Getting Ready for another Fall

Guide to Getting Ready for Fall Registrations

fallguidebuttonbigIf you have had your Digital PTO for more than a year, it’s a good idea to take a couple of steps to get ready for the next school year. We have outlined the most common places to update and check, but take a few moments to go through your site and ensure that you’re not promoting out of date events, news and activities. If you need some extra training, we’ve listed a few resources at the bottom of this article for you.

These steps are written for Premium Plan Members, but can be applied to other plans as well.

Is it time to Upgrade your Site?

If you are considering upgrading your Digital PTO website, mid-summer is the best time to do that as you will be able to enjoy the benefits of an upgraded system all school year long. If you would like to review our current plans and pricing (starting at only $5 / month!) please visit our Plan Comparison Guide.

Step 1: Get your Forms Ready for Fall

If you have Family Registration Forms, Volunteer Forms, etc that were used last year, you will probably want to get them ready for another school year. There are three options for getting your forms ready. These tutorials are based on the built in forms, but will apply to the Wufoo Forms as well.

You can leave them as is and use Date Ranges for exporting

  1. If you want to keep using the same registration forms without cleaning out the data, you’ll want to make sure you use the date range selector when exporting your data so that you only have the current years information.
  2. Learn More about Exporting Data Here

You can DELETE the previous data and start fresh

  1. If you no longer need last years data, you can delete it all and start fresh with your form. We would suggest exporting a copy of your data before you delete it just in case.
  2. Learn More about Deleting Data Here

You can DUPLICATE your form and start fresh

  • The final option is to duplicate your form. By duplicating your form, you can keep the prior years data and still have a fresh form to work with for the new year. There are a few steps involved in duplicating your form.
  • First you’ll want to Duplicate Your Form. This will make an exact copy of your form.
  • How to Duplicate a Form
  • Second you need to update you website with the new form. It’s important to remember that if you don’t add the new form to your website and replace your old form, the old form will continue to be used.
  • How to Add a Form to your Website.
  • Third you need to update your payment settings. If you are collecting payments on your form, you will need to add payment settings to the new form as well. These do not copy.
  • Adding Paypal Settings to your Form.

 Step 2: Update your Calendar

More than likely you already know quite a few of the key dates for your school and Parent Group already, so go ahead and get them on your calendar so your families can access that information. If a new member of your community this fall visits your groups website, you want it to be ready and complete so that member will continue to come back. If everything is outdated, they might not come back as readily.

Every one of our member sites has access to a premium calendar now (including free sites!), so be sure to check to make sure your calendar is active and working!

 Step 3: Update your Board Info, etc.

If you have a list of your board members online, be sure to review that list and update it if you have any new members. Typically positions only last for two years, so every year you should review the list and make sure that your board members are up to date. This applies to any other data you may also have on your website that is either out-dated or not current.

Step 4: Update your Website Users

If you have had any turnover with your board or website managers, be sure to update your users to keep things current. Delete old users that should no longer have access and add new users to the team.

Step 5: Need a Refresher?

Visit our Transitional Guides to brush up on your skills with your Digital PTO site. If you have questions, chances are that we have an answer for you!

If you’re looking for the best training possible, visit our Ultimate Guide to a Parent Group Websites Video Series and watch all 13 episodes. You’ll learn a TON.