Shooting sports can be intimidating, especially for newcomers. Complex rules, unfamiliar equipment, and tightly knit communities often create barriers that keep people from taking that first step towards participating.
But when club organizers make hospitality a priority—starting with a warm greeting, clear signage, helpful volunteers, and approachable staff—those barriers begin to fall away. An environment that feels open, inclusive, and beginner-friendly is one that invites people in and encourages them to come back.
This summer will be a trying one for shooting ranges and clubs.
Gun owners, like everyone else in America, feel the pressure of a sluggish economy, high prices, and dwindling buying power, thanks in large part to the 19–20% inflation experienced during the previous administration. The result is potentially fewer trips to the range and fewer matches shot.
If your club’s match participation has been stagnant then you need to redirect your focus beyond the usual suspects that attend your local matches and start reaching out to recruit new gun owners. Who, by the way, are very interested in target shooting.
A study conducted by the Outdoor Stewards of Conservation Foundation (OSCF), along with Southwick Associates and DJ Case & Associates, provides valuable insights into not only who to reach out to but how to craft your messaging.
You can download both an executive summary and the detailed results for ‘Welcome New Shooters! Tactics to Win Participation from Under-Represented Communities’ here.
Some of the key highlights include these figures on shooting interest levels:
- African-Americans: 61% (25.4 million) rated their interest a 4 or 5 out of 5.
- Hispanics: 64% (39.7 million) rated their interest a 4 or 5.
- Asian Americans: 53% (10.4 million) rated their interest a 4 or 5.
All survey participants indicated they had never taken part in target shooting with a firearm but expressed interest in doing so.
These three groups of new gun owners, altogether and given overlap, account for 73 million people interested in trying target shooting. They are looking for a place to learn, shoot and improve their skills.
They are also looking for a place they will be welcomed and, despite the differences, a community they can join.
We all know the power of community that comes from shooting, whether it is recreationally at a local club or competing in high-level matches. Once you get involved, and you enjoy that first introductory experience, you’re hooked.
These 73 million newcomers are no different. As new gun owners they are focused on safety, protection, skill acquisition, and fun. And your range, your shooting club, can offer them just that. You only have to reach out to them.
The messaging guidance provided from the research helps you more effectively communicate to these newcomers that your club is the right place for them.
Treating your club’s activities and matches as hospitality events is more important now than ever. No longer can ranges that host regular shooting matches rely on the ‘usual suspects’ to fund new projects through match fees and fundraising. The economy is taking its toll.
It’s time to reach out to those new to shooting, and in many cases those from non-traditional communities.
That’s the polite code phrase for non-white, non-male shooters. Research shows that during the COVID years a huge number of new gun owners were women, African-American, and Asian-American.
They’d love to start their journey into the world of recreational shooting, just as long as you’re willing to have them. And treating them as welcomed fellow shooters goes a long way towards keeping them returning.
Hospitality is the key. I wrote about this back in April of 2012 in Between The Berms: It's Not Shooting, It's Hospitality (please excuse the post-server-changeover formatting issue). And again, just last week in Hospitality: Turn New Customers Into Repeat Customers, a more retail centered focus on the value of hospitality.
In it I outline the value of greeters, name tags, good food, photos, thank you notes, and keeping in touch. But there is so much more that can be done to improve the experience new shooters have at your club.
And there’s even more to consider when it comes to supporting newcomers. Hospitality, in their case, means offering support and guidance without condescension. Taking time to explain match procedures, scoring systems, range commands, and etiquette helps new shooters gain confidence.
And, when they feel supported rather than judged, they’re far more likely to return—and to bring others along with them. This is how hospitality generates positive buzz, which in turn recruits more shooters through word of mouth.
It’s not rocket science. As George Harris recently reminded me, it’s just “good old Southern hospitality.” And he would know. Having once been the guy in charge of the Sig Academy, he’s seen thousands of students pass through the Academy’s doors, and not just as students but as friends.
That’s the power of hospitality–and it’s an untapped superpower for ranges and clubs looking to grow. Best of all, it costs almost nothing.
— Paul Erhardt, Managing Editor, the Outdoor Wire Digital Network
