Signing Up in Cyberspace
SIGNING UP IN CYBERSPACE
- updated for 2006
2006 marks the 10th season that Region 76 in Beverly Hills, CA has registered players on-line. Here we answer some FAQs (frequently asked questions) posed by other AYSO regions interested in this process:
Does it work? How does it work? Is it more or less work?
13% of our players registered on-line in 1997. The number went up to 49% of the registrations received for Fall 1998, 59% in Fall 1999; by 2003 it was well over 90% and we are getting people to register earlier, always a problem in our community. Since 2004, we no longer register players in person; all 1776 players who played in 2005-6 registered online. It works.
Process is key. Before going on-line, we thought through what registrants wanted to know and what mistakes they might make. Our registration page tells registrants they can only register on-line. There is a link to a welcome page. The form has the same fields as many of the fields in the standard AYSO form but also requires e-mail addresses. The form, which is in three parts, is then submitted and a confirmation page pops up. The registrant can correct mistakes in a text box. The registrant confirms the registration and is then taken to the payment page (see below)
The system generates two e-mail confirmations to the registrant. One is for the registration; the other is for the payment (see below).
Overall, processing an on-line form now takes much less work as a paper form. We save all of the mailing out forms and daily trips to our post office box, especially as the season approaches. And we really cut down on original data entry - registrants do it for us!
How do you get paid?
Since 2003, we have arranged to accept credit cards on-line through a payment gateway (www.authorize.net) in conjunction with our bank. After submitting player data, the user is taken to a secure payment page, where we accept Mastercard and Visa (but not American Express). The form is simple and an automated email goes to the submitter. Our experiment with Paypal a few years ago was not successful - people had a lot of difficulties signing up with PayPal.
We have always adopted a policy that a registration is accepted into the system even if payment has not been paid. Online payment sometimes fails; occasionally, we run across people who are having problems with their credit card or even are victims of identity theft and therefore reluctant to pay online. We would rather take the registration and deal with the payment problems than have someone give up on registering because of a payment problem.
For 2006, our programmer has added automatically linking payments to registrations. This has simplified and speeded up our ability to identify nonpayers and contact them.
Can you share the data?
In 2001 we began using a method for sharing data by exporting our database to Quickbase, an on-line database operated by Intuit, the makers of Quicken and Quickbooks software. In 2002, using what are called XML tools provided by Quicken, we integrated our on-line registrations into Quickbase, so that registrations go directly to Quickbase. In 2003 and 2004, we made several major improvements to the front end so that the user never even saw that Quickbase was involved, although this was clearly disclosed in our privacy policy. Quickbase was user name and password protected and tiered levels of access were available to regional officials, including the commissioner, registrar, treasurer and division directors. Under our system there was nearly real time access to registrations and volunteer data.
In 2005 we transferred our data from Quickbase to an MS-SQL database server. There are various technical reasons for this, notably speed, not so much for registrants as for regional board members accessing the data. We no longer recommend Quickbase to AYSO regions because Intuit has decided to ignore small nonprofit organizations and focus its development efforts on expensive ($250 a month) corporate plans. We are grandfathered with very favorable pricing that is no longer available to others.
In our new environment, our data continues to be shared based on tiered levels of access through password protected user authorizations. Who you are and what you are authorized to do determines what you can see (and do). Parents with user names and passwords have access to their own children's data for the first time and can change most but not all personal data.
What about signed medical releases?
In 2003, working with our programmer, Sam Knowlton, we developed a system by which division directors and coaches can generate releases through a merger of our data and an html document that contains all the AYSO mandated release language as well as registration information in a much more presentable way than the AYSO National standard form. Alternatively, once the data has migrated to eAYSO, we could use it to generate the new AYSO registration form. Every coach is required to have the forms signed and we spot check this. We will eventually accept verified electronic signatures but this is not yet practical. We have had several players, especially in Divisions U19 and U16, register themselves on-line and this procedure (and our payment procedures) ensure that parents know and approve.
How do you get volunteers? Do you maintain your volunteer base?
Our website has lots of information about volunteering. When registration is complete, the final click links to a volunteer registration form. Many complete this. Also, on-line registration gives us e-mail addresses. Our list is over 2000 strong. We regularly e-mail our constituents and occasionally post an on-line newsletter. We have been successful in recruiting. Volunteer levels have not suffered. Like many regions, we suffer from having too few referees - but this does not seem to have gotten better or worse as our on-line registration has expanded. We have implemented a referee points program in 2004 which has "encouraged" teams that want to make the playoffs to provide volunteer referees.
Any other benefits?
Replacing mail-in and in-person registration for returning players with on-line registration has been terrific. Most callers' questions are answered by our voicemail greeting so we need return fewer phone calls. We long ago stopped compiling and distributing or mailing out registration packages. People fill out forms on-line more completely (especially as you can make selected fields mandatory) with fewer mistakes.
Some of this sounds complicated. Can I handle it?
You need someone who understands how to put together and link web pages and someone who knows how to process the information. You need to be committed to the process. On-line registration is not for everyone but it works well for us. See for yourself by submitting a registration to us - we'll screen it out - or contact us, on-line of course, at mjkarlin@ayso76.org. We'll be glad to answer questions or offer help.
We have heavily customized our system to meet our own needs and business processes. We strongly recommend that you consider using eAYSO, the AYSO national program. eAYSO has limited customization features but overall it does a decent job and it is getting better. AYSO Region 76's webmaster has participated on the committee overseeing the system.
Last updated July 03, 2006 at 12:46 AM
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