1. sports
2. soccer

Strategic Plan:
Building Towards 2020
Reston Soccer Association
P.O. Box 2697
Reston, VA 20195-2697
www.restonsoccer.com
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Page 3
Mission, Vision, Values
Page 5
Organizational Structure
Page 6
Goals and Objectives
Page 7
Key Performance Areas
Page 27
Financials
Page 33
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Executive Summary
We are determined to make Reston
Soccer Association (“Reston
Soccer”) the best youth soccer club
in Virginia. Nothing less will satisfy
us. If you want to be part of that,
keep reading, and better yet,
volunteer to join our team.
who are experiencing
kicking a ball for the
those who have the
talent to triumph at
levels.
the glee of
first time to
desire and
the highest
Of course, any soccer club worth its
salt provides its most gifted athletes
with an environment where they
can thrive and compete at an elite
level. To that end, a significant
portion of our strategic plan focuses
on enhancing our Travel program.
Reston Soccer has a rich and
storied past and was once a Travel
soccer powerHouse. We will
reclaim that glory, but we will do so
in a measured manner that
respects and supports our existing
Travel program.
What do we mean by the "best"? To
us, it means something unique and
different like the very community we
call home. It means delivering the
pure joy that only soccer can bring
to our children. Yes, we want our
Travel teams to compete at the
highest levels and win
championships! But, we want so
much more.
To us, being the best means
providing every kid in our program
an opportunity to develop their
soccer skills to their fullest
potential. We will do this in a fun
way that will have a lasting impact
on the development of our
children’s character as well as their
physical, social, and emotional well
being. In doing so, we will offer a
great soccer experience to players
across our programs from the kids
Achieving greatness will take
patience, perseverance, and a lot
of hard work by our members over
a sustained period of time. To that
end, Reston Soccer will focus on
achieving the following objectives
over the next five years:
• delivery of fun and high quality
programming designed to
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develop youth soccer players in
the club to their fullest potential;
• delivery of first class service for
all members and the local
community;
• maintenance and improvement of
fields and facilities used by all
members and the local
community;
• building and promotion of the
Reston Soccer brand in an effort
to develop esprit de corps among
club members and to attract and
retain top soccer talent, including
coaches, players, and volunteers;
• maintaining financial stability and
sustainable growth to ensure that
the club has the resources to
achieve it long term goals.
I hope you will join us on this
exciting and worthwhile journey.
Reston Soccer Association
Board of Directors
April 27, 2015
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Mission, Vision, Values
I. Mission
III. Values
To p r o v i d e e n r i c h m e n t a n d
enjoyment through cooperation,
team spirit, friendly competition,
and skill development in soccer.
Fun
Excellence
Cooperation
Team Spirit
Friendliness
Competitiveness
Transparency
Honesty
Fair Play
II. Vision
To be the soccer club of choice for
players and families that love the
beautiful game.
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Organizational Structure
Reston Soccer Board
Rules
& Discipline
Committee
Vice President
President
Registrar
Technical
Director
Referee
Coordinator
House
Commissioners
SFL
Commissioner
WAGS
Rep.
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Secretary
Treasurer
Finance
Committee
NCSL Rep.
ODSL Rep.
Goals & Objectives
I. Player Development & Soccer
Quality
1. Recreational Programs
Reston Soccer offers several
recreational programs, including
“Me & My Ball,” House, Suburban
Friendship League, and TOP
Soccer.
Reston Soccer aspires to be the
destination of choice for players
and families that love soccer and
want to enjoy the game to their
fullest potential. Building that type
of club begins with improving the
quality of the soccer experience we
produce.
a. Me & My Ball
The Me & My Ball program is
designed to introduce boys and
girls that are five or younger to
soccer. This very popular program
is run by professional soccer
trainers that have extensive
experience working with this age
group.
The program is offered
once a week typically on Saturday
mornings. Each child in the
program receives their own ball.
Each session lasts an hour and the
focus is on learning basic ball
handling by playing fun games or
drills. For example, in one drill the
kids pretend to sweep the deck of a
pirate ship by tapping the ball from
one foot to another. In another
game, the coach pretends to be a
shark and the kids or “minnows”
attempt to dribble the ball across
A. Description of our existing
programs
Currently, Reston Soccer serves
more than 1500 youth players in
the Fall and Spring seasons. The
vast majority of the families in our
program live in, or in close
proximity to Reston, Virginia. Most
of our players (approximately 1150)
participate in one of Reston
Soccer’s recreational programs.
Approximately 350 players
participate in our “Travel” program
which is meant for players that
have the ability and desire to play
at a more competitive level.
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the field or “ocean” before being
eaten by the shark.
During these sessions, each
volunteer coach is paired with a
professional soccer trainer. This
insures that the quality of the
sessions is high while providing
hands on training for our volunteer
coaches.
b. House
Reston Soccer’s House program
includes players in the U6 to U10
age groups. Each of these age
groups is run by a volunteer age
group Commissioner responsible
for organizing a mini-league of
teams coached by Reston Soccer
parents and volunteers.
Starting at U7, the program
expands to include two hour long
sessions every week. This typically
includes a team practice on
Saturday morning and a game on
Sunday afternoon. These sessions
are conducted by volunteer parents
and coaches.
Girls and boys are mixed in the U6
and U7 age groups. Beginning at
U8, girls have the option of playing
with the boys or playing in a “girls
only” program.
To supplement the coaching offered
by our volunteers, Reston Soccer
offers a “Soccer Academy” on
Tuesday and Wednesday
afternoons where all the players in
the U7-U10 House program are
invited to receive additional
coaching from Reston Soccer’s
professional trainers with a focus
on developing technical soccer
skills.
The U6 program is offered once a
week typically on Saturday
afternoons. The first half of each
hour long weekly session is spent
on games and drills similar to those
in the Me & My Ball program. The
second half of the session involves
the playing of small-sided soccer
games against other teams in the
league.
The emphasis is on
maximizing the time each individual
player has on the ball while
introducing the concept of scoring
goals and facing an opponent.
As the players mature and develop,
more complexity is introduced to
the sessions and games. In U6,
8
the games are played on smaller
fields with pug goals in a 3 v 3
format where the coaches roll balls
back into play. At U7, we expand
the size of the field a bit and
introduce a 4 v 4 format. Throwins, goal kicks, corner kicks, and a
5 v 5 format are introduced at U8.
By U9, our teams are playing on a
much larger field, with traditional
goals, goalies, a 7 v 7 or 8 v 8
format based on team size, and
referees applying the laws of the
game.
Te a m w o r k , t a c t i c s ,
positions, and passing concepts
becoming more and more
prominent as the players mature
a n d t h e fi e l d s i z e e x p a n d s .
Nevertheless, our primary focus is,
and should be, on development of
technical skills and player creativity.
a week to SFL teams in the U11 to
U14 age groups. We currently do
not offer a Soccer Academy for SFL
players.
d. TOP Soccer
For the first time in a long a time,
Reston Soccer started offering TOP
Soccer (The Outreach Program for
Soccer) in the 2015 Spring season.
TOP Soccer is a community-based
training and team placement
program for young athletes with
disabilities organized by Reston
Soccer volunteers. The program is
designed to bring the opportunity of
learning and playing soccer to any
boy or girl who has a mental or
physical disability. The goal of the
TOP Soccer program is to enable
young athletes with disabilities to
become valued and successful
members of the Reston Soccer
community.
c. Suburban Friendship League
Starting at U11, our recreational
players typically graduate to playing
in the Suburban Friendship League
(“SFL”) where they face
recreational teams from other
soccer clubs in Northern Virginia.
Our existing SFL teams are
coached by volunteers.
A d d i t i o n a l l y, R e s t o n S o c c e r
provides professional trainers once
2. Travel Soccer
A significant number of Reston
Soccer players participate on our
Travel soccer teams. Travel soccer
is first offered at U9. Tryouts are
required for participation on a
Travel soccer team. Only the most
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athletic, skilled and dedicated
players are selected for limited
slots on our Travel teams. Reston
Soccer has 13 girls Travel teams
playing in WAGS for the Spring
2015 Season.
attend, decide what players will be
given scholarships, set their
practice schedules, handle their
own funds, design and create their
own
webpages
and
communications strategies,
fundraise independently, and select
their team names. In most
instances, if there is more than one
team in the same age group there
is very little collaboration among
them. In some instances, Reston
Soccer Travel teams view
themselves as rivals competing for
players, field time, and other
resources.
Reston Soccer has 12 boys Travel
teams registered to play in NCSL
for the Spring 2015 Season.
Reston Soccer also has a history of
fielding ODSL teams. However,
none of the current Travel teams is
registered to play ODSL in the
Spring 2015 Season.
To date, Reston Soccer has taken a
hands off, laissez faire approach
with regard to its Travel teams.
Reston Soccer has typically been
involved in the initial selection and
formation of Travel teams at the U9
age group. However, once the
Travel teams are formed at U9, the
tradition has been to let them run
themselves as independent units.
Typically, the parents of the kids on
each Travel team select a team
manager and treasurer.
They
select and negotiate the terms of
engagement with the coach and
trainer, set their own cost structure,
decide what tournaments they will
At the same time, there is no
quality control mechanism with
regard to Travel coaches and
trainers. In some instances, Travel
coaches will coach a Reston
Soccer Travel team while also
coaching a Travel team from a
neighboring soccer club. Reston
Soccer has no mechanism in place
to prevent conflicts of interest of
this type.
B. Strategy for improving player
development and soccer quality
Reston Soccer has done a good
job introducing new players to
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• Act as a resource for all coaches,
soccer and developing them in the
U5 through U8 age groups.
However, once our youth players
get to U9 and Travel teams are
formed, there is a significant drop
off in the quality of our performance
as a club on both the recreational
and Travel sides. While there are
pockets of excellence in certain age
groups above U9, Reston Soccer
must do a better job if we want to
become a top notch soccer club.
parents and players in the club;
• Educate parents on Reston
Soccer’s policies and
philosophies on youth
development and age
appropriate activities through
orientations, seminars, and
written material;
• Foster synergies between House,
SFL, and Travel;
1. Appointing a Technical Director
• Work with age group and league
Improving the soccer quality of our
program begins with providing our
youth players with a higher
standard of training and a higher
standard of coaching. To that end,
Reston Soccer has appointed a
Technical Director.
Commissioners and coaches to
place players in the appropriate
program for their development;
• Design training priorities and
develop a written soccer
curriculum for all programs;
• Develop a comprehensive
Appointing a technical director is a
critical first step in fostering an
environment where our players can
fully develop and thrive. To that
end, Reston Soccer’s Technical
Director will be asked to fulfill the
following duties and tasks:
training program for all coaches;
• Continue to run the existing
soccer academy;
• Expand the soccer academy to
provide additional skill
development and training for
players across programs;
• In concert with the Reston
Soccer Board, develop and foster
a soccer philosophy for the club;
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• Add programming for all Travel
• Design and run a summer soccer
teams to the existing academy
program;
program for Reston Soccer;
• Liase with other soccer clubs and
• Direct the Travel program;
organizations in the area to
create opportunities for Reston
Soccer players and coaches;
• Interview, evaluate, and select
coaches for the Travel program;
• Attend Reston Soccer Board
• Design and run a winter soccer
meetings to give regular updates
program for Reston Soccer;
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of technical developments within
the club; and
We will also expand on the very
successful soccer academy
program that already exists for our
younger House players so that our
SFL and Travel can benefit from
such offerings. We also intend to
roll out new programming for winter
and summer soccer.
• Promote Reston Soccer and the
game of soccer in whatever
ancillary duties the club deems
necessary.
Appointing a Technical Director is
not a novel idea, but we strongly
believe in this concept and are
convinced that it is critical if we are
to improve the program. This lines
up with Virginia Youth Soccer
Association’s recommendations
and with what the best clubs in the
region are already doing.
Finally, we will look to create
opportunities for players across our
programs to engage in unstructured
free play or what is commonly
referred to as “pick up” or “street”
soccer. We recognize that children
in our programs need an outlet to
enjoy soccer in a safe environment
where they can experiment and be
creative without the pressure of a
coach or parent directing their
every move. Unfortunately, there
are few opportunities for children in
our area to spontaneously join a
neighborhood pick up game.
Recognizing that reality, we will
develop sessions where kids and
their families can simply show up
and join an unstructured game.
2. Expanding Opportunities for
Soccer Skill Development
Reston Soccer will support the
Technical Director by providing the
necessary resources to expand the
current opportunities for soccer skill
development across all of our
programs. This will included a
concerted effort to develop soccer
curricula across our programs and
to train both our volunteer and
professional coaches so that they
can execute on our common soccer
philosophy and development
approach.
3. Fostering synergies between the
House, SFL and Travel Programs
Reston Soccer will continue to
foster and look for synergies
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between the House, SFL and
Travel programs. This begins with a
one club mentality that we will
continue to develop over time. This
means realizing that the different
parts of the club are not isolated
islands. Instead, they are
interdependent and can operate in
a mutually beneficial way.
blooming SFL player blossoms into
a valuable Travel player. That type
of transition is more likely if we offer
all of our players with quality
training and coaching. Moreover,
revenue generated from running a
robust recreational program can
defray the costs of carrying
scholarship players that are
incredibly talented but whose
families don’t have the means to
afford Travel soccer.
For example, over the long term
both the SFL and Travel programs
benefit from a vibrant House
program. The House program is
where future SFL and Travel
players will develop and come
from. If we do a great job creating
enthusiasm for soccer and
developing technical soccer skills in
the House program, we will
ultimately have stronger SFL and
Travel players.
4. Unification of the Travel
Program
In an effort to improve its
competitiveness and to create
synergy and cohesiveness across
the program, Reston Soccer
intends to restructure the current
Travel program by gradually
bringing all of the Travel teams
under the control of the club and
direction of the Technical Director.
While it is less obvious, strong SFL
and Travel programs should be
complimentary. For instance, a
strong Travel program will attract
top notch coaches and trainers that
can act as resources for SFL
coaches and players. At the same
time, providing SFL players with
Tr a v e l q u a l i t y c o a c h e s a n d
resources can pay dividends for the
Travel program when a late
As described above, Reston
Soccer’s existing Travel teams
operate as independent units
competing against each other for
players and resources.
Recognizing that many of the
current Travel teams enjoy their
independence and may not want to
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change how they do business, they
will be given a choice. They can
either remain as they are until they
age out or join the new one club
structure. Their ability to join the
one club structure will be made
available to them every season and
they will be welcome to come under
the one club umbrella at any time.
the necessary equipment and gear;
(9) coordinate the purchase of
uniforms and other accessories;
and (10) collect and manage fees
and dues.
Our strong belief is that going to a
one club structure will significantly
improve the Travel program in the
long run. Here are some of the
advantages of moving in this
direction:
New Travel teams, starting with the
rising U9 teams that will begin play
in the Fall 2015 season, will come
under the direction of the Technical
Director and will be run by the club.
• Better accountability and quality
control for coaches and trainers
across the club;
For new teams and existing teams
that opt to fully integrate into the
new one club structure, Reston
Soccer will: (1) select and negotiate
the terms of engagement with the
coaches and trainers; (2)
compensate the professional
coaches and trainers; (3) conduct
tryouts and select players based
strictly on merit as determined by
the technical director and
professional coaching staff; (4) set
the cost structure; (5) decide what
leagues the teams will join and
what tournaments they will attend;
(6) decide what players will be
given need-based scholarships; (7)
set practice schedules; (8) secure
• The ability to compensate
professional coaches based on
their work and value and not the
financial wherewithal of the
players on a particular team;
• Emphasis on selection of players
based strictly on merit will
ultimately attract the best players
and result in higher quality
teams;
• Cost savings, efficiencies, and
economies of scale associated
with centralizing many functions
that are currently carried out by
each team independently;
15
• Pooling of fundraising;
to a one club, or “club-centric”
model and are experiencing
improved results.1
• Improved collaboration among
teams resulting in more
opportunities for pooling
coaching resources, paying for
goalie training and other clinics;
intra-club scrimmages, etc…;
5. Sustainable Growth of the
Player Pool
Reston Soccer will also seek to
actively grow the number of players
participating in its programs. For
years, Reston Soccer’s growth has
remained flat at approximately
1500-1600 youth players. In the
past, growth was simply not a goal
for Reston Soccer. However, many
neighboring clubs that Reston
Soccer competes against are many
times larger.
• More efficient use of scarce
q u a l i t y fi e l d t i m e t h a t w i l l
ultimately result in increased
access to the fields for players
across the program; and
• Development of a one club
environment where coaches,
parents and players are more
inclined to support, cheer for, and
otherwise align themselves with
every other team in the club.
A growing pool of players is a sign
of a flourishing soccer club and
garners many advantages. At a
time when participation in youth
soccer is growing at a 9 percent
We are not alone in this belief. The
most successful clubs in the region
and across the country have gone
1
Chris Hummer, “Club-centric is more than a buzzword and the proof is on the field,” Apr. 24,
2015. Web May 16, 2015. <http://www.soccerwire.com/blog-posts/hummer-club-centric-is-morethan-a-buzzword-and-the-proof-is-on-the-field/>.
16
rate,2 flat growth is a sign of
decline.
teams at every level, talented
players will be drawn to our
program. The likelihood of that
happening increase exponentially
in a larger soccer club.
First, having more participants in
the program will generate more
revenue. More revenue is critical to
investing in better fields and
facilities for the program. Over time,
revenues from a larger program
would allow the club to hire a full
t i m e Te c h n i c a l D i r e c t o r ,
administrator and to recruit and
retain high quality professional
coaches and trainers.
6. Gaining Access to Elite Level
Opportunities for Our Best Players
Currently, Reston Soccer lacks
access to certain elite level Travel
soccer leagues such as the Club
Champions League, National
Premier League and the Elite Clubs
National League. This puts our
Travel program at a disadvantage
in terms of recruiting and retaining
the most talented Travel soccer
players. It is the goal of Reston
Soccer to improve our Travel
soccer program so that we can gain
access to the highest level of play.
Second, a larger pool of players will
increase the competitiveness of the
club across programs. More
players simply increase the odds
that the club will develop the kind of
soccer talent necessary to compete
at all levels, including the highest
levels of Travel soccer. While it is
possible to recruit talented players
into the club, homegrown talent is
more likely to stay and be loyal to
Reston Soccer. Additionally, if we
can consistently produce strong
To be invited to play in these high
level developmental leagues, our
p r o g ra m h a s to c o n s i ste n tl y
produce excellent Travel soccer
teams. Many of our strategic
2
US Youth Soccer, “US Youth Soccer experienced significant growth in 2014,” Jan. 16, 2015.
Web Mar. 18, 2015. <http:www.usyouthsoccer.org/
us_youth_soccer_experienced_significant_growth_in_2014/>. But see, Marc Fisher, “Behind
the curve: In a quickly changing society, baseball is striking out with youths,” The Washington
Post A1 at A9, Apr. 6, 2015,(reporting that participation in all sports has dropped by more than 9
percent nationwide, including a 1.8 percent decrease in outdoor soccer participation, over the
past five years).
17
initiatives are designed to get the
quality of our soccer program to
that level on our own merit. In
addition, Reston Soccer will explore
strategic alliances with other clubs
so that our players can compete at
the highest levels of Travel soccer if
that is appropriate for their
individual development.
our programs. To that end, Reston
Soccer will produce an Operating
Manual that will help us standardize
operations across our programs
and assist us in recording and
executing best practices for basic
operations that are necessary for
running a successful program such
as registration, team creation, team
assignments, scheduling, and
equipment management. Such a
manual will also greatly aid new
volunteers as they take on roles
across our program. It will also help
us to quality control across key
areas.
II. Operations
One of the challenges of running a
non-profit volunteer organization
like Reston Soccer is that it is
difficult to provide a consistent and
professional level of service.
Despite this obvious fact, Reston
Soccer ’s ambitious goals will
requires us to elevate our
operations and the level of service
we provide to our members. As the
club grows and as our budget
allows, Reston Soccer will look to
hire a full time administrator to
improve and professionalize our
operations and the overall level of
service we provide.
In addition, we will look to improve
on and further develop our
computer database and
infrastructure.3 We are hopeful that
this will increase our efficiency and
help us to better serve our
members.
III. Field and Facility Quality
Better fields make for better soccer,
and Reston Soccer would like to
improve the quality of its fields both
for existing and future players.
In the meantime, improving our
operations requires us to be more
organized in the way that we run
3
See discussion in Section IV regarding communications & revamping of the Reston Soccer
website.
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Since Reston Soccer does not own
its fields, it must rely on Fairfax
County (“the “County”) and Reston
Association (“RA”) to provide fields.
Both these organizations have
expressed a willingness to work
cooperatively with Reston Soccer
to improve the fields they control.
master plan to improve Baron
Cameron Park offers such an
opportunity and Reston Soccer will
look to remain engaged on that
front.
In other cases, Reston Soccer can
actively coordinate with in-season
and out-of-season maintenance
efforts, recognizing that these
maintenance tasks may result in
fields that are out of use for periods
of time ranging from a day to a
year.
In select cases, Reston Soccer can
work with the County and RA as
field construction and renovation
plans are being developed so that
R e s t o n S o c c e r ’s n e e d s a n d
preferences are reflected in the
final plans and construction/
renovation. Reston Soccer’s recent
$150,000 contribution to the
construction of the synthetic turf
fields at the South Lakes High
School Stadium and the practice
field at Langston Hughes Middle
School is an example of the
positive impact Reston Soccer can
have on field quality in our
community.
Significant improvement of certain
fields may require Reston Soccer to
augment County and RA efforts
with coordinated maintenance and
funding. The steps required to
create and maintain quality fields
are not complicated, but they do
require the commitment of
resources. The resources are time,
labor and money, all of which are in
limited supply. Given limited
resources, choices must be made
regarding the allocation of Reston
Soccer resources.
Reston Soccer will continue to look
for opportunities to partner with the
C o u n t y, R A , a n d o t h e r
organizations such as the Reston
Community Center in efforts to
improve or build soccer friendly
fields and facilities. The County’s
In making those choices, Reston
Soccer will be guided by the
following principals:
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• Not all fields can be given equal
• Launch a major fundraising
priority. While no field should be
neglected, fields used by Travel
teams and older children require
more attention reflecting the
demands those groups place on
fields.
initiative so that the club is
prepared to contribute in the
event plans to build synthetic turf
fields at Baron Cameron Park are
successfully launched by the
County.
• First quality fields are expensive
• Establish two first-quality full size
to build and to maintain. Reston
Soccer should only commit to the
number of such fields that it can
afford to fund as part of a five
year plan.
fields at Lake Newport with LNU
convertible to two small sided
(U12) fields.
• Establish a first-quality full size
• Creating and maintaining quality
field at Allred, convertible to two
small sided fields.
fields at all levels means that
fields must be allowed to rest
allowing grass to grow and
mature for a season or a year
ensuring renovation efforts
achieve the most return on
invested funds.
• Place the balance of the fields on
a rotating maintenance program.
• Encourage RA to purchase a reel
mower and gradually convert
first-quality fields to bermuda
grass.
• Reston Soccer must actively
• Publish field use guidelines
work with RA and the County to
steer allocation of their resources
in soccer friendly ways.
mandating that goal mouths not
be used for practices except
during specific goalie training,
and instructing coaches to vary
their practice field set-ups to
distribute field wear.
Specifically, Reston Soccer will
seek to:
• Adopt fields 1-3 and 9 at Baron
Cameron Park.
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IV. Branding, Marketing, &
Communications
is itself part of that effort because
with it we are communicating who
we are and where we intend to go
as a soccer organization. It is core
to our branding effort.
Reston Soccer must improve its
branding and marketing so that it
can grow and thrive as an
organization. That involves
s i g n i fi c a n t l y i m p r o v i n g o u r
communications with members,
prospects and other key players in
the community.
A. Unified Branding
One of the central themes of this
strategic plan is developing a one
club philosophy where we create
s y n e r g i e s b e t w e e n d i ff e r e n t
constituencies in the club. By
uniting the club in this way we
aspire to create a much stronger
organization that can benefit
everyone in the club.
We are not selling cereal, we are a
soccer club, so, what do we mean
by branding and marketing and why
do we care about it? “Branding is
the expression of the essential truth
or value of an organization,
p r o d u c t , o r s e r v i c e . ”4 “ I t i s
communication of characteristics,
values and attributes that clarify
what” Reston Soccer is and is not.5
To that end, we will develop unified
branding for Reston Soccer,
including a universal team name,
mascot, and logo, to be used by all
participants in the academy
program and Reston Soccer teams
that face opponents from other
clubs. The new branding will be
designed to reflect our core values
and we hope that all our players will
wear it with pride.
Strong branding efforts: deliver a
message clearly; confirm credibility;
connect target prospects
emotionally; motivate the customer;
and cement loyalty. We need to do
all of that to improve and grow
Reston Soccer. This strategic plan
4
James Heaton, “The Difference Between Marketing and Branding,” Web Mar. 26, 2015
<<tronviggroup.com/the-difference-between-marketing-and-branding/>>
5
Id.
21
Once we develop the new unified
branding, we will implement a
marketing strategy designed to
promote the Reston Soccer brand.
Of course, this will include
promotion of the brand through our
website, social media, a quarterly
n e w s l e t t e r, a n d o u r e m a i l
communications with our members
and the community at large. It will
also include rolling out new
uniforms, cheer gear for parents
and other fans, car magnets,
stickers, and other Reston Soccer
branded gear and equipment that
we will make available on our
website and at retail locations such
as Sterling Soccer.
B. Revamping the Reston Soccer
website
And we will prominently display our
new branding on tents and signs at
every Reston Soccer venue and
event. This way, our brand will
become associated with the
excellence, fun environment, and
shear joy we expect to produce
when Reston Soccer’s players take
the field.
Our hope is to design and develop
a state of the art website that will
become a destination of choice in
the soccer community. Achieving
that objective will require active
volunteers willing to constantly post
fresh information that is of interest
to our members and the soccer
community. Doing that will go a
long way toward enhancing the
Reston Soccer brand.
Our marketing and communications
strategy will include a revamp of
the Reston Soccer website. Work
on this is already underway through
our Website Improvement Task
Force. The goal is an aesthetically
pleasing, user friendly website that
will contain useful and timely
information (e.g., a team page for
each team in the program, soccer
news, information about Travel
tryouts, coaching tips, concussion
awareness training, etc…) for our
members, recruits and the
community.
In furtherance of our overall
marketing strategy, Reston Soccer
will develop a marketing plan for
the Fall and Spring seasons each
year.
In addition to being a
communications tool, the website is
also vital to operation of the
22
organization in that it is our primary
tool for registering players and
volunteers, assigning them to
teams, and collecting fees. We are
also working to roll out a field
scheduling module on the website
that will: help our parents, players,
and volunteers know where they
need to be for games, practices,
and soccer related meetings,
increase the transparency of our
field scheduling process, and assist
us in announcing field closures.
Reston Soccer’s communications
strategy cannot stand still and must
keep up with the times. This means
having a good website is not
enough. We need to also improve
our leveraging of social media and
mobile platforms to promote Reston
Soccer and communicate with our
members using their preferred
medium. While Reston Soccer has
a Facebook page and a Twitter
account, we need to do a better job
integrating our messaging across
platforms. We also recognize that
our website and other
communications tools need to be
optimized for mobile devices as
that is the primary way many of our
C. Amplifying Our
Communications Strategy via
Social Media and Mobile Devices
23
members gather information and
communicate.
programs are not native English
speakers and often have a hard
time comprehending our written
communications. Many more, don’t
join Reston Soccer because it is
not accessible to them in a
language they are comfortable in.
As part of our website revamp and
outreach efforts, we will look to
make information about our
programs accessible in as many
languages as possible, including
Spanish. This will include the active
recruitment of coaches and
volunteers that can communicate in
Spanish and other languages that
are common in the Reston
community. As an initial matter, we
will leverage our current volunteers
by asking what languages they
speak on our volunteer registration
form.
D. Community Outreach &
Engagement
While improving our presence
online is critical, Reston Soccer
cannot lose sight of good old
fashioned community outreach and
engagement. To that end, Reston
Soccer will increase its outreach
efforts at local schools and
community centers. This includes
conducting in-person registration at
schools, running soccer clinics at
community centers, and getting the
word out about our programs
through PTA organizations. Based
on our current registration data, we
know there are families in the
community that would love to have
their kids play soccer but simply
don’t know we exist or don’t know
when or how to register.
V. Finance & Fundraising
Scholarships for underprivileged
youth, a full time Technical Director,
a full time Administrator, top notch
professional trainers and coaches,
a state of the art website, and
pristine fields, all cost money.
While there are a lot of
improvements we can make under
our current budget, some of Reston
E. Extending Reston Soccer’s
Reach By Communicating in
Multiple Languages
Reston
diverse
people
Many
is a rich and wonderfully
community comprised of
from all over the world.
of the families in our
24
Soccer’s most ambitious goals will
require us to take a serious look at
our cost structure and to super size
our fundraising efforts.
and will maintain a reasonable
reserve;
• Reston Soccer will be
transparent with regard to its
financials so that members,
donors, and other stakeholders in
the community understand how
the club’s fund are being utilized.
To that end, unaudited financial
statements for the last three
years are attached to this
strategic plan.
Here is the plan for financing our
dreams and aspirations as a club:
• Reston Soccer will remain fiscally
conservative and budget
conscious in everything it does
going forward. This means the
club will not spend money it
doesn’t have, will remain thrifty
25
• Reston Soccer will generate
• Reston Soccer will gradually
additional revenue by growing
the club in a measured and
sustainable manner. The hope is
to accomplish this by improving
the quality of our program and
using the marketing and branding
strategies outlined in this
strategic plan. Having a larger
program will allow us to carry a
full time technical director and a
full time administrator that will in
turn increase the level of service
we offer every member of the
club;
increase fees to a sustainable
level. At the moment, Reston
Soccer’s fees are lower than
most soccer clubs in Northern
Virginia and this is not
sustainable. We intend to raise
fees in a way that will not come
as a shock to the system but
enough that it will allow the club
to eventually afford the priority
items outlined in this strategic
plan, including top notch coaches
and trainers, a full-time technical
d i r e c t o r, a n d a f u l l t i m e
administrator;
• We expect our plan to unify the
• Reston Soccer will recruit a
Travel program will yield cost
s a v i n g s , e f fi c i e n c i e s , a n d
economies of scale associated
with centralization and pooling of
many functions that are currently
carried out by each team
independently;
fi n a n c e a n d f u n d r a i s i n g
committee and empower it to
carry out a sustained fundraising
campaign designed to pay for
field maintenance and future
improvements.
26
Key Performance Areas
Player Development & Soccer Quality
Objective: To develop, retain, and attract youth soccer players and their families.
Timeline (year)
Action Item
Lead
1. Appoint a Technical Director
President
Critical
Done
2. Develop a soccer philosophy for the club Technical
Director &
Board
Critical
On
Track
3. Work as one club to develop synergies
between House, SFL, and Travel
Technical
Director &
Board
High
On
Track
4. Strive to place players in the appropriate
program for their development
Technical
Director
High
On
Track
5. Develop a written soccer curriculum for
all programs
Technical
Director
High
On
Track
6. Develop a comprehensive training
program for all coaches
Technical
Director
High
On
Track
7. Continue the soccer academy program
Technical
Director
Critical
Done
8. Expand the soccer academy to provide
additional training for players across
programs
Technical
Director
High
On
Track
9. Add programming for all Travel teams to
the existing academy program
Technical
Director
High
On
Track
10. Bring management of rising U9 Travel
teams ‘in House”
Technical
Director
Critical
Done
11. Gradually bring the Travel program
under the direction of the technical director
in an effort to create synergy and
cohesiveness
Technical
Director
Critical
On
Track
27
15 16 17 18 19 Priority
Status
Player Development & Soccer Quality
Objective: To develop, retain, and attract youth soccer players and their families.
Timeline (year)
Action Item
Lead
15 16 17 18 19 Priority
12. Gradually phase out the existing feudal
Travel system where each Travel team
operates independently and without
direction from the club
Technical
Director
Critical
13. Design and run a winter soccer
program
Technical
Director
Medium On
Track
14. Design and run a summer soccer
program
Technical
Director
Medium On
Track
15. Seek opportunities for sustainable
growth of the player pool
Technical
Director
Critical
On
Track
16. Explore strategic alliances to compete
at the highest levels of Travel soccer if
appropriate
President &
Technical
Director
High
On
Track
17. Seek entrance into high level
“developmental” Travel soccer leagues
President &
Technical
Director
Critical
On
Track
Timeline marker indicates what year of the 5 year plan the action item is to be complete.
28
Status
On
Track
Operations
Objective: To run Reston Soccer professionally and to provide first class service for all members and
the local community.
Timeline (year)
Action Item
Lead
1. Draft and publish an Operating Manual
setting forth repeatable and consistent
routines and best practices for running a
successful soccer program year.
President
15 16 17 18 19 Priority
Status
High
On
Track
2. Step up efforts to recruit volunteers
Vice President
committed to executing on the strategic plan
Critical
On
Track
3. Finalize Development or purchase of a
Web Site
computer system capable of supporting and Improvement
improving our operations as follows:
Task Force
Critical
On
Track
High
On
Track
A. Registration
B. Team Assignments (smoothly and
without the need to use Excel as a
crutch)
C. Messaging
D. Scheduling
E. Field Status
F. Background Checks
G. VYSA & League reporting
H. Billing & Collection
I. Reporting to Fairfax County
J. Reporting to Reston Association
K. Reporting for management and
quality control
4. Hire a full time Administrator
Board
Timeline marker indicates what year of the 5 year plan the action item is to be complete.
29
Field & Facility Quality
Objective: To provide high quality fields and facilities for all members and the local community.
Timeline (year)
15 16 17 18 19 Priority
Action Item
Lead
1. Continue engagement with Fairfax
County
President
Critical
On
Track
2. Step up engagement with Reston
Association
President
Critical
On
Track
3. Strategically augment Fairfax County
and Reston Association efforts with
coordinated maintenance and funding
Fields
Committee
Critical
On
Track
4. Adopt fields 1-3 and 9 at Baron Cameron
Park
Fields
Committee
High
On
Track
5. Establish two first-quality full size fields at Fields
Lake Newport with LNU convertible to two
Committee
small sided (U12) fields.
High
On
Track
6. Establish a first-quality full size field at
Allred, convertible to two small sided fields.
Fields
Committee
High
On
Track
7. Place the balance of the fields on a
rotating maintenance program.
Fields
Committee
High
On
Track
8. Encourage Reston Association to
purchase a reel mower and gradually
convert first-quality fields to bermuda grass.
Fields
Committee
Medium On
Track
9. Publish field use guidelines mandating
that goal mouths not be used for practices
except during specific goalie training, and
instructing coaches to vary their practice
field set-ups to distribute field wear.
Fields
Committee
Medium On
Track
Timeline marker indicates what year of the 5 year plan the action item is to be complete.
30
Status
Marketing, Branding & Communications
Objective: To promote Reston Soccer and build brand awareness.
Timeline (year)
15 16 17 18 19 Priority
Action Item
Lead
1. Develop unified branding for Reston
Soccer (team name, mascot, logo, etc…) to
be used by all teams that play opponents
outside Reston (i.e. Travel & SFL) and for
the academy program
Board
Critical
On
Track
2. Prominently display branding on tents,
signs, etc… at all Reston Soccer venues
and events
President
High
On
Track
3. Roll out new uniforms with new branding
President
Critical
On
Track
4. Develop cheer gear and other Reston
Soccer branded gear and equipment to be
sold on the Reston Soccer website and in a
retail location (i.e. Sterling Soccer)
Board
Medium On
Track
5. Revamp the Reston Soccer website
Web Site
Improvement
Task Force
Critical
On
Track
6. Improve quality and timeliness of content Web Site
on Reston Soccer website (e.g., a team
Improvement
page for each team in the program, soccer
Task Force
news, information about Travel tryouts,
coaching tips, concussion awareness
training, etc…)
Critical
On
Track
7. Develop a marketing plan for the Fall
and Spring seasons each year designed to
retain and attract more players
President
High
On
Track
8. Produce a quarterly newlsetter
Secretary
Medium On
Track
Timeline marker indicates what year of the 5 year plan the action item is to be complete.
31
Status
Finance & Fundraising
Objective: To ensure that Reston Soccer remains viable and has the resources to achieve its long
term goals.
Timeline (year)
15 16 17 18 19 Priority
Action Item
Lead
1. Produce yearly operating budget
President &
Treasurer
Critical
On
Track
2. Continue to produce accurate end of
year financial reports and tax returns
Treasurer
Critical
On
Track
3. Publish financial reports to club
members
Treasurer
Critical
On
Track
4. Appoint Finance Committee
Board
Critical
On
Track
5. Establish a robust and ongoing
fundraising program to supplement income
generated through registration fees
Finance
Committee
Critical
On
Track
6. Launch a major fundraising campaign so
that the club is prepared to contribute in the
event plans to build synthetic turf fields at
Baron Cameron or elsewhere in Reston are
successfully launched by Fairfax County
Finance
Committee
Critical
On
Track
Timeline marker indicates what year of the 5 year plan the action item is to be complete.
32
Status
Financials
Fiscal Year Ended
June 2012
June 2013
June 2014
Cash Inflows
Registrations
$
Donations
338,430
$
322,467
$
328,578
499
2,561
315
3
331
450
338,932
325,359
329,342
Training
56,925
53,025
55,737
League Fees
91,816
90,457
94,996
Field Fees
32,844
37,060
33,605
Supplies
19,548
17,281
21,332
Field Maintenance
34,187
24,412
18,630
Referees
22,005
23,034
25,201
Administration
45,076
44,908
45,364
-
150,000
-
3,760
-
4,738
306,161
440,177
299,602
Other
TOTAL CASH INFLOWS
Cash Outflows
Field Contributions
Miscellaneous
TOTAL CASH OUTFLOWS
NET CASH INFLOWS (OUTFLOWS)
Cash and Investments
$
32,771
$
(114,818)
$
29,740
$
183,239
$
68,035
$
97,545
33