Create an Online Volunteer Sign-up

Last updated on March 19th, 2024 at 04:54 pm

Imagine having a place where willing volunteers can sign up to work your swim meet before even arriving at the venue. A well-constructed and publicized online volunteer sign-up provides not only this but also

• A way of sharing important information with volunteers before the meet and
• Organized reports for meet leadership before and at the meet.

Although it won’t solve all your volunteer challenges, an online sign-up form is a great tool to help gather and share information with volunteers before the meet.  It also reduces the need for large-scale, last-minute recruiting at the meet. This can lead to a better experience for both the volunteer meet workers and leadership.

Although it takes time and effort to prepare a good online sign-up, doing so helps surface questions that need answers before the “crunch time” of the meet itself.  It’s easier to make good decisions and get needed information from others (like the meet director, referee, and other leadership) before the press of warm-ups. At the meet, these people are usually busy doing other things.

Prefer to use a paper, Word, or pdf Roster of Volunteers? Click for files.

For more tips on getting swim meet volunteers, including pre-meet recruiting, see the series Got Timers? 20+ Ways to Get Swim Meet Volunteers

Consider the Following when Preparing the Sign-up

Online Sign-up Provider

Which online sign-up provider will you use? Below are some possibilities.  Do you have experience with another provider? If so, please share in the “comments” section at the end of this post.

• Team Unify (Many swim clubs already have access to this paid service which includes a volunteer sign-up feature for team members)
• signup.com
• www.signupgenius.com
  

Desirable Features

• Free or low-cost
• Accessible — Can people outside your team access it?  Do you want/need them to?
• Easy to read — More and more people are using the internet through mobile devices. Does the provider support mobile well?
• Quick and easy to use — For both the person creating the sign-up and those using it to sign up
• What information can you include? The following would be useful:
  • Position name
  • When and where to report
  • Length of shift
  • Any needed qualifications (if applicable)
• Easy to print/save reports — Clear, easy-to-read reports are valuable at the swim meet. This is especially true when volunteers check-in or when figuring out who needs to be where, and by when.
• Automatic email or text reminders to those who have signed up
• Ability to open and/or close sign-up at a specified date and time
  • Can the provider’s sign-up be previewed before being opened? — This enables potential volunteers and teams to get an idea of what positions will be available (Another option is to post a meet worker job description list before the sign-up opens.)
  • Can the sign-up be closed?  One experienced volunteer coordinator likes to have a deadline for the sign-up to discourage procrastination by those signing up. She likes to close online sign-ups for large meets a day or two before the swim meet starts.  She recommends this because as a volunteer coordinator, “You have to know where you are in the process.” Closing the sign-up also enables her to contact teams who have not filled their volunteer quota if a team or meet volunteer policy is in place. As the creator of the sign-up, she can still add people to it manually, before or at the meet even though it is closed to others.
  • When closed, can others view but not change the signup? — This can help volunteers know what they signed up for and access any other included information while the volunteer coordinator plans.
• Can you duplicate the sign-up? — This is a real time saver for future meets

Information to Include

The online sign-up provides the means to get information to meet workers and potential meet workers before the meet.

• Date, time, and place of the swim meet
• Opening and closing date/time of sign-up (if applicable)
• Title of position (Timer, Meet Marshal, Runner, Hospitality Worker, etc.)
  • Two experienced volunteer coordinators recommend adding an extra position (or more, depending on the size of the meet) to each session for last-minute needs.  One uses the job title of “Floater.” These volunteers are assigned on-site, as needed. If not needed elsewhere, they serve as relief timers. If not needed, you can simply thank them for their willingness, and excuse them from serving this time.
• Position job description
  • Consider helping those new to swim meet volunteering by noting positions that might work well for them, and/or noting that training will be provided
• Shift date and hours
  • Shift start time is often different from the meet start time.  For example, meet marshals are usually needed during warm-ups and should attend a brief training first.
  • If a specific ending time is not known, it could be listed as: “The end of the session,” “until the 500 freestyle events begin” or “through event 22.”
• When and where to report
  • A volunteer check-in table works well.  It provides one point of contact where a knowledgeable person or people are based.  Additionally, it provides a “home base” for needed supplies, information, and online sign-up reports.
  • Include a brief description of where the volunteer should report. Use visual markers the person can easily find within the venue. Many attending the meet won’t quickly know where to find the “northwest corner” of the pool.
    • For example: “By the high-dive,” “In the lobby by the vending machines,” “Along the wall with the flag on it, in the corner near lane 8.”
  • The time to report could be given as a range.  For example, “Report to the Volunteer Check-in Table anytime after the start of warm-ups through [give time.]” Then upon check-in, tell the volunteer what time and where to report for on-deck training.
  • Not using a Volunteer Check-in Table? Instruct them on when and where to report for their on-deck training at the beginning of their shift.
• Are perks being offered for those who sign up before the meet? (See below) If so, make sure to widely publish that information and include it on the sign-up
• Any other pertinent information.

In general, give potential volunteers the information they need to sign-up for something that best suits their interests and abilities.

Information to Collect

Asking as little as possible from potential volunteer meet workers encourages them to sign up. Try to keep requests to a minimum. Needed information includes:

• Name
• Email address (for email reminders)
• POSSIBLY: Team name (Only needed if assigned teams have a volunteer quota to fill in the meet volunteer policy)
• POSSIBLY: Perk information.  For example, if the meet host offers T-shirts to volunteers who sign up in advance, collect size.
• POSSIBLY: Cell phone number if offering text reminders
• NOTE:  Be careful about having too many fields for the volunteer to fill out, even if most are optional.

Getting the Word Out

The most well-designed online sign-up won’t do much good if people aren’t aware it exists. Here are some ways to get the word out:

• Meet Announcement
  • Even if the online sign-up address isn’t known when the Meet Announcement is prepared, state that an online sign-up for meet volunteers will be available through the host team or meet website [give address] by [date.]
• Pre-meet email(s) to both the host and visiting teams
  • The meet entry person will likely have email addresses for all who submitted entries by the meet entry deadline
• Post link on host team or meet website
• Publicize on host team or meet social media

Motivators to Encourage Participation

How can you encourage people to sign up as volunteers? A few suggestions are given below.  What else have you seen used? (Please leave a response in the comment section at the end of this post.)

Perks and Proof

• Large meets might set aside money to buy “perks” or “thank you’s” for those who work the meet. Regional or other championship meets might offer a piece of meet memorabilia such as a meet pin, lanyard, or T-shirt to those who sign up in advance and work a specified number of sessions.
  • The 2016 Western Zone Age Group Championships meet workers who worked two or more sessions received a custom meet T-shirt.  The meet host guaranteed those who signed up online by a specified deadline the shirt size they requested.  Others received shirts on a first-come, first-served basis only. More details are available in the Meet Announcement on pages 11 – 12.
    • NOTE:  This required extra work to reserve the right shirt sizes and distribute correctly, however, it cost the meet nothing more to offer this “perk” to encourage volunteers to sign up in advance.  The meet host provided shirts regardless of advance sign-up. However, being able to have a guaranteed size of one’s choosing encouraged many volunteers to sign up early. The shirts and the shirt design were also widely publicized in advance.
• Letter verifying service hours worked.  Many young people need service hours for college and scholarship applications or for various organizational commitments like school, scouts, and National Honor Society, to name a few.

Prep Time and Policies

• Pre-swim meet online sign-ups can give volunteers the opportunity to choose what position(s) they would like to fill. This is hopeful for those who need to make preparations in advance to serve.
• Team Volunteer Policy
• Meet Volunteer Policy

Other Considerations

• Officials — How will they be handled? Talk with the meet referee to find out more.
• One experienced volunteer coordinator who recruits and manages volunteers for large championship swim meets likes to keep two online sign-up forms: (1) Open for anyone to sign up.  This one includes positions like timers, runners and other meet worker positions which could be easily filled by a variety of people.  The other one (2) is not publicly available. On it she keeps track of those in “pre-filled” positions, or positions she or others have prearranged with specific people to fill.  This includes positions like the timing console operator, announcer, and other specifically skilled positions.
• Sending a “Thank You” email or text helps build goodwill and develop a future volunteer base.
• The post, Increasing the Number of Willing and Able Volunteers may also be of interest.

Preparing for a swim meet? Check out The Ultimate Swim Meet To-Do List. Then, get a bird’s eye view of Who does What at Swim Meets. Both include easy-to-follow links to related information. Doing a smaller, simpler meet? Host a High School or Developmental Swim Meet will help.

Need more help? See 20+ Ways to Get Swim Meet Timers and Officials: 20+ Ways to Get them for Swim Meets. 

Also, discover a few things you can do to Increase Safety at Swim Meets. Find ideas to implement before your meet as well as last-minute quick and easy tips!