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Daily Business with Trials: Setup, Transfers, and Adjustments

Trials are a great way to introduce new clients to your classes — and Zooza gives you full flexibility to manage how they work. Below you'll find the most common trial-related actions and how to handle them step by step.

Note: Trial bookings cannot be created manually by admins or instructors. They must be submitted by the client via the website booking form.

Controlling which trial dates appear on your website​

You can control which trial dates are shown on your booking form directly in the programme settings. Go to Programme → Settings → Trial → Sessions Shown in Form.

Options:

  • Show a fixed number of future sessions, or
  • Show sessions within a specific date range (e.g. always the next three weeks).

Sessions Shown in Form setting in programme trial settings

How to transfer a trial booking to another class​

Moving a single session only: Open the booking → Attendance → click Book a session, then select the new date and class.

Moving the entire trial to a different class:

  1. Open the booking detail.
  2. Go to the Class section and click Transfer.
  3. Select the new class (you can filter by programme or location).
  4. Click Transfer to another class → Continue.
  5. The booking status remains Trial started.
  6. Choose the next session date.
  7. If already paid, tick Do not change payments to keep the payment unchanged.
  8. Decide whether to notify the client (checkbox).
  9. Confirm by clicking Continue.
  10. Go to Attendance to hide old sessions and add new ones as needed.

How to hide old sessions and add new ones after a transfer​

You can manage attendance flexibly from the Attendance section of the booking:

  • Hide — removes a session from reports and the client's view. The client won't receive notifications for it.
  • Book a session — adds a new session.

Attendance section showing Hide and Book a session options

How to reschedule a single trial session​

  1. Go to the booking → Attendance.
  2. Click Hide to remove the original date.
  3. Click Book a session to add the new date.

The client and instructor will both receive a notification and see the updated session in their profile.

Rescheduling a trial session in the Attendance section

How to reserve a seat for a trial participant​

If you want a trial participant to keep their seat reserved until they either enrol or are marked as lost:

Go to Programme → Settings → Trial → Reserve seat for trial attendee and check the box.

Reserve seat for trial attendee setting

How to set trial duration and type (free vs. paid, multi-session)​

To configure a longer or paid trial, go to Programme → Settings → Trial.

Under Trial type, choose between:

  • Free trial (single or multiple sessions)
  • Paid trial (single or multiple sessions)

You can also set the unit price per session here.

Trial type setting — free or paid

Trial duration and price settings

How to allow only trial bookings in a class​

If you want clients to book only trials (not full enrolments):

Go to Programme → Settings → Online Registration (Edit) → under Booking Options Shown on Website, select Trials only (or whichever option fits your setup).

Booking options shown on website — Trials only

Tip: Most trial settings are controlled at the programme level — so each programme can have its own unique setup, payment type, and visibility rules.

Trial sessions and class overcapacity​

Class overcapacity can occur when trial sessions are used together with Blocks within the same class.

When trials are configured to reserve capacity for the full class period, this works reliably only in classes without Blocks. If a class uses Blocks, the system cannot determine which Block the capacity should be reserved for — trials then reserve capacity only for individual dates, not the full period. This can cause subsequent full-period bookings to exceed total class capacity.

How to avoid overcapacity: Configure trial sessions to use Extra Capacity. If Extra Capacity is not used, class capacity must be actively monitored and trials managed manually.

How to convert an existing booking to trial status​

If a booking was created as a regular registration or waitlist entry but should have been a trial, an admin can convert it without starting from scratch.

Prerequisite: The programme must have trials enabled (Trial type must not be set to None).

  1. Open the booking detail.

  2. Click Change status.

    Change status button on booking detail

  3. Select Convert to trial.

  4. Choose a trial date.

After converting, the booking enters the standard trial flow — the same automation (follow-ups, auto-lost) applies as for any trial. Manually enrol the client into a specific trial session from the Attendance section.

Note: This is a one-way conversion. A trial booking cannot be converted back to a regular registration.

What if a trial client doesn't show up?​

If a client booked a trial but didn't attend, the outcome depends on your trial settings:

  • If trials are configured to hold a spot, the trial may still be active and count towards capacity until the trial process ends.
  • If you don't plan to continue with that client, mark the booking as Trial Lost.

How to mark a trial as Trial Lost​

  1. Open the booking detail.
  2. Change the status to Trial Lost.
  3. Optionally send an email — the client will receive a message with a link to book again (takes them back to the booking form).

This stops the trial flow and releases the spot in the class.

Trial Lost status change on booking