Help with CoachesTown
Get answers to frequently asked questions

General

What is CoachesTown?

CoachesTown is a FREE online sports and activity communication website.

How much does CoachesTown cost?

It's 100% Free.

How do I create an account?

To create an account, click here.

How do I locate my team?

You can click on Find a Team and search our database for your team.

Why is the website displaying weird on my screen?

CoachesTown is BEST viewed at a resolution of 1024x758 or higher in Internet Explorer 7 or FireFox 2. CoachesTown can also be viewed using Apple Safari, Netscape 7.2 or higher, Opera and MSN Explorer.

Earlier versions of Internet Explorer (version 6 in particular) may not perform or display CoachesTown properly. You can upgrade to IE7 for FREE here, or try FireFox 2 here.

What is the community?

The community section provides all CoachesTown members a place to share thoughts in a public forum. This section is currently being worked on to better serve you!

How do I contact CoachesTown with a problem, question or suggestion?

Click the Contact link from the main menu on the top of the website and use our contact form or call us.

My CoachesTown Account

How do I login to my account?

You can login from the CoachesTown homepage, or click on My Account from the top menu or go to www.coachestown.com/login/

How do I edit my account settings?

Login to your account and click on the My Account menu option.  At the bottom of your My Account page there is an "Edit Settings" link.

How do I upload an image for my trading card/forum post picture?

Go to "My Account".  There is an image on the left section of the page.  Under the image, click the "Change Image" link.  Select an image to upload and submit.

How do I change my text message or email alerts?

Go to "My Account".  Click on the "Edit Settings" link and adjust your alerts accordingly.

How do I create more than one account?

Click "Signout" and return to the CoachesTown homepage.  Click the "Create FREE Account" link.

What is the "Jump to My Stuff" box?

The jump to my stuff box is a quick way to jump to different sections of the website.  If you belong to multiple teams, they will populate that box.  You can also use the box to get to your My Account page, where you can view all your teams and change .

Email and Cell Phone Alerts

What are email and cell phone alerts?

CoachesTown allows coaches to send our emails and cell phone text messages to members of the team.

How much do alerts cost?

CoachesTown does not charge you anything to receive the alerts, however, you should check with your cell phone provider to see how much a text message costs.  Most cell phone plans include a text message plan of some kind which include free text messages.

When will I get an email or cell phone text message alert?

Alerts will arrive typically within 5 minutes of your coach sending them.

How do I setup my phone to get these alerts?

Go to "My Account" and click on "Edit Settings".  Enter in your 10 digit cell phone number, followed by selecting your cell phone provider.  No further setup is required on your cell phone.

Personal Safety

Is my information safe?

Yes.  Your information is stored inside a server-side database which cannot be downloaded or accessed without proper security or the code within CoachesTown.

Who can see my information?

Only you can see your cell phone and contact information.  Your email address remains private unless you choose to contact another CoachesTown member through a team page , which will provide the person you are emailing with your email address.

Does CoachesTown sell or share my information?

CoachesTown does not sell or share any of your personal information.

I read in your tour there is a language filter - how do I turn it on?

You do not have to turn on the language filter.  The language filter is automatically turned on  in every team page to ensure a safe, friendly environment.

How do I report abuse?

If you have experienced any kind of abuse (verbal, visual, excessive text or emails) please use the Contact link on our main menu to contact us immediately so we may investigate.

Joining a Team

How do I join a team?

You can join a team in one of several ways. If you have received an email from a Coach requesting you join a team, click the "Sign up" or "Login" link (depending on whether or not you have an account already) and follow the instructions.

If you have an account and did not receive and email invitation, you can use the Find a Team link on the main menu and locate your team. Go to that team's page and click on "Request Membership".

You can also click on My Account and under the "My Teams" box, click on "Find Local Teams". Locate your team, select it and click "Join Team". A Membership Request will be sent to the coach.

What does it mean "Pending Authorizations?" in my My Account section?

To keep CoachesTown secure, we require coaches to authorize members to their team. You may not view team content until your coach has authorized your account. Once you have been authorized, the Pending Authorizations box will move the team into your My Teams box.

How long does it take, and how does the coach know I requested membership?

The head coach is sent an email (and text message if setup to receive them) that someone has requested membership to their team. You must wait until the coach logs in and authorizes you.

Creating a Team

How do I create a new team?

Go to My Account. Under the My Teams box there is a link that says "Create New Team".

I am a League Administrator, how do I create multiple teams?

If you are a coordinator or administrator of a league and want to create an entire set of teams (and divisions) please visit the League Information section of this help file.

Setting Up a Team

My team is created, what now?

Once you have created your team, the first steps should be inviting your team members and setting up your schedule.

How do I invite team members?

You can invite team members in two ways: Print Team Flyers or Send Email Invitations

Print Team Flyers: In your Team Management Tasks section, click on Print Team Flyer. Take this flyer and hand it out at your next meeting. Members will need to go to CoachesTown, create an account and locate your team using either the Find a Team link or by the "Join a Team" option that appears at the end of the account creation process. You as the head coach will need to authorize each member as they request to join your team.

Send Email Invitations: In your Team Management Tasks section, click on Send Email Invitations. If you have the names and email addresses of the members of your team, you can create a mailing list for Coaches, Players and Fans and customize the invitation. The invitation will contain two links - one to login if they have an existing CoachesTown account and a second if they need to create a new account. Once they have signed up or logged in, they will automatically be added to your team - which means you won't need to authorize them later.

Are parents considered Players or Fans?

The decision is completely up to the coach. For younger teams, children generally aren't online without a parent, so parents could be authorized as the player and have only one account. For older teams, players may want their own account and to appear as themselves on their roster, as well as their parents being a "fan", with their own CoachesTown account.

Team Management Features

Feature Overview: Send Message to Team

Once Coaches, Players and Fans have joined your team, as a coach you have the ability to message the entire team from anywhere, anytime. Messages are sent via email and text messaging. Members will get one or the other or both, depending on how their individual alerts are configured. You may select one, several or all team members who receive the message, and once you have sent the message, a confirmation screen will appear letting you know which members received emails and which received text messages.

Feature Overview: Edit Team Info

You can edit the team name, location and other information from this page. You may also upload a team logo to replace the generic logo in the top left corner of your team page.

It may also be necessary at times to make manual adjustments to your team score, and that can be done here as well.

If you are the primary coach of the team, you may re-assign head coach status to any other coach on the team. This will move you to an assistant coach role, which means the new head coach will receive all member inquiries and authorizations for team membership.

Feature Overview: Event Scheduler

Create practices, meetings, games and other events using this powerful but simple tool.

Multiple Events: First, select the month for the multiple events you wish to create. Next, select the days you want the event to occur on using the mini calendar. Select the type, time location and other event information. EVERY event you create will contain this information, so be sure it's correct. Save and Create to generate these events. This is extremely useful for creating practice dates over the course of a month.

Single Events: Single events such as games versus different teams in different locations can be created quickly using the same method as the Multiple event creation. Instead of selecting multiple dates, just select the one you wish to create an event for, enter in the other event specifics and click Save and Create.

Feature Overview: Team Locations

Locations are used whenever you create an event, so you may want to do this before creating any events.

Locations provide you with a selectable list of places you practice or meet at regularly. They provide GoogleMaps directions automatically for you and your team, and make creating events easier (you won't have to type out each location every time you create an event). You can store up to 5 different locations for your team.

Feature Overview: Invite Team Members

In your Team Management Tasks section, click on Send Email Invitations. If you have the names and email addresses of the members of your team, you can create a mailing list for Coaches, Players and Fans and customize the invitation. The invitation will contain two links - one to login if they have an existing CoachesTown account and a second if they need to create a new account. Once they have signed up or logged in, they will automatically be added to your team - which means you won't need to authorize them later.

Feature Overview: Manage Members

Let's say you accidentally authorize a team coach as a player. In Manage Members, you can select one or more team members and change their role on the team - make a player a coach, a coach a fan and so on. You can also remove team members using this tool. The only person who cannot change roles from this tool is the head coach. To remove/change the membership type of a head coach, you must first use the Edit Team Info tool and change the head coach to another coach on your team.

Feature Overview: Print Team Flyer

In your Team Management Tasks section, click on Print Team Flyer. Take this flyer and hand it out at your next meeting. Members will need to go to CoachesTown, create an account and locate your team using either the Find a Team link or by the "Join a Team" option that appears at the end of the account creation process. You as the head coach will need to authorize each member as they request to join your team.