One of the major gripes I have about watching tennis on tv is when the stands are mostly empty. I mean, can’t the organizers plan ahead and bring in school children and senior citizens or something? The seats are there. Great tennis is there. A real no-brainer.

Go by most tennis facilities between noon and 3 pm and you’ll see empty courts. How about starting to think of filling empty court time in the same way? The courts are there. Fun can be had. A real no-brainer. Now the question is, “Who can you bring to the courts and what can they do to have fun and somehow benefit your facility?” Here is just one idea to get you started.

Pre-school and kindergarten-age children – Normally these youngsters go to school in the mornings. We also know that they have parents who are looking to get them involved in fun, motivational, interactive, and beneficial activities. And we also know that if you can get the children interested in tennis early ahead of other sport options, there’s a better chance they will keep playing. We all know they have teachers who know how to work with them. Here’s how it could unfold.
Contact and meet with a local preschool owner about promoting an “afterschool” activity at an extremely inexpensive or free of charge introductory rate. Also considering hiring (or bartering for tennis lessons) the preschool teachers who already know the children to help with the on-court activities. Keep the classes short, limiting them to 30 or 45 minutes, and don’t get stuck on teaching tennis. Make them fun, seek laughter and creating happy faces among the children. Here are some of the benefits.

1. Some of these teachers may be terrific resources for your summer and holiday programs. Remember that they do not have to be tennis teachers in order to teach tennis to this age group. With very little training they will feel comfortable with some basic progressions. Most importantly, they already are trained with how to work with groups of children in this young age range.
2. If you have a snack bar, you may make in profit in that department what you did not make in immediate income on the court.
3. You are introducing families to your facility.
4. You are getting kids involved in a wonderful journey that starts with QuickStart Tennis.
5. You are introducing new players to tennis who will hopefully become regular participants in your programs in the future.

Conclusion? A win-win all the way around. Sure you may have to pay a little to one of your coaches. But, on the whole, I can’t think of any downside to this program. Can you? Do what it takes to fill empty time even if it means giving it away for free.  The benefit of having extra traffic and activity at a facility totally outweighs the initial anxiety attached to giving away court time free of charge.