By Fintan O’Toole
IF it’s bang for your buck you’re after, try this one for size.
Last year as he started to feel the recessionary effects in his own line of work as an electrical contractor, Richard Butler spotted a business opening. Butler had been immersed in GAA activities all his life with his club Ballymartle. As a player he served at left corner-back on a side that won a junior county title back in 1986 and after that filled a variety of selector and committee roles.
In recent seasons he noticed the exorbitant costs that his club and others were racking up when it came to contacting players and club members about club news. So he decided to act, devising a system whereby sports clubs could contact members through text without having to use a computer. Thus his company Sport-Text came to fruition.
“Being involved in GAA all my life, I saw the need for a company like this”, states Butler. “When I was involved in managerial side of things, I saw communication as a big problem. I used to be on site working and I wasn’t near a computer, so you’d run into a lot of trouble. Say a match was cancelled and you had to notify all players. Since you weren’t near a computer, you couldn’t use a web-based text system and if you used your mobile to send a text out, it’d cost you a huge amount.”
Butler began researching his idea back in January 2008, doing a cross-section of enquiries of clubs from the three big sports – GAA, rugby and soccer – across the thirty-two counties.
“I contacted clubs in different organisations all over the country. I found that problems were being encountered where lots of people in different jobs were not in desk jobs where they were right near a computer. They found it difficult then to take positions in sport clubs. Most of these roles are voluntary, where the club members are incurring the costs themselves. They’re using their own phone and there was frustration at the rising costs as the recession kicked in.”
Butler’s solution and the premise of his business is simple.
“If you’re manager of a team and your club signs up with Sport-Text, all we need is a list of numbers. We don’t need any names. That manager is then given a password and he rings the free phone number we have. There a friendly receptionist there to take his call which we think adds a personal touch. We then take down the manager’s message and send that out to his corresponding group immediately.
“The cost is tailor-made to each organisation. Every group text for under fifty recipients just costs €1. There’s no signing on free when you register with someone. In addition what pops up in underage teams especially, is for security reasons people are not happy having a list of numbers. By using a system like this you don’t have numbers, we do. So there’s an element of anonymity to it.”
The success of Sport-Text has been highlighted by the backing they have received from Enterprise Ireland.
“When doing the research, we took the idea to the South Cork Enterprise Board. They were very helpful and very interested in the idea, so they told us to apply for Genesis programme, backed by Enterprise Ireland. We were successful in claiming a place on that programme which gives us all the backup and mentoring we need. They believed in the idea and saw the potential for the service. The support has been invaluable.
“The feedback is fantastic so far. We’ve signed up our first club back in May and have signed up a good few clubs since then. We haven’t rolled it out 100% yet. But we cater for all sports teams, basketball, athletics, cycling, any organisation. It’s not just restricted to one sport.
“The main thing is the convenience we offer. All you need is a phone and we offer a full-time secretary. Some rural clubs may not have great broadband services and emails don’t reach as often as texts. We believe there’s great scope for development, clubs can send out texts on the morning of games to get bigger crowds and could increase their revenue by having sponsors names on the text. It’s been very positive so far.”
For more information visit www.sport-text.com, email info@sport-text.com, low call 1800-303-121 or phone 021-4771568.