Using text messaging to communicate off the field

[WARRIORMIKE]

I love to text. I can also program in my Blackberry for a group of 2-100 people to text. All my parent have a cell phone, however not all my parents have email or access to a computer in time. I ask them to text me back so I know they got the message. However the moment one of my players get a cell phone and can accept a text then shes getting added to the group. I dont have time to call everyone. texts is the way to go!

 

[Tuler]

It sounds like most of you have young players. Do you ever have times where a player or parent asks you to send a message out to the whole team? Is there ever a need to have the team (or parents and coach) communicate interactively, like reply-all email, but over the phone in real time?

I ask these questions because my company has developed a service to help athletic teams interactively communicate much easier than is available today. We have seen success with collegiate teams, older club teams, and adult leagues, but I'm trying to figure out if it's worth our investment to target youth leagues.

To be respectful of the owners of the forum and to abide by the rules I will not mention the name of our service. Your feedback is much appreciated.

 

[SoftSocDad]

If your service is already on the market and it's good and it's generating word-of-mouth promotion, then the people who can benefit from it will be likely to find it.

But given the existing mobile communications landscape - and an economy that's forcing many of us to become more frugal - I'd have a difficult time paying for something that I'm already paying for with my mobile phone service. I don't speak for any league, however. I am just one potential consumer who would have no interest. Good luck with your product.

 

[amanda_cake]

Tuler--I don't see us using this service. When I'm calling/texting kids, there's no discussion (99% of the time) about what's going on.

I text my parents and the girls who I have their phone numbers to let them know practice/game info. Do I text them randomly to talk about the movies? No.

 

[99&beyond]

It sounds like most of you have young players. Do you ever have times where a player or parent asks you to send a message out to the whole team? Is there ever a need to have the team (or parents and coach) communicate interactively, like reply-all email, but over the phone in real time?

.

I am the team mom and treasurer. Our coach sends out mass text messages for reminders. If I need a reminder done, I will send her a text that says "please forward next text to all parents please". And then I will send her the message so she can send it back out. And our girls our 14U, but she does not send the text to the kids (since my dd never gets one from her), but she does have all of their numbers in case of an emergency.

 

[jinjet95]

My DD's coach uses a mix of methods. She emails thing with a lot of detail that are far enough in advance to ensure everyone receives it. The team also subscribes to a service that will send a phone alert and email for last minute reminders, rain outs, etc. She will also text the girls periodically. They're a 14U team.

 

[Sparky Guy]

There is an even faster way to communicate with the entire team within minutes. I've been using it for 6 years. It's GREAT!!! It's called Calling Post. You send out one voice mail and it gets sent to everyone you put on your list. It logs when and how the call was answered. No BS excuses about not getting messages. No trying to remember who who called and did not call. No answering questions when you're trying to make other calls.

Voice Broadcasting for Volunteers, Community Groups, Sports Teams and Social Organizations

It is THE most efficient way to get last minute changes to your team. You make one call and Calling Post does the rest. The price is very reasonable.

 

[Ken Krause]

It sounds like most of you have young players. Do you ever have times where a player or parent asks you to send a message out to the whole team? Is there ever a need to have the team (or parents and coach) communicate interactively, like reply-all email, but over the phone in real time?

I ask these questions because my company has developed a service to help athletic teams interactively communicate much easier than is available today. We have seen success with collegiate teams, older club teams, and adult leagues, but I'm trying to figure out if it's worth our investment to target youth leagues.

To be respectful of the owners of the forum and to abide by the rules I will not mention the name of our service. Your feedback is much appreciated.

You can mention the product if you like. Thanks for being respectful of the Forum.

 

[LuvMyPlayer]

Our team uses the Weplay website. When I post a message on our page, it also gets emailed out to everyone. The parents can read the email or refer to our weplay page. The trickiest part is getting parents to sign up at the beginning of the season, but I love it because I can keep the team calendar (with automatic team reminders) and everyone can post their pictures there. I honestly never thought about texting the whole team, but I'm not a big "texter."