Maintain accurate and useful data

Keeping data accurate

With all your processes and data stored in one common location, you will never again need to transfer data from one place to another. Consider an example:

Just imagine collecting subscriptions from members. Imagine if you had to write a list of each member who paid and how much they paid. You then pass this list to someone to update the files and then try to establish the members who have failed to renew. You may write something incorrectly or spell a name wrongly. They may not read your writing correctly. If they (or you) enter the details on say, a spreadsheet - it is very easy to mis-type a name or a figure.

With ClubSec you don't necessarily have to type anything. The member tells you their name and you select them from an alphabetical list (or enter their membership number). Their subscription amount (and other data) will be displayed on the screen.

If everything is in order, you simply click the 'Pay subs' button and their record is updated. Also updated is your on-screen cash tally, to ensure you can balance up at the end of the session.

In addition, when you finish collecting the subs, a log entry is made detailing how much was collected (both for your club and any third party organisation), the times and dates and the user. This information can be examined at any future time and used to find out total figures that have been collected in any given period, for accounting purposes.

Of course, if you have each member standing in front of you, and a PC or laptop running ClubSec then it is a perfect opportunity to check with the member that none of their details have changed - address, phone numbers etc.

But there's a lot more included within ClubSec to ensure that data is accurate. Every time you run ClubSec, it checks member records for any inconsistencies. For example, all members belong to a membership class. You can set rules for each class e.g. minimum and maximum ages, whether the class is reserved for men, women, retired members or applicants etc. If ClubSec detects that someone in a class might not be eligible, it will tell you.

Changing subscriptions

Suppose you want to change the date subs are due or the amount payable for a given membership class. ClubSec will then attempt to copy the updated subs data into the records of every member who is affected. This involves many checks to ensure that the new data can be applied. Why do this?

Well, imagine if you allow members to pay subs in advance. Mr. Smith has paid £30 to cover him for three years. During this time, you increase the subs to £20 - Mr. Smith has clearly NOT now paid his subs a full three years in advance.

In a situation like this (and many other types of situation) ClubSec will not update the members subs records with the default values but will place a message in the member's record stating what the change involved and the reason it was not applied to the member.

What's more, ClubSec will generate a Reminder Message - informing the ClubSec user that this record needs to be examined.
This message will appear on the Home Screen every time an Administrator or Full User logs on until the query is cleared.

ClubSec applies this degree of thoroughness to every task you undertake with member data thus dramatically reducing the chances of holding inconsistent data. A paper file may contain 10 pieces of paper, all with a different address or phone number for a member. ClubSec will contain only the most recent version.