{"id":2972,"date":"2022-09-15T19:40:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-15T17:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/?p=2972"},"modified":"2022-12-15T20:38:51","modified_gmt":"2022-12-15T18:38:51","slug":"how-complex-to-switch-race-registration-systems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/registration-tools\/how-complex-to-switch-race-registration-systems\/","title":{"rendered":"How Complex is it to Switch Race Registration Systems?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We have all been there &#8211; the point when you have to make a decision whether to leave your comfortable old ways of doing things, or venturing into something new that could make your life easier. Be it with our insurance policies, energy provider, or bank &#8211; there\u2019s an inertia built into us that makes it difficult, even painful, to think about the hassle of changing. So we don\u2019t switch. We put up with our niggles until\u2026well, until we\u2019re injured.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The reason many of us don\u2019t make changes is down to the acute stress we feel related to our computations of uncertainty. We would rather stick with the devil we know, rather than face the uncertainty of change. See <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/ncomms10996\">this 2016 psychological study published in Nature <\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">for more in depth understanding of this subject.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Furthermore, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nber.org\/digest\/oct16\/change-or-not-change-just-flip-coin\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Economists have shown<\/strong><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that even when we are 50\/50 to make a change &#8211; ie, we are willing to just flip a coin and follow the outcome &#8211; change is still the net-positive thing to do and those that made the change were substantially happier than those that did not.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So is changing your registration platform or system really that painful? Why would you want to change? How long does it take? How much does it cost? Read on, to get some insights.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why Would I Want to Change Registration Systems?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are the Top 5 Reasons Race Organizers Switch Platforms:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The registration process is bad for the participants<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A bad user experience usually leads to high abandon rates. What&#8217;s your abandoned cart rate?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The registration process is like a \u2018first impression\u2019 for your participants. How does this experience reflect on your organization\/race?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The system is outdated and doesn\u2019t get updated<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Technology develops at a rapid rate. Any system quickly becomes outdated and eventually bugs and breaks without continuous updates<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The system lacks key features<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Basic systems are basic. Advanced or modular systems provide efficiency and flexibility<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The time commitment is too high<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Usually related to the above points, old or basic systems usually require higher time commitments from organizers due to lack of features, support issues and participant problems. This leaves you spending too much time in front of the computer.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The fees are too costly<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Platform fees can be costly, but in general, it\u2019s a small percentage of the overall cost of organizing a race. Many race organizers account for costs by passing them down to participants &#8211; including offsetting the fee\u2019s from the registration system. This can be appreciated by your participants if they can have a substantially better experience for a low extra cost! Therefore, if you are looking to save money, changing platforms can be effective in cutting costs &#8211; especially when combined with any of the above points.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How Long Does it Take to Change Registration Systems?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Different providers will have different timelines &#8211; and it\u2019s difficult for us to say exactly what another provider requires. A reasonable timescale to expect is a few working days, total. Any more and you should really start to wonder about the services you are buying into.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Set Up the New System<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Oftentimes, changing provider requires you filling out a form, describing your race and asking for a quote. The waiting time for a reply can be lengthy &#8211; perhaps weeks. And don\u2019t forget to check your Junk mail. Some providers show pricing online and\/or allow you to sign-up and create an account yourself, which is usually a faster process as you can do everything yourself immediately.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Education &amp; Onboarding <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This can be very quick and easy in some cases &#8211; or it can be very tricky and time consuming. Learning a new system is the uncertainty that causes a lot of organizers the most unwanted stress. Our recommendation is to read around the platform &#8211; ask questions in community groups, watch videos and demos and learn through case studies. It\u2019s a bit of pre-work, but it\u2019ll save a lot of time and energy when you do end up making the change &#8211; plus chances are that you\u2019ll make the right choice as well!<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Transfer of old registrations &amp; data\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is often quick if you&#8217;ve chosen an intuitive platform. Export your data, import it to the new provider and then make small adjustments or clean the database as required.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thinking about all these together can start to feel a little scary, but taking RaceID as an example, you can get <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/how-does-it-work-how-do-i-sign-up\/\">up and running within a day:<\/a><\/strong> You can find the article <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/how-easy-is-it-to-switch-to-raceid\/\">How Easy is it to Switch to RaceID?<\/a><\/strong> to learn more about the exact process.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How Much Does it Cost to Change Registration Systems?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Again &#8211; this varies from platform to platform. Mostly it will just be a time commitment on your side &#8211; any support time you require to switch is usually built into the pricing plan that you select.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Remember to read the T&amp;C\u2019s of your current provider before you switch! There may be a contractually binding period you have signed up to &#8211; or a leaving fee.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Additionally, we recommend trying to find out ahead of time about any hidden charges. This can take a little time, a phone call, or a meeting if a website or provider does not display transparent pricing information or feature prices in their Terms and Conditions. If this is the case, ask yourself the question; \u201cWhy is this company hiding this information from its customers or competitors?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When is The Best Time to Change Registration Systems?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The best time to change registration systems is often the end of a season. This way, you can end a registration process fully with your old provider, and start a new season fresh from your new system. You will save time on not having to export\/import registrations and will avoid any downtime associated with the switch.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Of course it is usually possible to switch in the middle of the season as well, and there are many reasons why you might want to do this, but it might make your life easier if you can wait until just after your race.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can start planning early and evaluate providers before your season is over, to be ready to open registrations with your new provider as soon as you switch from your old one.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Summary: How Complex is it to Switch Race Registration Systems?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are many reasons why you might want to switch &#8211; from improving user or participant experience to price. Either way, it should be a short, uncomplicated and painless process if done right, at the right time for you. You just need to overcome your doubts, decide yourself, and take the step.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To learn more about the switching process at RaceID &#8211; <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/how-easy-is-it-to-switch-to-raceid\/\">read <\/a><\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>this 5 minute article<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We have all been there &#8211; the point when you have to make a decision whether to leave your comfortable old ways of doing things, or venturing into something new that could make your life easier. Be it with our insurance policies, energy provider, or bank &#8211; there\u2019s an inertia built into us that makes [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":2973,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[123,228],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v19.11 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How Hard is it to Switch Registration Systems? | RaceID Organizer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How difficult is it to change registration providers for your endurance race? how long time does take, and when the best time?\" \>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/registration-tools\/how-complex-to-switch-race-registration-systems\/\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How hard is it to switch registration systems? | raceid organizer\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How difficult is it to change registration providers for your endurance race? how long time does take, and when the best time?\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/registration-tools\/how-complex-to-switch-race-registration-systems\/\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"RaceID organizer\" \>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-09-15T17:40:00+00:00\" \>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-12-15T18:38:51+00:00\" \>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Template-featured-image-blog-12-2.png\" \>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"762\" \>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"372\" \>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Erik sj\u00f6beck\" \>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Erik sj\u00f6beck\" \>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/registration-tools\/how-complex-to-switch-race-registration-systems\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/registration-tools\/how-complex-to-switch-race-registration-systems\/\",\"name\":\"How Hard is it to Switch Registration Systems? | RaceID Organizer\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-09-15T17:40:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-12-15T18:38:51+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/raceid.com\/organizer\/#\/schema\/person\/09d33df2c031014a077b9c289aa526c3\"},\"description\":\"How difficult is it to change registration providers for your endurance race? 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