How to display class bookings on an office TV

Class-based businesses have a specific operational rhythm: classes fill up, or they don’t. A class with 2 attendees loses money; a sold-out class with a waitlist makes money. The team’s ability to drive bookings in the days before the class is the difference.

Most studios find out about under-filled classes too late to do anything. A live class-bookings counter on the TV gives the front-desk team real-time visibility so they can intervene.

What to count

Multiple options, pick what matters:

• Classes booked for today (today’s activity metric)
• Classes booked for this week (rolling 7-day leading indicator)
• Percent capacity across all classes (utilization metric)
• Bookings for a specific upcoming class (e.g. “Saturday Hot Yoga: 12/20 booked”)

For a team that can take action, “bookings for upcoming classes” is the most action-inducing. It tells the front desk which classes need promotion, and how much.

Setup

1. Create a counter. “Class bookings this week” or “Classes booked today”.
2. Connect your studio management system (Mindbody, ClubReady, Glofox, Zen Planner, PushPress).
3. Filter: exclude instructor bookings (you don’t want to count the teacher’s “booking” of their own class).
4. Pair the front-desk TV.

The capacity-bar display

Beyond a simple count, the most useful display is a per-class capacity bar. A grid showing each upcoming class and its current booking percentage:

Tuesday 6pm Power Yoga:   ████████░░  16/20
Wednesday 8am Vinyasa:    ████░░░░░░   8/20
Wednesday 6pm Restorative: ██████████  20/20 (waitlist 3)
Thursday 7am Hot Yoga:    █████░░░░░  10/20

Most broadcasting tools can render this. If yours can’t, run multiple single-class counters in a rotation.

The intervention loop

Here’s the mechanic: the front-desk team sees “Wednesday 8am only 8/20 booked”. They have 5 days to do something. Options:

1. Text existing members who usually take that class
2. Send a promotional email to the full list
3. Post on Instagram stories
4. Adjust the Tuesday 6pm to redirect overflow (that class is full)

Without the counter, none of this happens because nobody knows to do it. With the counter, it becomes obvious.

No-show tracking

Some studios add a second counter: no-shows today. Every member who booked but didn’t show decrements. High no-show rate = the team needs to add confirmation texts, charge a penalty, or adjust booking policies.

Waitlist display

Showing the waitlist for popular classes is a trick that works: “Hot Yoga Saturday: SOLD OUT — waitlist 8”. Communicates urgency, signals demand, gets last-minute additions to book earlier for next week.

The member-facing version

Some studios put this counter in the lobby where members can see it. Effects:

• Reinforces that the studio is popular (social proof)
• Encourages members to book earlier
• Creates FOMO on classes members might otherwise skip

Other studios keep it back-of-house because they don’t want members to feel counted.

Pick based on your member culture.

Start here

Pick one upcoming-class counter. Connect your studio PMS. Plug in a Fire Stick. Start the free trial, pair the TV, watch how front-desk behavior changes.

Related: gym membership counter.