Families with Children

Keep families in mind as you arrange your check-in stations. Check-in stations should be placed in close proximity to entrances used by families who are bringing children to classes. You should also have enough space between stations so that families can gather around them without blocking other stations.

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For Multiple Entrances and Large Lobbies

For congregations with large entry lobbies, consider clustering the check-in stations in a common location. For congregations with multiple entrances and without a common gathering point, consider spreading your check-in stations throughout the campus.

Avoid locating check-in stations in narrow hallways or congested areas of your campus. Remember, if people are frustrated with the time it takes to check in, they will bypass the process.

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Visitors

Depending on the size of your campus, you need at least one centrally located, visible, and well-staffed visitor check-in station. This usually takes the form of an assisted check-in station. Assisted check-in stations do not have to be geared only for visitors. However, having one assisted check-in station that is designated for welcoming and checking in visitors is a great way to establish positive first impressions.

First-time guests will not know how to use the system and may need assistance checking in and obtaining security badges for their children. Conveniently, this can also be the time and place to collect the information from guests that your organization likes to keep on file. It can take several minutes to gather such information, so if you welcome a large number of guests each week, you might need multiple visitor stations.

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Assisted vs. Self Check-in

As a general rule, manned stations should face staff, and unmanned stations should face members. See Check-in Methods for more information about assisted and self check-in stations.

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Volunteers

Keep in mind the number of volunteers and staff members that are available to man the check-in stations. Obviously, you will need a volunteer for each manned station, but you should also plan to have volunteers available to help with the unmanned stations.

When you first introduce your check-in system, it's best to have one volunteer per check-in station to walk members through the process. As your attendees use the check-in stations and become more familiar with them, you can reduce the number of volunteers, but plan to have at least one person on hand to assist with any questions or problems that arise. If you have several unmanned check-in stations in a cluster, one volunteer should be able to handle them all.

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Power Outlets and Internet Connection

Though it seems intuitive, be sure to consider the location of power outlets and network connections when deciding where to locate check-in stations. If you are planning a new construction, be sure to incorporate these needs into your plan.

If your facilities span across multiple buildings or campuses, or a network connection is simply not available in certain lobbies or hallways, you can run Checkpoint in disconnected mode, where the data is first exported from the server and imported into the disconnected station. After check-in, export the data and then sync it back with the server.

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Other Suggestions

If you print labels or badges for your attendees, remember to place trash cans around the stations.

After the service, class, or activity is over, consider converting your stations into information centers where attendees can register for events, look up congregational information, or update their personal profiles using Access ACS. Converting stations to information centers assumes that check-out is not required for these events.

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Related Topics

Deciding How Many Check-in Stations You Need
Designing a Check-in System
Checkpoint Implementation Guide