Let's break the ice with a quick riddle...

Q: What do these scenarios have in common?

1. Purchasing customized sneakers on Nike.com

2. Buying concert tickets on Live Nation's website

3. Submitting a bid for an autographed baseball card on Ebay

A: All three provide fantastic user experiences for shoppers, bidders, and concert-goers!

As the owner or manager of a camp, how does this riddle apply to you?

Simply put, the camp industry is more competitive than ever before as a blinding number of new adventure camps, summer camps, and sports camps are launched every year. In fact, there are nearly 15,000 camps in the U.S. and Canada alone! Campers (and their parents if we're talking about kids) have a surplus of options to choose from based on their interests, skills, or what catches their eye at any given moment.

It is becoming more difficult to establish and keep hold of a competitive advantage in order to attract and retain campers.

Can you relate in any way to this tricky situation?

The truth is that many camps focus on trying to stand out by investing in expensive facilities, brainstorming catchy logos and taglines, and specializing in a million different activities. 

Interestingly enough, significantly fewer camps focus on an aspect that arguably represents the foundation of any camp: the registration experience.

The rise of technology has led to the creation of multiple SaaS (Software as a Service) platforms that move the traditional manual process of registering for camps to a fresh, seamless, online experience. 

With so many camps yet to make improvements to how people register for their programs, you and your camp have an incredible opportunity to digitize the registration experience and gain an advantage over other camps in your area!

Let's dive into a key short list of reasons why a camp registration form needs to deliver a great user experience:

1. Camper Retention

I think we can agree on this point: keeping your campers and their families happy is SUPER important to the success of your camp. Their happiness isn't just derived from the quality of your camp. On the contrary, it is impacted by every step of the camp experience, including the first impression they receive when registering for an upcoming program. 

Let's imagine a camp that claims to offer amazing adventures, endless fun, and gourmet meals for campers. When it comes time to actually register for this supposedly incredible camp, you are taken through what seems like dozens of complicated and confusing steps to select pricing options, fill out questionnaires, and submit payment.

The excitement you had for attending this camp suddenly fades due to your frustration and wasted time spent on registering for it. A process that you expected to only take a few minutes actually took five times as long to complete!

What is the result? Well, regardless of how great this camp turns out to be, the awful registration process that you suffered through will stay top of mind when the opportunity to register for another camp at the same organization rolls around. Simply put, your negative first impression could really affect your decision to register for another camp in the future.

That's why it is absolutely crucial to provide a quick and smooth camp registration form online so your registrants have a fantastic user experience from the get-go before they even participate in your fabulous camp. Chances are that they'll keep coming back for more and tell their friends about their experience too!

2. Cultivate Outstanding Customer Service

There is arguably no better way to interact with campers than by providing and consistently displaying top-notch customer service. This principle doesn't just apply to the week of camp but also to the whole time prior to campers' arrival.

The foundation to providing excellent customer service involves utilizing a transparent and easily understandable camp registration form. Again, it's all about cultivating a great user experience starting from the moment registrants find your camp, click on a link, or decide to sign up for an upcoming program. 

We all know that the best form of marketing for any product or service is word-of-mouth. We also know that people love talking about the amazing customer service they received at a restaurant, store, or even just from calling technical support for that pesky laptop. The same can be said about your world-class camp! It really is that simple!

3. Guide Registrants To Create Their Perfect Camp Experience

The camp registration process of today shouldn't be an annoyance or necessary evil of attending a camp! Rather, it should invoke excitement as registrants choose activities, add-ons, and other pricing options that combine to create an amazing experience during the week of camp. 

That's why camp registration forms need to make it simple for campers to provide details about their expectations, needs, and preferences ahead of their arrival.

Let's say a camper wants to be part of your next overnight adventure camp, go zip-lining one day, and wear your branded t-shirt and hat while zipping through the forest. Your camp registration form needs to make these pricing options and add-ons easily accessible and visible so the user experience is seamless and actually enjoyable. An example: 

What's more? A positive user experience created from your amazing camp registration form increases the likelihood that your additional revenue-generating opportunities, including offering activity upgrades or apparel for sale, will actually result in increased revenue for your camp!

So, your campers end up with a smile on their faces before even setting foot at your camp, and you earn a greater profit to continue optimizing your future camp experiences. Talk about a perfect win-win situation!

4. Digital Everything Is Here To Stay

There is no denying it: we are obsessed with technology in every way! We are glued to our phones, laptops, tablets, iPods (okay, maybe that's just me), and every other device imaginable. Our everyday lives depend on technology to such an extent that we couldn't function without it. When is the last time you spent a day without your iPhone?

Gone are the days when camp-goers are satisfied with spending precious time filling out camp registration forms by hand. Today's consumers demand a seamless user experience with everything, and that includes registering for your next exciting program.

Cue the importance of online registration platforms! Fortunately, it is no longer a chore to create a positive, memorable user experience during the camp registration process. There's really no reason not to dive into a registration platform to get ahead of the curve!

So, there you have it! As you can see, it is crucial to start delivering a fantastic, memorable user experience as soon as your campers start registering for your upcoming programs. In today's competitive camp marketplace, you and your organization have to do everything in your power to positively stand out from the rest. This process starts with engaging your campers before they even arrive at your camp. 

What should you do next? Start exploring a few online registration platforms to see which one is the right fit for your camp. Then, get to work on creating your new camp registration form to cultivate the best user experience possible! Best of luck!

About Matt Barudin

Matt is the product marketing expert for Payscape Registration, an online registration software solution used by camps across North America. When Matt isn’t daydreaming about introducing Payscape Registration to every new camp out there, he enjoys attending rock concerts, exploring trails near his home in Atlanta, and playing weekend softball with friends. Get in touch with Matt at matt.barudin@payscape.com.

Editor's note: This is a guest post from the kind folks at Payscape.