Report on Recruitment and Retention of Members for the

ReginaDuplicateBridge Club (RDBC)

Respectfully Submitted to the RDBC Board by Lyle Spencer and Jan Gray

August 4, 2008

The participants of the RDBC were very supportive of this initiative and almost everyone who was asked to fill out a survey participated. The responses were interesting and varied. This report summarizes the data collected from the two surveys of current members and an email survey of other Canadian clubs. As well as the results, the report contains recommendations aimed at mitigating the identified concerns.

It appears that generally Canadians have moved into the electronic age and increasing numbers are choosing electronic versions of bridge. Clubs like the RDBC will have to provide ‘value-added’ elements to encourage people to come to clubs and to actively participate. Winning master points is a valid personal objective however in order to continue as a viable entity the mission of the RDBC must be to ensure that all players have an enjoyable time – win or lose. The only way members will continue to participate in the Club is if they look forward to coming. Reinvigorating the Club will take a commitment of time, effort and creative thinking but we have members with the skills and abilities to achieve this.

DATA AND INFORMATION COLLECTED

1. Analysis of Survey Results

During one week all members who attended a session were asked to complete a survey. Twenty-five novices responded to the Monday Night survey and an additional 90 members responded to the general survey. A summary of the survey resultsis attached as Appendix A.

  • The profile of the new players who completed the survey is very similar to that of the experienced players – predominantly female, average age is 60-69, and they are employed part-time or casual but planning retirement soon.
  • By far the most significant issue for all players surveyed was the maintenance of a friendly atmosphere at the club. Many people identified the atmosphere as being very good while others noted that grumpy, arrogant and rude players interfered with their level of enjoyment. As well, a number of less experienced players indicated their discomfort in playing against players with significantly more experience and points citing a negative attitude including “taking advantage” and “gloating” as reasons for their discomfort.
  • A significant number of respondents indicated the reason they do not play more frequently is the finishing time for the evening games stating it is too late for people who work – starting earlier and having a faster paced game were suggested as actions which would mitigate this concern. The most frequently cited reasons for non-attendance at parties and special games were being out-of-town or having other commitments.
  • Many survey respondents indicated the reason they continue to come to the club is their enjoyment of the challenge and competition that characterizes the games. All survey respondents indicated they would recommend the RDBC to their friends and family.
  • Teachers and directors received many commendations for their dedication and commitment to the operation of the RDBC and to the games although there were some concerns expressed that the treatment and recognition of these individuals was inadequate. Ongoing lessons for players at all levels are viewed positively.
  • The facility is generally appreciated particularly the parking, although there were also a few negative comments about the temperature and building location. There were also negative comments about the smoke surrounding the entrance.
  • Several people commented about not playing as frequently as they might because they were not part of a permanent/regular partnership and were unaware or uncomfortable to seek out a new partner.
  • Novices identified a number of issues and concerns related to their transition from Monday night into other games includinga lack of awareness of what games they are eligible to play in, not knowing anything about ‘other’ systems, and concerns about attitudes towards them.
  • Novices are unlikely to attend special games unless they happen during their regular session.

2. Results of the Email/Telephone Survey of Other Canadian Clubs

Nine e-mails were sent to bridge clubs which appeared to be of a similar size and have a similar number of games as the RDBC. Two clubs responded – the Saskatoon Bridge Club and the Bridge Studio in Halifax. Both clubs draw from a similar population base but have higher weekly tables counts than the RDBC. Their information and suggestions are summarized in the next paragraphs.

  • Recruitment and retention of players is key to the success of a bridge club. The Bridge Studio suggested we should target the population we are looking to attract to the RDBC and then develop specific strategies which focus on that target group. They go on to say that the group to focus on is the soon to be retired and recently retired population as they have the time and money to commit to the game. They recommend the Audrey Grant Better Bridge Series for new players - it has worked well in their recruitment and retention of players. Given older players frequently do not like to drive at night the number of daytime games should be maximized. The majority of clubs across Canada start their evening sessions at 7PM so that those who work can be home at an appropriate time. As well, a number of clubs hold at least one morning game per week.
  • Both Saskatoon and Halifax make the games fun – not just about the competition – and this strategy has paid off in significantly increased table counts. Halifax has moved from about 35-40 tables a week 10 years ago to over 135 tables per week now. Party games are held frequently with prizes, free plays, decoration, costumes and food. Special features like a Lucky Score lottery where players buy in for a dollar and whoever gets the randomly assigned score wins the pot (or it carries over until the next session) also create a sense of excitement and fun - their last pot was over $600 so people were coming out in large numbers to try to win it. Since it is a lottery players of all skill levels are eligible to win. Bridge Studio has provided us with a copy of the random score generator software if we would like to give this a try.
  • Saskatoon and Halifax both expend significant effort to communicate with and to recognize their membership. They have phone committees who regularly call players to match players into partnerships for games, to match rookies with mentors, and to personally provide players with information and encouragement. As well, the Bridge Studio recognizes players who do well by having lots of signs at the club including lists of weekly winners and lists of all players who get 70% games. Signs with lists of all the games are prominently displayed in the club.
  • It appears that the issue having a supply of directors and teachers is a common one and strategies need to be in place to annually refresh this group.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Player recruitment:

  1. Clearly define the group to be recruited to the bridge club and initiate a communications strategy specifically focused on attracting this group.The soon to retire/recently retired population would be the most appropriate to target. The communications strategy should includeall forms of media such as television (Access Communications talk show), radio (public service announcements), newspaper, posters in places frequented by this target market, etc. Consideration should be given to consulting an advertising agency to prepare and monitor the results of this strategy.

Player retention:

  1. All members need to feel that they are valued members of the RDBC. Successful clubs are those clubs which actively and regularly communicate with their membership. Personal contact is key to this success. Implementing a re-structured phoning/communications committee to actively encourage people to attend club games, tournaments and special events will be critical to maintaining the membership particularly as players move from the protected environment of Monday night into other sessions.
  2. Start evening games at 7PM and encourage directors to keep all games moving at a reasonable pace so that they end by 10PM.
  3. Support the transition from novice status to intermediate status by including, but not being limited to, the following information sessions:
  • the role and when/how to call a director;
  • when/what needs to be alerted;
  • strategies for team games; and
  • ‘other’ (systems not usually played by novices e.g., precision) systems.
  1. Continue to provide a variety of lessons for prospective and existing members. Recognize and reward teachers appropriately and institute a plan to recruit new teachers.
  2. Maximize the number of daytime games including consideration of at least one morning session and consider supervised, non-sanctioned games.
  3. Continue to monitor and strongly encourage a friendly atmosphere at the RDBC including strict adherence to the Zero Tolerance Policy and ongoing reminders to players about the appropriate behaviour is when someone is not adhering to this policy.
  4. Attendance improves significantly when people are having fun. Consider implementation of regular party nights with food, door prizes, and lots of free plays (theme nights that worked at other clubs included Harry Potter, astronomy, movies, sports, pirates).
  5. Hold regular special games including:
  • an individual game where people play with and against a large number of members (a good way for newer members to meet and greet other members);
  • Lucky Score lottery games; and
  • An “Eight (8) is Enough Game”. This game is described in the June 2008 ACBL Bridge Bulletin. It is a Swiss Team Game where each player is assigned a point value based on the number of master points he/she holds. Flight A players would be assigned 3 points, Flight B assigned 2 points and Flight C assigned 1 point. No team can have a combined score of more than eight – ‘Eight is Enough’. As well, in some cases the game is then stratified by the total number of points held by each team (teams with 8 points, teams with 6-7 points, and teams with fewer than 6 points). The intent of this game is to mix players with lots of points with players with fewer points.

Communication with and recognition of members:

  1. Post a list of all games and the eligibility at the RDBC.
  2. Post this document on the website.

General:

  1. Recognize and reward game directors appropriately and institute an annual plan to recruit at least 3 new directors.
  2. Establish committees charged with specific responsibility for advertising, communications, special events/parties, etc.

Appendix A – Summary of Survey Results

1. “RDBC Survey”

  • There were more female respondents than male
  • Average age was 60-69
  • Average number of respondents were “employed part-time or casual but planning retirement soon”
  • The length of time playing bridge was 5 to 10 years
  • The average number of ACBL points was 201-300
  • Most respondents stated they are not eligible to be a game director
  • The average number of games played per week was 2
  • On a scale from ‘not significant’ to ‘very significant’ the majority of respondents ranked the importance of the following items:
  • Skill level of the other players – somewhat significant
  • Friendliness of the other players- somewhat significant
  • Time of the sessions- somewhat significant
  • Usual director- somewhat significant
  • Parking- somewhat significant
  • Special game- somewhat significant
  • Party night - somewhat significant
  • The following were ranked by the majority of respondents as:
  • Cleanliness and tidiness - important
  • General friendliness - important
  • Adherence to Zero tolerance policy – neither important or not important
  • General game management - important
  • Start and finish times - important
  • When asked if they were aware of the Zero tolerance policy the majority of respondents answered “yes”
  • The majority of respondents attend special games for additional points
  • Majority of individuals attend Monday, Tuesday and Friday afternoon sessions, as well as Thursday Evening sessions
  • The most common influences about their choice to play in a particular session: “Times do not fit my lifestyle”; “Prefer to play with players at or above my skill level”; and “Like afternoon games”

Written responses (number of responses):

  • The main reason people do not attend is due to other commitments/activities (21).
  • There was no clear reason identified that would make people attend more games, although time and friendliness at other sessions were both mentioned.
  • The main reason cited for non-attendance at party nights was that respondents were out-of-town or had other commitments.
  • The following were identified as the best features of the RDBC: friendly people (54), playing bridge (19), competitive and challenging (11), directors (6), lessons and teachers (6) and good facility/good location (6).
  • The following was identified as the worst features of the RDBC: arrogant/rude/grouchy/yelling players (18) and too slow play (5), and too late (5).
  • No more than 2 respondents indicated any influence which would make them play more frequently than they currently play.
  • All respondents indicated they would recommend RDBC to friends/family.
  • In response to the question ‘Any other suggestions’ the following comments weremade (number who mentioned):
  • Use name tags (3)
  • Try the “8 is Enough Game” (2)
  • The following are verbatim responses identified by a single respondent person
  • Each member should recruit 1 new member
  • Put info into community folder
  • Thanks to the volunteers
  • People should not take things personally
  • More directors
  • More parties
  • Limit systems for some games ( only allow Stayman, Jacoby Transfers, weak 2s, and negative doubles)
  • Help people know that calling the Director doesn’t mean you are mad at them
  • More youth
  • Finish earlier
  • More team games
  • Life Masters should mentor novices
  • Great Club
  • Doing a fine job
  • More thought about cell phone use – I need to be available by phone
  • Small cadre of volunteers
  • Classes

2. “RDBC Monday Night” Survey

  • Majority of respondents were female
  • Average age range was 60-69
  • Majority of respondents were “Employed part time, or casual but planning retirement soon”
  • Majority of respondents had spent “less than 6 months” playing duplicate bridge
  • Majority of respondents replied that they had attended “EasyBridge” or other classes, most in the last two years and often only two sessions
  • Majority of respondents have “fewer than 5 points”
  • Majority of individuals attend Monday evenings; Wednesday evening games; and Friday evenings
  • The common reasons preventing respondents to play at times other than Monday evening were, “Times do not fit my lifestyle”; “No time”; “Too stressful” and “Too threatened”
  • Average number of times per week was “One session per week”
  • On a scale from ‘not significant’ to ‘very significant’ the majority of respondents replied with the following:
  • Skill level of the other players – somewhat significant
  • Friendliness of the other players- very significant to somewhat significant
  • Time of the sessions-somewhat significant
  • Special game- somewhat significant to not significant
  • Party night – not significant
  • Majority of respondents are aware of the club’s Zero Tolerance Policy but do not know if it is being used
  • Majority of respondents attend special games, “only when they happened during my regular session”
  • Majority of respondents had never attended party events

Written comments (number of responses):

  • The best things about RDBC are the friendly people (18), and the learning and assistance (11), and the Monday instructors (4)
  • The worst features were identified as: smoking outside the door and bringing smoke back in (11), distance from my home (11), rude players (3)
  • Not having to work or having more time generally were the only changes which were identified as influencing people to play more frequently, although the issue of finishing time was identified in this question again.

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