The optimal tech stack for race organisers

The core business of every endurance race organiser is to create unforgettable moments for participants as well as products and services which are non-technical. But today, it is nearly impossible for a race organiser to organise and manage an event without technical solutions.

Develop in-house or buy in services

There are two extremes: Either you are trying to develop almost everything in-house, or you use a great collection of third-party tools and services; for example mobiles apps, SaaS (software-as-a-service) like Office365 and IaaS (infrastructure-as-a-service) like amazon web service.

The headache comes when your techstack does not match your business.

What do you need tech-wise

Even with a fairly small team of one to two team members you would need a basic event website, some kind of  tool for internal and external communication, a project management and marketing tools, and of course means for event registration and time keeping.

When the team grows, so do the technical needs. For example, tools for financing, HR and customer support have to be acquired. The possibilities are endless and we haven't even touched on the topics of fundraising, design tools, analytics and many more.

And since the possibilities seem infinite, it is all the more important to start asking yourself exact questions before adding a new service. Do you need to:

• Improve customer experience;

• Decrease costs;

• Add a revenue stream;

• Ensure compliance (Legal aspects);

• Keep your team happy? 

When you know your needs, you can more easily set the baseline and understand if the tools/services give you the value you expected. 

How to find the right tool

The best way to do so is to follow a simple checklist:

• Test what you need to solve manually or in a low-tech way;

• Do user research, try to identify the real need;

• Set a baseline; where are you today, understand if this service will help to improve the need you have identified;

• Calculate the costs carefully;

• Make sure there is someone in the team that will take responsibility for the service;

• Look into competing services; 

How to use your tech in an optimal way

In fact, a majority of tech users utilise only a small part of the app/service functionality!

Therefore, make sure that you;

• Ask the serviceprovider for a demo;

  • Specify your needs and drivers

  • Ask for needed functionality if it is missing

• Appoint super-users who would learn the app and teach others in the team;

  • Watch tutorials

  • Stay up-to-date on releases

• Regularly check if you need/use the service or not;

Allow tech to be your critical asset that helps you do more with less. Save time, save money, enhance your customer experience and beat your competition.