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Our Serve: It’s a Simple Question, But …

By Peter Francesconi

How do we get more tennis consumers?

That’s the one question basic to every group involved in tennis. No matter what part of the industry you’re in — teaching pro, retailer, manufacturer, tennis association, court builder, tournament director, etc. — your business will benefit when you get more people to consume tennis goods, services or events.

In fact, that’s what this magazine is all about — helping you reach more consumers. We need more people to play more tennis, to buy more tennis products and services, and to attend and watch more tennis tournaments and events.

Although the question — How do we get more consumers? — is simple, the answer, as we’ve found out for decades now, is not easy at all. We all have our own opinions about how best to reach more consumers and draw them in to the sport.

I believe appealing to consumers based on the health and fitness aspects of tennis — and how more and more people want something fun yet healthy to do — will be a clear winner for getting more people to play. Others feel that an all-out push for kids is the best way to reach more consumers, bringing both children and their parents into tennis. There are those who believe social engagement in this digital world is what will bring more people into the game. And still others think we need to cultivate more American champions, so that star power will attract more players to the court. All of these, and many others, are certainly valid ways to reach and create more consumers for tennis.

To help this discussion along, the Tennis Industry Association is bringing together experts from many segments — including pro tennis, youth sports, health and fitness, media, technology, etc. — for the inaugural “Future of Tennis Summit,” which will be held March 11-12 in Indian Wells, Calif., during the BNP Paribas men’s and women’s pro tournament.

The idea is for the Summit to generate ideas that can help get consumers to play more, watch more, and buy more — important so we can put this industry on a path for sustainable growth.

As you should be aware, one of our industry’s goals is to reach 10 million frequent players in the U.S. by 2020 (right now we have about 5.4 million frequent players). This unique Future of Tennis Summit will help provide insight into how we can achieve that.

Visit futureoftennis.com to see the current agenda and list of high-powered speakers and panelists, including presenters from outside of the tennis industry who can help provide insight and opinions about what tennis needs to do to grow.

Since this directly affects your business, we’d like to know what you think about how to get more tennis consumers. After decades of trying, we know there are no easy answers.

Peter Francesconi, Editorial Director
peter@racquettech.com

See all articles by Peter Francesconi

About the Author

Peter Francesconi is editorial director of Tennis Industry magazine.

From the March 2014 issue
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