Phuket Padel Clubs: Stop Marketing Padel Like It’s a Fashion Show
Stop Planning. Start Doing. – The Shark 13 October Marketing Series
Padel is absolutely booming in Phuket.
New courts are appearing.
New clubs are opening.
More people are playing.
And judging by Instagram, everyone who plays padel is 26 years old, incredibly attractive, permanently tanned and owns approximately 47 different padel outfits.
Apparently.
Now, before somebody gets upset, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the lifestyle side of padel.
In fact, I had a conversation recently with a friend who had just started playing.
Before she'd even properly started playing padel, she'd already researched the outfits.
Then bought the outfits.
Priorities. 😂
And actually, that's interesting from a marketing point of view.
Because the clothes, the rackets, the social side, the coffee afterwards, the photos and the whole lifestyle surrounding padel are part of the appeal.
Especially when somebody is getting into the sport for the first time.
So yes.
Show the beautiful people.
Show the cool outfits.
Show the incredible facilities.
Show the serious players smashing the ball around.
But please don't make that all you show.
Because walk into pretty much any busy padel club in Phuket and you'll see something completely different.
Padel Phuket
Padel Doesn't Actually Look Like Instagram
Go down to the courts on a busy evening.
You'll see young people.
Older people.
Beginners.
Good players.
Very good players.
People who've been playing for years.
People who started three weeks ago.
People in expensive padel gear.
People in football shorts.
People in old T-shirts.
People who look like athletes.
And people who definitely don't.
You'll see Thais.
Expats.
Tourists.
Men.
Women.
Groups of friends.
Couples.
Business owners.
Teachers.
Parents.
People who've lived in Phuket for 20 years.
People who've just moved here.
And plenty of people desperately trying to work out whether that bloody ball was in or out.
That's padel.
And from a marketing perspective, that's incredibly powerful.
Because the more different types of people you show playing at your club, the more different types of potential customers can look at your marketing and think:
"I could do that."
The Problem With Only Showing Perfect People
Gyms have been doing this for years.
Open a gym's social media and sometimes you'd think you weren't allowed through the front door unless you already had a six-pack.
Beautiful people.
Perfect bodies.
Professional lighting.
Expensive gym clothes.
Everyone looking fantastic.
But who's the person sitting at home thinking about joining a gym?
Quite often, it's the exact opposite person.
Someone who hasn't trained for five years.
Someone carrying a bit more weight than they'd like.
Someone nervous about walking into a gym.
Someone who doesn't know how the machines work.
Someone who thinks everyone inside is going to be fitter than them.
Then your marketing confirms their worst fear.
Look at our gym. It's full of incredibly fit people.
Brilliant.
You just scared your potential customer away.
Padel clubs need to be careful they don't do exactly the same thing.
Your Beginner Is Probably Nervous
Once you've been playing padel for a while, walking onto a court is nothing.
But remember what it feels like when you've never played.
You don't know the rules.
You don't know what racket to buy.
You don't know what level you are.
You don't understand all the terminology.
You don't know whether you need special shoes.
You don't know anybody.
And you certainly don't want to turn up and discover you're playing against four semi-professionals who've apparently been training together since birth.
So what should your marketing be telling that person?
You'll be fine.
Come down.
Have a go.
There are other beginners.
We'll help you.
You don't need to be brilliant.
You don't need to be super fit.
You don't need the perfect outfit.
Although apparently buying one first is completely acceptable.
Stop Marketing Courts. Start Marketing People.
Here's another problem.
If several new padel clubs are opening in Phuket, everyone is going to have courts.
Everyone is going to have rackets.
Everyone is going to have lights.
Everyone will probably have somewhere to get a coffee.
So if your entire social media strategy is:
"Look at our court."
That's going to get old pretty quickly.
The court is the product.
The people are the story.
Show the 55-year-old who started playing six months ago and now plays three times a week.
Show the woman who arrived in Phuket not knowing anyone and met half her friendship group through padel.
Show the complete beginner having their first lesson.
Show the group who play every Wednesday night and spend more time laughing than actually playing.
Show the competitive players.
Show the teenagers.
Show the parents.
Show the person wearing the beautiful new outfit.
And show the bloke wearing the same Manchester United shirt he's probably owned since 2007.
Show everyone.
Because that's what makes the sport interesting.
You're Not Just Selling Padel
This is probably the biggest opportunity for Phuket's padel clubs.
You're not really selling 90 minutes on a court.
You're selling something much bigger.
Community.
That's especially powerful somewhere like Phuket.
People move here all the time.
People arrive without knowing many people.
Expats are looking for social circles.
Tourists want things to do.
Residents want activities outside work.
People want to exercise without spending an hour alone on a treadmill.
And padel happens to be very good at bringing people together.
You book a game.
You meet three other people.
Then somebody introduces you to someone else.
Then you're added to a WhatsApp group.
Then you're playing on Thursday.
Then there's a tournament.
Then you're having dinner afterwards.
Suddenly you've got another little community.
That's what your marketing should be showing.
Make It Easy to Start
If I was marketing a padel club in Phuket right now, I'd be creating a lot of content specifically for people who have never played padel before.
Not just existing players.
Content like:
Never played padel? Here's what happens at your first session.
What should you wear to play padel?
Do you need to buy a racket?
Can you play padel if you're not fit?
How do you find people at your level?
Can you come alone?
What's the difference between padel and tennis?
How long does a game take?
What happens at a beginner session?
Those questions might seem incredibly basic to someone who's been playing for years.
That's exactly why you should answer them.
Your existing players don't need convincing.
Your next 500 customers might.
And Yes, Show the Outfits
Fashion is part of sport.
Always has been.
People buy football shirts.
Cyclists spend fortunes on Lycra.
Golfers have an entire wardrobe dedicated to looking like golfers.
And apparently some people need their padel outfit sorted before they've even worked out which end of the racket to hold.
Fine.
Embrace it.
Have fun with it.
Feature local brands.
Do "Padel Outfit of the Week."
Run social competitions.
Show the lifestyle.
Create content people actually want to share.
But mix it with reality.
Because if every single image shows beautiful, athletic people wearing immaculate matching outfits, you're subconsciously telling everyone else:
This place isn't really for you.
And that's probably the exact opposite of the message you want to send.
Your Biggest Marketing Asset Is Already on the Court
With so many padel clubs opening in Phuket, competition is going to increase.
Facilities will matter.
Location will matter.
Price will matter.
Coaching will matter.
Court quality will matter.
But the clubs that build the strongest communities will have something competitors can't easily copy.
People.
Real people.
Different ages.
Different abilities.
Different nationalities.
Different personalities.
Different outfits.
Different reasons for playing.
That's what makes a club feel welcoming.
And that's what makes someone scrolling through Instagram think:
"That looks like somewhere I'd actually enjoy going."
So by all means, take the gorgeous photo of the gorgeous padel player in the gorgeous new outfit.
It'll probably do very well on Instagram.
Just turn the camera around afterwards.
There's probably a far more interesting marketing story playing on the court behind you.
Padel is for everyone.
Your marketing should look like it.
Got it?
Good.
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