For this customer spotlight, we spoke with Diane Newland and Jason Kunzman, the chief financial officer and the president/CEO at the JCC of Greater Pittsburgh, to share their experience working with Upace.
Why did you decide to partner with Upace? What problem were you looking to solve; or what solution were you looking to incorporate?
We first were looking to find a replacement for our old provider. In that search, it was extremely important to find a provider that offered an all-in-one JCC Pittsburgh (JCCPGH) app our customers and community could use for everything in the JCC.
We also were looking for a partner who would work with us on new features, listen to our challenges, find solutions together and will innovate with us. We found that partner in Upace.
Additionally, we wanted a user group environment for Upace customers so our staff could learn and grow with the Upace community. Now, the national user group environment has formally kicked off.
What are the benefits to your business as a result of this partnership?
There have been many benefits because of this partnership, including a seamless replacement for our previous provider and the successful launch of our JCCPGH app with our members and staff. Operationally, we have over 180-plus staff using the admin portal for management of reservations, closures, alerts and check-ins.
For the first time, we now have a two-way API integration with our CRM Traction Rec that allows data to flow to and from Upace to Traction Rec/Salesforce, which has been instrumental for data management and efficiencies.
We also have been able to make strategic operational decisions based on the data in Upace by viewing group exercise class reservation and participation data to determine if we need to change the class time or day of the week or to promote the class more to increase member participation. The partnership with Rachel Koretsky, the founder and CEO of Upace, and her team has proven to be invaluable.
What are the benefits to your members as a result of this partnership?
Our members love the app. It lets them access their barcode, have easy registration for classes, manage their reservations from their phone and receive direct alerts from us. Members also like how they can make reservations from our website, so we’re ensuring everyone can access the platform from their smartphones, tablets and desktop computers. In only eight months, over 58,000 reservations have been made by our members.
In addition, we’ve been able to engage our active older members through adding in our AgeWell lunch program to Upace. This allows them to reserve ahead of time and permits our staff to prepare accordingly based on the reservations. Now, we have the needed data to obtain additional funding.
Have you been pleasantly surprised by working with Upace in any way?
We connected with Koretsky and her team immediately and knew they were the right partner. Our instincts were right. Upace has been great to work with, our members love the app and we are working together on how to continue to streamline operations with the Upace platform. We’re grateful our relationship with Upace is thriving and magnifying.
What else can you tell other rec center profession-als about the benefits of working with Upace?
Do it. The relationship and partnership with Upace will allow you to take their mobile and web technology to the next level in supporting your members and staff. The Upace staff is here to support and guide your teams not only at launch, but beyond to help transform your operations and membership experience.
With Upace, you will learn, grow and members will be grateful to have a new custom mobile platform.
For more information, email sales@upaceapp.com or visit upaceapp.com.
