Best Practices
The Best Summer Camp Registration Software for Online Sign-Ups
Summer camp registration season hits like a thunderstorm. One minute, you’re commenting on how much we need the rain. The next, you’re inundated with a flood of forms, payments, and questions that can leave your team floundering. That’s why you need the best summer camp registration system you can find.
Executive directors start looking for better camp registration software when they want:
- Simplified registration systems that empower parents and support staff members.
- Tools to save time chasing down payments or missing forms.
- Automatic management of registrations, cancellations, and payment plans.
- Freedom from monthly subscription fees to fit their budget cycle.
The best summer camp registration software helps you ride the registration wave. Parents can register online with a self-service tool that liberates staff from the administrative burden. And your team can say goodbye to frustrated parents, frantic last-minute calls, and lines wrapping around the block.
Finding the Best Summer Camp Registration Software
Here’s a look at 5 summer camp online registration software options so you can find the best summer camp registration software for your campers, parents, and staff.
Registration options compared:
If you want to get right to a camp registration software that can simplify the sign-up process and make life easier for your staff, talk to the CourseStorm team today.
CourseStorm
CourseStorm is an impossibly simple class and camp registration software that’s flexible enough to meet unique program needs. Whether your camp is a supplement to the classes you run all year round, or a seasonal event that happens once a year, we have the tools you need to register campers while keeping parents and staff happy.
Key Feature 1 – Registration and Payment Software in One Simple Package
If you’ve ever had to hire temporary staff or deal with phones ringing off the hook, it’s time for a better solution. Maybe you’ve tried using Google Forms and a third-party payment service, resulting in missed payments and mismatched records. Paper forms, call-to-register, and parent walk-ins just don’t meet the needs of your growing program. Your staff and parents deserve better.
Picture this: the registration window opens for your summer arts camp. Within minutes, your program is completely sold out and you have a waiting list. That might sound like a fantasy, but it’s a real experience from a CourseStorm customer. Within days, those payments are in their account and ready to be invested back into the camp.
CourseStorm is a seamless all-in-one registration and payment solution. Parents can click a button to register and pay without ever leaving your course catalog. They can even register multiple children in a single transaction.
With built-in payment plans, parents can opt in to have funds automatically deducted from their account on pre-set dates. Suddenly, camp is more accessible and your staff is free to focus on campers rather than credit cards.
Key Feature 2 – Collect the Exact Information You Need Without Frustrating Customers With Unnecessary Requests
Parents have enough on their plate without filling out unnecessary information on a one-size-fits all form. Without custom forms, you’ll frustrate parents and overwhelm staff with duplicate information.
CourseStorm offers fully customizable registration forms that let you collect exactly the information you need and nothing more. Add links to your privacy policy and get parental consent with the click of a check-box. All of the information is securely stored in the user profile so they can easily update, change, or manage their registrations.
Here’s just one example. If you’re offering both day camp and overnight camp, you’ll need additional information from your overnight campers. You might want to share a unique supply list or get consent for special programs and events. The day campers don’t need all of those extra details. With CourseStorm you can easily build custom forms for each audience and improve the experience for everyone.
Key Feature 3 – Effortlessly Manage Changes and Additions Online
Some camp registration software makes you dig through complex menus or even call customer service to change a reservation or issue a refund. At CourseStorm we believe your program and registrants should have full control over the process. You can manage registration changes, issue refunds, or even move campers between programs with just a few clicks.
According to our 2024 State of the Arts Report about 15% of kids’ arts camps and classes have waiting lists. If you’re one of them, parents on the waitlist will be automatically notified when a spot becomes available for their child.
Just imagine it’s two days before the start of your Shakespeare in the park summer acting camp, when the weather stations start warning of a hurricane coming your way. You’re going to have to contact the families of 40 kids to let them know that camp is canceled. It’s not ideal, but you don’t have to panic because you have CourseStorm.
With just a few clicks you can email everyone and offer a refund or transfer to another session. Everyone knows exactly what’s going on, and you can focus on preparing for the storm instead of fielding phone calls.
Sawyer
Sawyer is built for kids camps and classes, which they list directly in the “marketplace” on their website. Registrations through those listings incur a 30% marketplace fee, which gets smaller as you upgrade your plan. You’ll also pay a monthly flat fee in addition to that marketplace charge.
That price tag comes with some useful features. You can take registrations directly on your site, offer discounts, and integrate with Constant Contact or Mailchimp for marketing. Sawyer also automates customer refunds and reminders.
Features and capabilities:
- Marketplace listings
- Family profiles and group registration
- Add-ons like early drop-off and late pickup
- Weekly secure payouts
RegFox
RegFox is event registration software that also offers some functionality for camps. You can set up merchandise and product sale add-ons, which is great if you have tee shirts or other camp swag to sell. Other tools, like badge printing, are more useful for adult events.
The software does offer capability for onsite payments, design customization tools, and plenty of 3rd party integrations. Services like email marketing automation and text messaging come with an extra monthly fee attached.
Features and capabilities:
- Check-in app
- Social media plug-ins
- Collect donations from your registration page
- Lots of page design options
JackRabbit
Another kid-focused registration software, JackRabbit is designed for gymnastics, dance, swim, cheer, and music programs. This is a great solution for youth activity centers that already use it for their year-round classes.
They offer a parent portal that lets parents track their child’s skill development and access account details. Parents can even watch classes with live streaming. JackRabbit does have a no monthly fee option, as long as you’re willing to charge parents an extra 1.25% on each transaction.
Features and capabilities:
- Student skill tracking
- Staff time clock
- Uniform and performance management
- Integrated point of sale system
Regpack
Originally designed for billing automation, Regpack has some useful tools for managing payments. They’re a great fit for subscription-based programs, but lack many of the marketing and engagement integrations you may expect.
Regpack charges a monthly fee “per license” that renews yearly. That means you’ll be charged for each person who has access to your administrative tools. Charges come out year round, even if you only take registrations a couple of months each year.
Features and capabilities:
- Customizable registration forms
- Payment plans
- Campers can reserve spots without paying
- Group registration
Get the best summer camp registration software for your program today
Don’t put off making this decision. Our State of the Arts Report revealed that students register an average of 71 days before summer arts camps or classes start, so now is the time to set your summer camp up for success. Choose the best summer camp registration software for your program today.
If you need a little more help deciding, connect with the CourseStorm team today to get a better sense of our camp registration software and how we can meet your needs fast.
Greg Shula
Greg has spent a decade analyzing business and marketing performance metrics of the companies he has worked with. He uses his analytical mind and investigative skills to find trends and simple answers from complicated data sets. Greg is also an amateur photographer who loves to capture nature from new perspectives.
