Could Pembee be the Sawyer alternative you have been looking for?
Pembee and Sawyer Comparison
| Feature by Features | Pembee | Sawyer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | |||
| Monthly fee | Starts at $15/month | Starts at $129/month | |
| Credit card transaction fees | From 0.59% + Stripe fees | $1.99 + Stripe fees | |
| Payment Options | |||
| Credit/Debit card | Included | Included | |
| Cash/ Bank transfer | Included | Only on premium plan. | |
| Session passes/ class bundles | Included | Included | |
| Monthly subscriptions | Included | Included | |
| Account credit | Included | Included | |
| Activity Settings | |||
| Sell add-on items | Included | Included | |
| Customize activity listing page | Included | Not included | |
| Place limit for individual sessions | Included | Same place limit across all sessions. | |
| Discount options | |||
| Multi attendee discounts | Included | Included | |
| Multi session discounts | Included | Included | |
| Discount codes | Included | Included | |
| Bookings | |||
| Customizable intake forms | Included | Not on entry plan. | |
| Terms and Conditions Agreement | Included | Not included | |
| Admin management | |||
| Live attendance register | Included | Included | |
| Online attendance tracking (check-in/ check-out) | Included | Included | |
* Based on fees published on this link as of April 2024.
Introduction
Welcome to our detailed comparison of two leading software solutions for after-school program and camp organizers: Pembee and Sawyer. Whether you're running an after-school center, a summer camp, or a series of educational workshops, the software you choose plays a crucial role in operational efficiency and participant satisfaction. This comparative analysis aims to assist program directors and administrators in selecting the software that best matches their operational objectives and engagement strategies.
Pembee vs. Sawyer: Custom Solutions for After-School Programs and Camps
While Sawyer also facilitates program management and offers visibility through its marketplace, Pembee differentiates itself with a suite of enhanced features for customization, such as the ability to customize activity categories as needed, set up custom filters and intake forms.
In the following sections, we'll delve into the unique attributes of Pembee that set it apart from Sawyer, focusing on areas such as advanced registration management, user experience, competitive pricing, and overall ease of use.
“Amazing. Not only a great and easy to use platform but brilliant customer service. Pembee has been a game changer for me. From using a previous booking system, my workload has been cut in half - more than half! Cannot recommend enough.”
Feature Deep-Dive: The Best Booking Solution for After-School Programs
Pembee equips after school program organizers and summer camp business owners with a range of key features designed specifically to alleviate administrative burdens, save countless hours spent on administrative processes, simplify enrollment management, boost client satisfaction through a seamless online registration experience, and offer actionable insights for program improvement. Here's a closer look at the essential features of this school management software:
Transparent and Competitive Pricing
Low Monthly Costs: Pembee's pricing model is transparent and budget-friendly, starting with an affordable monthly subscription fee. This is particularly beneficial for small to mid-sized programs looking for comprehensive features without significant financial overhead.
Competitive Payment Processing Fees: Offering competitive rates for payment processing, starting from just 0.59% plus Stripe credit card fees, in contrast to Sawyer's $1.99 per order payment processing fees (even higher if using Sawyer's marketplace feature).
Admin and Automation Benefits
Attendance Management With features like paperless check-ins, Pembee automates routine administrative tasks for student management, allowing for efficient attendance tracking and reporting.
Automatic Email Confirmations: Simplify communication with instant email confirmations for bookings, reducing the need for manual follow-ups.
Self-Service Cancellation: Enable options for users to cancel bookings themselves and automatically deduct cancellation fees, reducing administrative tasks and ensuring that the activities are immediately available for resell.
Customization and Personalization
Custom Registration Forms: Pembee recognizes the diverse needs of after-school programs, offering adaptable registration forms that allow you to collect essential information from participants, including medical conditions and other specific requirements, ensuring a tailored and safe experience for every child. The data is saved for future use, ensuring a seamless registration process for repeat users.
Custom Activity Page: Create captivating activity pages with Pembee, showcasing your offerings with high-quality photos, detailed descriptions, and direct Google Maps links for location info. Enhance your listing page with customizable filters and tabs to make navigation and discovery straightforward for parents.
Flexible Ticketing and Add-on Options Pembee is designed with the varied demands of after-school activities in mind, providing a range of ticketing options and additional features. Whether it's single session attendance, multi-class passes, or convenient late pickup options, Pembee makes it simple for parents to find and book what they need.
Tailored Parent Communication Tools: utilize Pembee’s built-in email tools to maintain open lines of communication with parents. From automated booking notifications, one-click email updates, self-service online parent portal, ensure your community stays informed and engaged with every aspect of your program using Pembee's cloud-based school management solution.
Payment and Financial Management
Affordable and Flexible Payment Solutions: Designed with after-school programs in mind, Pembee presents an economical solution, featuring competitive payment processing rates and broad support for major credit cards, making transactions smooth for parents and organizers alike. Pembee also offers offline payment methods that do not incur any transaction fees.
All-in-one payment and report solutions: With Pembee, you benefit from a seamlessly integrated credit card processing system powered by Stripe. This integration facilitates the direct processing of payments and refunds on the Pembee platform itself, eliminating the need to navigate away to external payment processors.
Account Credits: To enhance flexibility and convenience for both families and program administrators, Pembee includes a feature for issuing and utilizing account credits for Premium plan users. This feature allows for easy management of prepaid sessions and adjustments to accounts as needed.
Streamlined Financial Management: Pembee simplifies the complex aspects of financial management through intuitive tools for monitoring balances and tracking financial transactions. Outstanding balance reminders and comprehensive financial reports ensure that you stay informed of your program's fiscal status, streamlining administrative tasks and supporting informed decision-making.
Customer and Attendee Engagement
Session Passes and Bulk Lessons: With Pembee, you can sell classes in advance with discounts to those who purchase sessions in bulk, thereby encouraging sustained engagement with your program and improving business cash flows.
Customizable Discounts and Promotions: Utilize Pembee's versatile discount management feature to attract new families while rewarding the continued loyalty of existing participants, all customizable to align with your program's financial strategies.
Business Insights and Analytics
Intuitive Admin Dashboard: Pembee's intuitive administrative dashboard and reports provide a comprehensive overview of your program's key performance indicators, including attendance and sales, facilitating informed decision-making and business operations planning.
Actionable Analytics and Reporting: Leverage detailed, real-time reports to gain valuable insights into your program's financial health and operational efficiency. From sales and revenue to comprehensive attendance records reporting, Pembee equips you with the information needed to optimize your offerings.
Conclusion: Choosing the Best Child Care Management Software
Choosing the right online booking system for managing after-school programs, camps, dance studios, and child care centers is crucial— an all-in-one management tool can significantly impact how effectively and smoothly your programs run. Pembee shines in this space, offering a platform that’s specifically crafted for the unique demands of after-school activities. It strikes a perfect balance between user-friendliness and a rich set of features aimed at simplifying registration, improving attendance tracking, and boosting communication with families. For organizers looking to streamline their operations and enhance engagement with participants, Pembee offers an ideal blend of functionality and ease of use.
Discover more about Pembee's features for different childcare centers and childcare providers:
- All-in-one camp management system
- All-in-one class management system for preschool programs
- Dance Studio Camp Management Software
Try Pembee for free by signing up here and see how it can make a difference in your program’s success.
Testimonials
Trusted to handle thousands of bookings each month
“Using Pembee for my event bookings and registration has cut down my admin time immeasurably. I had got to a point where I felt swamped by the volume of paperwork created by my small but busy business and Pembee has saved the day!”
“Fantastic. Easy to use, support is incredible and we have much happier users.”
“I am blown away by the level of support and service from Pembee, the team have helped me set up the app and tweak it to get it working exactly as I want it. I can't fault any step of the process.”
“So easy to use, great for customers and staff. Clean and crisp front end for parents - easily operated back end for staff. We tried 2 others before this and both were heavily flawed with by support or quality - this system has both.”
“Just absolutely fantastic. I am super impressed with their system and also their customer support.”
“Such an amazing piece of software after trialling a few, Pembee is very easy to use and has solved a problem that we encountered!”
“Amazing app for my business. Helpful and easy to use, plus the online support is amazing from the team.”
“Amazing. Not only a great and easy to use platform but brilliant customer service. Pembee has been a game changer for me. From using a previous booking system, my workload has been cut in half - more than half! Cannot recommend enough.”
“Our previous booking system was going offline and we needed a replacement, Pembee worked with us to ensure their system could offer everything we needed to continue the smooth running of our business. Pembee customer support is second to none. Setting up the system was straightforward and there was always someone on hand to help with any queries we had.”
- Bookings processed
- 300K
- Transactions processed
- $15M
- Total Users
- 100,000+
- Sessions listed
- 200,000+