For me conventional tackle i bring is jerk-baits some small cranks , jigs and soft plastics, spinners. They all catch.
I threw swim baits prettty much all year last year but in the spring . I crushed bass in ponds with my weedless Hudd and the 68 special.
The soft plastic listed above with do fine.
I used fire tiger and red craw pattern cranks, slow steady retrieve(4.1.1) baitcaster on the outside of the grass. when it was bright and sunny i cranked over top of the grass and got bite A LOT. Also they tend to be roaming around , so when you catch one in a small pond, he was there for a reason and typically there's more bass around.
say you catch a crank bait fish , take mental notes on where it came from and cast again or in the same general area. then you can slow down. also don't forget to cast from different angles at the same spot.
hope that helps,
GRizz