6 tips to get more young people involved in your club
Remember the excitement of being part of a club as a kid? Hanging out with friends, learning new things - feeling like you belonged! Young people are the lifeblood of any club, bringing fresh ideas and energy, but getting younger generations involved is proving harder than it use to be.
There's more competition for their time than ever before, from countless online activities to a wider range of after-school options. With so many possibilities, kids are craving experiences that feel purposeful and let them develop skills they actually care about. With this in mind, let’s discuss some tips to help your club connect to the younger generation.
Image: IAS
- They want to make a real impact: Forget cookie-cutter activities. Today's youth crave a purpose and a chance to develop skills they care about. Ask yourself weather young people are benefiting from the current opportunities in your club – are younger groups able to collaborate, are they taken seriously, and they enjoying the skills you offer? These are serious questions to pose when auditing your club.
- Give them a voice: Instead of dictating a path for them, create youth boards or project team initiatives where they can plan their own activities or put forth new ideas to keep the club moving into the future. This gives them a say in how the club works and you might be surprised with the creativity younger generations will bring.
- Set aside a budget: Give the youth group a budget (even a small one!) to manage themselves. This will build trust their ideas and helps them learn responsibility. The budget in no way needs to be large, even with a small budget they are able to create more financial scope by selling treats at home matches that can fund larger ideas throughout the year.
- This is the clubs project, but it’s important to know when to step out: Become a mentor for the youth groups; Offer advice and support, but let them figure things out for themselves. It's okay if they make mistakes – that's how they learn and grow!
- Celebrate their wins: Young people thrive on recognition. Showcase their achievements and let them know how much they contribute to the club. This could be through social media competitions to get them online and sharing their favourite club moments, you could even run small giveaways like ‘Share your play of the month for a free club water bottle’.
- The Aceit Junior Development Program: Aceit is passionate about the development of juniors within clubs, which is why we run our junior development program. We'll work with your club to create exclusive offers just for young members that suit the size of your club. Contact Aceit today to learn more about the Junior Development Program and watch your club come alive with young energy.
