Parents

For a region to be successful you need at least 1/3 to 1/2 of all the families to volunteer in one form or another. If you have less than this, you run the risk of burning out your limited volunteer base. What stands in your way of achieving these minimum goals is more than likely related to communication. Parents have to understand that our organization is all volunteer, they have to be aware of what volunteer positions are open and be well informed as to what these positions entail.

By providing a robust user interface to the parents that address their needs directly we draw them to a common point from which we can deliver our message.

Volunteering

Getting and retaining volunteers is easy isn't it?

 

• Make it easy to volunteer
• Give the person enough information about the position to put them at ease
• Confirm their commitment early, bring them into the fold
• Send them reminders as the commitment approaches
• Help them succeed at their commitment
• Acknowledge completion of the commitment, give them a thank you gift

 

Sounds easy. But when your board is understaffed and just trying to make sure the big tasks are getting done it becomes easy to forget about the "little things." Sure getting the fields reserved or uniforms ordered in time are key to making the season work, but having people to work the registration tables, people to work picture day, etc. are just as critical. Those are the people who will replace you on the board if you keep them engaged.

 

WebYouthSoccer focuses on volunteers. We try to provide coaches and referees with tools to make their lives easier. We automate many of the board positions, making them almost fun. But parents, we have to capture them.

 

The first page the parent reaches in the system is their home page. It shows what volunteer activities they have signed up for, registration status for their children's, messages from their children's coaches about practices or other team-related news, messages from the board, etc. The goal is to make this a daily stop during the soccer season.

 

Directly off this page is the regional volunteer list. It shows what jobs are still open and locks down the exact time and location for the tasks. It is much easier to volunteer for something when you know when and where and can plan for it.

 

Team Schedules and Rosters

A common problem with most regions is that everything is paper-based and paper lasts a long time. It is rare that the first version of a schedule goes out without errors, even less likely if your region shares a schedule with another region. The web provides an excellent media for information distribution. Don't hand out paper schedules. If the parents have access to the net, just give them the url and instructions on setting up their account. They can then check for schedule changes weekly.

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