“Our members now have the option to search through our catalog at the tip of their fingertips.”

For more than 70 years, Desert Recreation District (the District) has played a key role in enriching the quality of life for residents and visitors through the recreational services offered in the Greater Coachella Valley. The District is the largest parks and recreation district in California managing, maintaining, and assisting in over 30 parks and recreation facilities. Its vision, mission and values are at the heart and soul of the District, with a commitment to serve residents by providing quality programs, services and facilities that promote an active, healthy lifestyle for all.

The Challenge

Kevin Kalman, general manager for Desert Recreation District, was looking for a more streamlined, efficient process for members when signing up for classes while receiving more information regarding their centers and programs. With many guests using mobile devices to access their online website, Kalman says it was often confusing.  

The Solution

The ACTIVENet Captivate app presented the District with the opportunity to make its registration process simpler. The app easily allows members to perform tasks right from their phones. From the homepage, members can quickly sign in, then view and sign up for classes, book private trainings/lessons, and stay connected with facility news.

It doesn’t stop with organization’s members either. The ACTIVENet Captivate app gives organizations the power to simplify day-to-day operations to manage class attendance, wait times, schedule private sessions, and even track analytics performance for facility engagement and attendance all through the app.

The Outcome

Madison Garlington, administrative technician for the District, says the ACTIVENet Captivate app has provided an alternative way for the District’s community to be informed on offerings such as locations, services, and classes. “Our members now have the option to search through our catalog at the tip of their fingertips, enrolling in programs with ease, and finding out information about our various centers.”  

Often it can be difficult keeping up with multiple kids’ schedules. Garlington likes that all of a guest’s enrollments can be seen as soon as they open the app. “ACTIVENet Captivate makes it easily readable and accessible to our clientele. I like that we can include all of our facilities to be represented within the app. With roughly 165 monthly programs, efficiency and time management is key. The amount of calls the front desk receives has significantly decreased which allows them to connect and engage with members and time to focus on other tasks," says Garlington.  

The Transition

The app is extremely user-friendly, so extensive preparation was not necessary. The District hosted an initial training for its staff members on how to navigate the app and continue to share updates on functionality enhancements. To prepare its members, the District created various social media blasts and posted signs throughout centers on how to download and interact with the new interface.  

Favorite Customer Features

With the reservation feature, class and program schedules let members reserve their favorite spot, favorite a class, and even share their favorite classes. Within the app, members can register for group exercises classes, equipment, courts and more.

The District's guests have raved about the ACTIVENet Captivate app. “They really enjoy having the option to use their phone to scan their memberships and the accessibility of finding out more information on upcoming events. Our guests have even advocated on having the option to link their registered activities to their calendar and receive notifications when the event gets closer.” Custom alerts allow members to receive customizable notifications and messages that are sent directly to their phone regarding facility updates from early closures to updated hours of operation.

Favorite Organization Features

The ACTIVENet Captivate app helps power organizations through features, such as the communication tools that instantly send push notifications to members regarding events, member analytics that give insights to help drive marketing strategies, and member accounts to understand usage patterns and predict what programs they might be interested in. With complete control of the app through the portal, organizations can update as needed.

According to Garlington, the ACTIVENet Captivate app has significantly streamlined processes for activity registration, membership production, customers searching for community center information, activity searching and notifying members. “I like the new feature of being able to send out notifications to everyone who has downloaded the app. This makes it easier to mass notify our guests of any pertinent information," says Garlington.  

Words of Wisdom

After using the app for over a year, Garlington encourages everyone to download ACTIVENet Captivate because of its streamlined, efficient ways that allow organizations to engage with members and the community as a whole. She says, “Our members are happy. We are happy. It’s a win-win for everyone!"