Studio software: classes, capacity and membership together

Why is capacity a separate subject for a studio?

A gym floor can hold a hundred people exercising at once; a studio has twelve mats or six reformers. Capacity therefore decides both the trainer's attention and the quality of the class. A clear limit on every class means a student knows there will be a place when they arrive.

The limit should show on the site too. If students see how full a class is beforehand, they do not call to ask; they reserve a place or join the queue. The studio owner then focuses on the class content with the trainer instead of hunting for places in a message inbox.

You can set different limits by class type: a one-to-one reformer session and an open mat class sit in the same calendar with separate capacities.

How does a waitlist fill an empty mat?

Every studio knows the last-minute cancellation. Without a waitlist that place stays empty; with one, a time-limited invitation goes to the next person. If there is no answer the place passes on, so the queue advances by itself and nobody has to be phoned.

Students see this as fair: no one skips the line and everyone follows the same rule. For the trainer, the class starts full. The time limit matters, because an open-ended invitation holds the next person up as well and an empty place remains in the end.

Making cancelling easy for the student is part of the same chain; the earlier a cancellation arrives, the better the place gets filled.

How do membership, packs and single classes sit in one calendar?

Studio income usually comes from three sources: monthly memberships, packs such as ten classes, and one-off classes. All three use the same calendar, but each entitlement is counted differently. A membership grants a certain number of classes per period, while a pack depends on a class count.

These entitlements need checking when a class is booked, or the booking becomes a later dispute. Session packages are defined on the booking side and plans on the membership side. When both are set up side by side the student sees their own entitlement and you do not keep a separate sheet.

Defining a free intro class also lets a new student see the studio before buying a pack.

Why recorded classes do not weaken the studio

A studio offering recorded classes usually does the opposite of what is feared: it brings the student closer. Someone who follows a class at home gets to know the trainer and one day wants to come to a live one. A former student in another city keeps the connection.

Technically this needs recorded videos that play smoothly and open only to those entitled. Adaptive Video Streaming plays video to suit connection speed, and membership tiers decide who reaches which content. This structure is not a live video class; it delivers the recordings you prepare.

You do not need to record every class either. A small foundation series can be a good enough first step.

Announcements and winning students back

Studios have many students who take a break and return; places emptied over summer or holidays want to refill in autumn. Sending the new-term announcement to your subscriber list as a newsletter speeds that return.

The announcement can be plain: new class times, a new trainer, a weekend workshop. The reader goes from the same message to the calendar and reserves a place. A direct link to the booking page shortens that step.

An intro form for beginners gives the trainer level and expectation information beforehand, which makes the first class easier to plan.

The tone of the message matters too: a short, dated announcement with a single link brings far more people to the calendar than a long text.