Newsblog

Colour Interior Now Available...

We are delighted to announce a new feature to our already highly-acclaimed programme and that is: your official club book can have both the normal glossy colour cover plus with the added colour interior that will enhance your club's profile even more.

Imagine having your club's very own official club book; personally designed with great looking colour squad and player/member photos in colour - just like the professionals.

For a low price of only £14.99 you can have your club book in glorious colour! Call us now or email us

Imagine holding your very own club book in your hands...

What feeling would that give you? Forget the professional clubs and the world famous names; how about your club taking the spotlight for a change?

Club Books have come up with this superb package that will give your club a quality paperback or hardback glossy cover book that doesn´t cost your club anything at all - the book actually makes your club money. How about that for a concept?

What does our club get?...

Your book printed in fine quality print - Your Club earns money on each book sold - Your book marketed to a vast audience - Your book listed on Amazon and others - Sponsorship money where available.

Clubs - of all categories - require some sort of finances in order for that particular club to operate. In general terms, clubs may require some kind of local sponsorship and in most cases club members may pay an annual subscription to that club. Let´s face it: nothing comes for free in this world.

Clubs also organize fundraising events like dances, race nights and other means of entertainment activities that potentially can draw a crowd large enough to maximize the potential proceeds. All expensive and time consuming...

In comes Club Books with an unbelievable concept and match-winning template to help your club achieve a number of things: raise money for your club at the same time as raising your club's profile.

Where else can you find a winning concept?

Increase opportunities and chances to attract sponsorship and partners whilst raising money and your club's profile at the same time.

The Grassroots Issue...

Up and down the country, new-age supreme 3G pitches and covered facilities are springing up as quick as shopping malls and on the outside it looks like a healthy step in the right direction for the grassroots of the UK game but don't be fooled by the nicety of these airport-like hangers that could possibly be housing the next generation of professional stars; because as much as these facilities are a welcoming sight; they don't actually hide the fact that (1) you still have to pay to get in to use these first-class facilities and (2) the overall running costs of your club most likely hasn't changed. In fact, new-age facilities usually require new-age currency and that is costly to any club in the amateur and grassroots level.

No club can be prepared without funding. Youth development is an expensive business and a cruel passion at times but you really have to ask yourself who is going to help you or more importantly: what can you do to help yourself?

Is your club in the luxurious position that you don't need any funding and if so; good luck and well done to you. But, for the most part, our more sophisticated environment might look good on the surface of things but the problem is still there: grassroots still suffers.

The opportunity for kids to play abroad or in homegrown tournaments is exciting, the new kit on offer from some of the top brands was only reserved for the elite in former times (and we are not talking that long ago); the in-your-face media constantly pumps out the latest from branded-wear firms and the demand just keeps sizzling at a frenzy; so how can clubs possibly keep up? How can parents and guardians keep up? and how much pocket money does a kid need to earn or receive to feed the constant spoils on offer before we all start joining hands across the United Kingdom?

There really is no easy answer but if you hang around long enough with your cap-in-hand waiting on some pot of promise gold that will save and raise your club then I am afraid it's going to be a long, long wait.

Club Books was formed by a couple of guys who were tired of people complaining about the grassroots issue and decided to do something about it. Granted, we won't be saving the heart, soul or even the skin of it but one thing's for sure: at least we are making an effort about it – however small or great the contribution, we hope to be part of a network of active individuals and organizations who really do care about the future of our game.

Why Club Books Were Formed...

There are many reasons why Club Books were formed but let´s get one thing straight here: Club Books is not a charity. We run our business model as it is: a business. Our team consists of a wealth of experience in the background of sport, sales, management and the artistic world we know as print, web & graphics.

Like many of us we are so often shocked to learn that in the year 2011 we still have clubs working on a scratch card basis going from door-to-door. That should not be the case in this day-and-age and especially the environment we have now: it´s just too unsafe for young kids to go street-hopping and carrying cash is not what young club members should be doing.

Like most of us we are not too enamoured by false promises of government hand-outs. Many are sick of the site of fund-raising for the arts world when sport - clearly - offers something that all children require: exercise, fresh air, social bonding and just getting out of the house and doing something positive should be enough persuasion, right, parents and guardians?

How can these clubs raise money? Race nights, jumble sales (yes, they still hold jumble sales) and all sorts of events that mostly entail the parents and guardians to dig into their pockets. Local sponsorship has been a great blanket for young clubs for decades but times are tough for even the biggest companies so what can we do to keep the cycle going but add that little bit extra? We added the Club Books system. We didn´t replace the traditional methods but we added this programme to the annual fund-raising events...

Let´s break this down for you in real detail (details taken from local and nationwide research). Your club organizes a raffle night to raise funds for the club. The parents and guardians need to get to the hall and probably have to pay a babysitter. They might like to have a couple of drinks so they need a taxi home. If it´s a race night they probably spent a few pounds on a horse that they have no knowledge of its skills or abilities. There may be food on the table and that probably cost something for someone. The whole night was a success (they generally are) but one club we spoke to said their success was earning £200 on an annual Friday night. That really is terrific. I mean, £200 is going to get the club a few new balls, maybe pay for annual league registration fees and contribute to some travelling costs to a trip away. Another club raised £700 from a fund-raiser event and that is absolutely amazing but they then had to pay the DJ, the function suite (not including the buffet which was extra) and before you know they didn´t even make half that money for their own club.

None of the above can be or should be criticized (except for the false promises of government funding). It has always been down to the people to subsidize. It has always been the people who care more for the kids in the communities and it will always be that way but there is only so much a club can do on its own and there is only so much a parent or guardian can afford. So without further ado let us break this whole Club Books situation down for you...

Each club book costs from £10.99 upwards, depending on how many pages etc.

Your club also gets a share of that fee. Adverts can be £69.99 and in common terms we have never had a problem accumulating a total of 7-to-10 sponsors. WOW!!! 10 x 69.99 is £699. Now, you don´t get all of that but say you get half; you can say you could top your already existing £250 with your sponsor advert money of almost £350 and you got a whopping...let me get my calculator out here...£600. And that is for nothing! No hiring of halls, no buffet bars or babysitters and no more hailing taxis to the other side of town to bet on horses with no names. All of this can be yours for the simple price of placing an order for a brilliant glossy covered book with your son or daughter in it for a measly starting price of £8.99. That´s not all...

Club Books developed a sponsor box where each member can ask to be sponsored for their own page in their book. An example would be a local business or even a family member. For any amount of money (we recommend anything from £1.00 upwards) a family member or a local business can have their name inserted in the sponsor box. Each £1.00 or any amount starting from £1.00 goes straight to the club. The sponsor box is below, beside or above the player/member´s photo in the book and as an example it can read like: Jennifer Clarkston - Sponsored by Local Dairy Store. The Local Dairy Store can pay anything starting from £1.00 to have their name inside the book. All sponsor box money goes to the club. This is a great way for a club to earn even more money.

Another new famous addition to the Famous Corner section of Club Books...

Scottish rockers, Biffy Clyro, are the new addition to the Famous Corner section of the Club Book's website. The band, world-known, sponsor Bonnyton Thistle 2000's section and they can be both found in the Bonnyton Thistle club book and in our famous section here >>>

Club Books Recruit Pop Band...

Club Books were delighted to have the services of Scottish pop band Shifter X to compose the theme tune for our web catalogue and marketing campaign.

The tune, titled: Tesla, is a futuristic-type composed sports programme theme tune and is proving to be a grower after a few listens. This is another step in the right direction for Club books. As Club Books base ourselves on presentation we realize the need to be at the front of future presentations for our club clients and prospective clients.

If you would like to check out Shifter X then please click here to go to their official website.