EDMONTON RUGBY UNION MARKETING MANUAL

OCTOBER 2015

INTRO How do potential players, fans, supporters, and local media hear about what the Edmonton Rugby Union is doing?

A club or league that spends time considering how they tell their potential customers and players about the facilities, services, and opportunities they have to offer is already pursuing a marketing strategy. Marketing is the promotion, branding, selling, and creation of the club or leagues public image to help achieve its goals and objectives. Setting out a plan or an easy to use set of instructions will provide an individual with a club or league to maintain and grow your brand.

START WITH A PLAN Although the marketing plan for a rugby league can encompass a number of things, it’s best to focus on 2 or 3 key issues or goals every year. Limiting focus to these key ideas or goals will prevent resources from being spread too thinly.

Obviously these areas will be determined by the executives of the Edmonton Rugby Union, but some areas to consider include: • Increase membership • Develop junior players/participants • Recruit more volunteers • Increase overall participation and community involvement • Attract funding • Raise funds • Raise community profile • Develop new programs • Increase awareness and business via non-rugby activities

(rentals, etc)

2

METHODS OF MARKETING The Edmonton Rugby Union has a number of actively pursued methods of marketing.

The following is a list of the current and prospective avenues to continue to market rugby in Edmonton and Northern Alberta: • Social Media • Email announcements • Posters • Local newspapers • Newsletters • Editorial Coverage • Sponsorship • Promotional • T-shirts • SportNgin

WEBSITE (SPORTNGIN) The creation and management of an effective website and the use of email or smart phone push notifications deserve special mention.

ALL clubs and ERU should manage their own site on the SportNgin server. The value of a page where a clubs history, schedule, highlights, and contact information is easily accessible to players, fans, and the public cannot be understated.

A rule of thumb for websites is that visitors should be able to find what they are looking for in 5 clicks or less.

The SportNgin site is highly customizable and the help screens and videos are very informative. Best practice would be delegating each team’s page to a player or supporter willing to manage the page and its contents. This will make it easier for the ERU webmaster to manage the pages as a whole. Refer to the SportNgin area of this manual for more ideas and information on SportNgin.

3

PROMOTIONAL ITEMS FOR ERU OR CLUB EVENTS There are numerous methods for marketing your special events, much of which you already implement.

Since you have a well run mini-rugby program, extend your volunteer base to the parents of the children; they can be critical resources in promoting special events, especially fundraisers.

In order to get the most from your promotional items distribute flyers, posters, and email notifications detailing the EXACT date, time, venue, directions or map, cost, etc.

AGAIN, it is important to always know who you are marketing too. Your target audience.

FOR EXAMPLE: If your event is specific to children—target schools or community centers.

If your event is specific to young adults-target Post secondary, Universities, colleges and radio.

Another strategy could be linking your events in hopes of gaining a better audience. Super Saturdays are a great example of that. Rugbyfest also does well to combine the sport and socializing.

COMMUNICATIONS A club should ALWAYS maintain communication with the league officials or representatives for marketing/PR.

At the beginning of the season, ERU should send out contact information of its marketing manager. In turn, each club should appoint a club marketing manager. These two individuals will work closely with one another, mostly online.

4

GUIDELINES TO MEDIA RELATIONS Media Relations is potentially the most cost effective means of promoting you league or club and its activities.

Initially your focus should be on: • Portray an inviting and strong image of rugby,

your club, and its players. • Show your commitment to the community – Rugby

players often join together to help a project or raise money for a good cause.

• Develop communications and relationships with local media (see section on Writing articles).

• Populating your twitter and social media accounts. • Having photos and articles to be submitted to ERU

SportNgin Webmaster or you team SportNgin representative.

In Canada, your targets should be: • Local weekly newspapers • Local TV • Websites (ERU/Alberta Rugby) • Social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc) • Club website (Media will Google your team or league,

make sure you site is up to date with locations and schedules)

5

COMMITMENT TO THE POSITION To maximize exposure and media coverage, it is essential that your club or league appoints a Public Relations Officer.

• This individual MUST understand and commit to the role and your clubs.

• This individual can be a volunteer, player, executive, or dedicated fan.

• Club members who work in media, marketing and advertising areas or in a PR capacity should be the initial target for this position.

• Consider business, graphic/web design, or photography students.

BEST PRACTICE: Appoint only one person for the position as it reduces confusion and ensures continuity.

MEDIA CONTACTS Maintaining an up to date, and extensive contact list of key media contacts in your area is invaluable.

Having sourced the person most suited and committed to the PR role, the next step is to inform all media outlets of that person (especially your local news print).

Pass along the media contacts, social media logins, and this manual.

It is important the Public Relations Officer is a committed individual. Constantly being unavailable invited problems and could lead to negative publicity.

Make sure ALL media outlets receive your information on a shared basis. Ensure you are sending your club information to the right person in each media outlet.

Working with the ERU- early availability of fixtures, kick off times, etc are great to pass along to media. However, if changes or cancellations occur, make sure the media is informed promptly.

6

STORY LINES Interesting storylines are crutial to marketing success; a little thought goes a long way.

REMEMBER: you are vying with other sports in your area for space and the more interesting you make your story line on behalf of your rugby league/club, the greater the chance if has of being published.

Get in the habit of issuing story lines to ALL media outlets. At least initially while you are trying to reach out to media for the first time or you are trying to establish a relationship with a media outlet.

If an interview is requested, make sure the interviewee knows the subject and speaks clearly, briefly, accurately, and to the point.

Here are some examples for story lines for Clubs or the ERU: • New coach has joined the club • New players have joined the club • Next week’s match features two brothers/sisters

or father/son, or family • Plans/opening new clubhouse or fields • New equipment, lights, scrum machine, etc • New mini’s program announced, how to sign up

for mini’s, etc • How to join a club • Training sessions, introduction to rugby events,

fundraisers, etc • Special dinner, alumni, bbq, community events • Team Canada players, other countries, international

connections • New sponsors, partnerships, etc

How to pitch or Present these Story lines The primary role of the ERU or club PR officer is to inform the media. This is more often than not by word of mouth. Today, social media (specifically Twitter) has provided an excellent avenue to reach out, share, and contact media. By establishing relationships with media contacts, you will limit the need to write press releases.

Correspondence with media is only required in its most simplistic form. That is, don’t worry about writing to the highest standards: THIS IS NOT NECESSARY- AS THE MEDIA JUST WANT TO KNOW THE STORY… word of mouth is fine, a couple of tweets, or a simple email.

That being said some news outlets (for example in smaller markets) do not have the staff or resources to cover rugby in addition to other sports. This is a reality that presents a great opportunity for your club or league to capitalize on. Page 8 contains a guideline for writing a news story for the purpose of being picked up as a contributed article. Leduc’s newspaper has picked up several of these types of articles and has established itself as an almost regular contributor to the sports section. Take your club/league to the next level by following the checklist here.

RUGBY ARTICLE WRITING CHECKLIST:

q Where is the event?

q What is the event? (SuperSaturday, Druids Day, field grand opening)

q What age group?

q Who is involved? (Clubs, schools, U19’s, youth, mini, senior, etc)

q What was the aim of the event? Was the event successful?

q Who was present?

q Was there anything different about this event?

q Was there a winner?

q Who needs to be acknowledged?

q Any other information?

q When is the next event taking place?

q How and where can you find additional information? (Club website, ERU site, Facebook, Twitter)

q Is there a contact that needs to be listed? (Sign up for mini’s, registration, etc)

7

The ERU website www.edmontonrugby.com is a fantastic tool for club self promotion and to gain publicity. The new SportNgin site will become more populated as time goes on and the ERU encourages the clubs to be a major part in that. Submit articles and/news/photos to the ERU by emailing webmaster@edmontonrugby.com.

Submitting an article to the ERU or local paper When submitting acticles to webmaster@edmontonrugby.com or your local media, please ensure you have done the following:

TITLE: No more than eight words long

ABSTRACT/HOOK: This is the first opening sentence and should be captivating with a lot of info included.

MAIN BODY: Article should be three/four paragraphs long and should be formatted properly.

CLOSING PARAGRAPH: Let the audience know where the team stands or whats up next. Then let the readers know where they can follow for more info (website).

PHOTO:The photo is more important than the article. Group photos of no more than 5 people or action shots are preferable. They should be attached to email in jpeg format and should be between 3MB- 10MB in size.

CAPTION: A caption should be included with the photo and should include name of those in the photo (where possible with consent), venue, title of event, or description of the play.

PHOTO CREDIT: When sending in a photo, if you know the name of the photographer, mention him or her.

Media/Press Releases A media release may be used before an event to promote it, to make an announcement, or to report on an event that took place.

Keep in mind that media gets several press releases per day, so yours could easily get overlooked. The more direct approach highlighted in the storyline section of this manual may get more positive results and publicity.

Here are some press release tips: • Headline should grab attention of reader. • Use short and snappy sentences. • Make sure important info is in the first paragraph. • Use simple language. • Answer Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How?

Here is the link to the SAMPLE Press Release for ERU (See File “ERU Press Release Template”)

Media/Press Releases

A media release may be used before an event to promote it, to make an announcement, or to report on an event that took place.

Keep in mind that media gets several press releases per day, so yours could easily get overlooked. The more direct approach highlighted in the storyline section of this manual may get more positive results and publicity.

Here are some press release tips:

Headline should grab attention of reader

Use short and snappy sentences Make sure important info is in the

first paragraph Use simple language Answer

Who?What?When?Where?Why? and How?

8

SOCIAL MEDIASOCIAL MEDIA POLICY Twitter and Facebook are useful tools which allow clubs to communicate information with fans, players, and the public.

Why should the ERU or your club create a social media strategy? A social media strategy can have huge benefits for a rugby club or league but also has potential pitfalls. Your clubs/leagues profiles are public. Everything posted on these sites reflects back onto the club/league and all the players and volunteers within it. It is important to highlight a policy on what is acceptable on social media, how your club interacts with supporters and other clubs, and how your club wishes to portray itself.

A thorough social media policy guarantees that club members and players know what is expected of them as ambassadors of your club or league. Such a policy will protect a club from future issues while also making it clear that your values extend to you online presence.

See the attached Ontario Rugby Social Media Policy for guidelines.

Here are a few things to consider: • Interaction with other clubs online: • When you tweet or post about another club,

keep in mind what you say and how you say it. • If there is an issue, there is NO reason to discuss

it in a public forum like Twitter or Facebook.

• Friendly, competitive, rivalry is natural, but gloating or complaining about a match is something that should not be discussed on social media.

• Players/officials/clubs must be mindful that they are representatives of the club, ERU, and Rugby Alberta and should act accordingly.

Here is an example of acceptable interactions with other clubs on twitter:

It is important to go into detail about what kind content is preferred and what content is not appropriate such as videos, photos, etc. Also be aware that anything you retweet or share reflects on your brand. The individual responsible for these accounts must know what information is confidential and what should not be photographed and shared online (eg: On field incident, injuries, etc).

All the clubs in the ERU have facebook groups that are invite only that are separate from public pages. This is a great way to control conversation and who is privy to that communication. No matter where you are posting online, MAKE SURE you know who your audience and privacy settings to prevent unwanted public relations issues.

Social Media Policy

Why should the ERU or your club create a social media strategy?

Twitter and Facebook are useful tools which allow clubs to communicate information with fans, players, and the public. A social media strategy can have huge benefits for a rugby club or league but also has potential pitfalls. Your clubs/leagues profiles are public. Everything posted on these sites reflects back onto the club/league and all the players and volunteers within it. It is important to highlight a policy on what is acceptable on social media, how your club interacts with supporters and other clubs, and how your club wishes to portray itself.

A thorough social media policy guarantees that club members and players know what is expected of them as ambassadors of your club or league. Such a policy will protect a club from future issues while also making it clear that your values extend to you online presence.

See the attached Rugby Alberta Social Media Policy for guidelines.

Here are a few things to consider:

Interaction with other clubs online:

When you tweet or post about another club, keep in mind what you say and how you say it. If there is an issue, there is NO reason to discuss it in a public forum like Twitter or Facebook. Friendly, competitive, rivalry is natural, but gloating or complaining about a match is something

that should not be discussed on social media. Players/officials/clubs must be mindful that they are representatives of the club, ERU, and

Rugby Alberta and should act accordingly.

Here is an example of acceptable interactions with other clubs on twitter:

9

TWITTER Twitter is a constant flow of up to date information and one of the focuses of the Edmonton Rugby Union going forward.

Every club within the ERU should follow the @YEGRugby Twitter account and vice versa. This enables us to interact immediately between our accounts. Edmonton Rugby Union is making a conscious effort to retweet all score/ERU/club content on a daily basis. You are limited to 140 characters on twitter but if you tag @YEGRugby in the tweet-the ERU will see it.

How do I set up a Twitter account if our club doesn’t have one? Here is a list of simple steps to create you clubs own official Twitter account: 1. Go to twitter.com and find the sign up box,

or go directly to twitter.com/signup. 2. Enter your full name, phone number, and a password. 3. Click Sign up for Twitter. 4. In order to verify your phone number, we will send you

an SMS text message with a code. Enter the verification code in the box provided. Learn more about having a phone number associated with your account here: support.twitter.com/articles/20172029.

5. Once you’ve clicked Sign up for Twitter, you can select a username (usernames are unique identifiers on Twitter) — type your own or choose one we’ve suggested. We’ll tell you if the username you want is available.

6. Double-check your name, phone number, password, and username.

7. Click Create my account. You may be asked to complete a Captcha to let us know that you’re human.

Note: if you’d like to sign up with Twitter using an email address, you can do so via the “Use email instead” link at the bottom of the sign up page.

Tips for picking a username: • Your username is the name your followers use when

sending @replies, mentions, and direct messages. • It will also form the URL of your Twitter profile page.

We’ll provide a few available suggestions when you sign up, but feel free to choose your own.

• Please note: You can change your username in your account settings at any time, as long as the new username is not already in use.

• Usernames must be fewer than 15 characters in length and cannot contain “admin” or “Twitter”, in order to avoid brand confusion.

Important information about signing up with email address: • An email address can only be associated with one

Twitter account at a time. • The email address you use on your Twitter account

is not publicly visible to others on Twitter. • We use the email you enter to confirm your new Twitter

account. Be sure to enter an email address that you actively use and have access to. Check your inbox for a confirmation email to make sure you signed up for your account correctly.

10

First steps after you’ve created your account: 1. After signing up, follow a handful of accounts to

create a customized stream of information on your home timeline. Following means you’ll get that user’s Tweets on your Twitter home timeline. You can unfollow anyone at any time. Find out how to follow news sources, friends, and more in our Finding people on Twitter article.

2. Read our Getting started with Twitter article. 3. Learn about using Twitter on your mobile phone.

Sports Specific Twitter Tips • Send tweets that mention players, front office, opposing

teams, and celebrity fans. Mentioning related sports accounts connects you to a larger conversation.

• Allow fans to consume and participate in conversations. Create dialogue with them- that will help your brand gain engagement.

• Don’t be afraid to ask for Retweets. • Tweet out ticket and merchandise info, in-game, and

season long stats and standings. • Use #ThrowbackThursday to tweet nostalgic rugby

photos from your club.

• Use hashtags. Hashtags can create a unifying cheer or organize a conversation. Aim for words or phrases that fans will be most likely to search. Examples include #yegrugby #yeg #rugby #DruidsVsClan.

• Hashtags are more powerful when used judiciously. Including more than two in a tweet might be overkill.

• Share photos and videos: everything from behind the scenes, to action shots, to the crowd. For more on photos and video check out the equipment suggestions section of this manual.

• Live tweeting: Provide play-by-play, color commentary, photos, videos, and more in your live tweets. Don’t forget about other off field moments or grand openings! Tip: Check out @RugbyCanada or other major rugby accounts for great examples of how to live tweet games and content ideas.

11

FACEBOOK All clubs should be fed through one page. That is, Druids should have one page with all programs and teams under the name within that one page. This is to avoid confusion for fans and media trying to find your team page.

Most people are familiar with Facebook. Here is a sporting specific tutorial about how to create and manage a Facebook team page (www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kcdn2E65_A)

ERU Facebook group page has over 600 members while the ERU Official Page has over 150 members. Continue to promote the official page to gain more likes and improve its marketability.

SUGGESTION: Shut down or rename the group page and make sure all members follow the Official ERU page. This will prevent confusion.

Tips for Facebook Content • Include High quality photos with posts

of 2-3 sentences max. • Try to post around 10 times per week at max. • Limit domestic use of this platform to keep it from

getting cluttered. • Continue posting post media links like ERU official

page has been doing. • Post and organize photos so that players can tag

themselves in them and increase ERU engagements and following.

Share posts, photos, or memes. The photo below is an example of a photo with added text. By posting great photos and combining those with inspirational quotes about rugby can resonate strongly with followers and they may ‘share’ the photo. This greatly increases your exposure.

To expand your pages popularity, the first thing you need to do is post new, engaging material regularly. This doesn’t mean you have to post every hour.

There is a Sample Ontario Rugby Social Media Policy attached to this manual as a guideline for ERU and Club social media use.

YOUTUBE

@RugbyCanada or other major rugby accounts for great examples of how to live tweet games and content ideas)

Facebook

All clubs should be fed through one page. That is, Druids should have one page with all programs and teams under the name within that one page. This is to avoid confusion for fans and media trying to find your team page.

Most people are familiar with Facebook. Here is a sporting specific tutorial about how to create and manage a Facebook team page https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kcdn2E65_A

ERU Facebook group page has over 600 members while the ERU Official Page has over 150 members. Continue to promote the official page to gain more likes and improve its marketability.

SUGGESTION: Shut down the group page and make sure all members follow the Official ERU page. This will prevent confusion and

Tips for Facebook Content

Include High quality photos with posts of 2-3 sentences max. Try to post around 10 times per week at max Limit domestic use of this platform to keep it from getting cluttered. Continue posting post media links like ERU official page has been doing Post and organize photos so that players can tag themselves in them and increase ERU

engagements and following. Share posts, photos, or memes. The photo below is an example of a photo with added text. By

posting great photos and combining those with inspirational quotes about rugby can resonate strongly with followers and they may ‘share’ the photo. This greatly increases your exposure.

To expand your pages popularity, the first thing you need to do is post new, engaging material regularly. This doesn’t mean you have to post every hour. One or two posts per day or two with increases updates on match days should suffice.

Edmonton Rugby Union and Clubs working together

The ERU and all clubs and unions in Alberta need to work together to promote rugby in the province across as many media channels as possible. If your club sends in a story for the ERU website and we post a link on twitter, the social media person in the club should make an effort to retweet or share the story in order to showcase that your club is getting provincial recognition. It’s WIN-WIN!

One or two posts per day or two with increases updates on match days should suffice.

12

YOUTUBEVideo and a YouTube page will be important social aspect to add going forward. Players can see video, fans can share videos, and media or interested parties can check it out. Post highlights, special footage (ie: GoPro), trainings, speeches, etc to help populate the ERU YouTube page.

If you have not setup a YouTube page yet, please check out this great tutorial: www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7il-pFZ_Gw).

To help populate this page I suggest ripping video from YouTube users who have posted ERU related video in the past. You can do this by using a website called KeepVid (keepvid.com). Make sure you have permission from the user first. Also, when you download make sure you download the highest resolution version of the video (ie: 720p or 1080p).

Once you have populated the YouTube site with these training and promo videos you can add more. Below I discuss how to make videos with iMovie on iPhone or Mac. This very simple program will make it easy to create cool highlight montages or game videos that can be quickly added to YouTube then linked to other social media or SportNgin.

13

The ERU and all clubs and unions in Alberta need to work together to promote rugby in the province across as many media channels as possible.

If your club sends in a story for the ERU website and we post a link on twitter, the social media person in the club should make an effort to retweet or share the story in order to showcase that your club is getting provincial recognition. It’s WIN-WIN!

Consider an Award for the Club/Public Relations officer of the Year. Suggestion:

The Edmonton Rugby Union should consider rewarding the club and individual who is most active in promoting their club and the Edmonton Rugby Union league on a yearly basis. This incentive will help bolster the clubs public relations and that will affect the ERU positively. Individuals who make a strong effort to use Twitter, Facebook, update their team SportNgin page, and write and send articles to the webmaster and local media should be acknowledged.

COMMUNITY RELATIONS (CLUBS) Rugby in Edmonton has continued to lead in this aspect of public relations. To truly realise this asset, it is important to culture and develop relationships with key people in the community who can help the club achieve its goals. That could be anything from Habitat for Humanity, helping with Santa’s Anonymous, or assisting with teaching rugby in schools as part of the gym unit.

While it is important for a club to develop positive working relationships with key community stakeholders, it is equally important that the club doesn’t try to do too much. It is up to the clubs administrators to prioritise these areas that will help them establish a plan.

SPORTNGIN (ERU)As stated earlier, it is important that the Edmonton rugby Union home page be easily navigated. Remember: You should be able to find what you are looking for in 5 clicks.

There are so many options within SportNgin it’s overwhelming but here are a few simple tips to key in on and implement to improve the ERU site:

Permission Management- Being able to properly distribute permissions to clubs and other members of the ERU is an important step in taking the page to the next level. By doing so you will be able to give responsibilities to the club captains, executives, or Public Relations Officers. It is important these individuals are given proper access to their club’s page (and not Owner permissions or permission to the entire ERU site). This way they will be able to manage their clubs page within the ERU framework. The purpose for this is to populate team pages and get faster score submissions, allow clubs to manage and promote their teams page on SportNgin by adding stats, stories, photos, and score updates. This will serve as a great resource for any fans, players, or media to check for stories, updates, and schedules.

Here is a link to the SportNgin Help page on how to manage these permissions: help.sportngin.com/customer/portal/articles/619469-how-do-i-give-or-remove-permissions-to-a-member-or-group-

Here is a video tutorial on how to make the changes discussed above: youtu.be/SLpFA7YK374

Additional info on SportNgin for Coaches and Clubs can be found here: coach.sportngin.com/

EDMONTON RUGBY UNION AND CLUBS WORKING TOGETHER

14

FOR THE CLUBS If you are the Public Relations Officer, coach, captain, or executive responsible for managing your page within SpotNgin please ensure you have the proper permissions to edit you page before getting started.

NOW, it is your responsibility to manage your clubs page. Treat it as your own webpage and make it your own by adding interesting storylines, photos, stats, etc.

Here is a detailed guideline that explains how to add a news article to your page and how to manage other content: help.sportngin.com/customer/portal/articles/619355-how-do-i-add-a-news-article- to-my-website-

Once again, the SpotNgin Youtube and help pages are VERY easy to follow and have step by step instructions. Check them out.

Treat this as your club website, that means add a facility tab on the home bar for facility rentals and non-rugby operations.

Proper management of your OWN CLUBS page will increase traffic, increase your clubs PR, and increase revenue.

SUGGESTION: Time to reign in the photographers

At many of the games there are amateur and semi-pro photographers. These people love shooting and have the skills and equipment to get great shots of the action, so lets tap into that resource. Here’s how:

• Encourage them to post photos (with their personal watermark) to social media/email club or ERU public relation officers.

• Retweet or share photos they post on social media • Save and catalogue them in Dropbox or similar. • Have a business card with info on how to post or share

their photos with ERU and club PRO’s.

15

PHOTOS, VIDEOS & FILE STORAGEDROPBOX Quick and easy way to make hi resolution photos and videos accessible to many people by storing them on a cloud device. This means you can store and catalogue 1000’s of photos and have access to them always as long as you have smart phone with dropbox app and are signed into the ERU account or have permission to use it.

Advantages are: • Send any file instantly: Create a link to any file — big

or small — in your Dropbox. Send it to anyone, whether they have Dropbox or not.

• Collaborate easily: Dropbox makes working together simple. Anything saved to a shared folder is instantly updated on everyone’s devices.

• Control who sees what: With Dropbox Pro, you get an extra layer of control. Set passwords and expirations for shared links, and manage permissions for shared folders.

In the summer of 2015 ERU Marketing was able to harness this in order to make/post content from anywhere. Bonus: The ERU webmaster can give access to upload to photographers at each club and they can contribute to bolster the ERU website content and social media content EVEN further.

NON-RUGBY ACTIVITIES (ERU) SELF EVALUATIONHow Well are You Reaching your players and fans with the current communication strategy?In order to grow the ERU brand in Alberta, you must know where you are now.

To do this try Survey Monkey. Survey Monkey is the world’s most popular online survey software. They make it easier than ever to create polls and survey questionnaires for learning about anything from customer satisfaction to employee engagement. Sign up to access a library of sample survey questions and expert-certified templates. Customize your survey questions, distribute your questionnaire on the web, and start collecting responses in real time.

Try it here: surveymonkey.com/mp/take-a-tour/?ut_source=header

Here is fantastic tutorial: youtube.com/watch?v=e2qG14YX5O4 to get you started

16

Partnering with local business is critical in keeping club and ERU growth sustainable.

SPONSORSHIP (ERU +CLUB)

PROPOSAL OUTLINE

q COVER LETTER: Address the proposal to the most appropriate person in the sponsor’s organisation (Marketing/VP/PR/Communications/Community Relations).

q OVERVIEW: Provide an outline of the ERU/club seeking support.

q OBJECTIVES: Outline the objectives of the project and/or the organisation seeking support.

q THE INVESTMENT: Outline the funding amount or in-kind support being sought and the period of time for the agreement.

q SPONSORSHIP BENEFITS: This is a critical component. Look to include benefits such as naming rights, promotion strategies, signage, media, brand awareness opportunities, articles in newsletters or websites etc. (where will the Company logo be).

q TARGET MARKET: Outline who the project is aimed at or provide a membership profile. Identify how it matches the target market of the proposed sponsor or how it could increase their market share. By taking the time to tailor the proposal to a specific sponsor, a successful outcome is more likely.

q EXCLUSIVITY DETAIL: other sponsors and/or supporters of the project or organisation. Make sure that sponsors are not in competition with each other.

q SERVICING THE SPONSORS’ NEEDS: Outline how you will cater for the sponsor’s needs. Identify a designated player/volunteer to be the point of contact for the sponsor.

q EVALUATION STRATEGY: Outline how you plan to evaluate and measure the success of the agreement.

q CONCLUSION: Summarise the proposal, identify a follow-up procedure and supply contact details.

Everything from jersey logos to sponsored events, sponsorship can be rewarding for both companies and rugby.

How do you attract new sponsors? Is it worth it? YES-IT IS!

Here is a basic outline for a proposal that can be sent in PDF or hard copy format to a company’s Marketing/Communications/Public Relations employee.

First:

Before embarking on a sponsorship drive an organisation should identify: • What type of support they you seeking e.g. cash or

equipment/support, • The types of businesses that could provide appropriate

support, • What benefits could be offered to sponsors; and, • Whether members of the organisation have links

with any potential sponsors.

Typical outline headings for sponsorship proposals are shown in the box to the right.

or provide a membership profile. Identify how it matches

17

Equipment Suggestions for Marketing Rugby

Photo/Video

-GoPro Hero 4 Silver OR GoPro Hero4 Session- with these accessories: headstrap/chesty/3 Way/the frame. Mirco SD memory card should be at least 64gb Sandisk Extreme.

Here’s an example of how the GoPro can take you INTO the sport of rugby https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtEqveAuIY0

-DSLR Camera (Canon T3i,T4i,T5i, etc) with at least one telephoto lens that has 250mm-400mm. Get a Sandisk Extreme or Ultra SD card of at least 32GB.

-Rode VidMic for interviews (hooks into Gopro or Canon SLR). Improves audio quality and eliminates wind noise. Has a very professional feel and sound and limits need for editing.

-Tripod (Sturdy tripod that extends to at least 6 ft)

Equipment Suggestions for Marketing Rugby

Photo/Video

-GoPro Hero 4 Silver OR GoPro Hero4 Session- with these accessories: headstrap/chesty/3 Way/the frame. Mirco SD memory card should be at least 64gb Sandisk Extreme.

Here’s an example of how the GoPro can take you INTO the sport of rugby https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtEqveAuIY0

-DSLR Camera (Canon T3i,T4i,T5i, etc) with at least one telephoto lens that has 250mm-400mm. Get a Sandisk Extreme or Ultra SD card of at least 32GB.

-Rode VidMic for interviews (hooks into Gopro or Canon SLR). Improves audio quality and eliminates wind noise. Has a very professional feel and sound and limits need for editing.

-Tripod (Sturdy tripod that extends to at least 6 ft)

EQUIPMENT SUGGESTIONS FOR MARKETING RUGBY PHOTO/VIDEO 1. GOPRO HERO 4 SILVER OR GOPRO HERO4 SESSION-

with these accessories: headstrap/chesty/3 Way/the frame. Mirco SD memory card should be at least 64gb Sandisk Extreme. Here’s an example of how the GoPro can take you INTO the sport of rugby: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtEqveAuIY0

2. DSLR CAMERA (Canon T3i,T4i,T5i, etc) with at least one telephoto lens that has 250mm-400mm. Get a Sandisk Extreme or Ultra SD card of at least 32GB.

3. RODE VIDMIC for interviews (hooks into Gopro or Canon SLR). Improves audio quality and eliminates wind noise. Has a very professional feel and sound and limits need for editing.

4. TRIPOD (Sturdy tripod that extends to at least 6 ft) 5. EYE FI SD CARD. If the DSLR does not have WiFi

capability purchase an Eye Fi. This allows photos to be taken with the DSLR camera to be transferred to your smart phone for quick posts to Twitter or Facebook.

-Eye Fi SD card. If the DSLR does not have WiFi capability purchase an Eye Fi. This allows photos to be taken with the DSLR camera to be transferred to your smart phone for quick posts to Twitter or Facebook.

Apps/Editors

-Adobe Lightroom for PC or Mac- The best photo editor. No one comes close.

-Camera+ for iPhone- good for quick DSLR edits then posts to twitter

-iMovie for iPhone or Mac-Create videos quickly from GoPro, iPhone, DSLR, etc and add music and photos. Easy and awesome.

-GoPro App-Upload photos and video from your GoPro wirelessly anywhere! Also acts as a remote and previewer for the GoPro (you can see what the camera sees).

Equipment Suggestions for Marketing Rugby

Photo/Video

-GoPro Hero 4 Silver OR GoPro Hero4 Session- with these accessories: headstrap/chesty/3 Way/the frame. Mirco SD memory card should be at least 64gb Sandisk Extreme.

Here’s an example of how the GoPro can take you INTO the sport of rugby https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtEqveAuIY0

-DSLR Camera (Canon T3i,T4i,T5i, etc) with at least one telephoto lens that has 250mm-400mm. Get a Sandisk Extreme or Ultra SD card of at least 32GB.

-Rode VidMic for interviews (hooks into Gopro or Canon SLR). Improves audio quality and eliminates wind noise. Has a very professional feel and sound and limits need for editing.

-Tripod (Sturdy tripod that extends to at least 6 ft)

APPS/EDITORS • Adobe Lightroom for PC or Mac- The best photo editor.

No one comes close. • Camera+ for iPhone- good for quick DSLR edits then

posts to twitter. • iMovie for iPhone or Mac-Create videos quickly from

GoPro, iPhone, DSLR, etc and add music and photos. Easy and awesome.

• GoPro App-Upload photos and video from your GoPro wirelessly anywhere! Also acts as a remote and previewer for the GoPro (you can see what the camera sees).

4

1

3

18

NEVIN’S TOP TIPS

Non-Rugby Activities (ERU)

Self Evaluation- How Well are You Reaching your players and fans with the current communication strategy

In order to grow the ERU brand in Alberta, you must know where you are now.

To do this try Survey Monkey. SurveyMonkey is the world's most popular online survey software. They make it easier than ever to create polls and survey questionnaires for learning about anything from customer satisfaction to employee engagement. Sign up to access a library of sample survey questions and expert-certified templates. Customize your survey questions, distribute your questionnaire on the web, and start collecting responses in real time.

Try it here : https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/take-a-tour/?ut_source=header

Here is fantastic tutorial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2qG14YX5O4 to get you started

Nevin’s Top Tips

Fill in your twitter/Facebook official pages completely and have them linked to the ERU or your clubs website on SportNgin.

Have a great Cover photo. Your profile photo will be your clubs logo but make sure you have an eye catching cover.

Find people to follow on twitter that are related to Edmonton, media, sports, rugby, etc. Start a daily trend. For example #MotivationMonday – Then post an inspiring photo or meme Engage with players, fans, and rugby family on Twitter Tag accounts in photos to get more exposure and to try and

get more RT’s. Try to post a video or photo with most tweets. Helps

engagement Capture the social aspect of the sport- show people what

they normally don’t see (pre/post game) but keep it PG! Have conversations/playful banter on twitter with other

clubs. Follow NHL or NBA teams accounts and you’ll see what I mean

Follow accounts that you admire. Twitter Home feed is a great resources to get ideas of what other sports do to engage fans

Have those storylines ready early. The media will pick them up and run them and your club and league will benefit

• Fill in your twitter/Facebook official pages completely and have them linked to the ERU or your clubs website on SportNgin.

• Have a great Cover photo. Your profile photo will be your clubs logo but make sure you have an eye catching cover.

• Find people to follow on twitter that are related to Edmonton, media, sports, rugby, etc.

• Start a daily trend. For example #MotivationMonday – Then post an inspiring photo or meme.

• Engage with players, fans, and rugby family on Twitter.

• Tag accounts in photos to get more exposure and to try and get more RT’s.

• Try to post a video or photo with most tweets. Helps engagement.

• Capture the social aspect of the sport- show people what they normally don’t see (pre/post game) but keep it PG!

• Have conversations/playful banter on twitter with other clubs. Follow NHL or NBA teams accounts and you’ll see what I mean.

• Follow accounts that you admire. Twitter Home feed is a great resources to get ideas of what other sports do to engage fans.

• Have those storylines ready early. The media will pick them up and run them and your club and league will benefit.

• Commit to SportNgin. There is no question the players love it and the more you populate the club and ERU pages the more the brand will grow. This will also make it EASY for media to find stories and inquire more.

19

REFERENCES USED IN THE MAKING OF THIS MANUALAdditional Documents. (2013, May 8). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from http://www.rugbyontario.com/fr-ca/rodocuments/additionaldocuments.aspx

Club Development | SA Rugby. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from http://www.sarugby.com.au/resources/club-development/

Leinster Rugby. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from http://www.leinsterrugby.ie/domestic/branch/2012_2013_handbook.php

Irish Rugby Marketing and Communications. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from http://www.irishrugby.ie/downloads/IRFU_Marketing-Communications.pdf