A guest calls to ask for a refund and reads you the ticket. It shows the event, the date, the price type and a barcode. It doesn’t show when they bought it, who bought it, or the order number. Now you’re searching daily sales by name and hoping only one Smith bought two adult tickets last Tuesday.
This happens because the merge fields on an Altru ticket template are a fixed list, not your whole database. Below is how to find out exactly which merge fields your template can print, what usually isn’t available, and the workarounds that hold up in practice.
Start by checking your own field list
Ticket layouts in Altru are built in a template designer that offers a set list of merge fields you can drop onto the ticket. Before you plan anything, open the template you actually use for each channel and write down every available field. Do this separately for:
- Printed tickets from daily sales at the admissions desk
- Advance sales and group sales tickets, if they use a different layout
- Print-at-home or eTickets sent after a web form purchase
The available fields can differ by template type and by Altru release, so don’t rely on someone else’s screenshot or an old training guide. If a field you need isn’t in your designer’s list, assume the template can’t print it. If you’re not sure whether a field exists under a different name, test it in a sandbox or ask Blackbaud support before you redesign your stock.
What you can usually count on
The fields that describe the admission itself are the reliable ones: the program or event name, the scheduled date and time, the price type (adult, child, member, and so on), the price, the barcode, and static text you type in yourself, such as your address, hours or a policy line.
What’s often missing
The fields desk staff usually want are the ones that describe the transaction, not the admission:
- Date and time sold. Useful for refund windows, “valid for 30 days from purchase” policies, and spotting tickets bought for the wrong day.
- Purchaser name. Helpful for will-call, group leaders, and any desk that needs to match a ticket to a person.
- Order or transaction number. The fastest way to look up a sale when a guest calls.
- An expiration date for undated general admission tickets.
Check your list for each of these. If they’re there, use them. If not, the options below fill the gap without fighting the template.
Workarounds that work
Let the barcode do the lookup
Tickets typically carry a barcode tied to the sale. If staff can scan or key that barcode to pull up the transaction, the purchaser, sold date and order details are one step away even though they aren’t printed. Train the desk on that lookup before spending time on template changes. It solves most refund and exchange calls.
Put transaction details on the receipt, not the ticket
Receipts and order confirmations often have access to different information than ticket layouts do. If guests need proof of purchase date or an order number, make sure the receipt or confirmation carries it, and tell guests to keep it. Desk staff can hand over the receipt with the tickets.
Use static text for policy
If you need a purchase-based expiration on undated tickets but can’t print a sold date, write the rule in static text (“Valid for one visit within 12 months of purchase”) and enforce it at lookup. It’s not perfect, but it’s honest and consistent.
Pull the missing fields with a query
Purchaser name, sold date and order number all live in your sales data, so a query can return them alongside the ticket or order. That’s the basis for a daily will-call list, a group arrivals sheet, or a confirmation email that includes everything the ticket leaves out.
Where email fits in
For online buyers, the confirmation email is often a better place for transaction details than the ticket itself, because it’s addressed to the purchaser and arrives the moment they buy. If your current eTicket email can’t include the fields you need, our Email Designer sends branded eTickets and confirmations from Altru queries, so anything your query returns, such as purchaser name, date sold or order number, can appear in the message without manual exports.
Quick answers
Can I add a custom field to the ticket designer?
Not that we’re aware of. The designer works from its own field list. If you need something outside it, use static text, the receipt, or a query-driven email instead.
Do printed tickets and eTickets share the same fields?
Not necessarily. Check each template on its own; a field available on one may not appear on the other.
