I have been using Brightwheel for a year now... parents like it once they get over the initial hesitation however I have come to not like it.
PROS:
- I like how easy it is to set up invoices and track payments. It sends email reminders 7 days prior to the monthly payment being due.
CONS:
- It can take longer than I like for funds to hit my account, easily 3-5 days.
- Updates have to been done on the app and cannot be done from my mac laptop. Doing individual updates from an app takes more time than I could imagine when dealing with multiple children - I could do it much faster on my laptop.
- Some billing/employee related items can only be done on the website vs the app
- The "feed" for each child is more like an instagram feed feel vs a portfolio feel
Parents in my program want to see photos and documentation of their children's day so I am still seeking something for that. I might go with the Shutterfly Share Classroom site and adjust the expectation from being individual to class updates.
I will also need something new for tracking funds but I know I'm over Brightwheel. My parents currently using it for billing (3 of 5) can continue the others and any new families will have to do e-pay or checks.