Andrew Ladd

*the digital strategist, not the hockey player

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Digital Strategy

After nearly twenty years working in the arts, I have a lot of opinions about how the arts should work — particularly when it comes to ticketing and websites.

Sometimes I write about those opinions, sometimes I present them at industry conferences. Here's a selection.

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Articles

Everyone's a creative problem-solver!

November 2025

Lots of consultants are keen to sell you on their special, proprietary frameworks for creative problem-solving, with the promise of unlocking wild new frontiers of innovation and efficiency. The truth is, most of these frameworks boil down to the same handful of basic strategies, which almost everyone probably does unconsciously sometimes anyway. Doing these things more consciously won't unlock wild new frontiers of innovation or efficiency — but they might help you the next time you're struggling with a difficult issue.

Everyone's a creative problem-solver!:Read more (external link)

When is a website not just a website?

October 2025

For a lot of organisations, the website is just a place to stick information that somebody might resonably be interested in finding. But folks, it’s 2025. The world is more wired-up and digital than it ever has been. Your website can be so much more than a just-in-case reference for people searching for your phone number.

When is a website not just a website?:Read more (external link)

How to make your website seating plan look like your actual seating plan

April 2025

The way your ticketing system shows your auditorium on a seating map might not be how your auditorium actually looks in real life (especially if, thoughts and prayers, your auditorium has a curve in it). So how do you bring the two a little closer together, and make life easier for your website users?

How to make your website seating plan look like your actual seating plan:Read more (external link)

Sharing box-office data publicly will improve creativity and diversity

September 2024 • The Stage

Compared to other creative industries, people in theatre are very secretive about their sales figures. More openness will create more opportunities for everyone — but particularly small and independent players trying to break in for the first time.

Sharing box-office data publicly will improve creativity and diversity:Read more (external link)

Escaping the cult of content

September 2024

The idea that content is important for websites verges on dogma these days. So maybe it's time for some heresy, too.

Escaping the cult of content:Read more (external link)

Automation without AI — a beginner's guide

July 2024

When you hear the word automation, these days your mind probably goes straight to AI. As more and more companies rush to incorporate AI into their digital products, it’s easy to feel like that’s the only way to innovate with technology, and like you’re falling behind if you’re not using AI for something. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to automate without using AI. In fact, some of the most effective automations might not even involve technology at all.

Automation without AI — a beginner's guide:Read more (external link)

What peanut butter packaging can teach you about user experience design

June 2024

Much like pasta, I am a total glutton for peanut butter. I eat it for breakfast almost every day. I also splurge on the fancy peanut butter that's made from just peanuts and salt, and one thing all the fancy peanut butters have in common, I've noticed, is their lid design, which is a beautiful example of a great UX thinking.

What peanut butter packaging can teach you about user experience design:Read more (external link)

Four essential questions to ask about your ticketing system

April 2024

At the Ticketing Professionals Conference 2024, I put together a panel discussion about what a ticketing system is and what it should do for your organisation. there are a few things everyone agreed were critical. So if you have a ticketing system at your organisation, here are a few questions you should definitely be asking yourself about how well it's working for you.

Four essential questions to ask about your ticketing system:Read more (external link)

What pasta packaging can teach you about user experience design

January 2024

Fancy packaging design comes at a significant cost to the user experience of your pasta box. And if prioritising visual design over UX design can so brutally mess up the relatively simple user journey of pasta, you'd better believe it can do even more damage to the UX of your complicated website.

What pasta packaging can teach you about user experience design:Read more (external link)

Five questions to ask before you automate something on your website

November 2023

The more advanced our computers get, the more tempting it is to streamline things that maybe shouldn't be streamlined to begin with. Here are five questions to help you decide whether your automation project is actually a good idea, or whether it's going to do more harm than good.

Five questions to ask before you automate something on your website:Read more (external link)

What cathedrals can teach you about your venue's ticketing website

October 2022

Cathedral websites, it turns out, face a lot of the same challenges as theatre and other venue websites. But cathedrals have addressed those challenges in some original and often really innovative ways that you almost never see in the arts. So what can cathedrals teach you about your own arts website?

What cathedrals can teach you about your venue's ticketing website:Read more (external link)

Why you should get rid of your What's On page

August 2022

Almost every (British) venue website you look at has a "What's On" page listed prominently in the site navigation. Here's why that might not be the best idea.

Why you should get rid of your What's On page:Read more (external link)

Presentations