Managing Reserved Seating: Efficiency & Seat Management

Reserved Seating events thrive on effective seat usage. This article addresses:

1. Preventing Orphan Seats
2. Blocking and Unblocking Seats
3. Marking Seats “On Hold” or “Sold” for VIPs/comps
4. Keeping track of seat assignments and order details

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Preventing Orphan Seats

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Overview

• Orphan seats are isolated single seats that remain between booked groups.
• When Prevent Orphan Seats is turned on, SimpleTix blocks customers from leaving a single seat stranded.

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Enabling Orphan-Seat Prevention

1. Log in to your SimpleTix Manager Portal.
2. Select your event and go to Times & Tickets.
3. Click the event time you want to modify.
4. Under Advanced Options locate the Prevent Orphan Seats toggle and switch it on.
5. Save changes.

Tip: This setting helps improve sales by minimizing partial row occupancy that could deter prospective buyers.

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Seat Management & Holds

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Accessing Seat Management

1. Log in to your SimpleTix Manager Portal.
2. Select your event and go to **Times & Tickets **on the left menu.
3. In Times & Tickets, click your event time, then select Mark Seats On Hold.
4. This opens the Seating Chart with an interactive view of each seat.

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Blocking/Unblocking Seats

• Restrict to staff sales: Use the assign seats to box office only tab. Seats you select there can be sold through the box office but not bought by the public.
• Block (Hold) a seat: Select the Mark Seats On Hold tab, then select the available seats you want to hold. Held seats can’t be bought by the public or sold by the box office. Apply your changes.
• Unblock a seat: In the same hold tab, select a held seat again and apply your changes to release the hold.
• Seats already sold can’t be blocked. If you need them temporarily locked after the sale, you can only add a hold note.

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The 10 “Apply Changes” Limit

• You can submit (Apply Changes) up to 10 times per day.
• Blocking or unblocking multiple seats at once counts as a single action.
• Unblocking seats often doesn’t count against the daily total, but confirm your version’s rules if unsure.

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Viewing Order Details & Manual Holds

Hover over any sold seat to see:

• Order number
• Buyer’s name
• Ticket type

This helps you identify seats that have been purchased or are on hold for VIPs, comps, or special reservations.

Manual Holds: To prevent both public and staff purchases, select the Mark Seats On Hold tab before choosing seats. For seats staff still need to sell, use the assign seats to box office only tab.

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Assigning Seats as “Box Office Only”

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Overview

Box Office Only seats stay on the public seating chart and are reserved for your staff to sell through the box office.

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Box Office Only vs. Manual Holds: What’s the Difference?

Here’s how the two features differ:

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The Problem with the Legacy Manual Holds Workflow

In the past, organizers used Manual Holds to reserve seats they intended to sell through the box office later. This created a risky workflow:

1. Place seats on manual hold to reserve them
2. When ready to sell, unhold the seats
3. Race to sell them before a customer claims them online (because unholding makes them public!)
4. If you’re too slow, a customer might purchase the seat you intended to sell

This “unhold and race” workflow was stressful and prone to errors.

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The Box Office Only Solution

Box Office Only eliminates this problem entirely:

• Seats remain visible on the public seating chart but unavailable for public purchase
• Seats are always available to box office staff (no need to unhold first)
• No racing, no stress, no risk of losing the seat to a customer

Key Benefits:

• Seats stay on the public seating chart, reserved for box office sales
• Seats remain available for sale in the Box Office (internal “Sell Tickets” interface) at all times
• Perfect for VIP reservations, staff holds, or special accommodations
• Eliminates the risk of customers purchasing seats you intended to reserve

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Migrating from Manual Holds to Box Office Only

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How to Assign Box Office Only Seats

1. Log in to your SimpleTix Manager Portal
2. Select your event and go to Times & Tickets on the left menu
3. Click your event time, then select Mark Seats On Hold
4. Select the assign seats to box office only tab
5. Click the seats you want to assign as Box Office Only
6. Click Apply Changes to save

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Result

• Public Event Page: The seat remains visible but unavailable for public purchase
• Box Office Interface: Staff can see and sell the seat through the internal “Sell Tickets” view

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Use Cases

• VIP Reservations: Hold premium seats for special guests without blocking them from all sales
• Sponsor Seats: Reserve seats for sponsors while maintaining the ability to sell them if sponsors don’t claim them
• Staff Accommodations: Keep seats available for staff or volunteers to purchase at the door
• Last-Minute Sales: Maintain a pool of seats that can only be sold through box office for walk-up customers

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Best Practices

• Batch Changes: To avoid hitting the 10-operation limit, block/unblock seats in groups before clicking Apply.
• VIP & Sponsor Seating: Consider creating complimentary ticket types for large-scale holds or advanced seat reservations.
• Orphan-Seat Prevention + Manual Blocks: Use both features together for maximum seating efficiency.
• Check for Overlaps: If you set an event with different time slots, ensure your seat holds don’t conflict across times.

By leveraging orphan-seat prevention and effectively blocking/unblocking seats, you maintain high occupancy rates and ensure a smooth experience for both organizers and attendees.