions will display at checkout online. Ticket Prices and Ticket Commission will display separately:
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Not itemised at Checkout
Ticket Commissions will not display at checkout online. Ticket Prices will include Commission but Commission is not visible:
Commission Displayed in Seating Plans
Ticket Commissions will display differently on Seating Plans depending on whether you're viewing the plan in the Sales Interface or on the website. This is regardless of whether you choose to itemise or not itemise your Ticket Commissions.
- On a Reserved Seating Plan online (displayed to customers on the Choose Seats iframe) ticket prices appear as a total without Ticket Commission:
- On the Seating Plan in the Sales Interface the Ticket price including the Ticket Commission as a total price:
Reporting on Ticket Commissions
Ticket Commissions are visible in the following Standard Reports:
- Payments & Activities Report by user, daily breakdown and detailed.
- Ticket Subscriptions Analysis
- Ticket Subscriptions by Customer
If you’re building a Custom Report and would like to include Ticket Commissions, take a look at the Metrics Catalogue for more information on available outputs.
TIP: Ticket Commissions will not be included in the Price Metric in Custom Reports, but they will be included in the Total Charged Metric.
Ticket Commissions in Segmentation
In Purchasing Segments, under the Tickets Wrapper, you can use the Commission metric to identify customers who have paid Ticket Commissions:
Further Reading
To continue learning about Commissions in Spektrix, take a look at the following articles: