CLUB SUPPORT

Consulting

Strategy

Commercial 

Creative

Challenge

With massive changes to the way lawn bowls clubs need to operate for the 2020s, Auckland Bowls obtained a small amount of fixed-term funding for a team of club development managers. Our role was to mentor and initiate 'new-thinking' among the more sustainable clubs in the Auckland metropolitan area.

 

Ultimately, we were trying to 'update' the image of the 'traditional' lawn bowls club and its membership. And so increase participation and new memberships from groups not already associated with the sport, or looking for a different way to engage with it.

 

My marketing objectives were to create a consistent 'joined-up', but low-cost club brand with an improved and more effective communications strategy. And to review and improve member engagement with new club access points and playing/social initiatives to draw a more modern and diverse audience into the club space. This audience included existing playing members, the media, schools and the local community, commercial partners and other funding streams.

 

Solutions

  • I offered commercial and marketing guidance to the club within the scope of the programme.

  • I wrote several strategic and tactical documents targeting critical areas of need within the club's commercial and playing operations.

  • I created a new low-cost brand for the club, establishing a clearly defined brand architecture to communicate effectively with all audience groups.

  • Managed and produced the visual iD and all necessary marketing collateral.

  • I produced a more organised, eCommerce website. With online calendars for activity bookings, membership registrations with data collection and online payments to make life easier for the volunteers, and show the club and its achievements in the best possible way.

  • I created the Pt Chev Bowls Parrots - A new school's outreach programme, working with all our local kindergartens, schools and colleges. This new audience significantly increased the club's registered playing membership (of 80-100 regular bowlers) and took the sport to an entirely new generation that otherwise would have gone elsewhere.

  • Engaged with the media via targeted press releases and live interviews on prime time breakfast radio - raising the profile and awareness of the club to the broader community.

 

Results

  • I developed an improved schedule of playing, coaching and social activities ready for club volunteers to deploy.

  • Introduced over 500 children to lawn bowls via the Parrots programme (giving NCEA credits and competition experience to students at Western Springs College and Ngā Puna o Waiōrea).

  • The Parrots programme lowered the club's age range to 3 to 18 year-olds!

  • I helped establish the Clubhouse & Galley as both an entertainment venue and community hub for club members.

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