Managing Venue Groups and Circuits

Venue groups (also called circuits or booking circuits) allow you to organize and manage multiple exhibitors together. This is particularly useful when dealing with cinema chains that share common terms, buyers, or booking arrangements.

Understanding Venue Groups

A venue group is a selection of exhibitors linked together for operational reasons. Common use cases include:

• Cinema circuits - All venues belonging to the same chain (e.g., Kinepolis)
• Buyer groups - Venues managed by the same buyer
• Designated market areas - Venues grouped by geographic region
• Custom groupings - Any logical grouping that suits your distribution needs

Viewing Existing Groups

To view all venue groups:

1. Navigate to Venues in the top menu
2. Select Venue Groups from the sub-menu
3. Browse the list of existing groups including circuits, buyers, and bookers

Click on any group to view its details page, which shows all connected venues and associated terms.

Creating a New Venue Group

To create a custom venue group:

1. Go to Venues → Venue Groups
2. Click the Add button
3. Enter the group details:
   • Name - A descriptive name for the group
   • Type - Select from Group, Circuit, Buyers, Bookers, or Designated Market Area
   • Territory - Choose the relevant territory/country
4. Click Save to create the group

Adding Venues to a Group

Once you've created a group or opened an existing one:

1. In the group detail page, click Connect
2. Select one or multiple venues from the list
3. Confirm your selection

The selected venues will now appear in the group's venue list and can be used for bulk booking operations.

Setting Default Terms for Groups

One of the most powerful features of venue groups is the ability to apply default terms to all venues in the circuit. This ensures consistent rental percentages across the entire chain.

To set default terms for a group:

1. Open the venue group detail page
2. Click Default Terms at the top right
3. Configure the term template:
   • Description - Name your term template for easy identification
   • Venue Group - Select the group (already pre-selected)
   • Rental Percentages - Set percentages for week 1, 2, 3, etc.
   • Type - Choose Box Office percentage, Admissions, or Fixed amount
4. Click Save

Using Group Terms in Bookings

When creating a booking for a venue that belongs to a group with default terms:

1. Start creating a booking as normal
2. When you reach the terms step, open the Template dropdown menu
3. Select your group's default term template
4. The rental percentages will automatically populate
5. Adjust individual percentages if needed for this specific booking

Managing Group Contacts

You can add contact connections to venue groups to maintain centralized contact information for the entire circuit. This is useful when dealing with head office contacts who manage bookings for multiple venues.

In the group detail page, you can also apply permissions to control who has access to view or modify the group settings.

Best Practices

• Consistent naming - Use clear, descriptive names for your groups that indicate their purpose
• Regular updates - Keep your groups up to date as venues join or leave circuits
• Term templates - Create default terms for all major circuits to speed up booking creation
• Group types - Use the appropriate type (Circuit, Buyers, etc.) to help organize your groups logically

Common Scenarios

Scenario: National cinema chain
Create a Circuit-type group containing all venues for that chain. Set up default terms reflecting your standard agreement. When creating bookings, select multiple venues from the group and apply the default terms in bulk.

Scenario: Regional grouping
Create a Designated Market Area group for venues in a specific geographic region. This helps when planning regional releases or analyzing performance by area.

Scenario: Independent exhibitor management
Create Buyer-type groups for independents managed by the same booking agent. This streamlines communication and ensures consistent terms across their portfolio.