I have had this in my head for years - with the topic of the new FIVB rules trending, I felt it was as good of a time as ever to start some conversation on this subject matter. Below is a very basic thought process on my end on my dream for the
domestic tours. I am sure there are variables that people will be happy
to point out that aren't listed/being considered. Here's my request: My
intention is to stir the pot a bit - to create conversation,
CONSTRUCTIVELY, in order to talk about how we can truly "Grow the Game" -
a term I hear thrown around a lot lately. You have every right to
disagree with my thought process - I challenge you to think about it and
make a proposition of your own on how we can help get our sport to
where it used to be in the 80's/early 90's - and even further than that.
As this summer slowly but surely approaches, I am eagerly awaiting the schedules for the NVL/AVP. I will travel and play a few of the qualifiers, and if we play well enough hopefully we'll be able to get into a main draw - a bucket list goal I'd like to accomplish this season. That being said, I go into it knowing that I'll be thankful to break even when the season is done, as the travel/hotel/entry fee costs pile up quickly, and the prize money is very scarce unless you're constantly in the top 5-10 teams in the country.
I have heard so many people gripe about the prize money, yet I don't hear a lot of talk about how to solve it. What's worse in my opinion is the fact that the tours do not seem to be learning from previous mistakes. Don't get me wrong - Donald Sun is doing a great job getting the AVP back on the map, and I respect/appreciate the fact that he's ponying up a lot of his money for the time being to boost prize money, with a few of the top players rumored to be making a steady salary. However, when he leaves and his money goes with him, are we going to have a business model in place that will be able to have longevity?
The #1 thing I hear about why we don't have $ in our sport is the lack of a TV deal. I think we need to go a layer deeper than that. We don't have the amount of fans regularly engaged in following the tour to command a TV deal. The reality is, 99 percent of volleyball players in this country probably couldn't name players outside of Karch/Misty/Kerri/Todd/Dalhausser. We have done a TERRIBLE job of getting our players' names out there. We can't get people to pay money to attend events unless they are die-hard fans. How do we fix this?
In Chicago, I go to Wrigley to support the Cubs (so yes, I'm a blind optimist, perhaps more blind than optimistic), I go to the United Center to support the Bulls. The city has a feeling of identity through the teams they support, and they cheer them on. Celebrations occur when they're successful, and the city seems to be booming anytime we're on a playoff run headed to a potential championship.
When common fans go to see the AVP, they rarely have an understanding of the storylines - they don't know rivalries, and they can't relate to the players. They wander around, watch matches that happen to be going on, and perhaps will stumble over to center court to see the semis/finals. While seeing the level of play and athleticism is awe-inspiring, it isn't enough to warrant a price for admission for most people.
That being said, I think our sport has an advantage on almost every other sport in the world - our top players are SO accessible and willing to be a part of its community. By the end of the day, a couple of the best players in the world past and present will have read this post simply because I posted it on facebook, volleytalk, and a couple pages. I have emailed Olympians and gotten well-written responses the same day. This summer I had the pleasure of training with a former Olympian because my friend knew him and he was in town - Imagine being a basketball player and having someone say "Scottie Pippen is in town - would you like to train with him for 2 hours?" - that was the equivalent of what I was able to experience.
One thing that is going well for our sport - Juniors is BOOMING. My club had 80+ kids do it and it went incredibly well - I expect that number to possibly double if not more this year. There's no drama for playing time. Players get to work on their overall skill-set. They learn anticipation and become more aggressive. Conditioning is intense, but the workload is easier on the joints. For families, they can set their own tournament schedule, and it's much more fun for them to be at a beach instead of in a loud gym all day.
The thing that worries me is I think all the tours are looking at this as a cash grab - and between USAV/AAU/AVP/NVL/VolleyAmerica, everyone is playing tug-of-war to get a bigger piece of the pie. What I'd like to see is tours using this as a way to both increase player visibility, help improve the quality of coaching these juniors are getting, and increase attendance at pro events - THEN we will have a product that warrants more sponsorships and eventually bigger TV deals. But it will take work from all parties - administration, players, clubs, etc.
Currently, players play for prize money every tournament. Aside from the TOP players, no one is getting steady income. It simply isn't realistic for more than a handful of players to support themselves playing this sport without another source of income.
My Dream Tour? Players run camps/clinics for kids/adults Monday-Thursdays all over the city that the upcoming tournament is in. Add 10 bucks to the camp fee, and include a pass to the event with the camp. This does a few things: 1) Kids start to get to know players - when they go to events, they're not going just to watch volleyball, they're going to watch the person that taught them how to pass, how to serve, etc. 2) It helps improve the quality of what we're teaching, and the tour could provide a specific lesson plan to train the players to teach so that we're giving them a solid foundation in doubles. I am not hesitant to say that a LOT of clubs in the area, even top-tier indoor ones, do not have coaches with steady sand experience, and have heard many people tell me how they're being trained for sand like indoor, which I think only will hurt our potential to grow the sport at a time where we have a great opportunity to thrive. 3) It increases attendance to events, which will give the tour a better opportunity to market themselves to potential sponsors.
It would take a LOT of planning by the tour to schedule everything. Players would have to be trained to coach - not only for volleyball but also how to communicate with youth/teenagers. You may have situations where a player's demeanor prevents them from coaching - they just don't get a cut then. But if this was done, you could give players their travel stipend, hotels, HEALTH INSURANCE. Eventually, perhaps a salary. Some people will also say that players won't want to be on the road that much - remember, before the multi-million dollar contracts, the athletes in the 60's/70's flew coach, played for pennies, and typically had to work other jobs in the off-season. We live in a culture of entitlement - our players (myself) would have to work hard - but maybe that would pave the way for generations to come. I know I'd do it if I knew it would.
Aside from that, I think our sport can be the sport that provides TRUE role models for its youth. I read an article this morning about a prominent NFL player knocking his wife unconscious. We hear about athletes wanting more money, domestic disputes, sometimes murder - I could be biased, but I feel our athletes are so much more personable (perhaps it's the low income) - why wouldn't parents prefer them as role models compared to the diva that's holding out of his contact because they want more than 5 million dollars a year?
Again, I would love to hear other people's perspectives on how to fix it. Not why this wouldn't work,. but why something else could be better. We have a great group of ambassadors for this game. The amount of junior participation in our sport is growing and growing. If done properly, there is no reason we can't work our way towards a sport that gives its juniors a great education on the game, as well as provides a comfortable living for those that dedicate so much of the body and soul to their craft.
6 comments:
I think there is a level of promotion that lacks for audience, I also think along with other sports Volleyball Players don't have Publicists. Or people that don't have the player to appeal to a certain demographic, resulting in a lack of spectator presence. Am I saying that VBallers need that. NO! People can do it themselves. However, its a show to everyone. You have to make a persona for yourself. An alter ego perhaps. It doesn't have to be drastic or a dramatic character change however, make it known on the court, how you want to be viewed.
Now, let me clarify, What draws crowds is a lively attitude, most of the older players were so passionate while playing they gave the crowd something to watch other than the game. The players gave themselves. I feel there is a lack of that in the sport now a days, with the exception of few, Prime example Casey Patterson ie: MR. BOOM. So lively, So passionate, So loud.
Moving on, I too have emailed some of the TOP players in the country, and I do have to say I LOVE how approachable the TOP players of our sport are. How personable they are, and how quick they are to share with you their personal stories, and I would like to see more of an experience all around Players, spectators, crew and staff.
AS IT ONCE WAS...I BELIEVE IN OUR SPORT AND BELIEVE IN ITS GROWTH. GREAT BLOG!
I think pros conducting local camps & clinics prior to tourneys is a nice idea. In fact, I think the NVL was doing just that. So many of the top players are phenomenal ambassadors for the sport and accessibility to them is the "upside" of having relatively few fans. But I don't think, in and of itself, it's a solution to what ails the tours.
We've been in a sponsorship model since the AVP was founded. Admission/gate is negligible in that equation. It's a chicken-or-egg problem with fans & sponsors. If you can get people to show, sponsors will participate & pay to market to those people. But how do you build a product and get fans to come without investing millions? Operational costs including beach set-up, whether at a public or artificial beach, are $$$$. And then you've got to market the tour—advertising media is $$$$. So you shell out, pray people show up and try and recoup the money in sponsorship dollars.
TV is the X factor. Instead of leveraging the thousands of people who (hopefully) show up, in order to get small sponsor deals, you can potentially reach hundreds of thousands and secure bigger deals. But unless the media company is institutionally invested (like NBC is with Asics WSOBV), you have to prove the eyeballs/ratings will be there to get air time. Otherwise, you're paying to be on TV—more $$$ out the door.
It's a complicated, costly problem and, in my opinion, players can help (and have been) but it's going to take a savvy business mind to solve. Donald checks two boxes in spectacular fashion. He's a passionate fan and he's got the absurd amount of money it takes to be patient. This will not be fixed in a few months or years. But NO ONE wants to lose millions year over year. I don't know his P&L, the trajectory of his key metrics thus far or the first thing about his business acumen—memory chips & sports tours are different animals—but I'm rooting for him. For so many reasons.
I have a strong belief that the huge missed opportunity right now for all the vb entities is technology. Technology as it relates to viewing, interacting, building an audience/fan base, purchasing, consumer research...you name it. The business model hasn't changed. The game's changed its rules but I believe their influence has been unduly blamed for the sport's lack of progress. (It's A problem, not THE problem IMO.) What's changed radically is technology. Volleyball is a grassroots game and we now have ways to self select and instantly connect with people relevant to our lives & interests. Social networking, video streaming, social marketing have all been toyed with by vb org's but not seen as a revolutionizing force for the sport. USAV has recently changed their course in this area and is taking (relatively) aggressive steps toward making digital/social a focus rather than "added value." I think this will serve them well. For AVP, WSOBV, NVL, it's tough. Again, that re-focusing represents more $$ out the door at a time when that's the last thing they need. And it's a longer tail investment the slower you move (the less you invest). But I believe that the organization(s) willing to make the investment and take the risks necessary to revolutionize the sport through technology will be the ones that turn the tide. The ones that don't will fade away like so many before them.
Bryan, you mention that the fastest growing segment in the sport, by far, is youth. Well, that's a marketer's bullseye and they're growing up online. I mean doing EVERYTHING online. So while I think the next Misty May (who's now 10) is going to be incredibly inspired to meet and take lessons from Summer Ross & Emily Day, it'll be following and interacting with them on twitter & instagram, buying their outfits & sunscreen online and watching them via live stream on a mobile device that'll turn them from one-tourney-a-year visitors into season- or year-long fans.
My response will be two comments because it is pretty long:
The article and comments both bring up very good ideas of things that can change to grow the domestic beach tour. As Matt said in the comments, technology could be a huge aid to the tour by allowing fans to interact with players and understand more about the events. However, being a small, grassroots sport there is no current example to follow in this regard. We must be responsible for blazing our own trail, trying new ways of reaching an audience, and learning from our mistakes as we go.
As for my main point, like it is mentioned in the article the biggest issue is engaging fans in the sport, be it in person or on TV. Anyone who has played volleyball at any level can appreciate the sheer athleticism and complexity of a top level beach game. They will tune in, enjoy the show, and probably come back. Those are the people that are currently keeping the AVP afloat by showing up and buying tickets, merchandise, and watching on TV. And since we see growth in the youth level the number of people doing this will rise...but slowly.
This market (volleyballers), is tiny in comparison to the general population market that we, and especially the sponsors, want/need to target for our sport. My suggestion for how to attract and retain this large market involves a pretty large restructuring of the format of the tournaments and the league. (I just thought of this as I started reading your article because I thought this is what you were building to. Since I haven't had time to really think it through its a raw plan. However, like you mentioned its for the sake of a constructive discussion so here goes nothing.)
Main problem: How do you get someone, a non-volleyball player, who walks by a tournament, or flips by a match on TV, to keep watching? My answer is to give them someone to cheer for. You mentioned in the article that you like to visit Wrigleys, or go watch the Bulls, because there is a sense of pride in city coming together to root for your team. Well wouldn't you have that same pride, even as a non-volleyball player, watching your best Chicago players compete against the best San Diego, South Bay Los Angeles, or Florida players?
Lets create a team format for the tournaments, with the 4 or 5 of the best teams from 8 or so regions, which make a team and sport jerseys to prove it. In the tournament, individual finishes still matter, and will get you more money, but the team's overall finish also provides some type of monetary incentive. In fact, the format of the tourney might not have to change much at all if the overall points of that team are just totaled up at the end. Similar to how the women's NCAA beach is now run (I think?).
Professional surfing actually made a similar change in the way they compete at the x-games. Unless you're a surfer its hard to name more than a top few competitors. If you happen to tune in and see two names you don't know competing, you aren't going to watch for more than a few waves. Thats why they created an East vs West format. And to me, a person who had never watched a complete surfing event (before this change), I'll now root for West to win from beginning to end. GO WEST!
The idea is to potentially engage the larger market. If I'm a non-volleyball local and I walk by a tournament in Manhattan Beach and see guys with LA jerseys battling against guys with Northern California jerseys, there is a specific team I want to win in that contest. In the same situation, if it's just four names I've never heard of, each branded by their own sponsor, I'm not going to have any interest. Same goes for watching on TV. You root for the location you have an affinity for. Retain these non-volleyball players and the sponsors, and money, will come.
Maybe this isn't a change that is feasible for the whole season. Maybe its just 2 or 3 events a year. Maybe it's its own league that complements the AVP and NVL separately. Who knows. But if you can capture that other markets attention, the mass population, the "99%", the sport will undoubtably grow.
As I write this, an obvious con emerges: How do the "amateur" players get a chance to break into the league without a qualifier? Maybe each location only has 3 or 4 teams and drafts 1 more out of the qualifier every tourney. In the east vs west surfing competition, international competitors are split up on the different teams.
I want your feedback. @evanrbarry if you want to discuss on Twitter
Hi, I found your blog from the volleytalk boards, great posts. I apologize for the long comment, it encompasses a few of your posts.
We are in the booming junior sand part of the program and in the throes of college recruiting. We agree that there needs to be a better connection between the pro tournament circuit and junior development. Maybe Pro Am camps or tournaments? What we have observed is that the sport is so fractured at the junior level, with USAV, AAU, EVP and NVL competitions to choose from in the midwest, that it's hard to know what tournaments are best to attend to get the best level of competition and the best attention from scouts. Our first year of sand we did a smattering of AAU, EVP and USAV, and the second season focused on USAV because they were offering a junior ranking system, which was a least a metric. However, USAV was almost strictly juniors, and outside of the HP program, very little exposure to pros, coaches or other role models. It looks equally confusing at the pro level too, with struggling tours competing for talent and money.
It has been an adventure trying to figure out how to best spend our time and money to help our daughter become the best sand player she can be, and find a good academic match for a college sand team. Our college search started with who has a sand team, then who has a sand only roster, then who has a roster spot left for 2015. It is a very small list, and we are working it, and asking coaches for feedback on where they want to see her compete this summer. We are finding out that talent and performance are only a small part of the recruiting equation, and that networking and connections are equally important.
We have found junior level competition in the midwest to be very spotty, and sand only junior players almost non-existent. It's a confusing sport to navigate from the middle of the country and our daughter has asked often why we can't just move to Florida or California, where it's not unusual for a player to specialize.
As fans of the sport, we are frustrated by the lack of media coverage of both pro and college events, you have to work very hard to find tv or online matches for sand, which is sad. We keep hoping that as more schools add NCAA sand teams, the market will grow and the exposure will come with it, but it seems like a very slow process. We are very curious to see how well attended the EVP Rosemont event will be, since it's free to the public, will they come? They seem to be doing everything they can to attract pro and junior attendance to the event.
Also wanted to comment that your suggestions mirror quite a few those in the consultants report published by USAV, that they are missing the boat developing junior talent.
What we wish for in hindsight in the junior program is quality, not quantity in the club teams, and a clearer path for those players who love sand and want to make it their life. It looks like a pretty tough way to make a living, except for a handful of top players. It will be interesting to watch the sport grow in the next few years.
Looking forward to your future posts.
Post a Comment