Roller derby is a fast-paced, high contact, extreme sport that has leagues playing all over the globe. Undoubtedly, the sport is aggressive, calling for players to slam into each other; however, it’s what makes roller derby so fun to watch and play! Amazingly, there are a few similarities between the fundamentals of roller derby and marketing a business. While physically you aren’t strapping skates on to your feet to go beat up your competitors, your marketing strategy is doing it for you. Metaphorically, of course. Before we dive in, there’s a few basic things you need to know about roller derby. Trust me – as a seasoned derby girl, I’m an expert.
The Basics
Roller derby comes in many shapes and forms, however, the most popular style of roller derby takes place on a flat track and follows the rule sets from the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA for short).
- Each team fields five players. One jammer and four blockers.
- The jammers wear the star on their helmet. They are responsible for scoring.
- The blockers are responsible for helping their jammer get through the other blockers, while simultaneously preventing the other jammer from scoring.
- Every team is responsible for having a bench manager. The bench manager is responsible for creating lineups and assigning positions to skaters.
Marketing Manager or a Bench Manager?
Every marketing team requires someone such as a manager, or a “bench manager”, to lead and inspire them. Your marketing manager should be leading their team on the path to making your business successful, just like a bench manager. Your marketing manager should also be aware of their team’s strengths and weaknesses. A good bench manager would never ask a new player to be the jammer in a high stakes game and a good marketing manager would never ask an IT intern to develop an intricate marketing strategy for a brand new client.
One Tough Business
One Tough BusinessYour business is competing against all of the other businesses in your market. Somehow, your business is going to have to rise in ranks above all of your competitors. Just like the jammer, your business has to survive being hit and knocked down while still pushing forward. Your goal is for your business to be more successful than your competitors. Every time your business rises in search rankings, gains a good review, or secures a new client your business is gaining more points and is closer to beating your competitors.
(Photo Credit: Art Petrosemolo at Nautical Photography)
A Strong Marketing Strategy
Your marketing team should develop a strategy that is strong, sturdy, and trustworthy, just like the blockers. The marketing strategy can be bulked up by creating a beautiful web design, initiating a plan to improve your search engine optimization, and consistently updating your social media accounts with intriguing content. Without a well-thought out strategy, your business will struggle to overcome your competition.
Sometimes, blockers commit penalties and have to leave the track. A negative review, the loss of a client, or Google lowering your search ranking can set your marketing strategy back. However, your marketing team has to develop a new stronger strategy to get your business through the set-back
(Photo Credit: Chase Diem- Derby Photography)
Victory!
Winning the game and becoming successful can be defined differently by every business owner. Maybe this month your business closed more deals than ever before or a local news outlet has decided to do a feature on your business. Either way, your business is successful and you deserve to celebrate that. Make sure to thank your tough-as-nails marketing team for all they do, too.
(Photo Credit: Seth Berman at Rapid Shutter Photography)
Do you need help developing a reliable marketing strategy? Perhaps your playbook needs to be updated? Contact our team of professionals for a free consultation to get your team ready to tackle the biggest competitors out there!
