"Marketing is matching what your club offers or could offer with what your target market or type of volunteers and players needs or wants.”
Marketing and promotion covers a wide range of activities from posters and flyers to direct mail and events. However, whatever means of promotion you choose, some general principles should be applied:
- Why? - Decide on the key aim of your promotion (eg attract more players, raise funds, generate interest for an event etc).
- What? – You need to communicate all the key messages. This should include features (our Club is accredited) and benefits ( we offer safe and secure sporting opportunities) as well as providing the proof or reasons to believe (we have all the relevant checks and certificates etc).
- Who? – You need to define your target audience to help you select the most appropriate technique to use. For example, to encourage more young people to participate at your club, you would be best to display posters in local schools but to secure sponsorship from local businesses will require a more personalised approach.
- How? – only once you have considered the above, you can then think about what form you promotion should take.
runningsports have produced a booklet entitled “Promoting and marketing your club” that explains what marketing involves and how to get the most from it. It also gives practical hints and tips for the different channels through which you might promote your club, such as:
- Posters
- Press releases and local radio
- Direct mail
- Flyers
- Events
- Website
This can be downloaded from the “see also” section in the right hand panel. Here, you can also download some example templates for posters, leaflets and press releases that are a great starting point when looking to market your club.
