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Running enthusiasts Jason and Kristy Altman, after the 2012 Scenic City 5K in Chattanooga, Tenn.
By Kristy Altman
Running has become a big business. Something so simple is now building empires.??
Most major cities across the country host large road races. Private, for-profit groups put together large series of races. Non-profit groups have gotten into the mix as a great way to raise funds for a cause. Big-money sponsor deals are common and gross revenue as well as net revenue is seeing an increase across the country.
Locally, the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon will celebrate its 9th run this April. What started as a volunteer-led effort to put on a marathon in Knoxville in the spring has morphed into having a full-time Race Director, a five-member Advisory Council, a 30+ member Organizing Committee, hundreds of Knoxville Police Department Officers, dozens of Knoxville Fire Department Staff, over 1,000 volunteers, and countless others supporting the race as a business or spectator and all as a whole community. The original one-day event has grown into two full days of activity and 12 months of preparation and will see over 9,000 participants in 2013.The boom in running has ignited a boom for other businesses. There are many groups across the country that have built businesses as ?registration? sites where participants sign-up and pay for their events. These organizations charge a fee to either the participant or the event organizer as part of their revenue source.? One of the larger groups is Active.com.
In February, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon registration opened on Tuesday, February 19, at noon, and shortly after, would-be participants began experiencing problems with the site.
For those who don?t know, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon is a very large race. The 2013 event has 45,000 slots available. And yes, that is quite a crowd on race day. Unfortunately, Active.com?s registration site experienced system-wide technical issues and forced organizers to suspend registration, leaving 15,000 spots unfilled and a lot of frustration among participants trying to register.
Kristy placed 2nd female overall in the 2012 Scenic City 5K.
Race staff responded quickly that day that registration would remain closed until they were sure that the Active.com issues were resolved. Good call on their part. Feeding information to the potential participants is a great practice.
On Friday, February 22, 2013, race officials announced that it would be another week before a solution would be announced. According to nbcchicago.com, Race director Carey Pinkowski released a statement on Thursday saying a ?timely, fair, and effective registration solution? for the unfilled spots would be announced on February 28.
One week doesn?t seem a like a long time, but runners tend to be a bit obsessive-compulsive over their schedules. Many runners determine their schedule a year in advance to provide ample time for planning, training, and recovery after the event. For the runners trying to get into the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, a week is a big deal.
On Thursday, February 28, it was announced that registration would open on Tuesday, March 5, as a lottery. This is a diversion from the previous process of first-come, first-served. The registration will stay open until March 7 at 9 pm CST, and then names will be randomly selected to fill the remaining 15,000 spots. Those awarded a spot in the race will be notified by March 12. Good move. A lottery is the fairest way to allow those wanting to participate a chance for a spot on the starting line.
What can we learn from race organizers? Have a plan in place.
As the sport has grown, media surrounding the large races have grown as well. ESPN or local channels film the larger events and replay on national television. There are many sites that focus solely on running and the athlete participating in various events. With the growth of Facebook and Twitter, information (good or bad) spreads quickly and can give an event a black eye in a matter of seconds.
So, with the increase in media exposure, race officials need to have a plan in place for every potential obstacle. They need to have PR/Communications professionals on staff, or they need to hire a firm/agency to represent them. And, race officials should be constantly reviewing what other races are doing ? good and bad practices.
Running is a big business these days, and there is great opportunity for events to have a positive effect on people each and every day. This is the time to focus on all pieces and make sure that crisis plans are in place and ready to go ? just in case of emergency.
Tags: active.com, Bank of America Chicago Marathon, communications, Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon, crisis, crisis management, Knoxville Marathon, Kristy Altman, marathon, Mary Beth West Communications, Mary Beth West Consulting, NBC Chicago, PR, Public Relations, races, running, social media
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