What Makes a Successful Tennis Academy? (Part 1)

We’re all hustling to make a living, especially in an uncertain global economy. But doing it passionately means creating life instead of just living. We’ve all seen that a person’s passion for what they do most often leads to success. This is true in all walks of life, and being a tennis coach is no different.

So what does a successful coach look like? It all depends on how you look at life and what you value as important to you. Words like “a great coach,” “a much-loved coach,” or “a happy coach” come to mind. What is your definition of the above? And how would you measure if you have achieved it?

If you choose to be “a happy coach,” you could end up also being a “much-loved coach” with many students, making you a successful coach. Or you could be called “a great coach” because of your technical abilities, but without being loved by your players, which could or could not make you happy, although outwardly successful. Ultimately, I believe that your definition of what kind of tennis coach you want to be will significantly influence your vision and strategy for your tennis academy.

Remember, your academy remains a business, and all businesses need to be managed effectively with a vision, strategy, and action plan to achieve goals.

Over the following few blogs, we will discuss various traits of running a business with particular reference to a professional tennis coach running their tennis academy. We have broken the blog down into the following discussion points:

• Principles of a successful business

• Develop a vision, mission, and strategy for your academy

• How to market your service by “being your brand”

• Be innovative: equipment and training gear

• The characteristics and profile of a successful coach

We hope our blog will help you better strategise and run a successful academy or business, and be a happy coach with happy kids. Maybe you are there already, but it’s always good to re-evaluate where you are and where you want to be.

Let’s discuss the principles of a successful business and ask ourselves: How well do I know my business?

The Business Development Bank of Canada did a study that examined why some businesses are more successful than others and came up with a list of 5 Do’s and 5 Don’ts. I like this because it is something you can easily refer to and use as a simple guide.

The research stated that “a statistical correlation was found between the success of a business and these five do’s.”

Do’s:

• Do #1: Innovate

• Do #2: Ask for outside advice

• Do #3: Have a solid plan and measure your progress

• Do #4: Hire the best and keep them engaged

• Do #5: Build strong relationships with your key suppliers

Their research further indicated the following five common don’ts:

Don’ts:

• Don’t #1: Don’t rely on too few customers, diversify

• Don’t #2: Don’t underestimate the importance of effective financial management

• Don’t #3: Don’t leave contingency planning until it’s too late

• Don’t #4: Don’t ignore what’s happening in your market

• Don’t #5: Don’t wait too long to get help

The Bank’s research tied in very well with another study that revealed innovation to be the most critical factor for business success. Although the business landscape constantly changes, the need to innovate has remained constant.

At this point, you must ask yourself a few serious questions about your business to tackle the 5 Do’s and 5 Don’ts, so back to the question: How well do I know my business?

Back to our 5 Do’s…

Do #1 – Be innovative
Sit down, rethink what you are doing, and ask yourself what you can do differently. According to the BDC, the most successful businesses do the following:

• They offer new products and services more often

• They adopt new technology quicker

• They acknowledge that innovative practices are critical and essential to their business success

Do #2 – Ask for outside advice
It has been proven that people who ask for advice do better, so try to apply this to your business.

Do #3 – Have a solid plan and measure your progress
Do you have a business plan? How often do you revisit your plan, and how do you measure yourself against your objectives? We’ll spend next month’s blog on this critical point.

Do #4 – Hire the best and keep them engaged
It takes more than money. Do you have the best staff working for you? Remember, even if you are the best, your business is ultimately defined by the weakest link. Select them well, treat them well and evaluate them often to set standards.

Do #5 – Build strong relationships with your key suppliers
I know this does not apply to our industry as much, and the focus should be more customer-focused, and I agree. But think about who your suppliers are and try to improve your relationship with them. Where do you rent your courts? Where do you get your balls from? Who supplies the best equipment?

Now for the 5 Don’ts…

Don’t #1 – Don’t rely on too few customers, diversify
Never put all your eggs into one basket. Re-evaluate your business and make sure you are not in this position.

Don’t #2 – Don’t underestimate the importance of effective financial management
Effective financial management means two things: 1) the proper knowledge and 2) the right tools. Make sure you pay on time and get paid on time. Make sure your financial plan and goals align with your overall business plan and measure them regularly.

Don’t #3 – Don’t leave contingency planning until it’s too late
This point is probably the most relevant in times like these. Who would have expected a lockdown of this proportion or could have planned for something like this? Many businesses will go under, but those with contingency plans and the will to adapt will have a better chance of survival. Think about what could go wrong in your business and try to plan for this. Embrace business continuity.

Don’t #4 – Don’t ignore what’s happening in your market
Know the market you are in and constantly ask yourself what has changed, what could change, or what you can change (innovation). This is a business killer.

Don’t #5 – Don’t wait too long to get help
If you need assistance, get it as quickly as possible. Research again indicated that the longer you wait, the less chance you have to recover. Make this applicable to every aspect of your business.

Next month we will discuss the importance of a vision, a mission, a strategy, a business plan, and most importantly, the action plan to make it happen. Keep on coaching and enjoy life one tennis shot at a time.

It is worthwhile to do the following business health check. Just read through the questions and rate yourself informally on how you are doing. Click here for pages 2 and 3 and review the guidelines on page 4.

Remember, this is a general business health check, but it will assist in showing you where your business might need some attention.