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A New Approach to Croquet Marketing
Learn why generic slogans like ‘fun for all ages’ are ineffective and how to attract more members by speaking directly to specific types of players.
Walk past any community noticeboard in Queensland and you'll see it. A cheerful flyer, well-intentioned, with a familiar message:
"Come and Try Croquet! Fun for All Ages. Everyone Welcome."
The intention is generous. But it doesn't result in anything. When a message tries to speak to everybody, it resonates with nobody. The person who reads it doesn't see themselves.
Marketing is about mattering to the right people.
What people are actually looking for
People don't join croquet clubs because croquet is good. They join because they're looking for something, and croquet happens to provide it.
Someone who misses having something difficult to master doesn't search for "croquet." Someone who needs a place to belong doesn't think of a sports club first. Someone who moved into an apartment and lost a garden doesn't connect outdoor recreation to a mallet sport.
Your job is to show them that what they're already looking for exists here.
People like us do things like this
This is how humans make decisions. Through identity.
"Am I the kind of person who plays croquet?"
For most people, the answer is no. Not because they've evaluated croquet and rejected it. Because croquet doesn't fit their mental picture of who they are.
You can't argue someone into a new identity. What you can do is find the people for whom the answer is already "maybe" and show them that people like them are already here.
The competitor thinks: "I'm someone who needs intellectual challenge."
Show them croquet players who think the same way. Now croquet fits their identity.
Show them croquet players who think the same way. Now croquet fits their identity.
The community seeker thinks: "I'm someone who values real connection."
Show them the friendships at the club. Now croquet fits their identity.
Show them the friendships at the club. Now croquet fits their identity.
The smallest viable market
You don't need 200 members. You need 40 members who care.
Here's the maths that changes everything:
Serve 1000 people adequately and you get silence. Satisfied people don't talk.
Serve 10 people extraordinarily well and you get advocates. Delighted people can't help themselves. They tell their friends. And their friends are usually people like them.
This is how movements grow. Through deeper resonance.
The gardener who downsized:
"When I moved into an apartment, I thought I'd lost my garden forever. Croquet gives me outdoor time on beautiful grass three days a week."
This message means nothing to someone who never cared about gardens. Perfect. They're not your smallest viable market. The person who does miss their garden reads this and thinks: "Someone understands."
"When I moved into an apartment, I thought I'd lost my garden forever. Croquet gives me outdoor time on beautiful grass three days a week."
This message means nothing to someone who never cared about gardens. Perfect. They're not your smallest viable market. The person who does miss their garden reads this and thinks: "Someone understands."
The former athlete:
"Tennis destroyed my knees. Golf took too long. I thought my competitive days were over. Croquet gave me back competition without the physical punishment."
This message means nothing to someone who was never competitive. Perfect. The former athlete reads this and thinks: "That's exactly my situation."
"Tennis destroyed my knees. Golf took too long. I thought my competitive days were over. Croquet gave me back competition without the physical punishment."
This message means nothing to someone who was never competitive. Perfect. The former athlete reads this and thinks: "That's exactly my situation."
The formula
[Thing Missing] + [How Croquet Fills It] + [People Like You Are Here] = Invitation
Advertisements interrupt. They say "look at me" to people who didn't ask.
Invitations connect. They say "if you're this kind of person, you might belong here" to people who are already looking.
Generic: "Come and Try Croquet!"
Invitation: "After 40 years in business, retirement felt mentally empty. Croquet filled that gap. It has the strategic depth of chess, and I'm still learning new things two years in. If you miss having something difficult to master, you might love this too."
Invitation: "After 40 years in business, retirement felt mentally empty. Croquet filled that gap. It has the strategic depth of chess, and I'm still learning new things two years in. If you miss having something difficult to master, you might love this too."
One club, many invitations
The competitor and the community seeker both thrive at the same club. They play the same game. They just arrived by different paths, looking for different things, with different identities.
Your club doesn't need one message. It needs several. Each one speaks to a different "people like us." Each one makes a different person think "that's for me."
Generic messaging tries to appeal to everyone and resonates with no one.
Specific invitations appeal to someone and create belonging.
The question is: who are we for, and how do we show them they belong here?
Related Articles
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Some people don't need competition. They need a place where they're expected. Here's how your club can show them they'll fit.
How Croquet Can Speak to the Competitive Player
Some people don't want social. They want to master something. Here's how your club can show them croquet is worth their effort.
