How to Make Your Recreation Center More Appealing to Young People
In order for a recreation center to reach its full potential, it needs to be able to appeal to clients of all ages. As families make up the majority of most sports facility clientele, ensuring that your recreation center appeals to young people is a great way to keep families coming back. If your recreation center is simply a place where older visitors come to workout, you are missing out on a major source of potential revenue. Today, Sports Facilities Management will discuss a few ways you can make your recreation center more appealing to young people.
Engage the Youth in Your Community
The first step you should take when looking to bring young people to your recreation center is to ask them! Find out exactly what it is they are looking for in a place to spend their time. While it can certainly be difficult to get people to engage with your business, the payoffs can be huge. Find out what attractions are lacking in your community. If there isn’t an area that kids can legally skate, building a skate park at your recreation center will fill a need in your community. Some things that can make your recreation center more youth-friendly include:
- Basketball courts
- Rock climbing walls
- Skate ramps, rails, and half-pipes
- Access to local transportation
- Wi-fi connectivity
- Legal graffiti walls, chalk, or a place for children to express their artistic side
- Regularly scheduled youth-targeted events
- Ping pong, foosball, air hockey, and other table games
These are just a few ideas. The key is to find activities and features like the above that the youth in your community do not have access to. But how do you get young people to discuss these things with you? It is very unlikely that you will have many show up to council meetings or public forums. Engaging young people requires creativity and the ability to think outside the box. Perhaps one of the most powerful ways to include youths is to involve them in the process. Many local youth organizations are always looking to get their young people involved in the community. Offering the chance to represent their own interests will give your recreation center insight while offering young people valuable experience in a business environment.
Looking for Expert Management for Your Recreation Center?
SFM offers industry-leading management services to sports facilities across the country. Our expert staff can help your recreation center or sports complex thrive in the incredibly competitive fitness and athletic markets. To learn more about SFM contact our team today at 727-474-3845.
