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Squash Ontario has created this section of its website specifically to assist its member clubs - owners, managers, squash professionals and programmers. Our goal is to provide you with a comprehensive compendium of resources - a "one stop shop" for information relevant to the business of squash.
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Strategic Options in Social Media

Written by Mujtaba Mirza
Wednesday, 20 July 2011 13:50
Strategic Options in Social Media Addressing Member Negativity by Kevin Lawrie ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) Sport Law & Strategy Group Through social media, information can reach a greater number of people more quickly and more directly and this has consequences for sport organizations. A side effect of the pervasiveness of social media is the requirement for greater organizational transparency. Understand that communicating through social media (like Twitter and Facebook) is different than communicating through more traditional media like email and face-to-face interactions. A member of an organization who feels wronged by a decision made at the board level can target readership and disseminate information without context. For example, as a coach at my local baseball association I am often affected by puzzling decisions made by our volunteer board of directors. I recently expressed my frustration about one such decision on my personal Facebook page. My status update was potentially seen by athletes, coaches, and other affected parties (who all number among my Facebook friends). Ten years ago I would not have had had this outlet. I would have needed multiple phone conversations, a few face-to-face chats, and a dozen emails in order to reach that same audience. Within that time, undoubtedly, my frustration would have ebbed. In the example above, should I have been privy to the reasons for (or context of) the decision that affected me, I would have been less frustrated and less inclined to enact my frustration by posting on Facebook. Of course I would not be completely appeased – but at least I would have understood. Being criticized by members is not new to organizations. There are some occasions where facets of membership actively work against the established board or executive. The case of the Alberta Soccer Association and its two boards (one legitimate – and one not) is a more recent and public example. However, being criticized by members on Facebook and Twitter IS new and can be handled by organizations. An organization can take two steps – one preventative and one reactive. To prevent member negativity, having greater transparency with organizational decisions is paramount. Where before a complaint about a decision could be limited to whomever the member talked to, now it can be instantly distributed to the member’s entire social network. Even sending an email has more ‘sober second thought’ than posting a Facebook status update or a tweet. Organizational decisions cannot be as internally contained as before or given incomplete context. As a reactive measure, organizations can have official presences on social media sites to ensure appropriate actions, engagement, and responses when warranted. This is not to say that an organization must interact with the complainant via social media – but the organization must be available in this medium to counter the effects of the negativity. Whereas before, ten years ago, an organization could sweep away or more easily ignore the fallout from a complaint about an unpopular decision, now the organization is confronted with a very public backlash from even the most minor misunderstandings. One approach by NSOs has been to have an official organizational presence on Facebook through the use of an NSO profile. Though not technically allowable by Facebook terms of use, an NSO profile can be friends with supporters, members and athletes and proactively engage with these stakeholders arguably better than a more passive Fan Page. However, people may view this NSO profile as a phony intrusion of privacy – unless the purpose of the profile (to actively engage and respond to athletes and new/old members) and the person behind the profile (employees, interns, or whomever) are explained in advance as part of a social media strategy. This official representation of the NSO on Facebook can actively work to diffuse negativity directed to the NSO. Naturally many organizations do not have the resources to maintain official presences on Twitter and Facebook. This limitation perhaps speaks to as-yet-to-come strategic opportunities for the organization. If the organization has resources to promote the organization through a Facebook Fan Page or an official Twitter account – then a broader strategic approach to social media could be to engage individual members to varying capacities; one of which could be to reactively respond to complaints and negative comments. Local organizations, clubs and even provincial associations should focus on the preventative options available to them – particularly in the areas of being more transparent and explanatory in their decision-making. National sport organizations, with more resources and against whom the complaints are often more significant, should focus on the reactive options. NSO board-level decision making is often more proprietary than local or provincial decision-making so transparency must still be more guarded, and official representations of the NSO on a social media website must still be empowered yet must be prudent. Kevin Lawrie This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Source: "Strategic Options in Social Media – Addressing Member Negativity" <http://www.sportlaw.ca/2011/05/strategicoptions/> Lawrie, Kevin. May 19, 2011, Sport Law & Strategy Group
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 20 July 2011 15:19 )

Social Media and Technology

All we seem to hear about today are the various forms of social media, particularly those of Twitter and Facebook. Everyone from family and friends to old classmates, large organizations to television channels and celebrities, even a few household pets tweet, write on walls, and have their own pages. Social media truly is everywhere and those who choose not to engage in it are being left in the dust! While this phenomenon can be utilized as a way for people around the world to stay connected with one another, it can also be a great, inexpensive marketing tool for organizations and products of all shapes and sizes. However social networking and the use of social media need to be used by individuals and implemented in an organization with caution. More significant, as always, the law and legal writings can not keep up with changes in technology and the evolving world of social media. Thus, the consequences for partaking in this trend, including that of privacy, are cloudy at best.

Sports Marketing 101

By: Laura Mauer

This area is dedicated to the basics of sports marketing. It includes the groundwork to create and implement a marketing plan, as well as some sports specific marketing concepts and strategies from which squash facilities can benefit.

Before one can begin developing their plan, the essence of marketing sports should be discussed. Specifically, the notion that sport is a product should be fully understood. Sport is a product, you ask? Yes, it is. In fact, it is a very unique, intangible product. Unlike a pack of gum or a squash racquet, both tangible in nature, one can not physically hold a sport. Okay, but then why is it unique, most services are intangible? True, but while a marketer can be sure that a carpet cleaner will in fact produce a clean carpet, and an accountant will prepare a balance sheet, sport is a different entity. Sports are simultaneously produced and consumed, no organization or marketer can control the outcome; who wins and who looses or if an injury will or will not occur. These are just a couple of the uncontrollable factors inherent in sports, while it makes the marketers job more complex than with other products, it is this uncertainty that draws the audiences, the fans, and ultimately the attention.

Employee Overtime

Sport is one industry where employees tend to work long, often unusual hours including nights and weekends. This can easily result in employees accumulating a substantial amount of overtime hours. Thus, most organizations both sport and non-sport have policies and procedures in place to compensate employees for their overtime hours reflective of provincial law. The widely known basics include:

Number of hours worked in excess of 44 hours per week are overtime hours
Overtime hours are compensated at a rate of 1.5 times the employee’s wage

However many businesses are unaware of the more specific provisions setout by Canadian employment statutes. This has led The Centre for Sport and Law to recently shed light on what employers need-to-know about overtime and the redemption of those extra hours.

Volunteerism in Sports

(This article is based on an excerpt from Sports and Recreation in the Nonprofit Sector, a paper written by Laura Mauer)

Who Does and Doesn’t Volunteer in the Sports and Recreation Sector?

• A 2003 National Survey of Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations (NSNVO) indicates that 52% of volunteers and 53% of volunteer hours in the Canadian Sports and Recreation sector were completed by married men between the ages of 35 and 54 years old.

• The study also indicated that women in general were less likely to volunteer in the Sports and Recreation sector, as were people between the ages of 25 to 34 and those over 65 years old.