What is the difference between Accounts, Members, and Contacts
Understanding the difference between Accounts, Contacts, and Memberships is important when managing users and communication within the Playbook system.
While these three items all involve people in your system, they serve very different purposes.
Accounts
An Account represents a user who has created a login in your Playbook system.
Accounts are automatically created when someone registers for an event or signs up within the platform.
Examples of account holders include:
- Parents registering athletes
- Coaches registering teams
- Individuals creating profiles in the system
Accounts can be found by navigating to:
Accounts → Accounts
or by using the Accounts bookmark at the top of the page.
Anyone who has registered for an event or created a login will appear in the Accounts section.
Contacts
Contacts are typically used as email lists for communication and marketing.
Contacts do not necessarily have accounts in the system. Instead, they are often imported lists of people you want to communicate with.
For example:
- Coaches from past tournaments
- Prospect lists
- Email marketing lists
- Imported spreadsheets of contacts
Contacts can be imported into the system and used for communication without requiring the person to create a Playbook account.
Memberships
Memberships are typically used within the Facility Management module.
A membership represents a structured group tied to a facility or program.
For example, a family membership might include:
- A primary account holder (such as a parent)
- Multiple members under that account (such as children)
These members can then be assigned to programs, training sessions, or other offerings within the facility system.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Accounts | Contacts | Memberships | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Purpose | User login and event participation | Communication and marketing lists | Facility or program participation | | Requires Login | Yes | No | Usually tied to an account | | Created By | Event registrations or user signup | Manual entry or import | Membership setup in facility module | | Typical Users | Parents, coaches, athletes | Marketing contacts | Families participating in facility programs |
If you want, I can also help you build a full Playbook Help Center structure (sections, categories, and article order). That will make this much easier for users to navigate and will prevent articles from feeling scattered as you keep adding them.