To ensure that volunteers have all they need the day of the event, prepare by acquiring all the necessary equipment, correctly configuring stations, and testing everything beforehand.
While technical equipment may vary for each event, most events require the following at the very least:
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Printers (if you want to print labels)
Check out the table below to see which printer would work best for you.
Dymo
Zebra
Brother (WiFi)
Brother (Bluetooth)
Citizen
Print from Mac/Windows Station Device
✓
✓*
Print from iOS/Android Station Device
✓
✓
✓
Uses WiFi
✓
Uses Bluetooth
✓
✓
Battery Option
✓
✓
✓
Connect to multiple devices
✓
Printing Speed (ranked 1 to 5)
2
1
3
4
5
Tip
Are you preparing for an event off-site? Check out best practices for churches on the go!
Once you've got all the right equipment, you're ready to put together your event and add labels and stations! There are three main steps to the administrative side of your event, and you must have editor permissions in Check-Ins to tackle them.
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Create a new event. You only need one event for each recurring event that takes place at your church, even if you have multiple times for that event.
For example, a Sunday morning service with a 9:00 and 11:00 service time only needs one event. In the one event, you can add the two times and assign specific locations to each time, if needed.
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Set up locations. If you want specific people to check in to specific locations based on age or grade, you can set those parameters as location filters.
Note
To use location filters, a person must have the grade or age on their profile.
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Create stations and adjust their settings as necessary. View the table below for a quik station type comparison.
Test your setup before the event date to ensure that the stations are working the way you expect.
To test your setup, follow these steps:
On the Times tab of your event, add a new time with today's date and your testing time.
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Open the Check-Ins app on each station you want to use for this event. If you don't see the event, check your testing time and the station settings.
Important
Roster stations rely on previous check-ins, and they may not be populated unless you have past sessions with matching times.
Check in your family and another person's family using the Church Center app, a barcode, or a phone number. Verify that the expected locations are available and the correct labels print.
Once you're happy with the setup, delete the testing time. This will delete all the data for the time in that session.
In your testing, consider the different types of people you'll be checking in. Here are some helpful examples to test:
Tip
Ready to pass on your knowledge? Train your volunteers!