By: Kimberly Runyan
"When employees believe in the brand and are engaged in your company initiatives, they generally are going to be motivated by their work, more loyal to the organization and are more likely to be powerful marketers and sellers (brand advocates), spreading your company message." (from Todd Kunsman "Internal Marketing: Why Your Company Should Embrace It")
We are in an age where companies are embracing and prioritizing a cultural shift where "everyone in the company is a marketer." Improving this effort requires a big push in internal marketing led by HR and marketing teams, with leaders and executives at the forefront to set an example. The racquet sports and club industries are no different.
For the last 2 years, Cliff Drysdale Tennis has developed new and widespread internal marketing strategies, unlike anything I have ever experienced in the racquet sports industry, and the impact has been significant, both from an increase in recruitment, employee and player engagement, continuing education opportunities and an overall morale boost. We have successfully created our own racquet sports brand ambassador army which has been invaluable both to CDT and our partners.
Some of CDT’s internal marketing tactics have included:
Improvement and expansion of orientation practices
Encouraging input and feedback during roundtable discussions and surveys
Nurturing communication and collaboration among tennis pros and directors through weekly organized “coffee chats.”
Spotlighting both our PTU pros in training and other club staff team members through employee e-newsletters, “Cliffy Award” nominations, features in our semi-annual print magazine and social media campaigns
Aggressive monthly social media content plans, with CDT Marketing supporting the clubs both in the planning process and execution
For more on this topic and ideas for internal marketing tactics, I highly recommend
reading Kunsman’s article here. It provides some great insight to get started on improving your internal plan and creating your own brand ambassador army.