Outside The Lines

New Financial Reports Now Available

We have made significant enhancements to the existing Registration Revenue and Payments reports, and have added a new report called Orders. This post explains the changes/additions to these important Finance Reports.

1. New Orders Report

Have you ever wondered how many dollars were attributed to late fees, discounts, or surcharges for a given Program, Session, or Division? Well, with the new Orders Report you can now do this and account for every dollar allocated to your rules, surcharges, or adjustments. Our developers worked hard to get this "frequently requested" report out to you this summer. Looks like a simple report, but there is some serious software code going on in the background to make it all work.

How the Orders Report Works

Click on the Orders under Finance Reports. The report will default to the previous full month, unless it is past the 15th of the month, in this case it will run from the beginning of the current month. If you need to adjust the dates, simply click on the date field.

As you can see from the screenshot (click on it to enlarge), all Programs, Sessions, and Divisions are listed in the first column, and the total Registration Amount for the selected date range in the second column. The remainder of the columns are dynamically generated based on any special rules or surcharges that were active within the specified date range. For example, lets say you had a scholarship program in place and wanted to see how much revenue was attributed to this "adjustment" in fees for certain individuals. Since a scholarship is considered an adjustment to the order, it will show up on the Orders report and will have its own column in the Orders Report.

Things to note about the Orders Report:

• The Orders Summary shows "bookings," that is, orders placed. It does not show what has or has not been paid. Actual payments are shown in the Payments and Registration Revenue Reports (described below).
• Be sure to keep your surcharge/fee rule names consistent when setting up custom questions, otherwise you will end up with multiple columns for the same surcharge.

2. Enhancements to Registration Revenue Report

The Registration Revenue Report now contains columns for different payment types, refunds, and SportsSignup fees. Unlike the Orders Report described above, this report shows actual Revenue, that is, monies actually received for any given date range. This includes all credit card payments/refunds and recorded check/cash payments. The report can also be exported to MS Excel.

3. Enhancements to the Payments Report

The Payments Report now includes search by date range, payment type (credit card or check). You can also show payments or refunds made during a specified date range.

Questions? Please email support@sportssginup.com

Visit us at www.SportsSignup.com

Ready to "Go Live" with your Sports Online Registration site?

Here's a “Top 10” list of things you should do before taking your Sports Online Registration site out of Test Mode:

1. Run a test registration and/or have others in your organization run tests and provide feedback. This is the best way to tune your registration process. You can make unlimited registrations while in Test Mode (no fees are assessed), so take advantage of this to test your discount "rules" and the flow of information capture.
2. Check your Sessions and Divisions for accuracy: Do you have the correct fees listed for the Session and Division? Did you add Session and Fee descriptions? Are the age cutoffs correct? Click here to see a previous post about setting up Sessions & Divisions.
3. Check all of your custom questions:  Are the questions clear? Do you have all the possible answers in drop-downs? If the question is required, is there an "out" answer (e.g. Not Applicable)? Does the "flow" of your custom questions work?
4. Be sure that your custom questions are a.) appropriate for your Registrants;  b.) have Report Labels; and c.) that they are necessary - click here to view/print a document that details SportsSignup's default fields. Also, avoid using open text answers - use dropdown lists whenever possible.
5. If you allow mail-in (paper) checks, be sure that the correct mailing address is listed, and the "make check payable" field is correct. The address used to setup the account is the default, and this may not be where you would like checks to be sent.
6. Be sure to have a clear and unambiguous Refund Policy posted. Note that this is required if you accept credit cards as a form of payment. If you do not offer refunds, state this as your Refund Policy.
7. Add key administrators on the account, and set the appropriate level of access. You can restrict access to certain programs or certain functionality for new administrators.
8. Each Program should have a populated Consent Page and Post Purchase Notice. Click here to learn more about creating an effective Post Purchase Notice.
9. Have an officer of your organization review and electronically sign the Agreement (you need to do this to come out of Test Mode). After the Agreements are signed, you will need to log out of the system and log back in for the changes to take effect.
10. Ask your Account Executive for an audit of your account by SportsSignup prior to going live, we are happy to take a look at all of your settings.

Instructions on how to “Go Live:”

Login as administrator and go to Manage Account | Manage Organization | Test Mode. Click on the button that says “Take Out of Test Mode.” Because you may have had real people perform testing (with real Accounts), all Account information will be preserved but any registrations while in Test Mode will be automatically deleted. This will save your testing crew from having to re-enter their account information (address, emergency contacts, etc.). Note that once an account goes out of Test Mode, it cannot be set back to Test Mode.

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Click here to view/print this tip with Adobe PDF.

Tip: Creating an Effective Post Purchase Notice

The Post Purchase Notice is shown as part of the registrant’s receipt, which is also automatically e-mailed to the registrant. The Post Purchase Notice (or “PPN”) is an important part of the registration process, and should not be overlooked as a great way to communicate with your registrants. The PPN can be customized for each Program in your Account, for example, you can have a different PPN for your recreation and competitive programs, or for baseball and football programs. Note that a PPN is not required for your Program(s), a Registration Receipt is automatically sent by e-mail, even if no custom PPN has been added.   

Suggestions for creating an effective Post Purchase Notice:

1. Add an extra “thank you” to  registrants for their successful registration. Note that the text “Thank you for registering!” automatically appears at the bottom of the notice (click on graphic on right to see an sample PPN).
2. Provide clear information on what happens next for the registrant, for example, “your coach will be in contact with you” or “show up at xx place at yy time” etc.
3. List the next steps or any other requirements. It is best to do this as a numbered list or a bullet checklist.
4. Provide any additional documents in the form of a web link.
5. Give the registrants contact information if they have questions about the registration process.

Click here to view/print this tip using Adobe PDF.

 

Waiting List Feature Now Included!

Until now, Waiting List functionality has been available as an option, for an additional fee. As of June 15, 08, the Waiting List feature will be available without any additional fees. If you would like this feature enabled on your account, please send an e-mail with your account name to support@sportssignup.com.

What is a Waiting List?

A Waiting List allows you to set capacity controls on your Division size, and will limit the number of registrants to a number you specify. For example, you may run a program that has slots for, say, 60 players in the U16  Division (because you would like to have 3 x 20 player teams in this Division). Setting a Waiting List for this Division will not allow more than 60 players to register for it (click on graphic to see screenshot example). Once the cap is reached, the registrant is asked if they would like to be placed on a Waiting List. If they answer "Yes," they are told approximately where they "sit" on the Waiting List.

Managing Waiting Lists

Administrators can see who's on the Waiting List, and what order they arrived as each registration is time-stamped. Registrants on the Wait List can then be "invited" to complete their registration (and to checkout and pay) as spaces become available. Once invited by the administrator, the system places the registration in their shopping cart, and automatically sends an e-mail explaining how to complete their transaction and check out.

Once you determine there are no more spaces available, you can elect to send an e-mail to all the people remaining on the Waiting List indicating they are out of luck :)

Getting Started

If you would like to enable Waiting Lists for your account, e-mail us at support@sportssignup.com with your account name, and we'll turn the feature on. You will then be able to set capacity controls for Divisions and manage the Waiting List.

Existing Customers using Waiting List Feature

Waiting List fees will be incurred through June 14, 2008. After this date, the fees will no longer be assessed.

Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association and SportsSignup Renew Service Agreement

Company to Provide State-level Member Management System Through 2011

(Link to this release on the web)

Latham, NY,—April 25, 2008 —  Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA), one of the largest state soccer associations in the United States, today announced their renewal of a 3 year agreement with SportsSignup to provide roster management, online registration, and risk management (coach & volunteer background check) services to the association and its member leagues and soccer clubs. SportsSignup’s system allows players to register online via a web-based interface that is managed independently by each local soccer club. Club administrators can then submit rosters electronically from the system directly to ENYYSA leagues for approvals, giving state-level administrators tools to ensure compliance with both ENYYSA’s and US Youth Soccer rules regarding player transfers, dual registrations, roster sizes, birth date verification, etc.

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“SportsSignup has been a great partner with us since the start of our relationship in early 2004. With over 130,000 players, 12 member leagues, and hundreds of individual clubs, it is essential that we work with a company that is ready and willing to grow and scale with our organization,” said Barry Salter, president of ENYYSA. “There are many complexities working within a hierarchy of multiple, independent soccer organizations and leagues, and the SportsSignup system has both the flexibility and adaptability to accommodate different needs at each level,” continued Salter.

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“SportsSignup’s service platform was developed to meet the needs of state soccer associations, leagues, and their member soccer clubs. Integration between individual member clubs, affiliated leagues, and ENYYSA is seamless, as the same database is used to manage all registration data. The system works by allowing families to use a SportsSignup hosted web form to register their children to play for a specific soccer club via the club’s website. Children are then placed on a team roster by a club administrator which is then “submitted” to their affiliated league for approval.   Once the roster is electronically approved, official rosters and player passes can be printed, all from an easy-to-use online interface. Coaches and other volunteers must complete and pass an online risk management application, powered by SportsSignup’s KidSafePlus software, to be eligible to participate in ENYYSA sanctioned programs. In addition to roster management and risk management services, SportsSignup’s online registration system is also used to manage ENYYSA’s Olympic Development and US Youth Soccer Eastern New York State Championships & ENYYSA Challenge Cup.

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"There is no doubt that we would not be in a market leadership position we are today without our continuing relationship with ENYYSA. Much of our platform was built to meet the needs of ENYYSA by creating a system that allows individual clubs to maintain full autonomy of their organization while conforming to rules established at the state and national levels, including a system to easily manage thousands of background checks,” said Anthony Bruno, CEO of SportsSignup. “One of our unique solutions is to fully integrate background checks managed at the state level with the same system used by club administrators to issue coach passes. This process ensures full compliance with ENYYSA’s risk management policies aimed at reducing the risk to our children,” concluded Bruno.

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For more information, visit http://www.sportssignup.com or http://www.enysoccer.com

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About Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
ENYYSA is comprised of more than 130,000 players and more than 25,000 volunteers. Members are affiliated with 12 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for the youth of Eastern New York between the ages of 5 and 19-years-old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered for the recreational player who is out to enjoy the game and “just have fun”; the club or travel team player who enjoys the spirit of competition and the premier player who is looking to play at the highest levels.

About SportsSignup
SportsSignup, a division of League Sports Services LLC, provides sports organizations with fully-integrated online registration, roster management, and coach and volunteer background checking solutions. Since 2002, the company has enabled administrators from hundreds of soccer, baseball, lacrosse, hockey, and many other youth sports organizations to spend more time on the playing field by automating many aspects of their duties.

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Media Contacts:

For ENYYSA
Lonny Unger
lonnyu@optonline.net
Tel.  (516)  766-0849

For SportsSignup
Shannon Martin, Canyon Communications   
shannon@canyoncomm.com
Tel. (866) 867-6639

©2008 League Sports Services LLC and Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. League Sports Services LLC and Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.