Online Registration Overview
Why is this being offered?
With more and more Good Sam Club members using computers in their daily lives at work, at home and on the road for everything from keeping up with friends, relatives, kids, grandkids, Ebay'ing and all of the other marvelous things that computers can do, the Louisiana Good Sam Organization thought that offering a method of registering for our Samboree's via cyberspace could be of benefit to not only our attendee's, but our organization in general.
Sure, we could have done as other state organization's do and have only a printable registration form on-line (which we also have) for registrants to print out on their computer without having to track down the chapter member who has them or call or write the state registrar and ask for one to be mailed to them. But in addition to that printable form being available online, we wanted to go full speed into cyberspace and offer a method that would eliminate all of the above hassles with a quick and easy method of not only pre-registering online but paying your pre-registration fees online also. Louisiana is the only known state organization to offer this service to its attendees!
Online Registration offers a paperless, postage free method for those who spend a lot of time on the road away from their mailbox, have a hard time keeping up with important mail sent to them, those who put off making a long distance call until it is too late to pre-register and those who want to cut down on their postage and/or long distance phone bills.
Besides the registrant benefits, the organization benefits also in reduced workload for our Samboree Registrar, reduced printing and postage costs, a quicker and cleaner way of disseminating Samboree information such as initial registration information flyers. But also, if there is any information that needs to be updated to registrants, it can be done instantaneously by email. It is really a win-win for everyone involved!
How does it work?
Really simple!!! You click on the Spring or Fall Samboree link on the home page, click on the Online Registration link on the Samboree page and you are taken to the Online Pre-Registration Start Page. If you are already registered with PayPal or not is not important. But if you want to go to the PayPal site and learn more about how it works you can click on their splash ad and explore their service. PayPal is one of the oldest and most respected online payment services available. Their security precautions and ease of use are unmatched. They are so good at what they do that EBay (the largest online auction service) encourages its use for buyers and sellers.
Actual internet screen shots are displayed below to help you get a feel for what you will see. Paypal and Louisiana Good Sam have changed some of their screens, but the below will give you the general idea.
Be sure to read the instructions
at the top of the page and then when your ready and have the time to complete
the process, click on the Samboree you want to pre-register for.
The next screen will be the
order form. If you are not registered with PayPal, don't worry, when
you get to the checkout page you will be allowed to register. Registration is
optional though.
Here you can order your initial
rig/person type of registration and any other items that you need to pay for.
Please note that when paying
for multiple items such as additional persons, meals or any other item that
exceeds one (1) you will need to click on the 'Continue Shopping' button
displayed at the bottom of the 'Shopping Basket' screen that will be displayed
immediately after you click an 'Add item' button on the Order Form. You simply
'Continue Shopping' until your Shopping Basket contains all of the items and the
correct number of items that you need to pay for. You can also increase the
number of items ordered (such as meals) by simply changing the # of items
under the QTY (Quantity) column and clicking on the 'Update Cart' button. You
can also cancel an item by clicking on the 'Remove' button. It is all very
easy and straightforward.
When you have completed filling
your shopping basket, click on the 'Checkout' button. You will then be
transported to the PayPal website. If you are already registered with PayPal,
simply enter your Login information and you go through the payment process. If
you do not want to register, you can pay anyway and PayPal will give you the
option to register or not.
If you are not registered with
PayPal, click on the 'If you do not currently have a PayPal account' button and
you will be taken to an expedited transaction area where you can pay your fees
without registering for an account. You will need either a credit card or your
bank account information handy depending on how you want your payments to be
handled.
After you make your payment, PayPal will display a confirmation of payment
screen showing your payment information. PayPal will also send you an Email,
almost immediately. Check your email and print the message out for your
records.
You will automatically be re-directed to the Online registration form, fill it out completely, take your time and make sure that every question is answered and that the proper information is entered.
The form has certain
'validated' fields on it that if no entry is made and you attempt to submit
the form without the required information, the screen will display an error
page that will list items that are required to be filled in before your form
will be accepted.
After you have double checked
your form and hit the 'Submit' button a confirmation of registration screen
will be displayed with all of your registration information displayed as you
entered it on the form. Print it also and bring it with you to the Samboree.
If you have made a mistake or for any other reason need to re-access the form,
you will need to contact the webmaster for instructions as there is no direct
way to get to the form from any of the website pages, it is a web re-direct
that happens as soon as you leave the Paypal website.
If you entered your email
address correctly you will receive your registration information from the
Samboree Registrar via email. To make this process work efficiently, do not
ask for information to be mailed to you. Everything you need will be sent via
email.
If three or four days go by and
no info from the registrar has arrived, go back and check that you have
entered your email address correctly. If you have, then email the registrar
and include your PayPal confirmation number in your message. Be kind in your
email as there may be a bona-fide reason as to why you have not received your
information.
And that is all there is to it!! A quick and hopefully easy way to register and pay your fees!