Outdoor business? Light industrial space? You need a mobile solution for class sign-ins!

At PaleoFX this past weekend I spoke with several business owners as well as clients of business owners. One woman grabbed a business card and said, “My trainer needs this! We workout in a park and the sign in sheets are always blowing around in the wind.” We chatted a bit more, and our conversation made me think of our early days with sign in sheets and the unique challenges of running a business in an outdoor location or a light industrial space.

Now, if you are using sign in sheets you are at least collecting visit information, which is important. The problem is that the information you gather is not easily distilled. It can be quite a challenge to discern patterns in visit history without spending hours transferring and manipulating your sign in sheets into excel spreadsheets. Time that I’d wager you don’t have to spend.

In 2007, when I started looking for a software solution to manage NorCal Strength and Conditioning, I had a very specific need: I wanted an easy way to track client visits. We were bringing back group classes after a year and a half of running a private training only business. I had learned from our early days of running group classes that I wanted to structure our memberships based on the frequency of visits (2x per week, 3x per week, unlimited, and so on) and I needed a way to keep tabs on client visits in order to make this work.

The software solutions I considered all offered a key tag based sign in system, which is great if you have a reception area or single door of entry into your business. Alas, our business did not. NorCal, like many microgyms, is in a light industrial building, with both roll-up doors along the back and regular doors in the front. Clients can park in the front or the back, and if the roll-up doors are open (they always are if the weather is decent) then clients can enter from either side of the building.

This presented an obvious problem for getting folks to consistently sign into class, as the key tag scanner was in the front. We would remind everyone at the start of class and then check the roster at the end of class and add anyone who hadn’t signed in. Over time we were able to train our clients (more or less) to sign in. It wasn’t perfect and I’m sure we’ve had our share of missed visits over the years.

Today, with mobile technology, it doesn’t matter where you run your business. You can operate without a physical location (or a location with multiple entrances) and still manage your business professionally. You can track client visits and session balances, accept credit cards, automate client payments, and even collect digital signatures, all from your phone or tablet. And the best part is that your clients will see you in a professional light, not chasing after sign in sheets on a blustery morning.