The Atuomated Waiting List feature allows you to notify your members that are on a waiting list for a course, when a space is available. You can also allow new prospective and existing members to book onto a waiting list for course online.
GoLearn - waiting lists in centre
GoLearn - waiting lists online
Introduction to Waiting Lists and Held Spaces
A key element of the new waiting lists functionality, is the ability to automate the management of your waiting lists, saving you time, improving your customer experience, and, ultimately, filling empty spaces quicker.
The Automated Waiting Lists functionality allows:
- a prospective member, or an existing member looking to book an additional course, to add themself to a waiting list for a full class, via Online Joining
- an existing member to add themselves to a waiting list to move into a class that is full, via HomePortal
- staff to setup an 'After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list' type contract trigger that automatically notifies members on a waiting list when a space becomes available, and allows them to book/move themselves into that space
All of the above is configuratble, so you can choose to enable all, some or none of the functionality relating to automated waiting lists. The list of available settings are covered at the end of this article.
Waiting Lists and Held Spaces:
- Held Spaces - It is possible to hold a space in a class for any given period of time. Holding a Class Space should not be used for long-term space holding (i.e. a Customer should ideally be placed on a waiting list if they cannot pay for a space the same day. Holding spaces is primarily aimed at busy periods where a space cannot be purchased instantly). If the held space is not taken within a period of time (default is 24hrs) or the expiry date you've assigned passes, those on the waiting lists will be offered the space(s).
- Priority Waiting List - All existing members adding themselves to a waiting list to move, will be assigned to this list. If no one from Held Spaces takes up the offer of a space, the next batch of members to be contacted are those in the Priority waiting list.
- General Waiting List - All members that are wanting to book a new class which is full and add themselves to the waiting list through online joining will be added to this list. The last batch of members to be offered a space will be those in the general waiting list, if no one from Held Spaces or Priority waiting list has taken the available space.
Please note that once a member has been offered a space, they will be added to an “offering pool”, where they will always be able to book the space, until it is no longer available (either through a successful purchase by themselves or another member’s booking of the respective space). As new batches are offered the space, they too will be added to the “offering pool” and will not replace those already there. For example, if a member with a held space misses the opportunity to book the spot when they were offered it, they would still be able to book the spot a week later, provided someone else hasn't taken that available space.
Waiting lists in-centre
Booking a member into a waiting list for a class can be done via "Waiting lists" section, choosing the relevant course group and level. You can then choose to book someone onto the "General waiting list" or "Priority waiting list" for all the sessions displayed in one easy step.
Alternatively you can "View" a specific class, and add a member onto any of the three waiting list types.
You can choose whether you wish to add an expiry date and additional notes for the member you are booking onto a waiting list.
Once added, you will be able to view them in the relevant list. You can see additional information such as the date and time they were added, how many times they've been offered a space, the last time they were contacted and the expiry date (if assigned).
To move a member between the 3 different waiting list types (e.g. from Priority waiting list to "Held spaces/General waiting list") you simply repeat the booking process for the same class, but choose a different option.
Notice the "Date added" section, where the date and time remain the same as the original booking. This is so that if multiple people are in the same waiting list type, and you are moving members between different list types, then they will be slotted in the correct place depending on when they joined the waiting list originally. This ensures those that joined the earliest are contacted first, depending on the batch sizes for sending waiting list notification.
Additionally, the waiting list and held spaces for a particular member can be viewed from their profile in GoLearn.
This will then show all the classes that the member is currently on the waiting list for. You can edit an existing entry (set/change expiry date or add/edit notes) and remove the member from a waiting list for a class. However, if you need to change them from one waiting list type to another (e.g. from General waiting list to Priority waiting list) you will need to first 'View Waiting List' for the relevant class.
Waiting lists - online joining
If you have set "enable a member to add themselves to a waiting list" to TRUE, then when a brand new member is booking a class via online joining, they will see an option to "Join waiting list". Similarly, an existing HomePortal member will be able to join the waiting list for a class in the same way. Remember, these members will be added to the "General waiting list".
If it is the first time they are booking online, then they will will initially be added as a "PENDING" member, and will not be sent across to your Gladstone database. When the pending member is converted to a full member, by being booked/booking into a class, they will be sent across as a new member. This ensures you less cluttering with prospective members who may never actually go on to become paying members.
When a space is available, the member on the waiting list will see an option to "Add to basket" to complete their booking. They can also "Manage" their waiting list at any point and remove themselves from the waiting list for a class if they wish.
Waiting lists - HomePortal movements
If a member has been marked for movement, and providing you have set "Enable a member to add themselves to a waiting list via a movement" to TRUE, then the member will see an option to add themselves onto the waiting list for any of the classes that are full. Remember, they will be added to the "Priority waiting list".
Once a member that is moving is on a waiting list, they can easily move themselves if a space is available by using the "Move" option next to the relevant class. They can also "Manage" their waiting list at any point and remove themselves from the waiting list for a class if they wish.
Once they select "Move", they can then choose to confirm move, cancel or choose another class instead.
If the space is still available
Once the member successfully moves into the space the ‘After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list’ contact trigger will stop sending out to the waiting list accordingly and the member will be automatically removed from the waiting lists for all classes under that course.
If the space has already been taken by someone else
The ‘Move’ button will still appear for 15 minutes (maximum), but when the member clicks it and attempts to confirm the move, they will see an error message telling them that the space is no longer available. After 15 minutes (maximum), the ‘Move’ button will no longer show.
Contact Triggers
After being added to a waiting list
If set up and enabled, the "After being added to a waiting list" type contact trigger will send when a member is added to a waiting list. You can further control when the trigger does and doesn’t send by setting restrictions based on the centres, courses, levels, and payment plans it will look at, as well as setting ‘Conditions’ as listed below.
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Class Size
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Member Age (Years)
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Member Level (Name)
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Waitinglist List Type
Finally, set up your 'Contact Actions', so that the contact trigger goes to the member, the teacher of the class the waiting list belongs to, or both.
After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list
To automatically inform members on a waiting list when a space becomes available on the class they are waiting for and allow them to attempt to book/move into that space, you need to set up the associated "After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list" type contact trigger.
To do this, navigate to Settings > Members > Contact Triggers > Add Trigger.
Complete the ‘Centres, Courses, and Levels’ and 'Payment Plans' sections as desired.
A new condition 'Waitinglist List Type' has been created to allow you to create a different contact trigger for each waiting list membership group, if you would like to, so that you can tailor the wording accordingly.
Finally, set up your 'Contact Actions'.
Message placeholders of particular note include:
- Class > Name - Will display the name of the class the space has become available on
- Class > Day - Will display the day of the class the space has become available on
- Class > Time - Will display the start time of the class the space has become available in
For a smooth customer experience, it is advisable to include the Homeportal > Address {{Homeportal.Address}} placeholder in the contact trigger to allow the member to easily navigate to their HomePortal account to attempt to book the available space.
After being removed from a waiting list
If set up and enabled, the ‘After being removed from a waiting list’ type contact trigger will send when a member is removed from the Priority or General sections of waiting list. Please note, this will not send to members with a Held space.
You can further control when the trigger does and doesn’t send by setting restrictions based on the centres, courses, levels, and payment plans it will look at, as well as setting ‘Conditions’ as listed below:
- Class Size
- Member Age (Years)
- Member Level (Name)
- Waitinglist List Type
This also allows you to create different variations of the ‘After being removed from a waiting list’ type contact trigger, with different wording.
User Permissions
Users will need to be given permissions from the below list to be able to use the waiting lists functionality.
View the waiting list - if enabled, user will be able to access the 'Waiting List' tab to open the waiting list overview page. They will also be able to filter the page to relevant courses, days and times. In addition they will be able to view the waiting list for each individual class, as well as see and click on the 'View/Manage Waiting Lists and Held Spaces' button on a member profile, to access the individual member waiting list overview page for that member, but only if they have the relevant 'Members' permissions granted to allow them to access the member profile in the first place.
Add someone to the waiting list - if enabled, user will be able to add members onto waiting list from the overview screen, as well as for individual classes.
Edit an existing waiting list entry - if enabled, user will be able to edit the waiting list notes for a member and edit the expiry date of a held/waiting list space for a member
Delete a waiting list entry - if enabled, user will be able to click the 'Remove' button next to a member on the class waiting list page. They will also be able to see and click the 'Remove' and 'Remove from all' buttons on the member waiting lists overview page, if they have the relevant 'Members' persmissions granted to allow them to access the member profile in the first place.
Settings available for waiting lists
These settings can be updated on request, to suit how you wish to operate waiting lists. You can request a change to any of these with our support team. Please copy the Field name and ensure you tell us which Config option you would like set for you when you create your support ticket.
The below table is an explanation of each setting and shows the "config option" based on default values:
| Field Name | Config option | Additional Info |
| Enable a member to add themselves to a waiting list | FALSE | True = ‘Join waiting list’ button will show for full classes in Online Joining. Members can add themselves to a waiting list for a full class. False (Default) = ‘Join waiting list’ button will not show for full classes in Online Joining. |
| Require a telephone number when signing up | FALSE | True = The ‘Telephone’ field on the waiting list sign-up form in Online Joining will be made mandatory. False (Default) = Completion of the ‘Telephone’ field on the waiting list sign-up form in Online Joining is optional. |
| Show full classes by default | FALSE | True = Full classes will show by default in Online Joining. False (Default) = Full classes will not show by default in Online Joining. Visitors will have to switch the ‘Show classes that are full’ toggle in order to see your full classes. |
| Enable a member to add themselves to a waiting list via a movement | FALSE | True = Full classes will show, with a ‘Wait’ button next to them, when a member is processing a movement in HomePortal, meaning they can add themselves to a waiting list to move into a full class. False (Default) = Full classes will not show when a member is processing a movement in HomePortal, meaning they cannot add themselves to a waiting list to move into a full class |
| Show waiting lists in HomePortal | FALSE | True = ‘Waiting Lists’ section shows for members in HomePortal, allowing them to see the waiting lists they are on, remove themselves from those waiting lists and, when a space becomes available, book or move into that space. Important: If you would like members to be able to book/move themselves into a waiting list space when it becomes available, you must have this setting enabled. False (Default) = ‘Waiting Lists’ section does not show for members in HomePortal. |
| Priority waiting list batch size | 5 |
The maximum number of members who can be sent the ‘After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list’ type contact trigger, where it is setup and enabled, at a time, for each space that becomes available to the priority waiting list. Min = 1, Max = 20 |
| Time between batches for the Priority Waiting List | 240 | The amount of time (in minutes) between sends of the ‘After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list’ type contact trigger. Min = 1, Max 9000 Default = 240 mins (4 hours) |
| General waiting list batch size | 5 | The maximum number of members who can be sent the ‘After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list’ type contact trigger, where it is setup and enabled, at a time, for each space that becomes available to the general waiting list. Min = 1, Max = 20, Default = 5 E.g. If 12 members on the priority waiting list, the batch size set to the default of 5, and 1 space becomes available, that space would be offered to the first 5 members, then the second 5 members, then the remaining 2 members. |
| Time between batches for the General Waiting List | 240 | The amount of time (in minutes) between sends of the ‘After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list’ type contact trigger. Min = 1, Max 9000, Default = 240 mins (4 hours) |
| Enable movements to be automatically made in HomePortal after they are flagged to move in CoachPortal | FALSE |
True = When a teacher ‘marks’ a member for movement in CoachPortal, no manual action from a staff member in Control Centre is required before it appears in HomePortal for the member to action - it will automatically appear in HomePortal as soon as CoachPortal has synced. Where there is a ‘When a member is marked for movement’ contact trigger setup and enabled, this will automatically trigger too. Where the member does not have a HomePortal account and there is a ‘When a member is marked for movement (no HomePortal)’ contact trigger setup and enabled, this will automatically trigger at this point too. |
| Default expiry timer for members who add themselves to a waiting list | This field defines the maximum number of days a waiting list record created online via a member adding themself to a waiting list for booking or for a movement remains active before the waiting list place is cleared. The unit for this field is in days and is clear by default, meaning a member will not expire and will remain on the waiting list indefinitely. | |
| Waiting Held Time Between Batches | 1440 |
The amount of time (in minutes) between sends of the ‘After space becomes available on a class with a waiting list’ type contact trigger, and thus the offering of a space(s) in a class, to each of the members with held spaces for that class. Note: There is no batch size setting for held spaces. As per the nature of held spaces, they will be offered to members possessing them one at a time. |