Spond app (how to use)
What is Spond?
Spond is the app that we use for:
Player & parent registration
Mailing list
Booking and paying for your child for the summer term (outdoor cricket season)
Fixtures
Availability
Selection (in conjunction with Whatsapp groups)
Other notifications such as club events
Here's how to get started...
Step 1: Complete the club's player registration form
Go to this link to sign up:
If you already use Spond with another club, we recommend using the same email address, as this will mean you will be able to see both clubs at the same time in the Spond app.
Tips:
Be sure to pick the “I’m signing up a child” option*
Please avoid auto-fill, as it may replace your child's name with your own
Add an additional guardian if you want a partner to receive messages from the club and to be able to help manage your child’s availability
Please do not enter contact details for your children; only for yourself (unfortunately we can’t remove certain options from the form)
To sign up multiple children, complete the form multiple times using the same contact details
If your child’s date of birth suggests that they should be in a different school year from the year-group they are in at school, please include this as a note.
*Team managers need to fill in the form again for themselves, picking the “I want to become a member” option. This is so we have a profile based on your name that we can grant the team manager role to.
The system should send you an email to confirm receipt of your registration request.
Step 2: SMCC will approve your registration
The system requires us to approve your registration before you are able to complete step 4.
We will approve registrations periodically - roughy once a week at less busy times of the year, and probably at least once per day during the busiest sign-up periods.
The system should send you an email when we approve your request (see Step 4).
If you have not received an email within a reasonable timeframe, please email us at smcccolts@gmail.com (don’t Whatsapp us - email allows our admin team to work through messaged more methodically based on the order they arrive, reducing the chance of any messages not being replied to).
Step 3: Create a Spond account in the Spond app (required in order to book and pay for summer)
You must do this in addition to filling in the sign-up form in Step 1 before attempting to pay for the summer, or you will get an error message when using the summer booking form.
Use the same contact details that you used in Step 1.
We recommend using the iOS or Android app, as it seems to be easier to use than the browser-based version.
The app will prompt you for a "group code" but ignore this. We do not use group codes.
We will be adding children to squad groups from our end, in batches, once we have sufficient bookings.
Step 4: Book & pay for the summer
2024 summer term booking phases:
Phase 1 (opened mid-Jan) - booking of players who played at SMCC in the summer term of 2023 only. Siblings are no longer included in this phase.
Phase 2 (opened 4th Feb) - booking for Phase 1 parents + parents of players booked into our indoor training (Oct-Dec 2022 or Jan-Mar 2023).
Phase 3 (will open at 7pm Sun 18 Feb) - booking open to everyone to fill any remaining places
Step 5: Book and pay for your children
Tips:
There is a separate booking option for girls and boys in every age-group, even in the youngest age-groups who train and play as mixed groups. This means we are control the numbers joining the club, which helps us ensure we have viable squad sizes as they get older.
Please be sure to select the correct age-group for your child, based on their school year. We strictly do not allow children to train or play in a different year, other than some very specific exceptions (see County trials or contact us for an agreement in advance if you think there is an exceptional need for your child to be in a different group). Children booked into the wrong age-group will be refunded and their records removed.
All payments will be in a single instalment by default. If this is difficult for you, please contact us.
If we have agreed a discount with you, scroll through the form to find the discounted booking options
If you are in Phase 2 and your child's course appears to be full, please don't panic and please do not book into a different course just because it has space available. Email us to let us know that you want to book and we will process you booking, assuming we are able to create an extra space. We are normally able to accommodate all Phase 2 children, though we cannot guarantee it.
The system should send you a receipt by email.
Step 6: SMCC will add your children to squad groups
Club admins will periodically add paid-for children to squad groups.
Once your child has been added to a group, you will then see that squad appear in the Spond app (or on the browser-based version of Spond - see link above).
If you are a team manager, we will also grant your personal profile team manager rights at this stage. You will then be able create and edit fixtures.
In some cases, you will see two squads - for example Girls U10s (Surrey league) and Girls U10-11s (Kent league).
Step 7: SMCC will add fixtures once we have them from leagues
Once we have fixtures from the leagues, we will ask team managers to add them.
Fixtures from the Surrey league are likely to be available substantially earlier than the Kent league fixtures.
FAQs
I get an error saying "Could not generate payment" when I try to pay
This is probably because you have gone straight from the sign-up form to the course booking form without creating a Spond account. Please follow the steps above.
If I just want to be on your mailing list, do I need to register and download the Spond app?
Please sign up. We intend to replace LoveAdmin, which we currently use for mailing list functionality, with Spond. You do not need to download the app if you just want to be on our mailing list. If we send out a message and you don’t have the app installed, you should be sent an email instead.
Will the club still be using Teamo for senior cricket?
Yes, senior cricket (and Development Squad) will continue to use Teamo.
Will we still have Whatsapp groups per squad?
Yes, and we use this as our primary means to communitate infomration once squads are established, however key messages will be duplicated in Spond, for the small number of parents who do not use Whatsapp. If you do not have the Spond app installed, you will receive the message from Spond by email instead.
Does the club pay for Spond?
Yes. Spond is funded by taking a small percentage of the fees that we pay.
Should I upload a photo of my child?
Photos make it much easier for team managers to remember who is who, so we encourage this.
The Spond app asks for a "group code" so do I need one?
No. Rather than provide group codes, we add players to groups as administrators, as that enables us to ensure that only paid-for players are included in squads, and that all players are in the correct squads.
What is the Fundraising feature in the Spond app for?
We don’t have any plans to use this feature at present.
Can I opt out of using Spond?
Opting out of using Spond will create substantial extra admin for club admins and team managers, so we very strongly encourage you to use Spond. If you have any concerns about using Spond, please feel free to discuss these with us.
Have another question?
Please contact us.