Grow Your Tennis Club Profits With Video Marketing

The Covid-19 pandemic has certainly changed how we socialize, entertain, and live our lives. It has also affected how we execute our marketing strategies. It has forced us to think outside of the box and learn new skills (including new video marketing skills).

One of the leading ways many businesses market their products in this Covid-19 environment is by using their video channels (e.g. YouTube) and by doing live events, such as webinars and webcasts.

In today's blog post, we will go over a few ways to incorporate video into your marketing strategy.

Why should tennis clubs use video marketing?

Video marketing strategy is not new. However, videos have been dominating all marketing platforms more and more every year, and have become a powerful tool to promote products and services.

Take a look at what is happening around us:

• Video conferences have become a replacement for face-to-face communications for many people;
• Online classes have become a popular way to get a degree or to learn new languages and skills (including tennis skills);
• We search YouTube for videos of anything and everything - food recipes, crafts tutorials, product reviews, cat videos, and tennis tips and tricks.

Learning has shifted more and more towards videos and online learning. People are hungry for high-quality content and more and more users prefer watching videos over reading. In the last decade, we have worked with hundreds of marketing clients, and those that effectively use video marketing definitely stand out from their competition.

Do you have clear goals?

Although video marketing is more popular than ever, it does not mean the videos you make will become successful.

Before you begin shooting videos, it is important to determine your business goals, and only after that, you can get creative and pick what kinds of videos you will be using to achieve those goals. Check out the below list for ideas and evaluate whether one of these options might work for you.

• Demo videos
• Tutorials, educational videos, "how-to" videos
• Event videos
• Interviews or spotlight videos
• Brand videos
• Explainer videos
• Testimonial videos
• Live videos
• Webinar recordings

Demo videos

Demo videos normally show how to use a specific product (e.g. a tennis racquet or a tennis training tool). So, if you have a tennis pro shop with lots of offerings or your tennis club got a new tennis training gadget, you could record a video of unboxing the items, installing, customizing, and showing people how to use them.

Tutorials, educational videos, "how-to" videos

Such instructional videos normally revolve around your area of expertise. As a tennis professional, you could shoot series of short videos - for example, quick tips on different tennis shots ("2-minute tennis tips" or "Tuesday tennis tips from "). You can also make videos on how to achieve certain goals on the tennis court or metal game tennis tips. Many tennis coaches do video analysis of their students as part of their job all the time, so why not use the same type of videos as a marketing tool? You can analyze a professional tennis player's shot or a student's tennis shot (if they would be willing to go on camera). The options in this video category are many.

Event videos

If you are hosting an event (e.g. an open house or tennis tournament) you can create a highlight reel, include interviews with organizers or attendees, or feature footage of the presentations being done. If you have or had a great event at your tennis club, why not share footage of that with those who could not make it?

Interviews or spotlight videos

Short interviews with new tennis employees or existing staff could be a fun way to introduce them to your club members. Keep in mind some people can be shy, while others are more open, so you can always provide a list of questions and have them choose a few they would like to answer.

If you are attending an event where many industry experts will come together, you could ask them for interviews, record the questions and answers on different topics, and publish the videos on your website of YouTube channel.

Brand videos

Brand videos normally showcase yourself, your business, and your brand. They are normally part of a larger advertising campaign and feature your products and services but also describe your mission and values. The goal of such a video is to build awareness around you, your company, and attract interest.

Explainer videos

Explainer videos are exactly that - they explain what your product or service is about or describe a product feature. Normally the video is short in length and addresses a specific consumer problem and explains why they are the solution. Unlike other videos that can be DIY, made at home, etc., explainer videos are expected to be high quality so if this is what you would like to produce, it is best to hire an expert who has a lot of experience in video production and editing.

Testimonial videos

It is one thing to explain and pitch your own product in a video, but it is a totally different story when someone else raves with enthusiasm about your business on a video. Positive reviews build trust, so seek out satisfied tennis customers and club members and ask them if they would be willing to provide a 5-minute video review of your tennis club or a product they purchased from your tennis pro shop. When doing testimonial videos it is best if they are not scripted and are as genuine as possible. Scripted videos turn off viewers so they could potentially be useless, or even damage your tennis program reputation.

Live videos

Live videos or live streaming have become the future of video marketing. You may ask why that is, and the answer is:

• It is live, so you connect with your audience right away via Q&As;
• No cuts and no retakes.

Live videos are not easy, so preparation, practice, and dry rehearsals are necessary to make sure there are no technical issues. Informing your tennis audience in advance about those is important if you wish to have a lot of attendance and participation.

Webinar recordings

A webinar is a presentation, workshop, or educational class hosted online using a type of webinar software (e.g. Zoom or GoToWebinar). For a webinar to work as a marketing tool, it needs to offer real value, educational content, and establish the webinar presenter as an industry expert. The attendees can tune in from virtually any device that has an internet connection, such as a laptop, smartphone, or desktop computer. Webinars can be live or pre-recorded with live Q&A at the end. We will dedicate a separate post on how to run an effective webinar.

If you host a webinar or participate in a webinar as a guest speaker, be sure to record the video. After that, you can do a few edits and publish it on your website or video channel, so it continues to bring traffic to your website.

What if you do not have a budget for marketing videos?

With the global pandemic, many businesses are cutting their marketing expenditures. The good news is that most of the above-mentioned marketing videos you can produce at home or on the tennis court, by yourself with simple tools, such as a phone camera. Many people prefer videos that are not "overly produced".

The most important part of this video marketing effort is that your videos bring encouragement, motivation, hope, or/and happiness to your tennis audience. This is the real reason why many videos made with a simple cheap camera often go viral on the internet.

Need help with your tennis club video marketing? Contact us.