Choosing new recreation management software is a big decision—one that will affect your staff’s day-to-day operations and your community for the next 5-to-10 years. It's a professional relationship that you should be able to count on to help make things less complicated for you and your team.
Doing your due diligence now is key to finding a software partner who can meet your needs for years to come—while also saving you from having to repeat this “exciting process” any time soon!
It’s for this reason that our team put together our recent guide 7 Red Flags: What to Watch Out for When Evaluating Recreation Management Software. Filled with info to help you make the best decision possible for your agency, the guide shares insights and practical tips like:
🚩 How to spot the most common red flags when evaluating rec management software
🤨 Essential questions to ask potential vendors before signing the contract
🚀 What you can expect from a partnership with Xplor Recreation
Go ahead and get into the nitty-gritty details by downloading your free copy of the guide below!
For a more high-level overview, continue reading. You can always download the guide later if you find yourself wanting more info. 😉
🙁 Red Flag #1: Poor Self-Serve Customer Experience
📱 Red Flag #2: Lack of Innovation
🙅 Red Flag #3: Insufficient Support or Account Management
⚙️ Red Flag #4: No Open API Integrations
💳 Red Flag #5: Limited Payment Processing Capabilities
💸 Red Flag #6: Deceptive Pricing Models
📆 Red Flag #7: Hasty Software Implementation
These days, just about everything can be done online. As a result, people expect to be able to engage with everyone and everything, from restaurants to entertainment, directly through the internet—right from the palm of their hands.
And while many industries now offer self-serve capabilities through various smart devices, the majority of recreation management software platforms have yet to adapt. This means that you and your agency could end up with a software solution that is 10—or even 20!—years behind the average user.
To avoid partnering with an outdated provider, make sure you look at their:
🌐 Website experience
📱 Mobile app offering
As years go by in a partnership between an agency and a vendor, a lack of software innovation can be an all-too-common issue. This lack of progress can greatly harm your ability to effectively engage your community and staff.
Choosing the right software for your agency today is just one of many ways you can better connect with those who live and work in your community—now and into the future.
When assessing a particular platform, make sure you really dig into the capabilities of the software. You should also look into the provider’s commitment to rapid and continuous innovation.
To avoid partnering with a complacent provider, make sure you look at their:
🚀 Recent feature releases
🗺️ Product roadmap
You and your team work hard to provide your community members with the best customer experience possible. Why should you expect anything less from your providers?
Unfortunately, dedicated customer support and account management isn’t always standard practice with some recreation management software vendors. In certain cases, these key support systems either don’t exist or will end up costing you a lot more money.
To avoid partnering with an unaccountable provider, make sure you look at their:
🕣 Customer support offering
👤 Account management commitment
We understand that you may have certain ways of doing things at your agency. This, of course, includes the technology and software you use.
From internal communications to bookkeeping, you and your team are probably most comfortable working with the systems and user interfaces that you know. And while some recreation management software platforms, like Xplor Recreation, offer open application program interface (API) integrations—not all do.
To avoid partnering with an incompatible provider, make sure you look at their:
⚙️ API capabilities
💰 Integration fees
Many vendors will require you to use either a preferred payment provider or their own in-house solution. The latter usually comes at a significant cost.
It’s important to understand what merchant options are available to you, and the rates associated with using them—before you commit to a partnership.
To avoid partnering with a limited provider, make sure you look at their:
🏦 Processor options
💲 Transaction fees
“If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” Phishing emails promising riches, voicemails claiming you’ve won a cruise and, yes, even some seemingly affordable rec management software, all fall under this category!
With certain providers, pricing can seem much better than it is when vendors do not disclose additional fees until much later—if at all. Customers end up paying substantially more than they thought they would and, sometimes, they don’t even know why.
Make sure that you clearly understand what you’re paying for before you sign on for a long-term partnership.
To avoid partnering with a costly provider, make sure you look for:
👀 Hidden fees
💸 Long-term costs
While you’d never plan to switch software providers on a tight timeline, sometimes, these things happen. If you ever find yourself in this tricky situation, we have one main piece of advice—don’t panic! Even if you feel pressure to find a solution, and fast, don’t simply sign on with the first provider who says they can get you up and running in three-to-six months.
Why? Because implementing a new recreation management software in that amount of time is simply not possible. They may be able to get the bare minimum set up in a hurry—but this typically doesn’t include several key parts of the actual implementation. In the end, you’ll end up paying much more to extend and finish everything properly.
To avoid partnering with a hasty provider, make sure you look at their:
⏱️ Implementation timeline
📊 Data migration process
Want all the details on these common red flags, including what questions you should be asking potential vendors? Download a copy of your free guide now! ⬇️