Tennis Club Newsletter: Content Ideas and Best Practices

Why Club Newsletters Still Work

In an era of social media and group chats, email newsletters remain one of the most reliable ways to reach your entire membership. Unlike social media posts that compete with hundreds of other items in a feed, a newsletter lands directly in each member's inbox where it commands focused attention.

Newsletters serve as the official record of club activity. They announce upcoming events, celebrate member achievements, and reinforce the sense of community that keeps people renewing year after year. Clubs that communicate regularly with members through newsletters consistently report higher retention rates and event attendance than clubs that rely solely on word of mouth or social media.

Newsletter Content That Members Want

The best newsletters mix informational content with personal stories and practical updates. Every issue should give readers a reason to open it and something to act on before they close it.

• Match results and league standings: Publish weekly or biweekly updates from club leagues, ladders, and tournaments. Include scores, highlight close matches, and recognize standout performances.
• Member spotlights: Feature one or two members per issue with a short profile covering their tennis background, favorite club activity, and a fun personal detail. This builds community and makes members feel valued.
• Upcoming events: List clinics, socials, tournaments, and registration deadlines with clear calls to action. Include direct links for sign-ups whenever possible.
• Pro tips and drills: Share a brief coaching tip, a serve technique reminder, or a footwork drill that members can practice on their own. Content from your club pro adds authority.
• Club news and updates: Communicate court maintenance schedules, policy changes, board meeting summaries, and facility improvements.
• Grand Slam and professional tennis recaps: Brief commentary on recent professional tournaments gives members conversation starters and connects your club to the broader tennis world.

Design and Layout Best Practices

A clean, consistent design makes your newsletter look professional and easy to scan. Use your club logo and brand colors in the header, and maintain the same layout structure from issue to issue so readers know where to find the content they care about.

Use short paragraphs, clear headings, and bullet points to break up text. Include at least one photo per issue, whether it is an action shot from a recent event, a group photo from a mixer, or a snapshot of a court improvement project. Images increase engagement and make the newsletter feel more personal than a wall of text.

Design for mobile devices first. Over 60 percent of emails are opened on phones, so use a single-column layout, large fonts (14 to 16 pixels for body text), and buttons instead of text links for calls to action. Test your newsletter on both phone and desktop before sending.

Choosing an Email Platform

Select an email platform that offers drag-and-drop templates, list management, and basic analytics. For most tennis clubs, a free or low-cost plan will handle everything you need.

1. 1Mailchimp: Free for up to 500 subscribers with templates, automation, and detailed analytics. A solid starting point for most clubs.
2. 2Constant Contact: Designed for small organizations with strong event promotion features and phone-based customer support.
3. 3Buttondown: A minimalist option that focuses on simplicity. Good for clubs that want to send text-focused newsletters without complex design work.
4. 4Substack: Free to use and well-suited for clubs that want members to be able to read newsletters in a web archive as well as email.

Frequency and Timing

The right frequency depends on how much content you generate and how often your members want to hear from you. For most tennis clubs, a biweekly or monthly newsletter strikes the best balance between staying visible and avoiding inbox fatigue.

During active league seasons or leading up to major club events, you may increase to weekly sends. During the off-season, monthly updates are sufficient to maintain connection without overloading members who are not actively playing.

Send your newsletter on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday mornings between 8:00 and 10:00 AM. These mid-week time slots consistently produce the highest open rates across the email marketing industry. Avoid Mondays, when inboxes are crowded, and Fridays, when readers are shifting into weekend mode.

Building Your Subscriber List

Your subscriber list should include every current member, but building it beyond your active roster creates a pipeline of future members. Collect email addresses at every touchpoint: membership applications, event sign-ups, guest registrations, and website inquiry forms.

Add a newsletter sign-up option to your club website with a clear statement of what subscribers will receive and how often. Promote the newsletter on your social media channels with a sample issue or highlights from recent editions. At public events like community tennis days or open houses, collect email addresses with a simple sign-up sheet or tablet form.

Measuring Engagement

Track three core metrics to gauge whether your newsletter is working: open rate, click rate, and unsubscribe rate. A healthy open rate for a club newsletter is 35 to 50 percent. Click rates of 5 to 10 percent on links within the email indicate that readers are engaging with your content beyond just scanning the subject line.

If your open rate drops below 25 percent, experiment with subject lines. Use specific language like "League standings after Week 4" rather than generic phrases like "Club update." If your unsubscribe rate exceeds 1 percent per send, reduce your frequency or survey members about what content they want.

Review which content blocks receive the most clicks in each issue. If match results consistently get the highest engagement, move them to the top. If event sign-up links are underperforming, try adding a countdown or limited-spots message to create urgency.