HomeTeamsONLINE Press Release

December 10, 2008

We've learned at HomeTeamsONLINE that every team, league, and school athletic department has its own unique requirements - but the one issue that nearly everyone has to deal with is raising money. Most coaches and managers are in it for the love of sport, and fundraising tends to be one of their least favorite activities.

There has been a lot of news about how the Internet has revolutionized fundraising for political campaigns, with record breaking donations being collected using websites. HomeTeamsONLINE provides the same tools to sports teams and leagues, particularly with the ad banner manager, the sponsors page, and the online store (offered with the CHAMPION package).  

HomeTeamsONLINE lets you control all your own content, including ad banners. There is a great opportunity to set up a simple and effective way to raise funds online, and Cathy, who helps manage a boys travel basketball team in South Florida, has done a terrific job with her team website. Cathy has used her team's website to raise thousands of dollars in just six months by selling advertising on her site to local businesses.

Cathy has a lot of experience when it comes to raising money to support a team. As she explains, "Over the years, we've tried everything to raise money (selling magazines, selling candy, car washes, etc.), and I finally came to the conclusion of two things: (1) It's easier for people to advertise their business than to donate/sponsor, and (2) It's easier for people to click a button and charge than it is to write a check or give cash."

Cathy offered ad space on her team website to businesses, including using the sidebar on her homepage for a "premium" ad location.  She also used the online store feature to accept payments:  "I used our HomeTeamsOnline.com Website to prove my theory. We sold advertising to our dentists, orthodontists, auto insurance agents, restaurant owners, etc. We accepted payments via the website by credit cards." Her theory proved to be very effective: "Two people jointly raised approximately $5,000 in six months selling advertising. It was simple, easy, and effective, and when it comes to sports teams, you can never have enough money."  The money they raised was used to buy uniforms and pay for out-of-town housing and expenses

HomeTeamsONLINE has offered a number of services to help our customers with fundraising. The banner ad manager and online store have always proved to be the easiest and most effective. Over the years we have tried a number of fundraising features, including the traditional approaches of selling magazines, candy bars, etc., but what has proven effective is an approach like Cathy's that makes it easy for sponsors to donate. "Selling advertising was easy, because most of my selling was done through email in which I attached the link to our website's store.  I rarely ever met or spoke to the customer."

Cathy even has more ideas for using her website: "Since this worked out so well, I went one step further.  We are now having our athletes send emails to their friends & family asking for a $10 donation to offset their uniform expenses.  That item is set up in our team store as a 'Friend Sponsor' and allows the donor to specify the specific athlete they are sponsoring.  This is the same concept a lot of schools are now using to sell fundraising products (wrapping paper, Girl Scout Nuts, etc.) as they also move their efforts toward online purchases."
 
The HomeTeamsONLINE support team uses the feedback from customers like Cathy to continue to develop features based on what they really need. There are many innovative ways to use your website as a fundraiser, and if you have an effective system HomeTeamsONLINE support will work with the development team to streamline it and possibly make it a permanent feature. Just go to www.hometeamsonline.com and you can send your feedback using the email contact form or call the toll free support line.

UPDATE: HomeTeamsONLINE now has an automated Fundraising! Champion users now have access to the Fundraiser/Donations feature!