Benjamin Ashby Systems, income and websites for small arts organisations

More time for the art that matters.

I help small arts organisations run like much bigger ones. Slicker booking, better fundraising, websites that work harder and admin that runs itself. Built in weeks, at a cost that finally makes sense.

Start a conversation What I do

Why now

Levelling up used to be a luxury.

Ten years ago, a proper CRM, a joined-up booking system or a website that talked to your finance software meant developers, agencies and a budget most small organisations never had.

That has changed, quietly and completely. The tools the large institutions rely on are now off the shelf, cost tens of pounds a month and connect to each other. What they still need is someone who knows the arts, knows the tools and can make them work together. That is the job.

Cost of a joined-up system
Then
Nowa fraction, with no developer on retainer
Time from first call to going live
Thenmonths
Nowweeks
Upkeep once it is running
Thensomeone technical on call
Nowyour own team, with a manual

Indicative, drawn from systems I have built for ensembles, education charities and venues over the last four years.

What I do

Everything behind the scenes, so the front of house shines.

Six things, usually in some combination. Each one gives time back to the people who make the work, and most of them pay for themselves within a season.

01

Booking and ticketingA box office that sells more and asks less of you.

  • Modern ticketing, set up and branded as your own
  • A donation ask at the point of purchase
  • Memberships, vouchers, bundles and waiting lists
  • Sales flowing straight into your records, no re-typing
02

Fundraising and donor databasesKnow every supporter, and ask well.

  • A CRM chosen for your size and built around how you work
  • Gift Aid claims without the spreadsheet
  • Segmented, timely asks instead of one annual appeal
  • A pipeline for trusts, foundations and major gifts
03

Websites with more behind themA site that works as hard as you do.

  • Redesign or rebuild, with booking, giving and sign-up built in
  • Search visibility and the free Google advertising available to charities
  • Analytics you will actually read
  • Easy for your team to update without calling anyone
04

Connected softwareOne organisation, one set of data.

  • Ticketing, CRM, email, finance and website talking to each other
  • No more copying names and numbers between systems
  • One place to see income, audiences and donors
  • Board reports that take minutes, not days
05

AutomationAdmin that does itself.

  • Confirmations, reminders, thank-yous and invoices sent for you
  • Bank reconciliation and income tracking kept current
  • Artist contracts and schedules generated from one record
  • The repetitive hours handed over, the time given back
06

Income strategyMore from the audience you already have.

  • Pricing, ticket mix and the products around a performance
  • Memberships, merchandise and other things worth selling
  • Turning audience members into regular donors
  • Growing the donor base with a plan you can keep running

Who I work with

Two ways in, same outcome.

If you run the organisation

Talk to me about outcomes: income, reputation, time. You will get a short plan in plain English, a fixed scope and a number up front. Nothing is built that you cannot explain to your board.

DirectorsGeneral managersTrusteesFounders

If you run the systems

Talk to me about the stack. I build, document and hand over, and I will never leave you with something only I can run. Tools I work with most often:

Ticket TailorBeaconDonorfyNotionAirtableXeroMailchimpSquarespaceMakeZapierGoogle WorkspaceAd Grants

What it looks like

Numbers from organisations I have run or worked inside.

0%

increase in earned and philanthropic income after new income models

0%

increase in small donations after adding a gift at the point of booking

0×

administrative capacity after a digital rebuild of website, CRM and finance

0%

growth in voluntary income in ten months with a new fundraising CRM

Music charities, a touring ensemble and a national charity's philanthropy programme, over the last four years. Happy to talk through any of them.

How it works

Four steps, no surprises.

01

Listen

A free half-hour call about where the time and the money go. No pitch.

02

Map

A short written plan: what to change, what it costs, what it should return and in what order.

03

Build

Weeks, not months, working alongside you. Nothing disrupted mid-season.

04

Hand over

Training, documentation and a team that can run it without me.

Benjamin AshbyLondon and Oxford

Why I do this

The money matters less to me than the music does.

I trained as a musician at the Royal College of Music, then spent a decade on the other side of the stage: co-founding and selling an arts technology company, leading operations and fundraising for music charities, and now running a period instrument ensemble in Oxford.

Along the way I built the systems myself, because there was never a budget to buy them. I have seen what a small organisation can do once the admin stops getting in the way, and I want more of them to have that.

Efficient organisations look professional. Professional organisations get taken seriously. And the people inside them get to think about the art again.

That is why the fees are fair, the scope is clear and everything is built so you can run it yourselves.

Get in touch

Let's talk.

A first conversation is free and takes half an hour. Tell me what eats your week, and I will tell you what I would change first and roughly what it would cost.

Based in London, working with organisations across the UK, in person or online.

Useful to mention

  • What you do and roughly how big you are
  • Which systems you use now, however informal
  • The admin job you would most like to never do again
  • Where you would like the income to come from next year