How NXT 1UP Went from Five Failed Software Systems to Running Their Facility on Autopilot

Five Systems in, Still Doing Everything by Hand

David Ricks opened NXT 1UP Baseball Performance in early 2021 in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, starting with three cages in roughly 3,100 square feet of space. Like most small facility owners, he wore every hat: trainer, owner, scheduler, customer service rep. And like most, he burned through software trying to find something that could take a few of those hats off his head.

Before landing on Baseline, NXT 1UP cycled through five different platforms. Some were expensive. Some were built on outdated architectures that David describes as "dinosaurs." MindBody, the last system before Baseline, took his facility manager Trayvon roughly three days just to input trainer schedules, batting cage availability, and group sessions. The trainer schedule and the facility schedule didn't communicate, so staff had to manually block cages every time a lesson was booked. Double bookings happened. Parents showed up confused. Trainers got frustrated.

"If I'm still doing that work, what do I need a system for? I can do that on Google Sheets. Baseline fixes that."

David Ricks | Owner, NXT 1UP Baseball Performance

The System That Talks to Itself

The turning point for NXT 1UP was one specific capability: the trainer schedule and the facility schedule finally communicated with each other. When a lesson gets booked, the cage gets blocked. When a team rental fills a section of the facility, the remaining space stays open for individual bookings. No manual blocking. No double bookings. No pulling over on the side of the road to fix a scheduling conflict from your phone.

David now has seven trainers on staff. None of them can build their own schedule or access facility reports. They give their availability to Trayvon, he inputs it, and the system handles the rest. When a trainer's hours go live, a mass text fires off to parents at no extra cost. The peak 4:00 to 6:00 PM slots typically book up almost immediately. Trainers can share their personal booking link on social media. And when a cancellation comes in, the Trainer AI agent can text the instructor and offer to notify regulars that a spot just opened up.

The pitch to trainers is simple: you don't have to chase bookings. The system handles scheduling, notifications, and confirmations. You show up and train.

72-Hour Cancellation Policy, Enforced Automatically

NXT 1UP runs a 72-hour cancellation window for lessons and 48 hours for cage rentals. In older systems, enforcing those policies meant awkward phone calls and guesswork. Now, the rules are baked into the software. If a parent tries to cancel inside that window, the system won't let them. If a trusted regular gets sick, David can push the lesson to a new date and the credit lands back on their account without navigating through a maze of buttons.

Memberships work the same way. No one at NXT 1UP can cancel online. They have to contact the facility directly, which protects monthly revenue and gives David's team the chance to retain customers who might just need a schedule adjustment. Combined with a three-month commitment lock, churn stays under control without adding manual work

When a 75-Year-Old Grandparent Can Book, Your System Works

David uses a specific benchmark for usability: grandparents. NXT 1UP has grandparents in their 70s who bring their grandkids in, and they book sessions independently through the system.

On previous platforms, staff had to stop what they were doing and walk customers through every step. Now, David walks over, shows them the login once, walks away, and comes back to find they've already booked next week.

He calls it the Amazon method. When someone lands on the NXT 1UP booking page, they see images, full descriptions, cage-specific recommendations (which ages belong in which cages, which ones include machines), and pricing. They research. They decide. They book. Just like shopping online.

That level of detail means parents stop calling with basic questions. David says the only inquiries they get through the system now are login issues and questions about whether his team works with younger athletes. Everything else, the platform answers on its own.

Less Than an Hour to Run Payroll for Seven Trainers

Every trainer at NXT 1UP gets paid on the 1st and 15th, just like a regular paycheck. The house takes its cut from each lesson, and Trayvon pulls the report, calculates what each trainer is owed, and sends payment through Venmo.

The whole process takes less than an hour for all seven trainers. David shifted from weekly to bimonthly payroll to give revenue time to clear, especially during the slow months between October and the end of November, and to make sure rent is always covered first.

That kind of operational discipline is only possible because the data is reliable. Every lesson, every rental, every membership payment flows through one system. There's no chasing down side bookings or reconciling numbers from multiple platforms.

"If it wasn't a good system, I would have been gone. We've been through five software companies. [Baseline] has been a lifesaver, timesaver, when it comes to the parents getting the information."

David Ricks | Owner, NXT 1UP Baseball Performance