We recently did a complete remodel of the Elementary Children’s Ministry here at Gulf to Lake Church. That remodel included the addition of a computer Check-In System. Over the years I have had the opportunity to use several different check-in systems, both computer and “old school” paper lists. I much prefer avoiding the paper & pencil route.
As I began to research which system we would use I knew there were a few things that topped my list of criteria:
1. Easy of Use
2. Access off-site
3. Minimal Data Entry by Staff
4. Multi-Site Use
5. Photo ID’s
6. Web-based
Well, my list quickly narrowed the field and helped to simplify the decision. KidCheck is the system we ultimately chose to use. We have now had two weeks of live Sunday Morning use. So far it has worked extremely well. The only snafu that we have experienced was as a result of parents who did not pre-register at home prior to arriving on Sunday. This caused a delay at registration on our first Sunday.
One of the things that KidCheck provided were prepared letters and emails for parents explaining the registration procedure. We sent these home on the Sunday prior to “roll-out” and we also snail-mailed them to every family. While we did have a few parents pre-register the majority did not. The ability for parents to register from their home computer and not requiring CM staff to do data entry was a huge benefit.
I use MailChimp as our email service (and love it). KidCheck provides Excel spreadsheets that will import my parents list right into MailChimp with one key stroke. Following week two we have begun a weekly email to parents that describes what happened on Sunday along with some encouragement to engage the family in a time of play and discussion.
Overall our experience with KidCheck has been great. I would highly recommend it to anyone in need of a computer check-in system. Take a look for yourself at KidCheck and let me know what you think.
