The Settler is a person who receives the venue show and/or merch settlement sheet, and often payment from the venue. Typically this is the role of a Tour Manager, but sometimes it's the member of the band or a Tour Accountant. The Settler is also the conduit who shares that information from the promoter to the rest of the artists' team.

Open Road is software that enables the capture, visualization, and archiving of show settlement information. It makes it easy for the Settler (Tour Manager, Merch Seller, etc) to record and share complete show settlement data with the entire team: agents, managers, and business managers.

The process of sharing show settlement information is broken. What seems like a simple act, getting a venue settlement sheet and getting payment, is actually the beginning of a great cascade of information sharing, fact checking, and financial verification. You, dear Settler, are on the front lines in a struggle to get complete information that can wage for weeks after you settle a show and you might even realize it.

On a typical show, what happens is you get a venue settlement sheet, which may or may not be written on a napkin (true story), and sometimes it's missing critical information. You share it with management, agency, and business management. The agency staff then spends an average of 30 minutes to 1 hour per show trying to track down missing information from the promoter. And this holds up the process of paying out the band, which can be 4-8 weeks after the show plays.

We think the source of this problem is pretty simple, and it's got 3 parts.

1. Collectively, we as an industry have not mandated what data is necessary to share with one another.
2. We also have not collectively declared by what time this information needs to be shared throughout the entire the team.
3. And lastly, we have not created a centralized place to share this information.

Simply, we solve the problem by supporing you, the Settler, with software, training, and expectations.

Open Road asks for 11 required show settlement fields...everytime. Open Road solves the standardized information problem by providing you, the Settler, with a limited number of standardized data points to capture for every show. After using Open Road just a few times, capturing the required data points becomes muscle memory. You can look at a venue settlement sheet and grab all the pertinent info and record it within 5 minutes. The standardized fields are key since both business manager and agents know it will have all they need.

Open Road has 3 deadline options for settlement submission. The system allows the manager to choose between three options for submission deadlines: 6am (night of show), 6pm next day, and 6pm day after that. For the Settler, there is no more wondering or confusion as to when or if the team received the settlements and if they are overdue. You are sent a gentle reminder email if the show isn't settled on time, and the agent and manager are cc'ed for any necessary follow up.

Open Road is the system of record for capturing, recording, and archiving this show settlement information for your artists and sharing it with your team. All team members including agents, managers, business managers have access to this information and once a show is submitted in the system an email summary is sent to those who opt-in.

Standardized settlement form - The required fields that you need to capture are the same every time. There are 11 fields on the performance side and a similar number on the merch side. Once you learn this form it will be like riding a bike and you'll be able to read a settlement sheet, record the numbers and hit submit within just a few minutes. Open Road staff is always available to help you with the accounting and recording side of things. This skill will travel with you to any future Settler gig and as Open Road grows it will be a desirable skill to have.

Settlement delivered to your team's inbox - Once you submit a show settlement, an email summary is sent directly to the agents, managers, and business managers' inbox in a standardized format. There is a direct link from the email back to the Open Road show detail page that has further information should they need it. Getting this email in a timely manner really makes the team happy!

Your artist gets paid out faster by the agency - Before Open Road it could take weeks and weeks to get final payments released from the agency because it took them so long to track down promoter information. Now with Open Road you help your artist get paid in half the time.

Track your tour cash bank balance in a fraction of the time - Every show and merch settlement in which you received cash is automatically recorded in a tour cash bank. Easily track your balance and record non-show cash deposits or withdrawals. There is also an audit feature that allows you to count and record your cash balance and enter adjustments to balance.

The great benefit that Open Road brings to your team does not exist without you, the Settler, starting on the front lines. To that end, we at Open Road celebrate you and want to be partners with you. Although Open Road might initially feel like "just another thing to do" on your already full plate, I hope that the story above illuminates how important your role is in this chain. To that end, we are here to support you and we encourage you to reach out any time for assistance: team@openroad.ltd. Thank you for all that you do out there!