Tennis Club Management Software: Everything you Need to Know
Introduction
Are you a Tennis Director at a Health Club? Or the Owner or GM of a Tennis Club?
- Is your current club software focused on your members? Their experience? Their convenience?
- Are your members finding partners and arranging matches with ease?Are all your courts fully utilized?
- Are your routine admin tasks automated? Or do they clog your day?
- Are you able to juggle court usage between Tennis, Pickleball and other sports?
The right Tennis Club Management Software can help you automate many of your tasks and meet your member needs with ease and elegance.
Jump To
1. Challenges you might be facing today at your health or tennis Club
2. Benefits of a Tennis Club Management Software
3. Features to look for in a Tennis Club Management Software
4. A quick summary of what is unique about SHC’s Tennis Solution
5. Testimonial from Sport Fit, Bowie
6. Tips from our client on transitioning to the new app
7. A bonus tip to convert non- members to members
8. Summing up
Jump To
1. Challenges you might be facing today at your health or tennis Club
2. Benefits of a Tennis Club Management Software
3. Features to look for in a Tennis Club Management Software
4. A quick summary of what is unique about SHC’s Tennis Solution
5. Testimonial from Sport Fit, Bowie
6. Tips from our client on transitioning to the new app
7. A bonus tip to convert non- members to members
8. Summing up
Challenges you might be facing today at your health or tennis Club
Are you facing any of these: Attracting new members? Keeping existing members happy? Increasing Revenue? Let’s dive in.
Keeping your members happy and longer at the Club
Members struggle with many issues: finding partners, arranging matches, booking a court, and finding the right Pro or Clinic.
Not surprising that per IHRSA, an average health club, sees a 28.6% annual attrition rate.
If clubs don’t give their clients an exceptional experience then members might look for better alternatives.
Integrating new members with ease
You already know that Tennis is a niche market and attracts a specific type of member! So, getting new members to settle in nicely becomes a big challenge. Involving them in social events around Tennis can also be tough.
The TIA’s ( Tennis Industry Association) Executive Director has pointed out that there is an alarming decline in Tennis play in recent years. He has said that we have a “Retention issue” as research showed us an estimate for 4.58 “new Tennis players” there was an offset of 4.42 “lost players”.
Dependence on the Front Desk and pen and paper processes
In quite a few Tennis clubs, there is a high dependence on the Front Desk for handling member requests. The members queue up at the Front Desk or contact their respective trainers/coaches to purchase a service or make a reservation among others.
This long process may involve as many as 9 steps with a potential of friction at each step. There is high staff cost and training to process or maintain member records. Typically members are able to book courts, but not invite partners for matches or split court fees.
With a packed schedule of reserved court times, private lessons, clinics, and leagues, it can be difficult for your team to keep everything in order. And there are routine challenges related to instructors switching shifts and last-minute cancellations.
Keeping members informed about club offerings and events
Tennis clubs may not have an easy and scalable way to promote new programs, clinics or deals. The only alternative is to call members repeatedly to inform them or email them and this will neither be easy nor scalable.
Inadequate Court Utilization
This is a basic requirement and we would want every club to ace it. But there are issues that could impact this: multiple court bookings, court unavailability, and the worst of them all – poor court utilization.
Tennis Directors overburdened with Admin tasks
Often the Tennis director will have to juggle multiple tasks. They may get pulled away during a lesson to do administrative tasks. This may interfere with the member experience you want to offer.
Benefits of a Tennis Club Management Software
When we say Tennis Club Management Software, you could think of a management app that helps you with basic admin tasks. Or you could want a lot more. We want to encourage you to think of a Member Facing Mobile App, which can truly place all power in the hands of your members.
That makes sense because the Pew Research Center reports that 85% of Americans use smartphones. A recent eMarketer study showed that nearly 90% of mobile internet time is spent on apps.
Enrich the experience of your members
A software can provide a centralized platform for members to communicate with each other and their Pros. They can also get personalized reminders, push notifications, and information about programs, clinics, deals, and so on.If you give your members the ability to self-serve in today’s world, you have a good chance to win them over. For example, if they can scan all the available court timings on a Court Calendar, select the one that works for them, then find a partner, book the court, and schedule the match all by themselves and on their phone – that would be truly spectacular.Beyond this, if your members can pay for all these services on the spot on the Mobile App, then you have made them truly independent and given them an experience that the consumer of today demands and expects.
Communicate effortlessly
Software can provide efficient communication channels, including email and text messaging, that can help keep members informed about club events and activities. With features like online booking, automatic reminders, and real-time updates, tennis health club software can keep your members truly well informed.
Generate more revenue
Tennis club software can help owners generate more revenue by offering upsells, such as private coaching, clinics, or even smoothies or merchandise. You can also identify and target members with the right messaging and promotions.
Boost Member Retention
Retaining members is the top priority for any Tennis club/health club, and with the right software, you can achieve just that! You can help your members find partners, arrange matches, participate in clinics, and programs, find pros, and split court fees – this goes a long way to provide support to your members through the software so that they can meet the right Tennis partners and form lasting relationships at the club. This will in turn make sure that members keep returning to the club.
Achieve zero, unused courts and double bookings
Your members should not have to experience any hitches like double bookings for the same court, or last-minute cancellations. With the help of the Tennis club management software, managing court reservations, and scheduling and rescheduling classes, clinics can be done with 100% precision.You need not worry about double booking, unused courts, or instructor availability. All bookings are updated instantly at the backend. For example, when an instructor reschedules a time for a class or event, it will get updated on ALL calendars – the courts, the Pro’s, and even the members’ personal event notifications on the App.
Streamline your day-to-day activities
Your day-to-day activities should ideally work like clockwork. The Tennis club management software allows you to take control of basic and advanced functions at the club which include – Run Clinics, and Programs, Hiring a Pro, Managing Memberships, Showcase Events, etc. Most of these functionalities are automated and you don’t have to go through the hassle of repetitive steps anymore.Manage the full breadth of your court reservations in one easy-to-use location that optimizes court use/unused courts and takes the burden off pros, coaches, instructors, and program managers to solve the never-ending scheduling puzzle.
Superior reporting and tracking of finances
A Tennis Club Management Software can also help track the club’s expenses and revenues by generating reports of spending trends, generating invoices, splitting court fees, processing payments, and report generation. Other aspects in which the software can help are – staff payroll, member billing, and more.
Features to look for in a Tennis Club Management Software
Smart Scheduling
This is that one feature that drives the efficiency and precision of our Tennis solution. It allows you to list available Tennis courts and clinics. Simultaneously, it lets the clients schedule their bookings as per the court availability. A win-win situation where you don’t have to worry about unused courts and the customers don’t have to go through the trouble of booking manually with the possibility of double-booking or cancellation!
The software allows trainers to update their availability in different courts and the trainers can also schedule appointments with members as well. With SHC’s Smart Scheduling feature the Court/Pro bookings and calendars are all updated in real-time with no delays.
Book a Court
Some Tennis clubs have multiple apps that the users will need to use to book a single court and this too causes a lot of inefficiency.
Now when finally they are able to get a booking for a specific court there is the question of trainer availability. The trainer’s schedule and the court booking schedule may not be synchronized adding to your client’s woes. These are some of the problems that the Tennis Club Management Software you choose must look to solve.
This is where our Book a Court feature comes into the picture. It enables the clients to pick a court, select the court usage duration, and also invite partners from the club to join them for a match.
Match Arranging
A primary issue that many players face is that they are unable to find partners to play matches with and even if they do they are not similarly ranked. This problem often occurs due to varying schedules within their known circle of friends or their inability to find new similarly ranked partners.
Imagine a scenario where your members are trying to play during a specific time but they are only able to find players either below their ranking or above their ranking at the Tennis club. This could lead to them even canceling the session and a court remains unused. You end up losing revenue this way.
With SHC’s Tennis Solution, the app itself can find partners for you with our Match Arranging feature. It ensures that the players find similarly ranked players and arrange matches for them depending on their available days and times.
The App allows members to create a separate Profile for avid Tennis players. It also has a 3 rating system that members will be able to select if they are aware of their rating.The members can key in their specific criteria to look out for suitable matches. The app will then send push notifications to other members to invite them to a match. This assists the members to form lasting relationships and also make new friends at the club. The best part is that the court fees will be split amongst all the users instantly thus once again reducing the onus on you.
Hiring a Pro
In some scenarios, the members who wish to play Tennis will need trainer assistance. They will require the services, guidance, and training that only a professional may be able to provide. However, finding the right Pro can become a painful task since the members need to check the availability of the desired professional and court availability. This becomes more difficult when the trainers have to run tournaments and handle leagues, and other responsibilities.
This is where the Hiring a Pro option comes in handy. Our software allows members to hire the Tennis Pro they prefer, make the payment, and set up an appointment at a court available, all using the app.
Members will be able to navigate to the App’s Club page, select the trainer that provides the services that they are looking for and then click on book a slot on the trainer’s calendar. It is as simple as that. The trainers on the other hand will be able to upload all the time slots and the courts they are available at on the calendar. All the Tennis Pro appointments are scheduled with purchases and Session Balances that are maintained.
Run Clinics and Programs
As the Tennis director you can create different Clinic/Programs with different durations, different time slots, and at different price points per event or for the whole program. This gives you the ability to run parallel cohorts.
For example, the Saturday program can be priced higher than the weekday ones. Programs and Coaching sessions can be charged for on the SHC Platform through Stripe or the Billing Company.
The Tennis directors will be able to create groups on the app similar to a Facebook group, where they will be able to post daily updates and send push notifications to the members of the group. Furthermore, the Tennis directors can also create Leagues.
Showcase Events and Targeted Marketing
All Club owners and Tennis Directors will have one prime objective and that is to generate revenue for their club in a steady manner. One way to establish this is to market the services your club offers to your members regularly.
The Marketing Campaigns module on SHC lets you meet your revenue goals consistently. It is designed specifically to help increase member engagement and in turn revenue. As the director, you will be able to plan and create campaigns for your club with just a few clicks. Alternatively, we also have ready templates that can help you visually enhance your emails or posts as you would like.
Next, you can categorize the segment of members you wish to target on the basis of Membership tiers, Purchase history, goals, and age/gender. This will really help you to channel your marketing efforts in a focused manner.
Now you can also make On Demand videos available on the platform and even sell products such as – Tennis balls, and racquets among others. This is where our Purchases solution will benefit you and once again help you to generate revenue.
You can use features like Banners, Posts, Push Notifications, Campaigns, and more. For example, you can use Banners on the App to promote a new Clinic. Any posts created through the Feed section of the Club App will be also sent as a push notification to your members. You can choose your target segment and further filter by age etc to create custom and multi-channel marketing campaigns.
Our Marketing Campaigns Solution is completely integrated with the Tennis solution.
We are certain that the above points would have given you a glimpse of how using Tennis Management software can help you in many ways.
Features to look for in a Tennis Club Management Software
Smart Scheduling
This is that one feature that drives the efficiency and precision of our Tennis solution. It allows you to list available Tennis courts and clinics. Simultaneously, it lets the clients schedule their bookings as per the court availability. A win-win situation where you don’t have to worry about unused courts and the customers don’t have to go through the trouble of booking manually with the possibility of double-booking or cancellation!
The software allows trainers to update their availability in different courts and the trainers can also schedule appointments with members as well. With SHC’s Smart Scheduling feature the Court/Pro bookings and calendars are all updated in real-time with no delays.
Book a Court
Some Tennis clubs have multiple apps that the users will need to use to book a single court and this too causes a lot of inefficiency.
Now when finally they are able to get a booking for a specific court there is the question of trainer availability. The trainer’s schedule and the court booking schedule may not be synchronized adding to your client’s woes. These are some of the problems that the Tennis Club Management Software you choose must look to solve.
This is where our Book a Court feature comes into the picture. It enables the clients to pick a court, select the court usage duration, and also invite partners from the club to join them for a match.
Match Arranging
A primary issue that many players face is that they are unable to find partners to play matches with and even if they do they are not similarly ranked. This problem often occurs due to varying schedules within their known circle of friends or their inability to find new similarly ranked partners.
Imagine a scenario where your members are trying to play during a specific time but they are only able to find players either below their ranking or above their ranking at the Tennis club. This could lead to them even canceling the session and a court remains unused. You end up losing revenue this way.
With SHC’s Tennis Solution, the app itself can find partners for you with our Match Arranging feature. It ensures that the players find similarly ranked players and arrange matches for them depending on their available days and times.
The App allows members to create a separate Profile for avid Tennis players. It also has a 3 rating system that members will be able to select if they are aware of their rating.The members can key in their specific criteria to look out for suitable matches. The app will then send push notifications to other members to invite them to a match. This assists the members to form lasting relationships and also make new friends at the club. The best part is that the court fees will be split amongst all the users instantly thus once again reducing the onus on you.
Hiring a Pro
In some scenarios, the members who wish to play Tennis will need trainer assistance. They will require the services, guidance, and training that only a professional may be able to provide. However, finding the right Pro can become a painful task since the members need to check the availability of the desired professional and court availability. This becomes more difficult when the trainers have to run tournaments and handle leagues, and other responsibilities.
This is where the Hiring a Pro option comes in handy. Our software allows members to hire the Tennis Pro they prefer, make the payment, and set up an appointment at a court available, all using the app.
Members will be able to navigate to the App’s Club page, select the trainer that provides the services that they are looking for and then click on book a slot on the trainer’s calendar. It is as simple as that. The trainers on the other hand will be able to upload all the time slots and the courts they are available at on the calendar. All the Tennis Pro appointments are scheduled with purchases and Session Balances that are maintained.
Run Clinics and Programs
As the Tennis director you can create different Clinic/Programs with different durations, different time slots, and at different price points per event or for the whole program. This gives you the ability to run parallel cohorts.
For example, the Saturday program can be priced higher than the weekday ones. Programs and Coaching sessions can be charged for on the SHC Platform through Stripe or the Billing Company.
The Tennis directors will be able to create groups on the app similar to a Facebook group, where they will be able to post daily updates and send push notifications to the members of the group. Furthermore, the Tennis directors can also create Leagues.
Showcase Events and Targeted Marketing
All Club owners and Tennis Directors will have one prime objective and that is to generate revenue for their club in a steady manner. One way to establish this is to market the services your club offers to your members regularly.
The Marketing Campaigns module on SHC lets you meet your revenue goals consistently. It is designed specifically to help increase member engagement and in turn revenue. As the director, you will be able to plan and create campaigns for your club with just a few clicks. Alternatively, we also have ready templates that can help you visually enhance your emails or posts as you would like.
Next, you can categorize the segment of members you wish to target on the basis of Membership tiers, Purchase history, goals, and age/gender. This will really help you to channel your marketing efforts in a focused manner.
Now you can also make On Demand videos available on the platform and even sell products such as – Tennis balls, and racquets among others. This is where our E-Commerce solution will benefit you and once again help you to generate revenue.
You can use features like Banners, Posts, Push Notifications, Campaigns, and more. For example, you can use Banners on the App to promote a new Clinic. Any posts created through the Feed section of the Club App will be also sent as a push notification to your members. You can choose your target segment and further filter by age etc to create custom and multi-channel marketing campaigns.
Our Marketing Campaigns Solution is completely integrated with the Tennis solution.
We are certain that the above points would have given you a glimpse of how using Tennis Management software can help you in many ways.
A quick summary of what is unique about SHC’s Tennis Solution
- You will be able to run your Tennis ops, even if you have dozens of courts, like clockwork.
- There will be no conflicts while making reservations for courts.
- Members will be able to self-serve to find similarly ranked partners and arrange matches.
- Members will have the ability to book in advance for higher tier clubs so that all your courts are always occupied.
- Our Tennis solution is integrated with our Marketing Campaigns solution and hence allows you to market to your members regularly.
- SHC provides you with a tight integration with your billing company.
- The Purchases solution assists you to generate additional revenue (Clinics, equipment).
- SHC’s Program offering allows you to Create Programs such as an 8 Week Tennis Clinic or a 6 Week Swim Lesson; Purchases processed using Stripe/Billing Company.
- When members sign up for a Program, they are automatically Booked in for all scheduled events through the duration of the program.
Testimonial from Sport Fit, Bowie
Here is what Mike Allison from Sport Fit, Bowie says about using SHC’s Tennis Solution :
“SHC has allowed us to streamline our booking process and generate a 26% increase in revenue the first month!”
He has also confirmed that 78% of all Court and Program bookings were made through the SHC platform in comparison to 100% members who used to call the Front Desk for Court Bookings and Program Payments before launching the SHC app.
Similarly all the Tennis Pro appointments that used to be done manually at the Front Desk were scheduled using SHC’s Smart Scheduling with Purchases and Sessions Balances maintained on the Platform. They also had a 26% increase in monthly revenue for December and 2% increase in active members, after introducing the WebApp.
Tips from Mike Allison about actions he took to ease the transition to the new SHC App.
Transitioning to a new software is always a challenge. But, Mike used some innovative steps to manage that smoothly at his club.
- Member Ambassadors were assigned for all age groups
- Constant messaging on the App using SHC’s Feeds to answer any questions
- More awareness and a conscious push to ensure members are comfortable and prefer using the app to make purchases and bookings.
- Older members were given dedicated training.
- SHC’s Support Team was constantly in touch with the club to resolve issues/roadblocks in a timely manner.
- Tech Champion dedicated to the setup of the entire platform and needs to have good skills with tech.
A bonus tip to convert non- members to members
- Consider selling a non-member membership: allows the non-member the ability to come into the club 4 times during a 30 day period at a discounted price.
- Ensure they experience all your club has to offer, including any social events.
- Close the sale with any offer you are promoting at the time.
Summing up
You know that Tennis is a competitive market and member retention is super crucial. With a versatile software like SHC, you can achieve the following:
- Smart Scheduling
- Match Arranging
- Running Clinics and Programs
- Court Bookings and Reservations
- Targeted Marketing, Showcase Events
All of this will help you transform ALL your COURTS into high-performing revenue streams.
