By: Neil McNab, Executive Director, Rush Union
As parents, we want to help our children find activities—often sports—for which they have great interest. We are passionate about it. And once our children discover a passion for something, parents often go into high gear, investing time, energy, and money into that discovery. It’s easy to get caught up.
The studies on early sport specialization have been prevalently publicized over the last several years. Some disadvantages of specializing at a young age have been highlighted; and yet as soon as our child tells us they like something or want to try a new activity, we immediately sign them up for year-round camps, clinics, season play, private lessons, you name it. Good. Better. Best. Next level. Youth sports have become masterful marketing machines and with that can come the realization that we might be pushing our children too soon to commit to one thing.
Many sports offer year-round options now, beginning as young as 6 years old. Options for our kids are important. And some—a few, like Olympians—like that singular focus and thrive, even at a tender single-digit age. Most will do better having exposure to multiple options. And when we stand back, soak it all in, it’s good to be committed to a program, but equally as important to say no if that’s the better route.
My daughter recently expressed an interest in playing soccer over the winter months—the “off-season”. This was something we had never invested in before as a family. How much did we want to invest in a year-round activity when that would mean missing out on full-family time? Fortunately, Rush Union offers a program that is “customized” to parents’ and athletes’ off-season tolerances. Short programs, a la carte clinics, and pay-as-you-go programs came to the table based on feedback received by our members. In my personal case, we selected a five-week program with practices and no game play. It was a good balance. My daughter and my family enjoyed our winter.
As a family we often travel over the summer on vacation or enroll our children in other summer camps like County Kids Camp, which is an outdoor camp that focuses on good old fashion outdoor activities like playing in the mud, and rope swings into the lake. So, summer soccer leagues may not be on the horizon for us, but a weeklong soccer camp will likely be worked in somewhere this July.
If you are unsure what do to with your child’s sporting experience, there are people you can turn to for perspective, starting with your athlete. Simply ask them what they would like to do with their time. Their passion for a sport will certainly grow if your child gets to be in the driving seat of their own experience. There are also parenting groups, such as Soccer Parenting Association, that provide parents with great guidance and options. League organizers and coaches can also offer advice.
If your child has not found their passion yet, you do not need to heavily invest in time or finances to discover where it may lie. Many children’s interests change over time. My oldest son is nearly 12 and has not settled on any one thing that genuinely piques his interest, so we encourage him to experiment with lots of activities as he goes on his journey of self-discovery. And it may be that he doesn’t want to do just one thing.
More about Neil:
Neil played through the Manchester City youth system from 1994-98. Moved to Portsmouth F.C. in the summer of 1998 and turned professional at Portsmouth in November 1998 where he played until 2001.
In April 2001 Neil moved to the USA and during a 4 year span played professionally for the Utah Blittz, Long Island Rough Riders, Syracuse Salty Dogs and the Wilmington Hammerheads until winter 2004. Neil was part of two USL National Championship teams with the Utah Blitzz, and Long Island Rough Riders respectively.
Neil coached at various youth programs throughout the U.S. from 2001-2004. In the winter of 2004 Neil started coaching for TYSA (Tucker Youth Soccer Association) where he became Assistant Director of coaching in 2005-2008.
Neil joined CFC in June 2008 where he served as Executive Director for Chiefs Futbol Club. In the summer of 2020, Chiefs FC and Georgia Rush merged to form Rush Union Soccer, where Neil currently serves as Executive Director.
Neil holds the USSF A, UEFA C coaching licenses, the NSCAA Director of Coaching Diploma, and the USSF Grassroots Instructor License.
*Note this article first appeared in the March 2022 Our Milton Neighbor publication and consent to redistribute was provided by the author*
As I returned to the sports tourism industry after a short detour into other sectors, I was excited to see the new trends and how the industry had grown. The one consistent theme I observed was the significant increase in the use of technology to support the youth sports industry.
This included the significant advancement in the minimum standard of facilities. Nowadays, if you do not have Wi-Fi and mobile food ordering throughout the entire site, you are behind the times. The newer facilities even provide the destinations and the event organizer with consumer mobile tracking. Event organizers will no longer need surveys to understand their customers, they will now have numerous data points on their consumers with one click of a mouse. I observed significant increases in registration platforms, housing booking technology, and RFP distribution solutions. These RFP distribution solutions allow small to mid-size event organizers the ability to position and sell themselves to the right facilities and destinations.
However, there is very little information available on how to build your RFP to help those that are new to the youth sports tourism game create the proper RFP to get them noticed by the right potential partners. So here are some tips I have learned over the years that will help you compete on a national scale.
- Self-Evaluation – Take time to analyze your business. Do a SWOT analysis and be honest with yourself. Maybe you are great at operating your events, but do not have the business acumen to drive revenue through anything other than registrations? Or maybe you are a revenue-making machine, but your customer service is lacking, and you are losing teams to your competitors. Understanding where you are as a company and where you want to go in the future will be vital to selling yourself to destinations.
- Who Are You? – Give destinations a clear view of your company’s mission and purpose. Highlight why you are different than your competitors. Identify any causes or initiatives that you support. This will help paint the picture of what kind of organization you are at your core.
- Understand Your Audience – For the most part, you will be sending your RFP to destinations across the county, who will then pair you with the right facility. The vast majority will mostly care about “heads in beds”, basically how many room nights you are producing in their area. This is because their funding comes from hotel taxes. While this is an important element to the value of your events, it is not the only element destinations consider. Other key factors may include marketing exposure to the destination (TV coverage, international/national media, etc.), filling inventory in new sport-specific facilities, and/or aligning with a community’s initiatives (diversity, attracting young professionals, health/nutrition).
- Needs vs Wants – Identify a list of necessary, must-have items that you will need from a facility and destination to run your event. These should be items that must be secured or the event is a non-starter. This may include specific dates, the number of playing surfaces, square footage of indoor space, minimum hotel rooms on peak nights, venue requirements, etc. Once you have this established, you will know your floor and then you can add in your wants (wish list) items. This may include grant funding, volunteer support, sponsorship dollars, in-kind donations, etc. You do not have to identify which items are needs vs wants but it will help you when comparing the value of each RFP response. Providing a deadline for responses and giving a framework of your evaluation criteria will help make sure you receive qualified proposals.
- Provide History, Project Growth – If you are an established event organizer, make sure to identify what you have produced historically. Key items to include are the number of years the event has taken place, the total number of participants (local and out of area), spectators, and the number of hotel room nights produced. If this is your first event, you will have to “sell the dream”! Identify how and why your event will be successful and grow in future years.
- Testimonials – Use your network and previous customers/partners to showcase your value. These testimonials/referrals will help provide you with credibility and assist you in getting the most support possible. These can come from previous host destinations, hoteliers, vendors, and participants from your events.
I hope these tips are valuable to you and help provide the framework for creating a great RFP that gets you the responses you need. The goal is to package your event properties so that you get the most support possible, while also being honest with what you can provide. The goal is to find the right partner so that you can grow together for years to come. We at Pellucid Travel have years of experience in this industry and offer this service to our partners. We would love to learn more about your organization and would be happy to assist you in maximizing your RFPs!
Date: Aug 9, 2021 10:52 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Listen to the full interview here
By Kimberly Pfluke, National Sales Manager at Pellucid Travel
All of us at Pellucid Travel strive to ensure our guests are safe not just at hotels but at all of your events. We have a great relationship and work directly with all of the major hotel brands. Getting back on the road and traveling again seems scary right now but you will be surprised by all the effort and safety protocols hotels are putting in place. They truly are going above and beyond to make you want to return sooner than later.
First and foremost, the safety and wellbeing of both employees and customers is the number one priority among major hotel brands, such as, Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and Wyndham. These hotels and various other brands have enhanced their cleaning protocols to help meet Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requirements and follow state guidelines. Of course, hotels have had cleaning protocols in place prior to this pandemic but now they’re taking it further. Best Western Hotels won’t allow a guest or employee to access a guest room until it has been vacant for 24 – 72 hours. This helps protect the employee from coming in contact with a potentially contaminated area, as the CDC states that the virus can live on different surfaces for several hours.The Hilton brand has taken another step in their cleaning supplies. Hilton has partnered with RB the makers of Lysol® & Dettol®. They’re using hospital grade cleaners, disinfecting high touch areas like electronic controls, handles and knobs, and placing a room seal on the door upon completion of cleaning and disinfecting.
Besides guest rooms being disinfected intensely, all public areas including elevators, gyms, pool areas, and dining facilities are thoroughly addressed as well. You will find disinfecting stations with wipes and hand sanitizer throughout the hotel. Public area access will vary among hotels, so it’s important to ask when you make your reservations what will be available to you. But be reassured that these areas are getting carefully cleaned regularly and modifications have been made to meet social distancing guidelines of 6 feet apart. If dining is not available, inquiry if there are Grab and Go options. Many hotels have implemented this service as well as extending room service hours.
Checking into a hotel has gotten easier. To help minimize employee and guest interaction or waiting in long lines, major brands have developed keyless entry. Just by just using your smartphone and their app. No need to stop at the front desk. You can simply check-in on your phone, select your room and even make additional requests, such as, adding a bottle of wine or a snack. Hilton, Choice, Marriott and Wyndham offer this keyless entry option, also known as, a digital key, through their app. If you’re interested in staying at a hotel that offers this service, be sure to check their website or call the hotel directly for assistance with setting up the app and their check-in process.
I certainly hope this information will be helpful to you when considering to travel again. Please note all information provided will vary among hotels and not every hotel offers these services or performs the same protocols. There is a lot more information available to you directly on each hotel’s website.
Contact us at Kim@pellucidtravel.com to learn more about how we can help navigate these tricky times.
You can reach us via email or feel free to schedule an meeting today! Click to Schedule
Below you will find direct links to hotel chains and brands cleaning protocols as well as travel advisory information on COVID-19. Stay safe and well.
Hilton Brand:
Marriott:
Wyndham:
https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/about-us/faq-covid-19
https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/about-us/count-on-us
Hyatt:
https://www.hyatt.com/info/coronavirus-statement
IHG:
Choice:
https://www.choicehotels.com/support/travel-alerts
https://www.choicehotels.com/about/commitment-to-clean-hotels
Best Western:
https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/hotels/discover-best-western/covid-19-response.ht ml
Red Roof Inn:
https://www.redroof.com/coronavirus-notice
World Health Organizations suggestions on staying at Hotels