Seatmap Pro Visual Workshop: How to Build Beautiful Maps

Welcome to the workshop. Today we’re going to build a complete, production-ready multi-tier arena map in Seatmap Pro – the kind you’d actually sell tickets from. We’ll use the Al-Maktoum stadium as our real example: central rink, curved sections, corner transitions, and some box/suite areas.

The most important mindset shift before we start: Seatmap Pro is not a graphical design tool. It’s a ticketing-first geometry engine. The seats, rows and sections you create are the source of truth for pricing, selection, availability – everything that matters to revenue. The visual polish comes second and should never compromise the logical structure.

Many teams make the mistake of trying to make it look perfect from day one. That almost always leads to headaches later: drifting on zoom, sections disappearing, weird mobile behavior. So our golden rule today is:**** first create clean, logical, symmetrical schema geometry. Only then dress it up visually.

We’ll cover two realistic workflows : one fast and functional – good enough for production ticketing quickly, and one polished and beautiful – when the client wants a stunning visual presentation.

Both start the same way: schema first. 

Fast & Functional Workflow (Production-Ready in Hours)

1. Creating Sections – Two Quick Ways

   Switch to Edit Schema mode (you’ll see the pencil icon in the top bar).

• Method 1 – Seat Rows tool (most common)  

In the TOOLS menu → click the Seat Rows icon (looks like rows of circles).  Hold left mouse and drag a rectangle on the canvas → live preview shows row/seat count → release to create the section instantly.

• Method 2 – Inspector / Hotkeys   

Select an existing section → right sidebar shows SECTION controls.  Or use hotkeys: e.g. Cmd + Opt + N for rows on Mac, then drag.

  2. Cloning sections

Once you have one good section, choose Clone Section from the actions list. This is how you build dozens of sections fast.

3. Splitting, Cropping & Cleaning Up Sections

Created a giant block which does not represent the section’s geometry? No problem.

• Select unwanted seats/rows from the Edit Seats mode (double-click on the section) → - look for Extract Seats action in the right-side menu. This lets you carve one big section into several logical ones (e.g. separate corners or premium blocks).
• To crop/trim: select edge rows/seats → delete using the Delete button.

4. Outlines & Readability (80% of visual clarity comes from here)

Return to Edit Schema mode and click on the section again.

• Set Outline to Auto (recommended for arenas) — instantly draws clean section boundaries.
• Adjust Padding for the outline if needed
•  Choose Title Position if you want it to be displayed.
• Adjust sliders of the Transform tools to accurately display the section’s form.

   With outlines + titles on, the map suddenly becomes readable even without underlay.

5. Repetition & Basic Shapes for Orientation

Add non-sellable reference objects with Shape tool (circle, rectangle, polygon, line):

• Draw the rink (large oval or rectangle in center).
• Add staircases, gangways, scoreboards as simple shapes, define their colours.
• These shapes can also become GA sections – just assign them as General Admission areas later.

6. Defining the overall shape

Next big tool: Venue Shape (oval icon in Visual toolbar). This is the single most powerful feature for stadiums and arenas.

In the Venue Shape inspector:

• Set Dimensions (e.g. something like 3750 × 2300 for an oval bowl)
• Slide Corner Radius up (around 750 works beautifully for smooth corners like Arēna Rīga)
• Position usually at 0,0 (center of the rink)

Once the overall venue shape is defined, go back to individual sections and enable Venue Shape linking (the little icon in the transform panel). Suddenly rows start gently following the outer curve. Use Stretch and Curve sliders per section to fine-tune how aggressively the rows bend. This is far cleaner than trying to manually curve every single row.

7. Save & Publish

Hit Save (cloud icon top-right) → then Publish (or Preview first to check zoom/pan). Done. This version is already sellable: clean numbering, logical sections, basic orientation shapes.

Beautiful & Polished Workflow (When Looks Matter)

Start exactly the same as above: build the fast functional schema with clean sections, titles, clones, and basic shapes.

Then:

1. Export the Schema as SVG

In the editor → look for Underlay in theVisual tab→ choose Export SVG. This exports your current seating geometry (sections, rows, seats as paths).

2. Refine in Figma / Illustrator

   Open the exported SVG in your design tool.

• Group sections logically (e.g. all lower bowl, all upper tier).
• Hide or lock the initial seating group (so you don’t accidentally move seats).
• Draw a beautiful underlay around it: curved walls, gradients, shadows, ice texture, sponsor logos, etc.
• Make sure section boundaries are clearly defined as separate shapes/groups (this helps binding later).

Export the finished design as SVG again (keep the seating layer separate if possible).

3. Re-Import the Polished Underlay

   Back in Seatmap Pro → Visual tab → Underlay.

• Upload your new beautiful SVG.
• Scale/position it to match the existing schema perfectly.
• The original seating geometry stays untouched — only the visual reference changes.

4. Optional: Binding for Easy Alignment

Switch to Binding mode (chain/link icon). If your imported SVG has clearly named or grouped section shapes, click them → bind to matching Seatmap sections. Outlines snap to the designed curves → selection looks native to the artwork.

Final Notes

When you are done – just save the map and hit Preview and make sure everything looks right.  If anything drifts → fix in View Area (Visual tab).

Colors of seats, hover states, selection highlights, sold/available indicators – all of these are not set in the Editor.  They are controlled programmatically via the Renderer settings.  The editor only cares about geometry and hierarchy.

Venue Shape is still useful even in the beautiful workflow: it helps sections adhere to overall oval/corner-radius logic before you export.

That’s it.  You now have two complete paths:  fast for production ticketing in hours and beautiful – for client-wowing visuals without breaking sellable logic.