Recruiting Girls: Why a Phone Number Doesn't Work

Most girls' team recruitment posts are a line of text and a phone number. Parents do not reply to those. Here is what works.

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The problem with the standard postWhat works insteadRunning a recruitment pushQuick answers

The standard girls' football recruitment post looks like this: "U12s girls need players. Call Lee on 07xxx xxx xxx." It is the same post every club writes, and it is the reason most of them do not work.

A parent scrolling past that post learns nothing. They do not know where the team plays, what nights it trains, what the commitment is, whether their daughter needs experience, or what the club is like. So they do not call.

The problem with the standard post

What works instead

A designed recruitment graphic that answers the parent's real questions: which age group, which nights, where, whether experience is needed, and what to do next. Pair it with a photo of the current squad and a one-line quote from the coach.

Running a recruitment push

One post is not a recruitment push. A push is the same graphic reposted across three or four weeks, with different angles — a player's story, a parent's quote, a training-night photo — all pointing at the same next step.

Quick answers

What is the single biggest improvement?
Replacing the phone number with a low-friction next step — a form or a message — and adding the training night and venue.
Should we say experience is not needed?
If it is true, say it. Fear of being 'not good enough' is one of the biggest barriers for girls joining a team.

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