Whassup with On-line
Registration

The pro's and con's of providing your residents with the option
to register for programs via the Internet

BY BOB COFFEY

If's no longer a matter of if you will go on-line with web-based registration, but rather when.

Web graphic: A page from Mokena Park District's new on-line registration area on the Internet. All registrations, including mail and walk-ups, are done online using its new Web- based system. As programs fill, new sessions are added to the site in real lime. See www. mokenapark. com

I don't know about you, but I am getting very tired of the letter "e." "E" this, "e" that, but regardless how I feel about the terminology and its overuse, e-com- merce is not going away. It's no longer a matter of if you will go on-line with Web-based registration, but rather this article is to discuss the pro's and con's of Web-based registration, discuss alternatives in implementation, and look at how some communities are doing with their Web-based programs offerings. Community members are using the Internet in increasing numbers to research purchases and an increasing number are using it to purchase goods and services. At a recent luncheon, I asked 25 financial managers if they were getting many requests for on-line registration. After the groans subsided, the resounding answer was "yes." At least five callers per week asked when die park district was going on-line. Here are some of die pro's and con's of on-line registration.

The Pro's of On-line Registration

• 24-7 access to information and registration (more than 55 percent of orders over the Internet are placed after 6:00 p.m.)

• Cross-promote programs on the same Web page (e.g., feature "Mom's Aerobics," 9:00 a.m. Wednesdays with "Sculpture for Kids" at the same time on die same day)

• Reduce data input time (After two years, more than 30 percent of registrations are done on-line at the Hinsdale Community House.)

• Use Web site as primary registration tool

• Reduce production time of hard-copy program brochure

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SPECIAL FOCUS

Park and Recreation Agencies with On-line Registration by C3 The Hinsdale Community House The Hinsdale Community House successfully implemented a program called "PlanNet" in the winter of 1998. Since then, hundreds of new programs have been added to the site and thousands of orders have been processed by Community House start. The site has received tremendous reviews from community members who appreciate the streamlined registration process that is available to them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. See www.thecommunityhouse.org Winnetka Community House The Winnetka Community House launched its first complete on-line registration site in November 1999. With the robust GembaCommerce administrative tool the Community House is planning to really "put their site to work" for them. The site- tracking tool allows the Community House to analyze the most popular sections of the site and build on them. It can also compile e-mail lists to "market" the site to the community. This is a great feature for sending reminders about special events and newly added classes. Go to www.winnetkacommunityhouse.org

• Sell uniforms on-line with the program (e.g., sell soccer jerseys with the peewee soccer program)

• Announce (and sell) additional sessions as programs fill up

• Run a lottery for classes that fill quickly

• Announce rain-outs and post make-up game schedules

The Con's of On-line Registration

• Cost

• Security concerns

• Synchronicity with existing accounting system

• Time to implement and maintain

• Disadvantage to the non-computer-using community member

• Rising levels of expectations (i.e., the need to raise the bar higher all the rime)

Common Complaints and Concerns

• On-line registrants will have an unfair advantage since people can register 24 hours a day.

• What happens when the Web site isn't real-time with the existing accounting system (or "back- office" system) and someone registers on-line and takes what appears to be the last available opening in a program, but we process walk-in traffic and assign that opening to them?

This is the hypothetical I pose to prospective adopters of Web-based registration. The new program brochure went out on Wednesday, so that community members get it over the weekend. It's Monday morning, there are a dozen faxes that came in Saturday and Sunday, a stack of mail that came in late Saturday, and 30 people are lined up at the door waiting to register for fall programs.

Which group do you process first?

Invariably the answer is the walk-in traffic. But, theoretically, shouldn't the orders received over the weekend be processed first?

Now, substitute Web-based orders for the faxes and mail orders received during non-working hours. Isn't the Web just another fax or mail registration done more efficiently?

Most park districts agree with the theory of on-line registration, but are convinced the only viable solution is to go on-line in real-time. But what price are you

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WHASSUP WITH ON-LINE REGISTRATION

willing to pay for on-line/real-time data? It's one thing to say that the only way you will consider on-line registration is if the back office and the Web are synchronized. It's another to justify the cost.

Available Choices and Related Costs

1. On-line/Real-time Access

This is the obvious choice for those with unlimited budgets. Visitors see up-to-the-minute program openings, and receive immediate response as to whether a spot in the program is available. It's like being right there in the office.

What you need. To do it right, you need a reliable Web server, a secure link (fire wall) between your existing accounting system and the database that drives your Web site, backup software and power, and a dedicated, open, high-speed connection (T-l or fractional T-l) to the Internet. If you don't have a database administrator with Web-server experience, expect to employ one if you want your Web site to stay up and running. Hardware and software costs (exclusive of the Web site) could easily cost $15,000. Ongoing costs for the fractional T-l would typically be about $300 per month and the database administrator $4,000 to $6,000.

2. Batch Processing

Many businesses "batch-process" transactions throughout the day as a cost-effective alternative to online processing. Using "stored procedures," the process is automated to download transactions and upload current program statistics.

What you need. You need a connection to the Internet, a routine to extract relevant order information from the Web site and to upload program information to the Web database. The faster the connection the better, but since the processing is done on the back- office server and the Web server and you are only transferring small text files, a standard dial-up connection could work. In this scenario, it doesn't pay to host your own site. You are better off on a shared server at an Internet Service Provider. Besides a computer with Internet access, there are no additional hardware or software costs. Expect to pay about $ 150 per month in hosting charges.

3. Using the Web Site

Though most park districts have a significant investment in back-office hardware and software, using your Web site as the exclusive order entry vehicle may provide the best of both worlds at the lowest cost. It provides the immediate response that on-line systems do, but doesn't require the investment in technology or in-house staff. At the end of the day (or some other period of time), relevant order information can be batched and uploaded to your back-office system.

What you need. Because you will be on-line entering orders, possibly from many workstations in your network, you will need a high-speed connection. However, since you would not be hosting the Web server, you would not need T-l speed. Some organizations use cable modems while others use DSL. Depending on your level of service, expect to pay $75 a month for DSL and $150 a month for hosting.

In many cases, existing employees of the park district can maintain the site with special software. Most do not have a full-time Internet Technology (IT) staff to do this kind of work.

Hoffman Estates Park District The Hoffman Estates site launched in May 2000, in time to announce its new Prairie Stone Sports & Wellness Center. Web-based registration, which will link to the RecTrac accounting system, will commence in the fall. Color schemes and images rotate with the seasons, keeping the site fresh and alive. See www.heparkdistrict.com

As the costs associated with hardware, software and full-time Internet connectivity decrease, on-line/real- time program registration may become a viable, cost- effective option. But the technology exists today to serve your community 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Your efforts will be rewarded by lower costs, a higher level of customer service, more exposure for your programs, and expanded participation.

BOB COFFEY
is the founder of Computer Continuity Center (C3). The company has been helping communities get on-Sine with program registration since 1998 with its software application, GembaCommerce. CembaCommerce is a reasonably priced product that gives communities complete control over the construction and ongoing maintenance of the site. For more info on C3 or GembaCommerce, visit www.gembocommerce.com, or call Bob at 312.997.2323.

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