The following white paper for club sports leaders looking to learn more about the recruiting process at it is handled at the club level. Abstract Recently, SportsRecruits conducted an anonymous survey of its users regarding their experience in the club sports space. The brief study was meant to provide insight into what the families of club player’s were thinking as it relates to their time spent with a club team or playing a club sport. Three of the most interesting findings are highlighted here. You can read the full white paper below. Introduction As we have previously explored , the youth club sports scene has grown at an exponential level over the past decade. Knowing that the market for club teams has necessarily increased to match participation is a great start in understanding the industry. Now that we know the market is expanding, the next logical step is to try to gain insight into the decision-making and experiences of the participants in the space. In December 2014, SportsRecruits sent its users a 10-question survey based on their club sports experience. The survey was completely voluntary and conducted anonymously. In all, 707 responses were gathered. Trends: What the Numbers Say As a club owner, director or coach, the demands of families in recent years have increased. Part of this is numbers driven – more participants necessitate more care – while part is competition driven. As the number of youth sports has continued to rise, college roster spots are not following suit. Thus, families feel more pressure to be recruited, which is then directly transferred to a club. Let’s quantify these anecdotes with numbers from the SportsRecruits survey. Below are three trends taken from the answers provided by players and parents. Each trend helps to provide insight into the thought processes of the families. 1. Families Are Not Afraid to Switch Clubs Numbers 319: Respondents who said they have not (or have no immediate plans) to switch club teams. 293: Respondents who said they have switched clubs or are unsure if they will stay with their current club. What They Mean The numbers show that while 52.12% of families have not or do not plan on switching clubs, 47.88% have switched are unsure if they will stay with their current club. Said another way – almost half of the respondents have or are unsure if they will leave a club. Analysis Regardless of industry, customer retention is one of the biggest and most important indicators of a successful business. According to Accenture, loyalties are declining even in industries where satisfaction is relatively high. Taking this point further, it is noted consumer switching varies by industry, but that “customer churn is plainly a universal problem—a cause for concern since the cost of acquisition is always significantly higher than the cost of retention.” Customer churn – a fancy way of saying how many customers a business loses – should be high on a business owner’s mind. In the club sports space, with increasing competition and an increasing number of participants, this is a serious challenge. So while 52.12% of respondents have never switched clubs, that number should not inspire confidence given the acquisition costs associated with obtaining new customers. The take away point here is that there are few barriers for families to switch clubs, and they will not hesitate to do so. Having a company-wide strategy to reduce customer churn should be at the forefront of a club’s organizational plans. 2. Club Staffers are Integral in the Recruiting Process Numbers 508: Respondents who cited a club staffer as being most helpful with the recruiting process. 63: Respondents who cited high school coach as being most helpful with the recruiting process. What They Mean The numbers show that 88.97% of the respondents – an overwhelming majority – cite club staffers (Directors, Coaches or Coordinators) as being the most helpful to their recruiting processes. While this is not necessarily surprising, it quantifies just how reliant families have become on clubs for their recruiting needs. Analysis Many clubs came into existence as a way to continue playing a sport in off seasons while offering assistance to student-athletes looking to play their sport at the next level. These numbers, then, indicate something that is no secret to anyone involved in the club sports space: many families turn to clubs, and not high school personnel, for assistance in the recruiting process. While this is certainly an imperfect measure – for example, many times high school coaches are involved in clubs in some capacity – the numbers indicate that high school coaches are not leaned on as heavily as club staffers when it comes to recruiting. Thus, we can logically infer that those clubs offering the best in the way of recruiting value will be the most successful when attracting and retaining customers, since a majority of the families surveyed here are using clubs in part for their acumen in the recruiting space. 3. There is Opportunity in Video Numbers 444: Respondents who said clubs do not assistance with highlight reel production. 172: Respondents who said their club assists them with highlight reels. What They Mean The numbers show that 72.08% of respondents noted that their club team takes no part in the making of their highlight reels. These numbers seem to be an anomaly given the reliance of families on clubs for recruiting assistance and the vital roles highlight reels play in the process. Analysis Highlight reels are one of the most vital aspects of the recruiting process. Coaches need these videos to get a feel for a player and to see if they are someone that fits their program athletically. As we have noted, the reliance of families on clubs for their recruiting needs is extraordinarily high. So it seems then to be an anomaly that most respondents noted their club is not assisting with the creation of one of the most important parts of that recruiting process. With increased competition and the reduction of customer churn in mind, there seems to be a natural business opportunity to provide real value with the creation of highlight reels. While highlight reels are complicated to make – involving both video resources and technical capabilities – plenty of businesses offer these types of services exist. Having a highlight reel strategy for student-athletes would be a wise consideration for club’s looking to increase the value they provide to users while simultaneously assisting with one of the most important aspects of the recruiting process. Conclusion Competition in the club space is only increasing. Families are trying to maximize the value they get – which is largely defined by recruiting assistance – and will move to the best opportunity available. Clubs should constantly be considering adding value to reduce their customer churn, and a natural place for this to occur ahead of the competition is in the video and highlight reel space. _______________________ Follow us on Twitter: @SpikeMal @LacrosseRecruit

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