Fiend at Court Unplugged
One of the most interesting aspects of the “2021 Adult Tournament Changes” published by the USTA is the claim that the new structure would make it easier to market tennis to the consumer. If this means that the USTA is actually about to start marketing tennis tournaments, this is super exciting news. As I previously observed in “Donald Dell Fires Shots Across the USTA Bow,” I cannot recall seeing an advertisement for playing tennis outside of a tennis context. Ever.
I am fairly skeptical that the previous structure of adult tournament competition is to blame for the failure of the USTA to market tennis tournaments. Additionally, I would observe that asserting that the structural updates will make it easier to market tournaments is not actually a commitment that a new campaign will be mounted. I am steeling myself for disappointment in that regard.
As I imagine what a serious marketing campaign might look like, one of the first and most critical questions is exactly who will be targeted by this marketing campaign. Last Monday in “A Deeper Cut: USTA Restructuring and Player Development” details were shared on the strategic pillars of the USTA’s restructuring plan, one of which speaks directly to participation in tennis.
Attract, Engage and Retain a New Generation of Diverse Tennis
USTA Strategic Plan, Strategic Choices #1, June 8, 2020
Participants
A strict semantic interpretation of that objective is that the USTA has no interest in retaining the people who are already currently participating in tennis. Rather, the objective speaks to attracting, engaging, and retaining only new participants to the sport. I genuinely hope that is an oversight in the wording rather than the strategic intent.
There is a lot of trepidation about the 2021 tournament changes in the existing tournament playing community within my home section of Texas. The apparent elimination of mixed doubles, which has a high participation rate, is particularly worrisome. Specifically, some are speculating that without mixed doubles that participation rates in Texas will decline in 2021.
In my initial inquire to the USTA, I asked the specific question of whether the USTA studied the places where tournaments are working well and consider that in the path forward. The answer I received to that question was not particularly satisfying.
The USTA studied the current adult tournament structure and took into account all Sections performance based on participation as well as the number of tournaments per location.
USTA National Response to Fiend at Court Informational Request
It takes a lot of effort to frame a positive spin around that response. If the study started with the examination of the structure, that implies that a decision had already been made that the structure was to be updated. If this is the case, then updating the structure was a preordained solution to the declining participation problem rather than the solution that emerged after studying participation.
The second part of that response implies that some places have higher participation because they simply have more tournaments. That seems to downplay the fact the tournaments exist in those areas because there is an a player base that supports those events. Merely holding a tournament does not conjure up players to play that event. Additionally the declining participation in established tournaments is evidence that there is more to attracting participation than scheduling a tournament.
The most positive spin that I can put on that statement is that the USTA has a big time problem with tournament participation nationally. They necessarily need to take a broader perspective on what makes sense on the national scale rather than catering to any one particular section.
The “2021 Adult Tournament Changes” webinar made repetitive claims that these new structure is in response to the wishes and intent of the adult tennis consumer. I asked if there were studies or data collection that led to that conclusion. Again, the response was not satisfying.
We studied heavily the participation and retention numbers for national adult tournaments. Also, looked at various research papers on consumer spending habits, entertainment preferences, and free time and we found that it was important to provide players with various products that
USTA National Response to Fiend at Court Informational Request
appeal to consumers based on their preferences.
I am… underwhelmed by that statement. At the same time, I am highly motivated to see this new initiative succeed. Over the next couple of days I will be putting pen to paper to re-imagine what a thoughtful and comprehensive consumer analysis of the tennis playing market might entail.
- 2021 Adult Tournament Changes, USTA National Webinar, undated.
- USTA Adult Tournament Changes for 2021, USTA National Website, viewed 7/25/2020
- USTA Announces Sweeping Plan to Reorganize and Prioritize Its Structure, Events, and Activities to Grow the Game and Service the Broader Tennis Industry, USTA Official Press Release, hosted on Open Court website, viewed 8/2/2020.
- Fiend at Court Request, July 21, 2020, (Official response to emailed questions.)
