The “community” buzzword has been thrown a lot lately and with good reason. An organization that has put in the time to grow their community should see an involved customer base that reacts to what the organization is up to. However, building community involves more than slogans and corporate giveaways.  

To effectively build community, you have to be genuine and it has to be engrained in the culture of your organization. Recreation management software can help you accomplish these things, by alleviating labor, communicating effectively to your members and capturing new supporters, so you can watch your community grow. 

Giving You the Time You Need 

Whether you’re planning fun, engaging and value-driven events for your community members or developing a social media campaign to get more people out into parks, these things take time. Volunteering is a great route to go but freeing up time for your staff members will allow them to devote energy towards community-building initiatives. Social media engagement should also be a high priority, to really connect with your members. Recreation management software should help take out simple yet time-costly tasks from your staff’s to-do lists, so they have time do these things.  

It’s a Culture, not a Quick Fix 

With so many corporations talking about community, many of the nuances may be lost on them. It has to be a way of thinking with your employees that translates into how guests are treated at your facilities. Parks and recreation facilities should be open for all to partake. Make sure you’re inclusive of all, especially if they have a disability. Management software should likewise be built on accessibility, allowing people to register online, edit memberships, make purchases and more.   

This culture of community and inclusion will help your members feel appreciated and attract more members. The growth of your business will get a large boost from members who really have your back, making referrals more common. To learn more, check out 5 ways to improve customer service at your recreation centre. 

Automating, 123 

Automation is often one of the biggest draws for utilizing recreation management software. With so many tasks to be done throughout the day, automation can help alleviate labor; allowing staff to focus on the important stuff. Automating your marketing to generate more leads and reduce dropouts, POS and inventory management, contacting late payees, and other tasks like these can be taken care of by recreation management software.   

However, your software can really shine, when automating communication to your community, through thought-out emails, reminders, congratulations and birthdays. These small touch points can be a key in turning drop-ins to members and maintaining current clientele. While the task may seem time consuming, management software greatly simplifies the process, making it simple and much less time consuming. 

Capturing Prospective Members 

Capitalizing on opportunities to grow your community is key. Good community center software will take care of your landing pages and make sure they’re optimized to incentivize joining. Loyalty and referral programs also help bring in new members, while keeping your existing members happy. No matter how innovative your organization is, you need the right tools for capturing interest and turning it into ongoing support.   

To learn more about what recreation management software can do for your parks and recreation organization, experience our cloud-based software that helps organizations of all sizes connect with their communities.