Sports Bug is a renowned childcare provider in Jersey, Channel Islands, offering a unique service that revolves around sports coaching. For more than 15 years, Sports Bug has been helping young islanders embark on their sporting journey. Its contribution has significantly shaped the early years of many children’s sports careers.
Running a renowned childcare school is an enjoyable experience for Danny Cutland and his team. They find it fulfilling to participate in so many kids’ initial sports journeys. The number of activities Sports Bug offers has grown exponentially, as has the number of kids participating in each activity. However, the existing website and booking solution have not been upgraded to meet popular demand.
The challenge
Sports Bug was dissatisfied with its existing website and online booking system. The system lacked online payment options, was slow to make changes and add new activities, and did not include a customer area where customers could view, modify and update their bookings. The system also lacked automated communication for booking-related information, such as payment and booking confirmations, changes, and activity registration. Sports Bug offers various activities all year round with different characteristics. Some activities are classes that span over several weeks, while others are fixed activities that take place during a day, week, or weekend. Unfortunately, the current booking system did not provide Sports Bug the required flexibility. Customer and booking information was stored in an Excel list, which was not future-proof for the growing number of activities and customers.
The process
Sports Bug needed a new solution to handle its diverse activities and growing needs. Sports Bug reached out to Salespie for help. After a meeting, Salespie presented a solution.
The solution
WordPress and Online-booking
Salespie suggested upgrading the current WordPress website with the latest design elements. They proposed replacing the existing booking solution with a new off-the-shelf online booking solution, Bookeo, which supports all of Sports Bug’s current and future activities. Bookeo offers a comprehensive range of booking and reservation systems designed explicitly for the Sports Bug business. It meets all of the functions requested by Sports Bug.
Online payment and invoicing
Sports Bug required a new solution that could convert all manual payments to online or automatic invoice payments. Salespie suggested using PayPal as an online payment gateway, which was integrated into the online booking tool Bookeo and Xero. With the PayPal and Bookeo solutions, Sports Bug can make payments online, send payment requests to customers, and manage all debit and credit requests. Salespie recommended using the accounting software Xero as an invoice gateway for automatic invoicing for customers who want to pay later or do not want to use online payment. When a customer makes a booking online and selects the invoice as the payment method, Xero creates the invoice automatically and can be quickly sent to the customer for payment.
Marketing, automation and email platform
Sports Bug has taken its email marketing to the next level with the help of a new tool called Mailchimp. This tool has enabled Sports Bug to add all of its customer data in a single CRM system, which helps the company target communication about upcoming activities to its customer base more effectively and efficiently.
Social media marketing, automation and optimasation
Sports Bug uses social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram as their primary marketing channels. Salespie has integrated and optimised all internal systems, including the website, Bookeo, and Mailchimp, to ensure that all communication and marketing efforts are efficient and effective.
Salespie has optimised Sports bug’s website for Google’s search engine and implemented the Google Site Kit for search engine optimisation and analytics. They have also configured Google AdWords and optimised Sports Bug’s business profile on Google to improve their performance.
Accounting system
Bookeo and Paypal were integrated with the accounting software Xero to simplify the accounting process. All bookings are automatically added to Xero, ensuring they are recorded on the correct revenue accounts for a more efficient accounting process.
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