Clubs and Sporting Bodies
CRM for Sporting Organisations
For the majority of sporting clubs and organisations, their most important asset is their members. The ultimate goal is to retain existing members at the same time as attracting new ones. However, due to changes in the economic climate this can be difficult, there may be a reluctance to join clubs, especially those where you have to pay membership fee, as people become more careful about how they spend their money. So it's essential that sporting organisations retain existing members. To do this effective communication and reliable data are key.
Within all organisations, including sporting clubs, there are several different ways to store information. Some people will use spreadsheets, others will use paper files and there will be others who simply store information in their head. However, this in itself causes problems as it creates gaps in knowledge across the club or organisation. It is these gaps which can lead to a poor level service and member retention.
CRM solutions have significantly changed the way many sporting organisations operate. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a way of improving efficiency and effectiveness. It is all about retaining existing members at the same time as attracting new members. Customer Relationship Management provides sports clubs with a central place to store all information relating to members, competitors and coaches. This ensures consistency of knowledge across the organisation.
Professionally implemented Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems enable sporting organisations to store all information in one place, improving efficiency and effectiveness and reducing duplication of effort. However, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) doesn't only provide a centralised location to store information, the solutions also have other features and functions which will enable clubs to run more targeted marketing campaigns, improve forecasting and greatly enhance the member experience.
Benefits of sporting organisations implementing a CRM solution
- One centralised database- providing a complete view of members, competitors and coaches
- Improved communication between members and the club
- Administrative tasks, such as processing membership are made much easier as a result of automation
- Enhanced staff efficiency and effectiveness through streamlined processes
Concentrix has helped several sporting organisations to improve efficiency and effectiveness, using popular CRM systems such as Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Sage CRM and FrontRange's GoldMine.
Membership Management
Although members are key to the success of sporting organisations, they are often not kept informed or they receive a poor service as a result of incorrect data and human error. However, Concentrix has developed a membership management system based on Sage CRM which brings significant advantages to sporting organisations.
The Concentrix membership management system has tools and features to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of a sporting organisation. The web-based system eliminates time-consuming and error-prone paper and computer spreadsheet therefore increases the consistency of member information as well as access to it. The centralised information makes it easier for sporting organisations to administer and run their sport. In addition the system is easy to use and has a variety of tools and functions which help clubs build stronger relationships with existing members, target new members more effectively and drive the respective sport forward.
The Concentrix membership management solution is gaining popularity as it gives sporting clubs the ability to quickly analyse, manage and synchronise activities across all points of contact and enables members to:
- Have a full view of events, training and payments
- Follow individuals through their involvement in the organisation
- Login from anywhere in the world - using the self-service portal
Concentrix knows that every sporting organisation is different and that they have varying requirements. As a result the membership management platform is highly customisable.
Integrated CRM and Finance Solutions for Sporting Organisations
The majority of sporting organisations will have been using accounting software for a number of years. However, CRM has only recently become a must have as organisations realise it is critical to achieve competitive advantage.
Both CRM and accounts solutions bring substantial benefits to sporting organisations. However, through using unconnected systems both the front office and back office will be working from different sets of data and this can still cause problems within the organisation as there will be conflicting records and duplication of effort. However, implementing an integrated CRM and Accounts solution will provide sporting organisations with a link between the front and back office systems, providing a complete view of members, coaches and competitors. Through using an integrated solution, staff will have an increased level of knowledge and this will enable them to deliver an improved service to members, and ultimately this will help with member retention, keep costs down and keep the club running smoothly and efficiently.
Concentrix takes a product agnostic approach to supplying Accounts and ERP software and provides the mid-market solutions Sage 200 and Microsoft Dynamics NAV.