[phirel]

On another thread about what people would do if they were ATA President, the discussion quickly went to promotion ideas and retention of new members. I have some thoughts on how this might be partially accomplished.

1. Encourage, or somehow require, experienced shooters to talk with new members. Make them feel like they belong to the group. Give a few tips to the new shooters but recognize they can not learn everything at once. Start with the important things like seeing the target and keeping the head down. Minor things like foot position or what shells to use can come later.

2. Encourage, or require name tags for all shooters. This was common 25 years ago but not common now. I would talk with more new shooters if I could remember their names.

3. Strive to explain to a new shooter that an expensive gun is not the answer to high scores and that a score of 80 for a singles event is not a bad thing for a new shooter.

Pat Ireland

 

[grnberetcj]

Pat,

Those are good ideas and I'm sure would help in retaining shooters. However, it has been my observation that many shooters (trap, skeet & clays) are just not "competitive". They lack the necessary skills to be so, that's why there are so many shooters in the B & A classes.

There are ways to make these people feel good about their scores and themselves, but we'd have to revamp the entire class, category and trophy system that is now in effect.

What may be needed within the ATA is more leagues, games and a more user friendly "win" format.

Curt - Delaware

 

[lumper]

more user friendly "win" format ... like that will ever happen.

 

[Rollin Oswald]

Good ideas, Pat. What would also help is to overcome the anti-gun nuts' negative press concerning guns. We could possibly counter their nutsy articles with articles of our own, articles that promote the benefits of clays shooting.

Although this approach would divorce clays shooting from all other types of shooting - pistol, rifle, cowboy, paint balls and even hunting. Let those populations handle their own promotion.

Our promotional approach would go something like this: "Clays shooting replaces participant inclination to murder his or her fellow-man. Clay shooting makes America safer for anti-gun nuts, tree-huggers and normal people alike."

Let's put clay shooting in a favorable light, not just tolerable. We could advertise and offer an invitation to experienced and potential mass murders and then claim responsibility for their rehabilitation.

Rollin

 

[jester-the-molester]

Pat,

#4 - Begin a youth program. Its a great way for parents to spend time with their kids.

 

[JBrooks]

The first thing the ATA needs to do is raise the shoot fee from $2.00 per day to $5.00 per day and TOTALLY allocate the increase to Marketing. This would include establishing pre-packaged marketing programs for clubs to use in the recruitment of new shooters/members, dedicated staff available by phone to support the membership development committees at the clubs and underwriting regional training conferences for those club members serving on membership development committees.

These marketing programs should be focused on adults who have attained a demographic that provides them with sufficient discretionary time and income to fully participate in the sport. Youth programs are great and important, but 95% of those kids will have to quit shooting at 18 when they go to away to school or get a job. Hopefully, they will return in 20+ years but we need to make sure we have something for them to return to.

Membership development committees should include designated club ambassadors that meet and greet new shooters and bring them into fold by introducing them to club members with the class and personality to make them feel welcome. Each club should also have instructors who have qualified as shooting coaches.

If you grow club membership, you will then be able to grow ATA registered shooting. Club membership growth has to come first and the ATA is the organization with the critical mass to get it done.

Oh, and don't whine about the $3.00. If you aren't willing to invest that money in the future of your sport, the sport really doesn't need you because you probably are one of the negative guys that complain about everything anyway.


Jim

 

[Old Dog]

"Give a few tips to the new shooters but recognize they cannot learn everything at once."

This is good advice, Pat. Some shooters try telling the new guy/gal everything they know about trapshooting...which, of course, overwhelms them and in some cases the new shooter quickly loses interest.

OD

 

[grammie]

Jesus Christ!!!!!!!!

No wonder!!!!! No wonder after 100 years the ATA is in the shape it is!!!

If there were just 10 things you could do to retain shooters,,,,only one of you above got one that would go in the top ten,,and that goes to "grnberetcj--Curt from Delaware"

The rest fits somewhere between "more toilet paper-----and a Viagra dispenser in the RV parking area"............

AKA Grammie........

 

[Phil E]

Good ideas, Pat, thanks for posting. These are right-on. Every time I spend a patient hour with a new shooter, and see that gratitude, I feel like I'm strengthening the future of all the shooting sports. Phil E

 

[XTFreak]

lower shot prices from $25 a bag would be a good start.

 

[XTFreak]

lower shot prices from $25 a bag would be a good start.

 

[buckwheat]

Pat, good ideas! No one has mentioned adult continuing education, junior college, college or local park districts as sources of new shooters. Each one of these entities is always looking for new course content in their phys ed or leisure activites courses. A six or eight week course in trap and or (it pains me to even say this) skeet, will go along way towards introducing interested people to the sport. If you have the space at a club, you can combine trap with, dog trials, casting, and other activites on National Wildlife or Outdoors Day, (whichever it is) in the fall. I like the name tags it sure makes a person with middle aged brain farts remember someone's name quicker.
Dan King

 

[jester-the-molester]

Grammie:

Do us a favor and stick a bowling pin up your a$$. The decline in ATA membership is because of decrepit , insidious, spiteful, pathetic old men like yourself. Pat tries to rally support for the promotion of trap shooting and you make a comment like this. Real smooth old man, real smooth.

 

[TOOT]

"They lack the necessary skills to be so, that's why there are so many shooters in the B & A classes. "

You won't get new shooters or retain existing ones' with that snobishness..............

 

[mastergunner]

Pat

The biggest thing that I see that drives new shooters away is that they don't feel welcome and aren't encouraged by other shooters.

For the ones that are made to feel welcome they come back and usually bring someone else with them.

I have been around the sport for many years, but have only really been shooting ATA for the last 4 years. I know there are many of clubs I refuse to go back to because of the treatment that I have received. I always make it a point to go back to places I am made to feel welcome at. There are clubs in my general area I could go to, but I drive another 100 miles or more to go to clubs that treat you like you are a human. We have a great looking club around here, but they can't get any shooters, because of how shooters are treated. They are lucky to have 6 squads on a Sunday. Funny thing is that a club that is smaller will have 22 squads on the next Sunday a shooters who live real close to the other club come to the smaller club.

Feeling welcome and making a new shooter feel welcome is your best tool. Cost you no money and you get free advertisement, because they will tell other people how good they were treated.

If you treat your visiting shooter nice and make them feel welcome you will have the same effect.

Just think how many times you have been treated badly. How much have you spread that around that you would never go there again and strongly suggest to everone you know not to go back there.

Reception and Perception are a no cost thing that probably are the most important and most over looked. If you pay closer attention to these your membership will grow and show will your visiting shooters.

To many clubs fail to realize this.

Some other things, I remember when I was new. Guys trying to help your shooting. Giving a guy a box of ammo. Paying for a round of practice and standing behind him and helping him. Small thing pay big in the end. Sometimes 10 to 20 years down the road.

 

[lumper]

TOOT ... that is one of the downfalls of the sport and thus the ATA. When a new shooter runs across a snob like that that snob doesnt have to even be a member of the ATA to harm the future of the ATA and the future of trap shooting.

 

[lumper]

ctreay ... a dumbarse comment like that one is like the idiot trying to tell a guy that he needs to get an at least $1500 gun because he must have pride in ownership of what he shoots and he can never get that pride with a $500 cheapie.

 

[jimbotrap]

I believe the name tags alone would go a long way to address the communication problem we have. A lot of us have difficulty remembering names. And as such
are embarrassed to address people, thereby admitting we do not remember who they are. (Creates a feeling of unwantedness). And since it costs no more I might express my opinion to have a complete review as to what was good during the late 60's and 70's when to sport was growing. And why it started to decline in the 80's to date. - Jim

 

[grnberetcj]

Good job toot, lumper & C.T......confuse facts with snobishness!

My post had nothing to do with "snobishness", it's merely an observation. Go to a State/Zone shoot and count the numbers in each class and see for yourselves.


Please stick to the facts as presented.

Curt

 

[awbenz]

Pat,

Nice Ideas. I try to get fellow shooters to have there names embrodery on there vest or Storm jacket, etc. So I can put the Lady or Man's face with the name. We have found that with our names on our jackets they don't walk of. Now if Leo would just wear a name tag. LOL. Allen