3 Essentials To Building A Booster Club Part 1

Part 1 to BUILDING A BOOSTER CLUB is here.

THREE KEY ESSENTIALS TO BUILDING A BOOSTER CLUB

1. FINDING THE RIGHT LEADERS

I really believe that the most important key for an Athletic Administrator or Head Coach in starting or revamping a Booster Club is finding the right leaders. It is imperative that the volunteer parents who will be in key roles as your Board President, Vice President, etc. are people whom you have a great relationship with. You have to be able to trust them, and they have to be able to trust you.

There is nothing worse for a Head Coach, or Athletic Director than to work with a Booster Club who doesn’t support you in the end. That support is essential to your job, and without having the right leaders in the right place, you may not get that support.

This aspect of building your Booster Club comes back to relationships.

What kind of relationships do you have with the parents in your program? I hope that you are able to maintain positive relationships with those in your program. I know that in the sport I’ve spent much of my career, football, that many times the President of the Booster Club is the quarterback’s father. Many times this makes a lot of sense mainly because the Head Coach and the quarterback spend so much time together. Usually, their relationship is strong, so the relationship with the parent is also strong. However, it doesn’t have to be your star athlete’s parent in this role. It just needs to be someone who you trust! Just like building any board, you want to make sure that you have a majority of people on that board that will vote to support what you want to do.

Therefore, it is important to go out and hand select these people if you can.

What I’ve done in the past is identify a few of these key leaders, and start to talk with them in “informal” ways about becoming a key figure for the Booster Club. Kind of plant in their head the possibility of joining you in this endeavor. At some point, take that person out to lunch, and share your vision. Ask them specifically to join the Booster Club as your President, or Vice President or whatever you are seeking.

Another thing to consider when seeking out the right leaders is whether or not the people you are thinking of have a voice and an ear within the parent community.

Are they respected people?

Will they listen to others?

Will they lead others?

They may do all of that great with you, but it might be because they think it will help Johnny to see the playing field more! But do they have that same esteem in the community?

Can they rally the troops when they need to be rallied?

This is an important characteristic of who you are going to choose.