How To Build Community Awareness Around Your Program

Community awareness is something that is often overlooked by many high schools and coaches. This is mostly due to busy schedules and other responsibilities coaches have.

Lack of time and the balancing act of life is one of the most difficult things to juggle, but even then coaches should really try to build awareness and engagement with their community. Community awareness can help your basketball program in several different ways like building a strong fan base and raising funds for new equipment. Below we'll go over how you can make this happen for your basketball program!

Community Volunteering

One great way to build awareness is by having your team volunteer in your community. There are so many things out there to try, so make sure you are choosing the right fit for your team and giving them an opportunity to explore things they may be interested in.

Volunteering allows your players to meet the people in their community and also gives potential fans the chance to see the players in a different setting outside of the gym. This pertains to coaches as well - developing these relationships will help enhance successful times and also soften the fall when things get rocky. Giving back will also help your players develop humility, gain perspective, and understand that life is more than just sports.

Community Events

In many areas there are city-wide events that take place throughout the year like festivals, parades, and farmer's markets. This is a great opportunity for players and coaches to take part in the festivities and interact once again with the community.

Basketball can feel like a business or job for players at times and most of the interaction players have with coaches and their teammates is on the court. When this happens and things get monotonous, it's hard to get the most out of your players. It's also hard for them to enjoy it everyday and to look forward to making strides as a team. Taking part in community events allows the players to take their minds off of basketball in relation to their coaches and teammates.

Once again this is a great way for players to connect on a different level and build relationships and chemistry with teammates. Get your players excited about everything that surrounds playing on your team and they will do anything to remain a part of that!

Fundraising

Another great way to engage the community is by proactively running unique fundraisers where your program and players get out and give back to the community as well. The best fundraisers are where the program and the community can mutually benefit and build genuine relationships. If you're coming up short on ideas, make sure to check this list out of 14 fundraising ideas for your program.

A simple GoFundMe page will work in some cases, but nothing beats face-to-face interaction. The community wants to get to know the personality of the team and will be much more prone to helping support your program if they see your players active in the community and representing themselves in a professional and fun manner.

Coaches: If you're struggling to make your practices exciting and are looking for new drills and workouts for your players, please subscribe to our blog and check us out on YouTube as well. Most importantly make sure to always train hard, train smart, and train with a purpose!