The UK's Finest Independent Forum for Shooters and Gun Owners. Est 2010.

Newspapers and websites are all well and good but TV is the best form of advertising bar none. Just a shame the advertisement of firearms/clubs/shooting is prohibited via TV or radio :evil:

TV is the best form of advertising bar none...that depends...it does not reach the Sky+ customers does it?

TV is the best form of advertising bar none

I agree, but let's be honest - who has sufficient funds to advertise their club on TV?

First of all we need people to accept our sport as "normal" and the grass roots local newspapers - free or otherwise - are a helpful route as well as our websites. If we're seen in amongst the local chess clubs, rugby clubs, tennis clubs etc, it helps to destroy the illusion that we're secretive, "hole-in-the-corner" sort of people.

One of the lessons we've learned after Hungerford and Dunblane - and now the Cumbria shootings - is that being secretive "for security reasons" is not a helpful stance to take; add to that the belief (fostered in some clubs) that it is a male-dominated, macho sport and you can see why some believe we're some form of secret society where inadequate male loners learn to use guns to kill people.

It's in our hands - we can be open, welcoming and informative, or we can be closed, bureaucratic and silent about our clubs "for security reasons".


Your thoughts?

With respect, someone needs to catch up with marketing in 2011...TV is not the best form of advertising anymore.

Sky+ customers...our market segment, skip the adverts.

What's more, a basic TV advert will cost in excess of £100k.

Mike2 wrote:

TV is the best form of advertising bar none

I agree, but let's be honest - who has sufficient funds to advertise their club on TV?

First of all we need people to accept our sport as "normal" and the grass roots local newspapers - free or otherwise - are a helpful route as well as our websites. If we're seen in amongst the local chess clubs, rugby clubs, tennis clubs etc, it helps to destroy the illusion that we're secretive, "hole-in-the-corner" sort of people.

One of the lessons we've learned after Hungerford and Dunblane - and now the Cumbria shootings - is that being secretive "for security reasons" is not a helpful stance to take; add to that the belief (fostered in some clubs) that it is a male-dominated, macho sport and you can see why some believe we're some form of secret society where inadequate male loners learn to use guns to kill people.

It's in our hands - we can be open, welcoming and informative, or we can be closed, bureaucratic and silent about our clubs "for security reasons".


Your thoughts?

Well said. I agree totally.

In today's world a website for your club is the best form of marketing. Here in Australia, the yellow pages (big advertising phone book) is becoming obsolete. I don't even pick one up any more, I use google.

We also put forward on the website, the female shooters and young shooters. Even though they are such a small section of our shooting movement, you have to see them on the website. It softens the sport to the public eye.

Our club also works with scouts and army cadets. We get the kids shooting .22's. Make it a fun experiance, and tell them to come back, and bring their parents.
When we have our Christmas shoot, we work on the kids ]:) and have them work on their parents. We usually get a good turn out.

Robin128 wrote:With respect, someone needs to catch up with marketing in 2011...TV is not the best form of advertising anymore.

Sky+ customers...our market segment, skip the adverts.

What's more, a basic TV advert will cost in excess of £100k.

To be fair Rob, there are more people who don't have Sky+ than do, a lot more. One well presented, carefully edited tv advert for shooting (as a whole not an individual club etc) would do more for 'the cause' than any other form of advertising, imo. Personally i think it would have to omit practical disciplines :( , game shooting toffs and images of young children using guns to be acceptable for the general unwashed at this point in time, but it could be done. (If it was allowed :roll: )

I agree that a lot more could be done with the internet though, the vast majority of clubs are ran by people who were around before the first computer and there seems to be very little interest at the moment. I've had input on the website of my indoor club and it is one of the better ones i've seen, for rifle clubs anyway.

Obviously theres also the massive problem with rifle clubs in that its not like a clay club where you can turn up and have a go, except on 'open days' which for my clubs anyway, seem to be rare events, if ever.

Getting shooting into the main stream media (other than negative firearms abuse) is the key

Actionclear wrote:We also put forward on the website, the female shooters and young shooters. Even though they are such a small section of our shooting movement, you have to see them on the website. It softens the sport to the public eye.

Our club also works with scouts and army cadets. We get the kids shooting .22's. Make it a fun experiance, and tell them to come back, and bring their parents.
When we have our Christmas shoot, we work on the kids ]:) and have them work on their parents. We usually get a good turn out.

I totally understand what you're saying, but the problem here is the the concept of "young shooters" is at best misunderstood and worst used to bash shooting and/or to further a political agenda.

http://www.southwalesargus.co.uk/news/g ... aid_Cymru/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/dec/0 ... ence-child
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/834432-ten- ... n-licences

Over here, there would a hue and cry if a club showed images of children shooting (and heaven forbid, :shock: enjoying themselves.)

At this point in time, I don't think the UK is mature enough to understand that educating children about the safe use of firearms is the way forward.

If something like Blackstuff suggested was possible (TV ads) then the more images of women shooting the better, if for no other reason than the break the preconceived ideas about the type of poeople that shoot.

I wonder what the response would be if organisations like the NRA, BASC, CPSA and others, set up a campaign among their members to raise enough money to actually make a TV advert.

As people have mentioned, showing kids shooting could be a little difficult to get the right balance, but if they were shown in the context of youth organisations, like Scouts or cadets with the discipline and other skills involved, it might be possible. Showing families shooting together would also show it is something for everyone.