The Ultimate Guide to Organising a Successful Tennis Club Open Day

Organising tennis club open days is essential to building memberships, gaining publicity, and creating a more diverse tennis community, but they're not always easy to execute. With Edwards' tips and advice, we can help you create a memorable day in 10 easy steps.

Tennis open days should be filled with fun, information, and incentives for your attendees to make them want to join your club as regular members. You need to be on top of promoting the event, providing activities, and collecting attendees' information.

So, if that sounds like something your club needs help with, let's get into our top 10 steps to organising a successful tennis club open day.

Why Should You Have an Open Day at Your Club?

If you've never hosted an open day at your tennis club, or they've never been successful in the past, we should remind you of the importance of holding these events for the public.

Not only are they a huge opportunity to attract new members, showcase your facilities, and show your tennis programme, but they also help remove the stigma that tennis clubs are exclusive to retired men, helping build a more diverse community within the sport.

They're also a great way to fundraise and offer discounts, while attracting new potential coaches.

If you need help executing your club's open day, we've outlined our 10 steps to success below.

Planning for the Day

The proper planning of an open day is essential to its success, and you need to do so well in advance. This will allow for any hiccups, budget issues, or general problems you might run into.

It will also allow you to think about the outcome you hope to achieve and work towards it.

Step 1) Outline Your Goals & Audience

What's the goal of your club this year? Do you want to grow membership? Increase junior participation? Engage the local community? Promote new coaching programmes? Launch new facilities or promote recent upgrades?

Once you know the core goal, you can get specific. Do you want 100 attendees? Sell 10 merch products? Note the email addresses of 50 attendees for a follow-up? 

Whatever it is, make sure you have a means of measuring and tracking it.

The list is endless, but once you've narrowed it down, you can focus on who you want to attend your open day, so that you can work towards a more meaningful, beneficial day.

Then, you can work on your audience. Consider who would be interested in your open day. Are you targeting students, adults, women, or coaches? Knowing your audience will help you tailor your promotion so you reach the right people.

Once you clearly understand your goals and target audience, planning the rest of the open day becomes easier.

Step 2) Set the Date & Format

So, you have your audience and goal; now, you need to work on a date. 

In the UK, the weather is never guaranteed, but your best bet for a pleasant day is in the summer, and since tennis is an outdoor sport, you're going to need a dry day.

You also need to consider who your audience is. For example, if you're hoping to get more kids to sign up for a coaching programme, the summer holidays will be a great time to host your day, because they won't be in school.

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Similarly, most adults have jobs, and the majority of those are likely to be through the week. So, in this case, a Saturday or Sunday might be best.

You should also check for potential clashes. For example, if there is a popular local festival on the 18th of July, and you've planned your open day for that day, you might not get many attendees.

The format of your day should be next on the priority list, and your audience and expectations will determine this.

For example, a drop-in format will be casual and flexible, ideal for families, social engagements, and new members. Activities will also be constantly running.

A more structured format with timetable sessions would be ideal for coaching trials, club tours, and larger groups of people, like schools. This would encourage sign-ups in advance, giving you a better idea of the numbers.

However, our recommendation is a hybrid structure that would allow maximum visitors. You can have an informal morning session and a more structured afternoon — the best of both worlds.

Step 3) Plan the Activities & Timetable

The right mix of activities is key to keeping visitors engaged — and encouraging them to come back. A well-planned timetable ensures smooth running, clear communication, and the ability to showcase your club at its best.

Build your activities around who you're targeting, for example:

• Families: Keep things light, fun, and informal. Parent-child doubles are always fun.
• Juniors: Focus on quick wins, games, and friendly competition.
• Adults: Offer coaching tasters, cardio tennis, and doubles sessions.
• Newcomers: Guided intro sessions and equipment demos.

Below is an example of a three-hour timetable. Of course, you can edit it depending on your audience and goals.

Step 4) Recruit Volunteers & Assign Roles

This is the last step of your planning phase, and it's simple. If you expect big numbers, assign each staff member a role. You might also want to find volunteers for admin-style jobs, like car park coordinator, sign-up table, or raffle ticket holder.

Remember, you don't want to be caught short. It's better to have too many staff members than too little, especially if you unexpectedly go crazy on the numbers.

Promoting the Day of Your Tennis Club Opening

Promotion and advertising for these kinds of events is crucial if you want a good number of visitors. You can't always rely on word of mouth, and people will want to know details before they turn up.

Even the best-planned tennis open day won’t succeed without strong promotion.

Here's what you should do during the build-up to get the most out of your open day.

Step 5) Promote the Open Day Effectively

First, clearly communicate your event's purpose. Is it free coaching for all ages? A fun family tennis day? A chance to discover tennis with expert coaches? 

Then, clearly communicate the date, time, location, key activities, and main call to action (register, become a coach, etc.).

Here are some recommended channels to use to get the word out:

• Facebook Events: Great for local reach and reminders.
• Instagram Stories/Reels: Show past events, behind-the-scenes.
• Local Facebook groups: Post in community groups.
• WhatsApp & email: Send invites to all current and lapsed members, ask them to forward the invite to friends and neighbours, include a link to register interest or RSVP on your website.
• Schools, clubs, and local partners: Create a printable A4 poster for local schools and sports shops, offer to run a mini demo at a local school beforehand, and ask partners to promote the event in return for brand exposure on the day.
• On-site signage: Use banners or branded flags outside the club 2 weeks before, and include a clear date, time, and “Free for All Ages” message.
• Reach out to local press: Submit listings to local newspapers, community magazines, and town websites.

Promotion shouldn’t stop on the day either. Use social media during the event to post live updates, tag attendees, and encourage post-event sharing to attract new followers for future events.

What to Do Just Before Your Club’s Open Day

The day has almost arrived. You've planned and promoted, and you're almost ready. But not quite.

Before the day actually comes, you've got some work to do to ensure everything runs seamlessly and everyone is catered for.

Here are the next few steps.

Step 6) Prepare Your Courts & Equipment

Presentation and readiness matter. A well-prepared tennis court creates a professional first impression, improves safety, and ensures your open day runs smoothly, whether you're hosting seasoned players or complete beginners.

A tidy, well-maintained surface is essential. Here’s what you can do:

• Brush and clean hard courts or pressure-wash if needed.
• Drag and line sweep artificial clay or synthetic surfaces.
• Remove debris from corners and fencing.
• Check for moss or slipperiness, especially after rain.

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Ensure your equipment is safe, aligned, and looks professional:

• Nets: No holes, correct tension, centre strap in place.
• Posts: Check for rust, loose screws, or wobbling.
• Court numbers or signage: Replace any worn boards.
• Benches, bins, and scoreboards: Clean or reposition.

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Lastly, be sure to have some spare equipment in case of breakages or high popularity, set up each activity zone with the correct equipment, and use club-branded equipment where possible.

Step 7) Make the Day Inclusive

An inclusive tennis club open day isn’t just good practice, it’s essential to making all visitors feel welcome, safe, and valued.

Whether your guests are complete beginners, disabled players, older adults, or non-English speakers, make the day feel inclusive for all.

Step 8) Capture Visitor Details & Feedback

Getting people through the gate is only half the job. To make your tennis club's open day a long-term success, you need to collect visitor contact details and feedback in a way that’s engaging, GDPR-compliant, and helps convert interest into membership.

Here are the five recommended ways to do just that:

Step 9) Always Include Off-Court Activities & Refreshments

Food and drink is a big one at these kinds of events, and while not all visitors will expect it, they'll definitely remember if you provide it.

Always offer water on hand at each activity session, and around the event, especially if it's a hot day and there's limited shade.

For other drink options, you could have an outdoor bar (complimentary or not), vending machine, or even a tuck shop-style table with drinks for children.

For food, a BBQ is a budget-friendly, easy option, or you could arrange for different local food stalls to attend. Not only will this make your event stand out, but it'll also support small local businesses.

Of course, strawberries and cream are essential!

Read More: How to Build a Grass Tennis Court

After Your Tennis Club Opening Day

Congratulations on a very successful open day! But the work doesn't stop there. In fact, you're just getting started; achieving your goal is just a little closer.

Making the most of your event lies in what you do next, so let's get into it.

Step 10) Follow Up to Turn Visitors into Members

As we mentioned before, you should send your follow-up email within 48 hours of the event to thank you for attending, include any photos from the day, and offer one-time deals on membership prices and coaching.

Since you collected everyone's details, you can even tailor your emails to what they might be most interested in, e.g. family sessions, coaching, and other open days.

Here are some other things you can do to keep the momentum of the open day going:

• Send a series of emails, not just one: Consider sending a reminder to use their discount if they haven't yet, send testimonials from others who have used your services, final reminders, and upcoming events.
• Invite visitors back to another session: Some will need a little nudge to get the ball rolling. You can offer a free taster session, a coffee morning to discuss memberships, and junior games afternoons.
• Keep the conversation going on social media: Post event highlights, tag attendees (with permission), and share testimonials or quotes from the day. You can even encourage user-generated content by getting them to use a hashtag for your club.

Conclusion: Make Your Tennis Club’s Open Day the Most Successful

Planning and executing a successful open day requires creativity, organisation, and engagement, but the rewards are well worth the effort. With our tips and advice, it'll be even easier!

By focusing on creating a welcoming atmosphere, showcasing the best your club has to offer, and maintaining strong follow-up strategies, you'll set the stage for lasting relationships with attendees.

Just remember, obtaining the number of attendees you had, getting their details, and asking for feedback is essential to measuring your goals.

Good luck organising!

For more tennis content, head to our blog, where we have lots of tips and advice on equipment, courts, and more!

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