Editing Member Information Assigned to Event
Following our update last night, we resolved a bug that affected a small number of users who were unable to update member information assigned to events. This issue has been fixed, and we are actively monitoring the situation. If you are still experiencing any problems, please don’t hesitate to contact us.Bug Fix
Quotes
We're thrilled to announce the launch of a new feature in Band Pencil: the ability to create and send quotes to your clients! Quotes function similarly to invoices but include the option for clients to accept them within a specified timeframe. You can choose between a builder quote, where clients can select individual line items, or a simple acceptance option, allowing clients to approve the entire quote.
This feature is now live and accessible on your event page—just click "+ Create Quote" next to the invoice creation button. As this is a new feature, there may be some initial teething issues, so if you encounter any issues, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Help articles: View linkNew Feature
Rich Text Editor for Contracts
Client and performer contracts now include a rich text editor, allowing you to add formatting such as bold text and more. There’s nothing you need to do, but you may want to review and update your existing templates to take advantage of this new feature.Improvement
Amending Client Contract Header & Footer Text
You can now amend the text in the client contract header (document section) and footer. By default, Band Pencil will display the standard default for each contract, unless changed by you.
You can amend the header and footer by navigating to your contracts page and clicking 'Contract Options'.
Learn more: View linkNew Feature
Client Contract Merge Tags
We're excited to introduce merge tags for client contracts! Merge tags are bits of code that let you insert dynamic data directly into your contracts. For example, you can use the {{client_name}} tag to automatically display the client's name.
You can start adding merge tags to your client contract templates right away. Simply use the dropdown menu when creating or editing a template.
Learn more: View linkNew Feature
Emailing Members & Clients
When emailing from the event page, you can now include up to six additional email recipients when emailing clients (the client must still be one of them). This is perfect for situations like coordinating with multiple people for a wedding.
Additionally, when emailing clients or members, you can attach and send up to three files (with a maximum size of 5 MB each). This feature also applies to scheduled emails!New Feature
Invoice & Quote Line Item Description
You can now add a description to your invoice and quote line item explaining exactly what it is. This description will appear on invoices and quotes online and in PDF exports.New Feature
Member iCal Feed
We've fixed a bug within the member iCal feed which was preventing some events from syncing.Bug Fix
Dashboard Updates
We’ve introduced several updates to the dashboard to provide you with more helpful quick-glance stats for your upcoming events. These updates include the total number of enquiries and the active count of upcoming events.
Additionally, tasks now only display incomplete tasks assigned to you, making it easier to focus on what needs your attention.
We’ve also added a new section called 'Items Requiring Attention,' which highlights:
- The number of unreviewed New Leads (leads submitted via your lead capture form that haven’t been viewed yet).
- The number of overdue Invoices.
- The number of overdue Contracts.
- The number of Outstanding Form Responses.
- The number of Submitted Member Invoices that haven’t been processed yet.Improvement
Client Portal - Send Message
We've removed some Band Pencil branding from the email sent when a new message is sent. The sender's name in the email will be the client's name, unless no client name is assigned, in which case it will default to Band Pencil.Improvement
Email Outbox Open Rate
We've enhanced the Outbox Sent Emails report by including the email open rate, allowing you to quickly identify which emails have been read and which haven't. The percentage displayed is calculated based on the number of recipients and the number of opens.Improvement
Sent Emails
We've updated the UI on the sent email page to improve usability. It now displays the actual email sent instead of a text preview. For scheduled emails, the text preview will still be shown.Improvement
Lead Capture Form
We're excited to announce that our Lead Capture Form now includes custom fields! Your lead capture form will continue to work as normal, but if you plan to use custom fields, you must add the updated embed code to your website.
We will be making additional changes to the form layout, so if you are using the lead capture form, please ensure you update your embed code by the end of February.Improvement
Lead Capture Form Analytics
We’ve introduced a new feature that lets you monitor lead capture views (the number of times your lead capture has been viewed) starting from November 2024. You can also track the number of lead captures (new events) displayed in a graph on the lead capture page.New Feature
Band Builder
When adding a new instrument to the Band Builder, you can choose from the instruments already assigned to your members, making the matching process simpler. However, you’re still welcome to type in new ones if needed.Improvement
Song File Viewer Page
We've resolved an issue on the recently launched song file view page, enabling audio and video playback in Safari browsers.Bug Fix
Email Merge Tags
You can now add email merge tags when editing or adding an email template by using the drop down. View linkImprovement
Contact Form
We've resolved an issue with the contact form that was preventing submissions in certain browsers. It should now work smoothly across all platforms.Bug Fix
Song File Viewer Page
We've enhanced the song file view page to give you greater control, including improved options to view and download files.Improvement
Billing Email Preference
We've fixed the bug which was preventing users from updating their billing email preferences.Bug Fix
Lead Capture Form
We've made some updates to the lead capture form, particularly focusing on email notifications.
Client Notification Email: We've refined the wording to improve readability. This updated email is now saved in Band Pencil, allowing you to track the open rate of the "Thanks for your enquiry" message.
User Notification Email: We've reformatted this email to make it easier for you to view and access the enquiry directly in Band Pencil.
The reference number is now more accessible to the client and you (this is the ID for the event - you can use the search function in Band Pencil to find the event).Improvement
Add to Invoice When Adding Services
You can now add an invoice line item when adding a new service to an event. If you're assigning a new service we will automatically add the amount from the default fee you set when adding a new service. You have the ability to select the invoice to add the service to, amount and tax.
When deleting a service it will not delete the line item, likewise when deleting an invoice line item which was created when adding a service will not delete the service - you will have to do this manually.New Feature
Upcoming Event Reminder
The upcoming event reminder sent to members will now show the event status.Improvement
Event Status
You can now decide to show the event status on the Member Portal. To do this navigate to your event settings->Member Portal Settings->Show event status.Improvement
Email Merge Tags
Email merge tags can now be used within email templates. Read our support article here for more information: View linkNew Feature
Contract Sign By
You can now add a sign by date to a client contract to request the contract is reviewed and signed by a certain date.
This date will be displayed:
- In the email when selecting 'Email Contract' from the event manager page.
- Displayed on the contract view page on the Client Portal.
- Displayed on the Client Portal dashboard.
By default no date is selected, but if you select a date and want to remove it set the date to '01/01/0001'.
When adding a contract by the new event automation you can now set a 'Sign By' date. This is the number of days the contract is due from the date the automation was ran.New Feature
Member Invoices
Member Invoices report now breaks down invoice fee and additional costs.Notice
Reports
Reporting dates have been extended to show more events/revenue/member invoices.Notice
Event Information Update Bug
A new update has been released that appears to resolve the problem of being unable to update event information or email members and clients. This issue was triggered by a recent Apple update.
This bug was also changing the event status to cancelled and in some cases removing event timing information.
Please contact support if you are still facing this issue.Bug Fix
Images in Emails
You can now insert images from a URL into emails. The images must be publicly accessible, such as those from your website.
You can also now add text and background colours as well as quotes to text!New Feature
Song Information
You can now toggle to show/hide the song information on the setlist builder page.Improvement
Member Address When Searching
The member's address will show when search for a member to assign to an event to aid in selecting a member who may be close to the gig location.New Feature
Contracts Bug
Issue fixed relating to contracts (both client and performer) showing incorrect '$' sign.Bug Fix
Client Portal
All users are now able to set whether the event status displays on the Client Portal. By default it does, but you can turn this off on the event settings page.Improvement
Referral Sources from Lead Capture Form
We have added the option for you to collect referral sources on the lead capture form. We display this as 'How did you hear about us?'. You can hide this, but by default it is displayed.
This field will not auto-populate into Band Pencil for two reasons. 1) Some users may want to code the referral source as an 'online enquiry'. 2) As this is a free text field some users may want to group it as a different referral source, e.g. the user may write 'we hear you perform at X event', and you would code this as 'hear us at a previous gig'.Improvement
Email Templates
Email templates are available when emailing clients and members.Improvement
Time Format Bug
Time format has been corrected on the member and admin worksheets to correctly show the time in either 24 or 12 hour format.Bug Fix
Bulk Update Member Invoices
You can now bulk updated member invoices to paid from the event manager page on the member's tab.Improvement
Calendar Improvement
We've made some improvements to the calendar so it displays on a mobile device.Improvement
Task Due Dates
You can now assign a due date to a task.New Feature
Assing Tasks & Set Due Dates
You can now assign and set a task due date as soon as a task is created.New Feature
Referral Sources on the Event Page
We've updated the referral source field on the event manager page to allow you to add and manage referral sources more easily from the event page.Improvement
Password Protect the Client Portal
You can now password protect the Client Portal.New Feature
All Events Page
You now have the option to just see the events you manage on the Your Upcoming/Past Events page.
page.Improvement
Client Contract Signature Update
Client Contracts: The signature has been enclosed within a dashed border to provide additional clarity.Improvement
Accounts Insights
Launched Account Insights page. This can be found from the reports page.New Feature
Account Reports
Update to account reports page.Improvement
Page Numbers to PDFs
Page numbers has been added to the following PDF exports:
- Client Contract
- Performer Contract
- Worksheet / Member Worksheet
- Client InvoiceNotice
Invoices
Invoices (online and PDF) now shows with a format separator e.g. £1,000.00.Notice
Contract Notes
Contact Notes has been renamed to 'Other Information' on the client record. This is because notes can now be made separately for clients records.Notice
New Client Titles
New client record titles added: Mx.Improvement
Default Service Fee
Default service fee is now displayed on the event finance tab so you can track your total default fee for the services offered for an event.New Feature
Forms
UI changes to the form editing page.Improvement
Embed Forms
Small changes made the to embed form page to remove the navigate away warning and a Powered by Band Pencil link appears to promote transparency.Improvement
Renamed Shortlisted Services
Renamed 'Shortlisted Services' to 'Services you're interested in' on the lead capture form.Notice
Additional Notes
'Additional Notes' has been renamed to 'Any additional notes' on the lead capture form.Notice
Member Availability
Member Availability has been renamed to Availability Responses. This column shows the number of members who have responded (whether yes or no). The table now shows how many members have said no as well.Notice
To keep the changelog focused on the latest updates, we’re displaying changes made within the past 12 months. For older updates, feel free to contact us.