When may a system change be needed? What does it look like in practice? I will try to answer these questions today.
Despite the problems with the current system on which a club relies, many people hesitate to make the decision to change it. The main concerns are:
- Loss / need to rewrite the current club member base,
- Reworking of equipment (fiscal printer / card reader),
- Need to add changes to the website, e.g. changing the link to the online schedule,
- Getting the whole team and club members used to the current system.
When can a change in club management software be beneficial?
I will describe the process of changing the system itself below, but briefly:
If you are considering changing the system to manage your club, the process itself is easy enough that it should not be an argument for you to say ‘no’.
You should base your decision mainly on such aspects:
Price
We can see that one of the most important factors in the decision to change the system is its price. Especially at a time of rampant inflation and the New Deal (Nowy Ład), this is understandable. It is worth comparing how much you are currently paying for a system and how much the new system you are interested in costs.
Often, systems that target large chain clubs have a price that is too high and the functions that are too advanced (mostly unused) for smaller clubs.
For example, here is WodGuru’s price list. The monthly fee for our system is based on the number of club members, with a guarantee that it will never exceed 99 euro net per month.
Do you simply feel good?
What does it mean? Ask yourself whether:
- the current system annoys you?
- e.g. slow system loading, bugs, lack of contact with support make you look as follows: ?
- you feel that many of your duties should be automated and the system should do them for you?
- while paying the monthly invoice for the system you feel that it is wasted money?
If no, then everything is fine and there is nothing to be done about it
If yes, then do something about it. It’s always a good idea to start by communicating with the team developing the system. They will probably be keen to help you and solve your problems.
If not, then a red light should appear in your head. Or at least the desire to check other systems available on our market.
Support
Every system has its faults. It all depends on how the developers of the system react to them.
We frequently hear that in system X:
- Contact with support is almost impossible,
- The same bugs are reported repeatedly for a long time and nobody fixes them.
- The system does not develop and respond to the needs of the clubs.
What exactly does the change in management system look like for the club?
About 25% of all the clubs that operate on WodGuru have come to us from another system. Efitnesses, gymsteers, perfectgyms, gymmanagers – you name it. We have experience of migrating clubs to WodGuru from each of these systems.
The process looks very similar every time.
- Free registration and familiarising yourself with WodGuru, clicking through the whole system and making sure it meets your requirements,
- Once you’ve made up your mind -> Configuration of WodGuru, preparation of schedule, passes etc. (We help and support you in everything )
- Make an appointment for a specific date to switch over the system (preferably at the weekend),
- On the agreed date, migration of club members’ data and change of the equipment. The whole process takes 1-3 hours.
- Sending notifications to customers – from the next working day, you are already operating on the new system, and we are available for you via chat and telephone in case of questions (which will surely arise).
What is more:
- If you have a notice period in the current system, you have a guarantee of no payments to us during this time.
Database
If there is an option in your system to generate a file (excel / csv) with the basic data of your club customers, we will transfer them without any problems. If there is data on passes, we will transfer them, too. The vast majority of systems have such reports. If yours does not have them, it is even the next reason to change it
Finally, when everything is ready, your club members will receive a welcome message and all the instructions on how to become familiar with the new system.
Appliances
This equipment you currently have will probably stay with you and continue to work.
Printer – We support your printer 100%.
Reader – We support your reader 90%. But if your reader is among the 10% we do not support, we may start supporting it
Support
We can see that the biggest problem is in our minds. Our habit that things used to be done this way and now it’s different. This is quite normal, which is why we are available all the time via built-in chat and on the phone to help you and answer your questions.
How long does it take to change the system and how much does it cost?
How long does it take is up to you
From the moment you write to us, we could have everything ready in 2-3h. This of course lasts longer, as you need time to familiarise yourself with and click through the new system.
To sum up, the process is quite efficient and depends mainly on the effectiveness of our communication and how in a hurry we are.
How much does it cost? Nothing. The migration of the data itself and the switching of the hardware costs nothing in our company. The only charge is the monthly one for using the system, as described in our price list.
Is it worth changing the software?
It is certainly worth knowing other options and not being closed off to them.
It’s worth looking around if the current software doesn’t work perfectly. We have written about the things to be aware of in the system here.
It is worth remembering that the process of changing your sports facility management system itself is easy and should not stop you.
