We’ve put together a guide to the best modern swim school management tools to help you find the ideal fit for your needs.
| Software | Key Features | Unique Aspects |
|---|---|---|
| Activity Messenger | Personalized registration, email & SMS marketing, digital waivers, surveys, staff management, Zoom integration, marketing automations, contracts | Seamlessly integrates with Canva, ChatGPT, Zoom, and Stripe; replaces tools like Mailchimp, SurveyMonkey, JotForm, Eventbrite, and SmartWaiver |
| JackRabbit Swim | Class scheduling, billing, attendance tracking, staff management, parent portal | Deep industry experience with swim schools; comprehensive class management features |
| Sport Engine | Online registration, team management, scheduling, communication tools | Focuses on team sports; offers tools tailored for sports organizations beyond swim schools |
| iClassPro | Class scheduling, billing, attendance tracking, skill tracking, reporting | Offers a mobile app; robust reporting and skill tracking capabilities |
| Amilia | Online registration, membership management, facility booking, e-commerce | Designed for parks and recreation; integrates e-commerce and facility management |
| Uplifter | Online registration, event management, skill tracking, reporting | Strong presence in Canada; integrates with national sport organizations |
| Sportimea | Custom registration forms, payment processing, communication tools | Offers customizable solutions tailored to specific club needs |
DISCLAIMER: Activity Messenger is our product. We created it because we struggled for years as operators with the shortcomings of existing Swim Club Management Software.
Activity Messenger has quickly become a top choice for swim schools and aquatic centers looking to modernize operations and improve communication with clients. It combines registration, communication, and workflow automation into a mobile-first intuitive platform.
Pricing & plans
Features
Reviews on Capterra (4.8 out of 5 stars)
Jackrabbit Swim has long been a cornerstone in swim management software. Its robust feature set includes everything from attendance tracking to online registration for swim lessons and billing.
SportEngine is a good online registration software, especially for a swim team. It can be a registration software for swim schools with online registrations, communication tools, financial reports and more.
Read more: 5 Best SportEngine Alternatives
iClassPro helps swim schools focus more on coaching and swimmer development. It offers features like class and staff management, skill tracking and party booking.
Read More: 8 best IClassPro alternatives
Amilia is a management tool developed for swim schools. It improves customer experience by simplifying registration, staff management and administrative tasks. Class scheduling, drop-in sessions, and payment processing are also handled by the platform.
Uplifter Inc. helps swim schools simplify registration, attendance tracking and payments into one platform.
Sportimea positions itself as a customizable registration and club management platform for swim schools. It offers registration, communication, and payment collection, but may lack some of the automation and modern UX features.
Pricing & plans
Features
Reviews on Capterra (Not widely reviewed)
Before looking at a new software for your swim school, here’s a list of important features you’ll likely want in your software.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Email Marketing | Create and send newsletters; segment and personalize based on registration status, age, level, etc. |
| Start/End of Session Reminders | Automatically notify families when sessions begin and end without manual work. |
| Integrated MailMerge | Personalize communications with swimmer-specific info like name, level, and start date. |
| Waitlist Automation | Automate notifications to fill spots from the waitlist as soon as they become available. |
| Financial Reporting | Gain insights with revenue, expense, and profitability reports. |
| Waivers with Digital Signature | Collect digital waivers during or outside registration (e.g., for events, drop-ins). |
| Ticketing for Swim Meets | Simplify ticket sales for competitions with integrated ticketing tools. |
| Surveys | Collect feedback with surveys sent automatically via email/SMS at session end. |
| Online Class Registration | Mobile-first registration process to make enrollment easy for parents. |
| Staff Management | Manage payroll, scheduling, documents, and communication in one place. |
| Data and Analytics | Use analytics to guide decisions on class offerings, marketing, and staffing. |
| Bulk Certificates | Automatically generate and send certificates for completed courses or levels. |
| Attendance Tracking | Track attendance accurately with an easy-to-use digital system. |
| Mass Texting | Send urgent updates or last-minute changes via mass texting. |
| Swim Progress Report and Report Cards | Share swimmer progress through customizable digital report cards. |
To look more in-depth into each of these features, here’s an in-depth analysis of the top features you should have in your swim school management software.
What It Is: Activity Messenger guides families to find the ideal swim class efficiently. Based on initial preferences such as day, age, class type, and level, the registration process adjusts to display the most suitable classes.
Why It Matters: Most swim school software displays all class options to every visitor, which can be overwhelming, especially on smartphones, and may not address their specific needs and preferences.
Extra Perks: No parent enjoys creating yet another online account for their kid’s activities. Activity Messenger eliminates the need for account creation, making registration hassle-free. Rest assured that your customers still have an account they can log in at any time.
What It Is: Imagine doing all of your marketing tasks without switching between tools. With Activity Messenger, you can send newsletters, create marketing automations, and even retarget customers who abandoned their carts.
Why It Matters: Think about your newsletter workflow. Typically, you have to manually export subscribers from your swim software to a tool like MailChimp or ConstantContact. This process is tedious, error-prone and costly.
Extra Perks: You can create email marketing campaigns using our integrated Canva feature. An analytics dashboard provides clear insights into your marketing efforts, conversion rates, and how it impacts your registration.
What It Is: Task automation in Activity Messenger isn’t just a buzzword. Our system includes a wide range of automations tailored for swim schools, from sending reminders for unsigned waivers to automating marketing for kids parties.
Here are just a few examples:
Why It Matters: For example, to ensure that every swimmer attends a lesson with all necessary safety protocols in place, automated reminders can be sent for unsigned waivers using a class list. This precise and targeted automation not only increases efficiency but also improves the safety of your swim school.
Extra Perks: Automation is integrated with the mail merge capabilities of Activity Messenger. Personalize your reminders before the first registrations comes in which ensures that every email is sent at the ideal time and tailored to each recipient.
Customers can feel intimidated when sifting through traditional client registration portals. This level of complexity often causes potential clients to give up and abandon the process altogether. A modern swim management software offers a solution that mimics personalized phone assistance by fully customizing class selection based on each family’s needs.
This allows swim clubs to help their customers quickly find the classes that meet their needs, increasing the likelihood that they will convert to paying customers. And in today’s world, your software should be mobile-first, not only mobile-friendly.
With a streamlined and easy to use registration journey, Activity Messenger is all about simplicity, efficiency, and forward thinking. The platform is designed to consolidate functionality. It eliminates the need for separate services like Mailchimp, SurveyMonkey, BambooHR and SmartWaiver.
And it’s not just the financial benefits that resonate with our users. It’s the convenience of centralizing all their needs, from registrations and communications to waivers and marketing campaigns, into one holistic view of their swim club.
Sign up for a free trial or book a 20-minute demo with Olivier; we’ll show you how Activity Messenger might be able to help modernize your Swim School.
No problem. Many Swim Schools use Activity Messenger as they slowly transition from their current class management software. Activity Messenger can be an add-on to your current solution for email marketing, bulk SMS, event ticketing, swimmer progress reports and report cards, bulk certificates, digital waivers, party booking, surveys and much more.
