Think of Member Splash as your organization's digital hub - it handles memberships, payments, communications, and all the data management you need to run your club or HOA smoothly.
The Big Picture
Member Splash is built on WordPress, which means it's flexible and can grow with your needs. But unlike a regular website, we've customized it specifically for membership organizations like yours. Everything connects together - your member database, payment processing, forms, and communications all work as one system.
The Member Journey - Step by Step
1. Initial Account Creation & Registration
Let's start with how someone becomes part of your organization. When a family visits your site and fills out the initial registration form, the system immediately creates an account and assigns them a unique Account ID. This Account ID is their permanent identifier in your system - it stays with them throughout their entire relationship with your organization.
Now, what happens next depends on your club's capacity:
If you have a waitlist: When that new account is created, they're assigned the account type WAITLIST. These accounts essentially hang out in waitlist status until a membership spot opens up. They're in your system, you can communicate with them, and they can see their waitlist position, but they can't yet purchase a full membership. When you're ready to offer them membership, you'll change their account type and they can move forward.
If you don't have a waitlist: New accounts are typically offered membership right away. Once their account is created, they'll be directed to select the appropriate membership level that suits them - whether that's individual, family, senior, junior, or whatever membership categories your organization offers. They choose their level and proceed directly to payment.
This flexibility means the system adapts to your organization's specific situation - whether you're managing capacity carefully or welcoming everyone immediately.
2. Member Dashboard & Self-Service
Once accounts are created, members get their own dashboard where they can:
Update their contact information and complete required information
Add their household members, required information and upload photos used at check-in
See their account type and payment status
Navigate to the Payments tab where they can view available memberships and make their selection
For waitlist accounts, they'll see their waitlist position and status. For active members, they'll see their full membership details and access.
This self-service aspect is huge - it dramatically reduces the 'what's my balance?' and 'did my payment go through?' calls you'd otherwise get.
3. Payment Processing
For payments, we partner with ECRYPT, a payment processor. When members need to pay dues, fees, or other charges:
They can pay by credit card or ACH (bank transfer) directly through your site
Payments are processed securely - we never store full credit card numbers
The transaction connects automatically to their Account ID
The system immediately updates their account type and status
You get real-time reporting on who's paid and who hasn't
4. Returning Member Renewals
Here's one of the best features of Member Splash - returning members don't need to reapply every year. Their account already exists with their unique Account ID, so the renewal process is streamlined and simple.
How renewals work:
The assumption is that members will retain the same membership level for the following year. When it's time for annual renewals, a club admin sends an email communication to the community notifying everyone it's time to log back into their account and submit membership dues payments for the upcoming year.
Members simply:
Log into their existing account
Review their information and update anything that's changed
Navigate to the Payments tab
Submit their membership dues payment
Pricing flexibility for renewals:
Admins have complete control over renewal pricing through membership product configuration. You can:
Offer early bird discounts for members who renew by a certain date
Assign late fees for members who renew after a deadline
Adjust pricing for the new season as needed
This creates natural incentives for timely renewals while keeping the process simple for members. They're not filling out lengthy applications again - they're just logging in and paying, which dramatically increases renewal completion rates and reduces administrative work for your team.
5. Administrative Backend
For your staff and volunteers managing the system, they have unique logins giving them access to the admin Dashboard area where they can:
View and edit all account records (both waitlist and active members)
See account types and payment statuses at a glance
Manage waitlist progression and convert waitlist accounts to members
Run reports on membership, payments, attendance
Send bulk communications to specific account types or payment statuses (like renewal reminders)
Configure membership products with early bird pricing and late fees
Process manual transactions when needed
Set up new registration forms or update existing ones
The system tracks everything automatically, so you have an audit trail of changes, payments, and member activity. You can easily see who's on the waitlist, who's active and paid, who's expired, who's renewed for the new season, and everyone in between.
6. Check-In Process
Member Splash includes a streamlined check-in system that makes daily operations at your facility smooth and secure. Here's how it works:
Photo-Based Check-In:
Remember those photos members uploaded in their dashboard? This is where they come into play. When members arrive at your facility:
Staff or volunteers access the check-in interface (typically on a tablet or computer at the entrance)
They can search for the member by name, Account ID, or scroll through the active member list
Member photos appear on screen for visual verification
Staff confirms the member's identity and checks them in with a single click
Benefits of the Check-In System:
Security: Visual verification ensures only authorized members and their registered household members are accessing your facility
Attendance Tracking: Every check-in is automatically logged with date and timestamp, giving you valuable data on facility usage patterns
Guest Management: The system can track when members bring guests, helping you monitor guest usage and enforce guest policies
Quick Access: No more fumbling with physical membership cards or printed lists - everything is digital and searchable
Real-Time Status: Staff can immediately see if a member's account is in good standing or if there are any payment issues
Reporting & Analytics:
All check-in data flows into your reporting system, so you can:
Track peak usage times to optimize staffing
Monitor attendance trends throughout the season
Identify your most active members
Generate required attendance reports for insurance or compliance purposes
This check-in process transforms what used to be a manual, error-prone task into a smooth, professional operation that enhances both security and member experience.