How Footy scaled personalized WhatsApp communication to 500+ teams at once

Footy, a rapidly growing recreational football organization in the Netherlands, manages over 800 football teams across 10+ cities. Each season, they coordinate registrations, schedules, and payments, all heavily reliant on WhatsApp communication.

But as Footy grew, their communication processes couldn’t keep up.

By implementing Proactive WhatsApp messaging with Trengo, Footy transformed manual bulk messaging into a scalable, personalized, and automated workflow, enabling them to reach hundreds of football teams instantly.

The challenge: scaling WhatsApp communication without losing the personal touch

As Footy continued to grow, so did the volume of communication. What once worked for small groups became more difficult at scale.

To send updates or registration requests, the team had to manually search for each team in Trengo and send messages one by one. This approach quickly became unsustainable when dealing with 500+ teams at once.

At the same time, existing bulk messaging options didn’t meet their needs. Messages were generic, lacked personalization, and offered no clear way to track responses or actions.

This led to several challenges:

• Time-consuming workflows: Sending bulk messages could take hours due to manual work
• Lack of personalization: No way to include team-specific details like names or league info
• No visibility on responses: Difficult to track confirmations, payments, or follow-ups

As a result, key processes like season sign-ups became slow, manual, and hard to manage.

The solution: Proactive WhatsApp messaging with Trengo

To solve this, Footy implemented Proactive Support, a custom Trengo add-on that enables bulk WhatsApp messaging with full personalization.

Available as a widget in the Trengo sidebar, the solution fits seamlessly into their existing workflow. Instead of sending messages one by one, Footy can now upload a CSV file with team data and reach hundreds of teams in a single action.

What makes the difference is that scale doesn’t come at the expense of personalization. By using dynamic variables, each message automatically includes relevant details such as team names, league information, or payment instructions, making every message feel tailored.

Key elements of the solution include:

• CSV-based outreach: Upload once, message hundreds of teams instantly
• Personalized templates: Dynamic variables ensure relevant, tailored communication
• No technical setup: Fully managed within Trengo, no developers needed

From sending messages to managing conversations

Beyond sending messages, Proactive Support also transformed how Footy handles responses and follow-ups. Messages can include interactive buttons such as “Confirm participation” or “Pay now,” making it easy for teams to take action directly within WhatsApp.

When a team clicks a button, Trengo automatically applies labels like “Confirmed”, giving Footy instant insight into the status of each team.

With this setup, Footy can now handle key communication moments at scale:

• Season registrations: Send sign-up requests to hundreds of teams and track confirmations automatically
• Payment reminders: Notify teams of outstanding invoices with direct payment actions
• Future automation opportunities: Including match updates, schedule changes, and weather cancellations

The result: faster, smarter, and scalable communication

By moving away from manual workflows, Footy unlocked a new level of efficiency and control.

• Massive time savings: Campaigns that once took hours are now completed in minutes
• Seamless scalability: Easily communicate with 500+ teams simultaneously, with a 60% increase in volume the first month. 
• Full visibility: Always know who has responded and who needs follow-up
• Higher engagement: Personalized messages and buttons lead to faster responses

“Before, sending updates to hundreds of teams took hours of manual work. Now, we can reach everyone instantly with personalized messages, and know exactly who’s responded. It’s completely changed how we communicate at scale.”

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