[Psml] Barriers to Registration

[Lonnie]

A good IT person can set up the "blind link" easily on the squadron website. The Nat'l website has dozens. In Bellevue, we have that for every major officer and committee chair. When the specific person changes, the IT changes that persons email address to the one of the new person behind the scenes, and the public doesn't have to keep updating address books. Noone is suggesting that online is the only way to go. Our target market does use this method.

The 10 signups and then a total no-show on the day of the seminar is very unfortunate. Setting up online payments is a costly overhead expense, but would be an answer for attendance likely.

Lonnie Butler
Past Cdr
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Barclay M. Thomas 
  To: Lonnie Butler 
  Cc: United States Power Squadrons Mailing List 
  Sent: Saturday, July 04, 2009 6:43 AM
  Subject: Re: [Psml] Barriers to Registration


  Markus, et. al.,
  I agree that on-line class registration should be made available BUT, if the squadron SEO does not 'do' computer (for whatever reason) and the Executive Committee (who would/should have the responsibility in such case) cannot find a person with the capabilities and willingness to field the emails and do the integration with DB2K, then the on-line registration should be blocked.
  The squadron may lose some prospective students by not having the on-line signup, but having the link active and no one to handle the queries would be even more damaging. Nothing worse than having a student show up for a class only to be told "sorry never got your application, no books/space for you".


  With all, or most anyway, Boating class and seminar reports going back to Nat'l via computer now, someone has to be doing the on line stuff anyway so maybe a little persuasion/cajoling/sweet-talking might get them to handle the incoming request task as well. I can understand though that some members may be unwilling to put their email address out there for all to see. Something else for the IT folks to work on, but setting up a method for blind links would be quite a task for this site I'd think.  


  -- 
  P/C Barclay M. Thomas, AP
  Saybrook Squadron, District 1
  United States Power Squadrons®
  barcthom at sbcglobal.net






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