Volunteer Club, App Cats launch app platform that could be trendsetter for NIL collectives

There has been no shortage of apps developed in the NIL Era helping collectives provide value to recurring subscribers. Yet, App Cats recently developed the CrowdCOLLECTIVE app platform could be a game changer.

And it only makes sense that it’s launching its first app with The Volunteer Club – the Tennessee-focused collective that has pushed boundaries since the beginning from a creativity standpoint.

App Cats has been building white-label apps for around seven years, focusing mainly on tennis, minor league baseball and NCAA championships. In fact, its TennisONE app is one of the most trusted resources in the tennis world. But Collin Wolff, the director of growth at App Cats, said the company noticed NIL collectives are operating in an “incredibly underserved” situation from a technology standpoint.

So, App Cats approached The Volunteer Club and they worked together to build the app from the ground up – but also using many of the same innovations that made other offerings from the company so successful.

“We have over a million users and that’s kind of our secret sauce where we’ve done it ourselves to make a viable product for our own business and other companies,” Wolff said. “So, this was an opportunity to say, ‘Hey, we’ve got this great tech. What is a market that is incredibly underserved in providing an ecosystem for its members and donors?

“And that’s where we zeroed in on collectives. We went to The Volunteer Club and asked them what they are doing now. What are your shortcomings in terms of engaging your fans, reducing donor fatigue and keeping their fans engaged throughout the whole entire calendar year while also monetizing and showcasing their athletes as much as possible?”

What are features of CrowdCOLLECTIVE app?

And that’s how the CrowdCOLLECTIVE app platform was born.

“A lot of our benefits right now are event-based, or they’re only through certain times of the year,” Volunteer Club chief operating officer Will Crockett said. “What we’re looking for is a way to continue to grow our membership and retain our current members.

“And for us, how do we engage with our people on a consistent basis? So outside of football season, basketball and baseball season, how can we engage with our members on a regular basis? And this new Volunteer Club app is a way for us to incentivize them to engage with us.”

Crockett believes the Volunteer Club app on the CrowdCOLLECTIVE platform will bridge the gap between fans, athletes and collective members and foster deeper connections within the Volunteer community.

The new app brings a whole slew of features, including membership and merchandise sales, an ability to recognize key advertisers and ways to highlight podcasts, videos and CrowdLIVE interactive live streaming for interviews, tours and behind-the-scenes content.

Gamification, live streams unique features in app

There are also gamification features – such as trivia, bracket battles, Wordle-inspired contests and leaderboards – all with a focus on creating rewards for The Volunteer Club members.

“Having some of the games that we can have in this app are a big part of the way that we can reward them for being a member, reward them for shopping with us,” Crockett said. “Anything that we can do to encourage fans to support our athletes, to be a member and just continue their membership and make it even more valuable to supporters.”

Wolff said he’s excited about The Volunteer Club’s plans for live-streaming events.

“Will’s team has had so many great ideas – Q&As with players as they’re signing shoes, watch parties with friends if you can’t make it to the game,” Wolff said. “We built the system so it fans could feel like they’re in the stadium, even when they’re not there and still be around friends. So, it’s like a Zoom, Google Meet type deal, but it’s live streamed and it’s two -way with a lot of interaction.”

CrowdCOLLECTIVE could be national solution

The Volunteer Club leaders are excited to be first to market with the new app solution. The collective is known as a trailblazer in the NIL landscape, with nearly 4,000 members. So, it’s only fitting that it is the first to launch on the platform.

“Whatever allows our fans to engage with us in new and creative ways is what we’re really excited about,” Crockett said. “And the fact that we can do it 24-7. That’ll be a plus for us. The really good membership services across the world – whether it’s Amazon Prime, whether it’s Netflix – you can access those things 24-7.

“We’ve lacked that to this point, and this opens that up for us.”

And it could open up a solution that could be replicated at the hundreds of collectives in operation across the country.

“We’re eager to get this to market and help both fans and collectives,” Wolff said. “And from a scalability aspect, it can be – and that’s the goal – taken to other places in the country. That’s what Will and his team have been great about. They want to make sure that Tennessee fans get it first, but they want to help student-athletes and membership fans across the country. They’ve helped us design this that it’s a win-win for everybody involved.

“It can be replicated to any and all collectives – any and all schools.”