Waitlist automation
What actually happens between 'the class is full' and 'the place is taken', step by step
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TL;DR
The waitlist kept in a coach's head and a WhatsApp thread, or the AllSquads waitlist
- It is on by default for every class with a capacity and activates the moment a session is full; there is no setting to remember.
- The queue is per session and in join order, and a player who already holds a seat on that session is refused with a message rather than added.
- When a place opens, waitlisted players are notified by email and in the app with the class, the date and time, the venue address and a link to book.
- There is no hold and no expiry: the first to book takes the place, and a player who misses out goes back to waiting for the next opening.
- Joining the waitlist creates a contact, so the club can message any waitlister from the session panel, with no time limit.
A waitlist sounds simple until you ask who gets the place, how they find out, what happens if they are slow, and whether the club ever hears from them again. This page answers each of those for the AllSquads waitlist as it is built today, so a club knows exactly what it is getting, and what it is not.
Try it on this term's class
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How a manual waitlist usually works
The coach says the class is full and that they will let people know. The names go into the coach's phone as a note, a screenshot or a memory. When someone drops out, the coach posts in the group or messages the people they remember, and the place goes to the first reply. Nobody knows how many were waiting, nobody is sure who asked first, and the people who were told no are never contacted again, because they were never written down anywhere the club could reach.
- The list is whatever the coach remembers, in whatever order they remember it.
- The offer goes to the fastest reply, not the earliest request.
- The waiting players are not contacts, so the club cannot follow up.
Where the manual waitlist breaks
A note in a phone works for one full class and one patient player. It fails the moment there are several of either, or the phone belongs to someone who is away.
- Empty paid-for places: a cancellation nobody acts on leaves a seat empty in a class that had a queue.
- The fairness problem: the earliest request loses to the quickest thumb, and the club hears about it.
- Stale names: half the list found another class months ago and nobody knows which half.
- No demand signal: the club cannot say how many people wanted the Tuesday class, so it cannot decide about a second one.
- The offer as a burst of texts: each opening is a flurry the coach manages from the court.
- Nobody to follow up: the players who missed out are not in any list the club can message when a new time opens.
- Two people told yes: two names messaged at once, two players arrive, one seat.
Step one: the session fills
Every class with a capacity has the waitlist on by default. A session can carry its own capacity override for one night, and automatic acceptance only ever fills a session up to its current capacity. When the last place goes, the session shows as full to players and the Join waitlist option appears in its place. The coach and the club are notified that the class has reached capacity, which is the first useful signal that a second session might fill.
Step two: a player joins
A player joins a session's waitlist from the class page the same way they would book, and their position is recorded in the order they joined. A parent joins for their child from the family account. A player who already holds a place on that session is refused with a message saying so, because a session can look full to you precisely because you are in it; there is nothing to wait for. Joining makes the player a contact of the club, listed in Contacts and visible in the session's waitlist panel with a message button beside their name.
Step three: a place opens
When a booking on that session is cancelled, the waitlisted players are notified by email and in the app in the order they joined. The notification names the class, the session date and time, the full venue address, the spots remaining and a book-now link. That is the whole offer: there is no hold placed on the seat and no expiry window to police. The first player to book after being notified takes the place, and booking it removes them from that session's waitlist automatically, so nobody appears on both the roster and the queue.
Step four: losing the race
If a different player's booking takes the place first, the player who missed out is not silently dropped. Their entry returns from notified to waiting, so they are eligible for the next notification on that session, and re-joining the waitlist themselves resets a stuck entry as a safety net, harmlessly if they are already waiting. Nothing about this adds a hold, an expiry or a sequential offer queue; it only prevents a lost race from being a dead end.
What the club sees, and what it can do
The session roster shows the waitlist beside the confirmed players, so the coach can see how much unmet demand each night has. The club can message any waitlisted player from the panel, with no time limit, including the waitlisters of a session that has already run, to offer a place in a newly opened one. Analytics carry the waitlist conversion rate. Players control whether they receive a club's waitlist notices under their per-club preferences; muting them never affects booking and payment messages.
Where it applies, and where it does not
The waitlist works on every class type with a per-session capacity: recurring group lessons, term classes with or without drop-in, social sessions, holiday camp days and retreats. Private lessons are booked into a coach's availability rather than a capacity, so they carry no waitlist, and court hire is booked slot by slot against the court's calendar with no queue. A club that needs a queue for a coached session runs it as a group lesson.
Manual vs AllSquads
| A note in the phone and a post in the group | AllSquads | |
|---|---|---|
| Getting paid | The offered player pays if and when they arrive | The waitlisted player pays at booking, like any other booking |
| The roster | Confirmed names plus a separate memory of who asked | Confirmed players and the queue on the same session roster |
| Cancellations | A cancellation is a text the coach has to act on | A cancellation notifies the waitlist in join order automatically |
| Reminders | The player offered the spot is reminded if the coach remembers | The booked player gets the standard reminders a day and an hour out |
| Member pricing | Whatever the coach quotes when offering the place | The class's member price at checkout, as for any booking |
| Waitlist | Fastest reply wins | Join order preserved per session; no hold, no expiry, lost races return to waiting |
| Payouts | Cash on the night | In the same weekly payout as every other booking |
| Records | A screenshot from last term | Every waitlister a contact with a message button and a history |
Where the manual waitlist is fine
One class that fills once a term, one person who asks, and a coach who will remember them: a note in the phone is enough. The manual list stops being enough at the second name, the second full class, or the first week the person holding the phone is not the person running the session.
Which waitlist behaviour do you need?
A class that fills and needs a fair queue
Good fitThat is the default behaviour with nothing to configure. Join order is preserved per session, the offer goes out in that order, and the first to book takes the place. A club that wants to put a regular ahead of the queue can raise that session's capacity by one and place them, and the queue handles everyone else.
A junior class where parents hold the place for a child
Good fitThe parent joins from the family account and is notified by email and in the app. When they book, the child is placed on the roster by name and the parent comes off that session's waitlist. A parent who already has that child booked is told so if they try to join.
A queue that holds the place for the notified player for a set time
Worth knowingThere is no hold and no expiry, by design: the first player to book after the notification takes the place. What protects the slower player is that a lost race returns them to waiting for the next opening, and that the club can message them directly from the panel to offer another session.
A waitlist for private lessons or court bookings
Worth knowingNeither carries one, because neither has a capacity to queue against. A private lesson is booked into published availability, so opening more hours is the lever; a court is booked against its calendar. For a coached session with a headcount, run it as a group lesson and the queue applies.
A club that wants to use the queue to decide on a second class
Good fitThe roster shows the queue length per session, the club is notified when a class reaches capacity, and analytics carry the waitlist conversion rate. Duplicate the class into a second time, then message the waitlisted contacts with the new link; they are in Contacts because they joined.
Use the AllSquads waitlist, or keep the note in the phone
Choose AllSquads if
- A seat has ever gone empty in a class that had people waiting.
- The wrong person has ever got the place and said so.
- You want to know how many wanted in, per session.
- The people who missed out should be contacts you can reach later.
- The coach should not be the one managing the offer from the court.
Stick with WhatsApp if
- One class, one waiting player, and a coach who will remember them.
- Nobody ever cancels, so no place ever opens.
- You would rather choose who gets the seat by hand every time.
Rather have it walked through?
A free 30-minute call. Two minutes to book, no pitch.
Nothing to switch on: how it starts working
The waitlist is on by default for every class with a capacity. The steps below are how a club moves the people already waiting onto it.
Publish the class with its real capacity
When a session hits the capacity it shows as full and the queue opens, with no further setting on the class.
Import the people who already asked
Contacts, then Import, so you can send them the class link. They join the queue themselves in the order they respond.
Share the class link where the requests used to arrive
Players book if there is room and join the waitlist if there is not; either way they become contacts.
Read the queue on the roster
Each session's roster shows the confirmed players and the queue beside them.
Message waitlisters when you open a second time
From the session's waitlist panel, with no time limit on how old the session is.
What to try to see the mechanism work
Each of these is inside the free trial and takes minutes. Each ends with something you can see on the roster or in an inbox.
Set a test class's capacity to one, book one player, then join the waitlist as a second.
The session shows as full, and the second player is on its waitlist in position one.
Try to join the waitlist as the player who is already booked.
The join is refused with a message saying the player already holds a place on the session.
Cancel the booked player.
The waitlisted player receives an email and an in-app notice with the class, the session time, the venue and a link.
Book the open place as the waitlisted player.
They appear on the roster and are removed from the waitlist for that session automatically.
Open the session's waitlist panel and message a waitlisted contact.
The message lands in their inbox, and the player is listed in Contacts.
Got a question right now?
Instant answers, in the page, without leaving it.
Why clubs and coaches run on AllSquads
One platform for the whole operation: bookings, payments, courts, members and messages, built for racquet clubs and the coaches who run them.
Every class type on one timetable
Group classes, terms, camps, private lessons, socials, court hire and retreats all live on one schedule, with one roster per session.
Every way to pay
Upfront, weekly or monthly subscriptions, drop-ins, memberships, session packs and term instalments, collected online and paid out to your club every week.
Court hire with cost splitting
Players book one court or several in a single checkout and split the cost between up to eight people, so nobody chases anyone for their share.
A CRM with every channel
Every player and parent has a contact record, and you reach them by email, in-app message, push notification or broadcast. Paid plans add SMS for cancellations, reminders and payment requests.
Team scheduling
Coaches set their availability, you assign a head coach to each class, and a substitute takes a single session without rebuilding the class.
Admin that runs itself
Reminders go out before a session and before every subscription charge, the waitlist tells everyone waiting the moment a place opens, and cancellations turn into account credit under your own policy.
Promo codes and a pro shop
Discount codes at checkout, and a pro shop with member pricing and online or cash sales that land in the same weekly payout.
An AI agent on both sides
The Club Agent answers questions about your bookings, members and money from the dashboard, and the Concierge helps players find and book the right class.
Analytics you can act on
Revenue, bookings, attendance, court use and member trends, with weekly, monthly, quarterly and financial-year reports you can drill into.
Coming soon: Competitions: leagues, ladders and tournaments; The AllSquads app on the App Store and Google Play.
What AllSquads is
AllSquads is booking, payments and admin software for sports coaches and clubs. Players find your classes, book and pay online, and get reminded before every session. You get the roster, the money and the contact record in one place, with a payout to your bank every week. It runs term programs, casual classes, camps, private lessons and court hire side by side, so the whole operation is in one system rather than a booking tool plus a spreadsheet plus a payment app.
- Over ten thousand
- bookings taken
- Thousands
- of players
- Hundreds
- of classes live
- A growing group
- of Australian clubs
Less admin
Automated booking confirmations, 24hr and 1hr reminders, waitlists, credits, and cancellation management. Stop chasing people.
Get paid weekly
Players pay online at booking, via payment links, or you manage payments manually. Payouts are paid weekly, for the week ending Sunday, direct to your bank account.
Player contacts & CRM
Every booking adds a player to your contacts automatically. Import your existing list via CSV. Track membership, booking history, and notes.
Messaging & group chats
Message players one-on-one or in groups. Class group chats created automatically. Broadcast announcements to all followers.
Analytics built in
Track revenue, bookings, and player retention over time. Coach view, club view, and court hire stats — all in one dashboard.
“I had all of term 1 paid in the first week. 75% less admin, 100% fewer late cancellations, and 80% fewer emails and phone calls.”
Talk to a person
Two minutes, no pitch.
Founding rate locked for life
First 100 paying signups lock the founding rate, no matter what we change later.
Frequently asked questions
Where this comes from
- Join order, strictly first come first served, no hold, lost races return to waiting
- Help centre: Player guide
- Booking removes a player from the waitlist; already-booked joins are refused
- Help centre: Player guide
- Waitlist on by default; capacity override; capacity-reached notice
- Help centre: Coach guide
- What the waitlist notification contains; per-club mute
- Help: Notifications
- A waitlist join creates a contact the club can message
- Help centre: Contacts
- Waitlist conversion rate in analytics
- Help centre: Analytics
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