e7sports

6 Tips for Maximizing Your Website

1) Think about your audience(s!) – You probably have 2 audiences, your current members and those interested in your club, team or tournament.  Make sure information is available for both groups and organized in a way that supports both of their needs. 2) Organize your information in shorts bursts – Avoid long home pages with lots of info.  Viewers should see what they need or the links to what they need without having to scroll.  It’s okay if info is 1 click away as long as they know where to go.  Don’t send visitors on a treasure hunt. 3) Graphics matter - Try to limit the number of people who update your main site. The more you can maintain original formatting, the cleaner your site will stay. Of course you will have individual people responsible for teams, or specific sections, but try and limit access to the core of your site…and the administrator should check in on their formatting fairly often! Read More »

A Word From the Positive Coaching Alliance

A Script for Redefining Winner
By Positive Coaching Alliance

In the group workshops that Positive Coaching Alliance presents nationwide for youth and high school sports leaders, coaches, parents and student-athletes, One of things we discuss is the idea of Redefining “Winner.”

Following is a script that coaches (and others) can draw from in order to convey the concept to players.

I want to tell you about a goal I have for the team and for each of you individually this season. It’s called “Act like a winner to be a winner.”

There are two kinds of winners. What is one kind of winner? What does “winner” mean to you?

One kind of winner is the team that has the most points at the end of the game. And we want to be that kind of winner. We want to work as hard as we can to win as many games as we can. Read More »

Help Set the Youth Soccer National Standards for the US

Join thousands of youth players and coaches across the country who are participating in a national movement to raise the level of soccer in the United States.  The National Standards Project is an effort to benchmark technical ability across the country at all levels and all ages of youth soccer.

The general consensus among coaches is that American players lack the technical ability needed to compete internationally at the highest level. In an effort to bridge this gap, The National Standards Project is the first step in a multi-year initiative to raise the level of soccer in the U.S. The project’s core is a standardized assessment that provides an objective measure of technical ability and an online platform to collect and analyze assessment data. The results gathered over time will provide insight into youth player development and help us collectively raise the level.

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Branding in Youth Sports – Part 2

With our June issue of e7Flash, just  maybe we started you thinking about mission statements, branding and why this is important in the land of youth sports…and just maybe you have even put some thought into creating your own value statement.

In case you are still thinking about what might work for your organization or just wondering how others do it, here are some examples from a few e7sports clients … and what went into developing their slogans. Read More »

Street Soccer USA – Doing Good Through Sport!

Street Soccer USA is a Sport for Social Change organization that runs soccer programs for homeless men and women in 18 cities across the country. Each player, with the help of coaches and volunteers, sets goals to change their lives by setting three, six, and twelve month goals. Athletes are held accountable to meet or even exceed their vision for a better self. This program has been extremely successful with Homelessness Research showing that 75 percent of players involved in the program for a year move off the street and into housing and jobs. Since its founding in 2004, Street Soccer USA has reached more than 20 percent of the chronically homeless in its service areas, ultimately placing 410 people in jobs and housing.

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Branding in Sports

We hear the words brand and branding thrown around all the time…so what actually is a brand, and does it relate to sports organizations? Oh yea it does, some of the most iconic brands out there are in sports. Think Chicago Bears, New York Yankees, or Manchester United. Just by virtue of their name, you have an impression of who they are, how they play and what they stand for.

You may be asking, how does that relate to my organization? Well, your goal may not be world-wide recognition, but certainly a reputation in your local marketplace. Whether you are a camp, a club or a tournament you want potential customers to know who you are and what you stand for.

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Recruiting and Keeping Volunteers

Gail from the Michigan State Association gave a great session on volunteerism at the USYS workshop in January.

Here are some of the high points….

Volunteers spend on average 90 hours per year volunteering, BUT 69% of volunteers only work for ONE organization….MEANING YOU HAVE TO GET TO YOUR VOLUNTEERS BEFORE THEY COMMIT TO OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.

Most people volunteer because they are asked!  YOU HAVE TO ASK AND NOT WAIT FOR PEOPLE TO COME TO YOU

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Prize Winners from Winter Shows

Congratulations to…

Joey Mahouchick Assistant DOC at the Onslow County Classic Soccer Association from Jacksonville, NC

USA Hockey Adult Pond Hockey Championship

The Puckahoes… Juliet, Marcy, Danette, Erin, Kara and Nicole

I had the opportunity this weekend to participate in an event that embodies all that is good about sport.

(Yes, for those who do not know, I play women’s ice hockey….on a travel team, with a real coach and everything, in Chicago.)

This event in Eagle River Wisconsin is a perfect storm of camaraderie, teamwork, competition and fun.
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Tips for fundraising on line

by Elizabeth Beachy

Donate online! lot of non-profits have online donation pages but complain that they still receive very few donations. Why? There are several reasons that could explain the lack of online giving ranging from low traffic to a poorly designed website. Read More »