Home » TI magazine » Education » You Can Run Tennis Camps That Make a Difference

You Can Run Tennis Camps That Make a Difference

By Joe Dinoffer

Just like any other business, some tennis camps succeed and some fail. But there are some ingredients that you can add to your camp recipe that can ensure success. These are features of any program that can get your campers coming back year after year and telling all of their friends about the experience.

Although some of the points below may add a few hundred dollars more to your expense column, they will also add more to your income statement as well. Think of it like going for your best shot in the finals of a tournament. Play tight and you lose. Relax, do the right things, and chances are you’ll come out a winner.

Tip #1: It’s All About Attitude

Camping is a people business and positive attitudes are contagious. Hire the right staff and motivation and training is relatively easy. Hire the wrong staff and expect sleepless nights. Then, when you have good staff, work hard to keep them. Kids coming back to your camp will have the most fun when their favorite counselor comes back as well.

How can you increase staff retention?

• Bring in name tennis coaches and clinicians for pre-camp training of your staff.
• Send them birthday gifts.
• Give end of summer and seniority bonuses.
• Produce year-round camp newsletter, including staff photos and non-camp activities such as how Mary Smith is coaching her first high school tennis team.

Tip #2: Recognition and Awards

There’s a saying that the sweetest thing for a person to hear is his or her own name. This says a lot about the importance of building self-esteem through encouragement and recognition. Among the various phases of our lives, pre-teens and teenagers, in particular, respond to recognition and success in big ways. Just remember that each and every camper needs to feel successful. Therefore, emphasizing attitude and effort over results is critical. Set achievable and personalized goals so that each and every camper can experience something they will remember sweetly the entire year before the next summer rolls around. Repeat all achievements and give recognition as often as possible. Campers should take home something to show for their efforts and to remember their success at your camp throughout the year.

Tip #3: Mentoring and Peer Power

One fact of life is that children, teens very much included, are most motivated and inspired by their older peers. It is critical to set up your programs so that each age group is scheduled to spend time helping their younger peers and is also helped by their older ones. For the oldest campers, give them extra time with your counselors. This tactic helps guarantee success on many levels.

• The younger children will be motivated more by peers than adults.
• Their performance will automatically improve when they are more motivated.
• The older children who are helping the younger ones will build self-esteem in the process by feeling needed and appreciated.

Tip #4: Life Skills Training

The most successful camps integrate life skills training into their sports programs. Again, you can be creative with this one and have the older and perhaps more outgoing kids be part of discussion groups with younger children with the same advantages listed in the previous tip. Have a mature adult sit in on the discussions to guide the topics and create more focus as needed, but let the children run it. Competitive sports and life skills go hand in hand and help build youngsters into better adults. Promote this feature of your programming. The parents will love you for it.

Tip #5: Self-Directed Programming

You know it but probably don’t do it. Ask the kids what they want. Put 50 children in a camp program and you do not have 50 children in a cohesive group. You have 50 individuals, each with individual needs, desires, and aspirations. Have a basic program and then offer electives, like a college program or progressive high school. Increase the options and flexibility for the campers, as they get older, to entice the children with the reward of greater perceived freedom when they come back summer after summer. One size does not fit all, so don’t even try.

Tip #6: Camp Website and E-mails

The Internet is a new and powerful tool, but only if it is used to your advantage. If you have a website but it is seldom updated and lacks the punch and excitement to bring people back to see what’s new, you have failed. Here are some ingredients for using the worldwide web to help you reach your goals.

• Keep it current with photos and stories. Try a monthly update and encourage campers to e-mail you their stories of success and achievements outside of their weeks at your camp. If they don’t send them in, contact them. Each child has a story to tell, whether it be an achievement in tennis, school, or some extracurricular activity.
• Send an e-mail newsletter to campers and staff every month, punctually and without fail. And, don’t forget to get the e-mail addresses of your campers and their parents. These days, this point is critical or you will not reach both. Put links on the newsletter to your website and if possible include photos of campers.
• This may sound like a lot, but it isn’t. Keep it short, sweet, and informative. It does not have to be a lot of work. Who knows, maybe you even have a camper who would like to take your website on as a project?

See all articles by Joe Dinoffer

About the Author

Joe Dinoffer is a Master Professional for both the PTR and USPTA. He speaks frequently at national and international tennis teacher workshops as a member of both the HEAD Penn and Reebok National Speaker's Bureaus. He is president of Oncourt Offcourt Inc. and has written 16 books and produced more than 30 instructional videos.

From the June 2004 issue
Permalink