October-November 2007 -- I am proud to serve as president of USPTA. I look forward to continuing to work for all members of our Association. One of my goals for the next two years is our ongoing public relations effort. I’m sure you have seen our "That’s Who We Are" tag lines on various press releases, related stories and ads. Our mission is to continue to convey the importance of USPTA to our targeted markets. The two markets that I am focusing on are the tennis consumers and those making the hiring decisions. Vehicles for getting our message to the consumer include our continuing presence on the Tennis Channel, advertising in publications such as Inside Tennis, and, beginning in 2008, a renewed emphasis on regional publications such as Florida Tennis. Taking the message to those who make the hiring decisions involves our advertising in CMAA, IHRSA and parks and recreation publications, and attending trade shows for these various groups. We will continue to apply our resources to a more global effort to get our message into these markets. With that being said, I often compare our Association’s membership to membership at a club. The absolute best representatives for a club are its members and the same can be said for our Association. Let us each take an active role in USPTA’s public relations campaign.
Let’s look at some ways that we can each help publicize the Association. The consumers are our customers, or potential customers - club members, clients who take lessons, players who participate in our tournaments and programs, and those who frequent our pro shop. Our goal is simply for these consumers to understand what being a USPTA Professional means and to consider this when choosing to patronize a tennis pro. How many of us have had a potential customer ask us questions about our background and experience? Probably quite a few, right? But, how many times have we been asked if we are a certified professional and, more importantly, USPTA certified? So let’s attack the problem from our own sphere of influence. Make it a goal to share with your audience the importance of being a member of USPTA. An obvious example is when you are going to be away from your club attending either your division convention or our World Conference. Let your members and clients know about the education and networking opportunities. Pass along some information or drills that you learned at one of the seminars and let your students know that it was information acquired at the USPTA conference. Another example is to occasionally discuss with your clients the USPTA testing process and what you did to become a member of our Association. Sometimes when I am working on a stroke with a student I will compare their results to what we expect in the playing portion of our exam. It is a great way to get them to ask a few questions about the testing process for our Association. It may be as easy as posting a personalized USPTA banner or sign. These are just a few examples of how you can personally take our campaign to the consumer.
The second market we must target includes people who make the hiring decisions. This may be a club manager, commercial club owner, private club president or tennis committee chair, athletic director, recreation director, etc. Even USPTA pros hire tennis teachers. If you do, do you insist that they are certified by USPTA? Each of us has someone we report to, so let’s make it our mission to remind them of the importance of hiring USPTA Professionals. Make an effort to schedule time to discuss the continuing education that you receive as a member of USPTA. Remind them of our liability insurance and how your USPTA membership protects them in case of an accident on court. If we can convince those who do the hiring that USPTA certification is a must, then we have gone a long way to ensure that the professionals who follow us at our respective jobs are USPTA members.
I firmly believe that each USPTA member who takes time to do the little things can make a noticeable difference in USPTA’s recognition among consumers and those making the hiring decisions. I look forward to serving you for the next two years and remaining a part of the team effort to tell our public "Who We Are."
