What do they REALLY think of your club/centre?
All clubs and leisure centres produce annual accounts showing profit/loss and assets/liabilities showing the historic numbers and most produce budgets forecasting income and expenditure for the coming year.
SMN have for long been advocating that clubs and centres should produce annual Image Tables displaying how the club/centre is perceived within different groups in its community. The way people perceive you is vitally important to your future ability to attract members, supporters and sponsors/funders and thus to your earning potential. So this Image Table is important not just to ‘the marketing guys’ but also to the Treasurer (if you have a negative image amongst important stakeholders you will probably find it much more difficult to attract support and funding).
No, you cannot stick your head in the sand, neither can you rely on asking your friends and cronies what they think because they are not very likely to disagree with you.
Also, by undertaking annual customer surveys you are sending our clear signals that you actually do care about people’s perception of you. And, of course, you can improve on the areas where you image is weakest.
So how you do find out what they REALLY think – It is simple and can be quite exciting
First: Divide your target audience into seven groups
1. Members/season ticket holders
2. Lapsed members/season ticket holders
3. Casual users/supporters
4. Friends/parents
5. Sponsors
6. Opinion formers
7. The community at large
Second: Send letter/email to Group 1 explaining that you are looking for their opinion in order to be able to improve the service the club/centre provides. Include the table and question below
:
Ask them to rate from 1 to 10
1. Club/centre life
2. Facilities
3. Sound economy
4. Positive atmosphere
5. Good sporting experiences
6. Ambitions are well communicated
7. Open
8. Flexible and willing to change
9. Good managers/volunteers
10. Good coaches
Total
Please describe the most positive and most negative aspects of the centre/club:
Word of warning: Don’t be tempted to add too many more questions. Response rates go down the more time you ask people to spend.
Make sure you mark the questionnaires with the number of the group you are researching. You’ll need that when you analyse the completed questionnaires.
People can stay anonymous if they want. If possible you can give an incentive prize (such as a free drink/club shirt) to be drawn amongst those who complete and return the questionnaire.
Third: Do the same with Group 2
Fourth: Train a few staff/volunteers to interview casual visitors using the same questionnaire. NOTE: Leaving questionnaires for people to complete at their own initiative is a waste.
Fifth: Depending on your database you either send/email the questionnaire to Group 4 members
Sixth: You could also send the questionnaire to lapsed sponsors as well as your current sponsors
Seventh: Group six would include MP, Councillors, the media, community leaders, heads of school, etc.
Eighth: Literally, go down to the High Street (staff/volunteers) and interview a variety of people.
Finally, you now add up the results from the seven different categories and you now have a great tool to help you improve your club.
Tip: Link up with local College/University. They will probably have business students who are looking for ‘live’ projects and could use a project like this.
Sunday, 26 April 2009
What is your story
What is your story?
It doesn’t all have to be doom and gloom.
Yes, it is tough out there and sport and our clubs and centres are not immune from the effects from the chilli winds blowing across the country. A majority of Football League clubs are in arrears with their VAT and Tax payments, most clubs with club bars report a decline in bar sales and sponsorships are becoming increasingly difficult to come by.
So, what can you do to ensure that your club survives this credit crunch and still is able to deliver your sporting ambitions at whatever level your club is at.
Are you a Woolworth or an Asda?
Let’s first look at which businesses and industries that are doing well: Dominos Pizza, Gregg the Bakers, McDonald’s, Aldi, Asda (they are planning to open 40 new stores), holiday parks, wood stove manufacturers and retailers…there’s something here about value, home comfort and clear directions. A good story and a well run business with quality people. (Aldi have just recruited 102 graduates at £40,000 per annum plus an Audi).
These businesses and industries are all able to tell compelling stories which are relevant to their audiences. Compare this to a rugby club which over the years has been selling off pitches to finance their sporting ambitions and which is currently fighting for their lives due to a previous, less than dynamic, management. The current Chairman is working hard to raise shirt term cash from members and others, but as the club for years has been quite happy to live in their ‘own little world’ and has not played any part of its local community they are finding it very tough going. As the Chairman stated: “sports clubs without a clear strategy are finding it even more difficult to attract support from cash-strapped commercial businesses”.
At the same time far too many clubs are still asking businesses and others to ‘Support Our Club’ without offering any reason whatsoever why anyone should want to support the club. These clubs do not offer any benefits to potential sponsors (probably because there are precious few benefits), there are no stories on how the club and its members are performing a key role in the local community and neither are they able to offer any innovative, exciting ways outside partners can engage with the club to deliver sporting, health or community programmes. And yet they want people to “Support Our Club”.
The way forward
Everyone involved with running your club (and other interested people) should sit down, away from the normal committee meetings, and discuss how to develop your story, What do you stand for, where are you going, what exciting initiatives could you develop to make your club stand out?
To help you look outside the box I suggest you try and attend one of Sports Marketing Network’s workshops or alternatively invite a sports development officer from your local authority or your governing body to your meeting. You could also invite various community leaders from out side sport, such as head teachers, vicars, community groups, social/community workers etc.
The key objective is how develop a number of ways your club can a bigger role in your community and become ‘more than just a sports club’. If you can go out say ‘we will support our community’ you will be amazed what support and funding could become available to you.
You are always to give us a call on 01423 326 660. We will be happy to help you become a vibrant, visible and viable club which has a really good story.
It doesn’t all have to be doom and gloom.
Yes, it is tough out there and sport and our clubs and centres are not immune from the effects from the chilli winds blowing across the country. A majority of Football League clubs are in arrears with their VAT and Tax payments, most clubs with club bars report a decline in bar sales and sponsorships are becoming increasingly difficult to come by.
So, what can you do to ensure that your club survives this credit crunch and still is able to deliver your sporting ambitions at whatever level your club is at.
Are you a Woolworth or an Asda?
Let’s first look at which businesses and industries that are doing well: Dominos Pizza, Gregg the Bakers, McDonald’s, Aldi, Asda (they are planning to open 40 new stores), holiday parks, wood stove manufacturers and retailers…there’s something here about value, home comfort and clear directions. A good story and a well run business with quality people. (Aldi have just recruited 102 graduates at £40,000 per annum plus an Audi).
These businesses and industries are all able to tell compelling stories which are relevant to their audiences. Compare this to a rugby club which over the years has been selling off pitches to finance their sporting ambitions and which is currently fighting for their lives due to a previous, less than dynamic, management. The current Chairman is working hard to raise shirt term cash from members and others, but as the club for years has been quite happy to live in their ‘own little world’ and has not played any part of its local community they are finding it very tough going. As the Chairman stated: “sports clubs without a clear strategy are finding it even more difficult to attract support from cash-strapped commercial businesses”.
At the same time far too many clubs are still asking businesses and others to ‘Support Our Club’ without offering any reason whatsoever why anyone should want to support the club. These clubs do not offer any benefits to potential sponsors (probably because there are precious few benefits), there are no stories on how the club and its members are performing a key role in the local community and neither are they able to offer any innovative, exciting ways outside partners can engage with the club to deliver sporting, health or community programmes. And yet they want people to “Support Our Club”.
The way forward
Everyone involved with running your club (and other interested people) should sit down, away from the normal committee meetings, and discuss how to develop your story, What do you stand for, where are you going, what exciting initiatives could you develop to make your club stand out?
To help you look outside the box I suggest you try and attend one of Sports Marketing Network’s workshops or alternatively invite a sports development officer from your local authority or your governing body to your meeting. You could also invite various community leaders from out side sport, such as head teachers, vicars, community groups, social/community workers etc.
The key objective is how develop a number of ways your club can a bigger role in your community and become ‘more than just a sports club’. If you can go out say ‘we will support our community’ you will be amazed what support and funding could become available to you.
You are always to give us a call on 01423 326 660. We will be happy to help you become a vibrant, visible and viable club which has a really good story.
SMN joins Bradford Consortium
Sports Marketing Network joins Bradford Consortium to win two contracts with SkillsActive’s National Skills Academy
The Bradford Consortium which includes Bradford College, University of Bradford Management School, Sports Marketing Network and others have signed two contracts with SkillsActive’s National Skills Academy to develop two centres:
Centre of Excellence for Leadership and Management
Development Centre for Community Sport Enterprise
“Personally, I am really looking forward to be developing innovative products and services together with the other partners in the Bradford Consortium to help improve the way we manage our sports clubs in these difficult times. Watch this space,” said Svend Elkjaer of Sports Marketing Network
The National Skills Academy for Sport and Active Leisure has been set up to provide vocational education and skills training in England for people who want to work and develop their careers in sport and leisure as well as existing employees who want to improve their skills and career opportunities.
The Bradford Consortium which includes Bradford College, University of Bradford Management School, Sports Marketing Network and others have signed two contracts with SkillsActive’s National Skills Academy to develop two centres:
Centre of Excellence for Leadership and Management
Development Centre for Community Sport Enterprise
“Personally, I am really looking forward to be developing innovative products and services together with the other partners in the Bradford Consortium to help improve the way we manage our sports clubs in these difficult times. Watch this space,” said Svend Elkjaer of Sports Marketing Network
The National Skills Academy for Sport and Active Leisure has been set up to provide vocational education and skills training in England for people who want to work and develop their careers in sport and leisure as well as existing employees who want to improve their skills and career opportunities.
Marketing for Sports Development
A one-day workshop for people working in sports development
on how to improve their marketing and customer service skills
The time has come for sports to start thinking much more about the different needs of the various target groups and to create more exciting sport exercise experiences and communicate better. If we are to increase sports participation, sport as a whole, must become much more marketing and customer focused
An increasing number of people are acknowledging the importance of marketing in sports development as the focus on growing sports participation gets stronger in the build up to 2012.
This workshop is designed to help people working in sports development to develop a better understanding of marketing and customer service. Delegates will also be provided with specific skills to help them improve the way they develop and market their programmes to best suit their various groups.
This course links to the Quest Best Practice principles and will help increase your Quest score in these areas.
Based on best practice case stories from sports development from across the UK the workshop is entertaining, informative and interactive and give delegates lots of tools and templates they can apply in their jobs.
The important point is that excellent marketing and customer service does not have to cost a fortune…and it can make a huge difference. By raising the profile of your programmes you can attract more participants and increase your funding.
The workshop subjects include:
Introduction:
Marketing and customer service in sport…the story so far, lessons so far
Overcome barriers through a strategic approach
Develop a customer focused culture
Understanding the criteria and needs of different customer groups using simple consumer research
Develop events and programmes which really attract interest
How to ‘listen to people’s lives’
Understand the five Cs of marketing for sports development: cost, capability, consumer, convenience, communication
How to ensure sustainable increase in participation through SMN’s 4Com model (COMmunity, COMmunity, WelCOMing, COMputers
Special session
How to communicate using social media and mobile technology
How to design the whole experience to suit different groups
How to develop partnership promotions
How to incorporate passion in everything you do
How to provide excellent customer service to develop sustainable benefits
How to develop strong relationships with the media, both printed and online
How to make an objective assessment of the effectiveness of your marketing activities
At the end of the workshop delegates will be asked to develop a sport programme aimed at various target groups and produce a creative and effective marketing and communications plan,
BONUS! Delegates will be invited to submit/bring along details of a specific marketing challenge they are facing in their everyday lives and will receive advice from the workshop presenter.
Delegates will receive a comprehensive manual with all the course material including check lists, tools, templates and lots of practical case-stories. Delegates will also receive coffee/tea throughout the day and lunch.
The workshop runs from 9.30am to 4pm
Who should attend:
If you are involved with sports development, whether you are
working for a local authority, CSP, governing body or any other organisation,
this workshop is for you
The presenter, Svend Elkjaer, is Director of the Sports Marketing Network, a leading training company, information provider and marketing consultancy which focuses completely on how we can make sport more marketing and customer focused.
Over the last three years people from clubs, leisure centres and sports organisations have participated in Sports Marketing Network’s workshops. Sports organisations which have benefited from SMN’s expertise include Rugby Football Union, Football Association, Sports Council Wales, England Squash, Scottish Association of Local Sports Councils, SkillsActive, Sport England, England Athletics, England Netball, Welsh Rugby Union, British Speedway, UniBond League, Universities, 12 County Sports Partnerships and 45+ local authorities (from Cardiff to Stockton) and almost 1,500 sports clubs
on how to improve their marketing and customer service skills
The time has come for sports to start thinking much more about the different needs of the various target groups and to create more exciting sport exercise experiences and communicate better. If we are to increase sports participation, sport as a whole, must become much more marketing and customer focused
An increasing number of people are acknowledging the importance of marketing in sports development as the focus on growing sports participation gets stronger in the build up to 2012.
This workshop is designed to help people working in sports development to develop a better understanding of marketing and customer service. Delegates will also be provided with specific skills to help them improve the way they develop and market their programmes to best suit their various groups.
This course links to the Quest Best Practice principles and will help increase your Quest score in these areas.
Based on best practice case stories from sports development from across the UK the workshop is entertaining, informative and interactive and give delegates lots of tools and templates they can apply in their jobs.
The important point is that excellent marketing and customer service does not have to cost a fortune…and it can make a huge difference. By raising the profile of your programmes you can attract more participants and increase your funding.
The workshop subjects include:
Introduction:
Marketing and customer service in sport…the story so far, lessons so far
Overcome barriers through a strategic approach
Develop a customer focused culture
Understanding the criteria and needs of different customer groups using simple consumer research
Develop events and programmes which really attract interest
How to ‘listen to people’s lives’
Understand the five Cs of marketing for sports development: cost, capability, consumer, convenience, communication
How to ensure sustainable increase in participation through SMN’s 4Com model (COMmunity, COMmunity, WelCOMing, COMputers
Special session
How to communicate using social media and mobile technology
How to design the whole experience to suit different groups
How to develop partnership promotions
How to incorporate passion in everything you do
How to provide excellent customer service to develop sustainable benefits
How to develop strong relationships with the media, both printed and online
How to make an objective assessment of the effectiveness of your marketing activities
At the end of the workshop delegates will be asked to develop a sport programme aimed at various target groups and produce a creative and effective marketing and communications plan,
BONUS! Delegates will be invited to submit/bring along details of a specific marketing challenge they are facing in their everyday lives and will receive advice from the workshop presenter.
Delegates will receive a comprehensive manual with all the course material including check lists, tools, templates and lots of practical case-stories. Delegates will also receive coffee/tea throughout the day and lunch.
The workshop runs from 9.30am to 4pm
Who should attend:
If you are involved with sports development, whether you are
working for a local authority, CSP, governing body or any other organisation,
this workshop is for you
The presenter, Svend Elkjaer, is Director of the Sports Marketing Network, a leading training company, information provider and marketing consultancy which focuses completely on how we can make sport more marketing and customer focused.
Over the last three years people from clubs, leisure centres and sports organisations have participated in Sports Marketing Network’s workshops. Sports organisations which have benefited from SMN’s expertise include Rugby Football Union, Football Association, Sports Council Wales, England Squash, Scottish Association of Local Sports Councils, SkillsActive, Sport England, England Athletics, England Netball, Welsh Rugby Union, British Speedway, UniBond League, Universities, 12 County Sports Partnerships and 45+ local authorities (from Cardiff to Stockton) and almost 1,500 sports clubs
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