President's
ReportPresident's
Report
November/December
2004
By Sheri Soderberg Pittman
In the last President’s Report, I discussed what happens at Board meetings. The next meeting in mid-November will not only be the first post-election meeting, but also the first meeting of the 2005-2008 quadrennium. In my campaign materials, I have already described where I would like to see USATT go. Regardless of who is elected president, however, the Board should commit to concrete plans for the next four years in terms of both policy-setting and budgetary strategies. In this issue’s “association primer series,” I’m going to share what the future holds for USATT’s marketing efforts.
But first, let’s take a quick glance at where we’ve been. With the tenure of Doru Gheorghe as executive director, USATT has made rapid improvements in many areas. The primary improvement has been in staff assuming more and more operational responsibility. USATT’s first High Performance/Technical Director is positioned to work closely with coaches, committees, clubs and the general membership to start significant new improvements. NATT has helped get ratings and tournament operations professionalized. Treasurer Tong Lee has helped USATT achieve record financial success. General Counsel Dennis Taylor has saved USATT tens of thousands of dollars and improved our legal positioning. Larry Hodges has helped introduce our association to a large number of potential new members through the USATT League, various club programs, as well as improved communications through the magazine, website and online forum.
The core infrastructure is now well established. All of this adds up to simple reality: USATT is better positioned than ever to assume an aggressive marketing campaign to help fund USATT’s future. In the near future, USATT and ITTF representatives will meet to discuss what lessons USATT can learn from the ITTF’s successful marketing division. From there, USATT will move forward in establishing what I’ll call “USATT Marketing.” USATT Treasurer Tong Lee, an MBA in marketing, has agreed to use his expertise to help implement our marketing strategy. He has written much of the following material.
In the past, we had expected and relied on the executive director to generate revenue from sponsorships. This is an unrealistic expectation for any executive director because he just doesn’t have the time to manage the day-to-day affairs of USATT, oversee USATT’s tournaments, perform marketing functions, seek sponsorships, and provide sponsorship fulfillment. In addition, without an operating budget, any marketing effort would be limited and insufficient to produce significant sponsorship revenue. We, therefore, have not been able to realize the full potential of our assets and properties.
Several years ago, USATT instituted a 20% commission incentive for individuals who bring in sponsorship money. (Recently the Board authorized the Executive Director to set the rate.) That approach wasn’t successful because there was no coordinated effort to make it work. Thus, it is not surprising that USATT has not made much headway in generating the amount of sustained profits that are required to fund other programs and to fulfill its mission as the national governing body of table tennis. The time has come for USATT to seriously address this issue and take a bold step forward to professionalize its efforts in marketing and finding sponsorships with the creation of a marketing division of USATT.
As a profit center, USATT Marketing shall create and identify sponsorship opportunities and generate sponsorship profits through the optimal utilization of all of the assets and properties of USATT.
Goal
The goal of USATT Marketing is to generate most of its annual revenue from sponsorships and other improved marketing efforts.
Identify and analyze USATT’s assets and properties and develop revenue-generating potential;
Develop sponsorship packages, including brochures, CDs, and other sales materials that would be attractive to sponsors by showing the value of a USATT sponsorship to them;
Identify potential sponsors, especially those that are outside the table tennis industry, and contact them to sponsor USATT events, and interact with them in sponsorship fulfillment;
Manage independent commissioned agents or representatives seeking sponsorships and grants for USATT, and coordinate their marketing efforts;
Help in the production and the showcasing of all major tournaments on national TV.
The primary and day-to-day activities shall be the responsibility of a marketing director reporting to the USATT executive director. USATT staff shall provide appropriate administrative support whenever necessary and appointed Board representatives will assist in the oversight of USATT Marketing.
It is envisioned that USATT Marketing shall not only be financially self-sufficient, but also be a major profit center for USATT. However, it needs some seed money to help it get started. It will be proposed to the Board that USATT commit $50,000 in the first year of its operation for the support of a marketing director and for marketing expenses. The marketing director shall work on a base salary and on commission based on sponsorship revenue generated by USATT Marketing.
Assuming the Board approves the above-mentioned proposal, there will be an announcement at www.usatt.org that will provide details about how to apply for the position.
I have had the opportunity to meet and work with “the best of the best” among the table tennis family globally. It is clear to me that USATT could benefit significantly from the knowledge and strategic ideas of a handful of people. Expect to see the staff expand as our resources allow.
We will soon know the election results. I will be honored to serve for this quadrennium, should I succeed. If I don’t, I’d like to give a final round of applause to the many volunteers and staff members who have done an outstanding job over these past several years.
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