As technology continues to advance, the rules shaping effective marketing and social media reach are continuously changing, making it difficult for rec center leaders to keep up.
However, Kim Fortin, the director of marketing at Amilia, said the most innovative industry marketers aren’t necessarily creating more campaigns. Instead, they’re using data, technology and community insights to create more relevant experiences. “Whether it’s AI, CRM-driven personalization or demand-based programming, the common thread is understanding what participants value and meeting them where they are,” she said.
That sentiment is consistent through the marketing trends, challenges and solutions found below from leaders across the industry, including from Amilia, Daxko, the YMCA of the Virginia Peninsulas and JCC Binghamton.
Fortin said one of the most significant trends she’s seeing with community rec marketing is the adoption of AI to accelerate content creation and marketing execution.
“However, the most successful marketers are using AI as an assistant rather than a replacement, ensuring their messaging remains authentic, community-focused and reflective of their organization’s unique voice,” said Fortin.
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Another major trend Fortin highlighted is increased price sensitivity among participants and families due to the current economic environment. Consumers are evaluating spending more carefully than ever, and organizations must clearly communicate the value of their programs and services rather than focusing solely on price. Demonstrating outcomes, community impact and participant experiences is increasingly important.
Fortin added her company is also seeing a growing emphasis on aligning program offerings with participant demand.
“Recent industry data shows demand remains strong but many organizations are experiencing a mismatch between what participants want and what’s offered,” said Fortin. “Centers that leverage participation and registration data to better understand patterns can optimize their offerings and improve both enrollment and participant satisfaction.”
Finally, personalization continues to be a key differentiator. Fortin said participants increasingly expect communications, recommendations, and experiences that reflect their interests, behaviors and history with an organization.
“Technology and data are making this level of personalization more accessible than ever before, but many organizations are still working through the operational challenges of audience segmentation and preference management to deliver truly relevant communications at scale,” explained Fortin.
Wendy White, the chief marketing officer at Daxko, also recognizes the rise of awareness around AI. For the past few years, she said most organizations have experimented with AI primarily to produce content faster. However, that’s a narrow application.
“What’s more significant is AI being used to flag which members are at risk before they cancel, to prioritize which outreach needs a human response and to surface operational patterns that no staff member has time to find manually,” said White. “That’s a different category of value entirely.”
Unfortunately, White said that gap is real, recent reporting shows only a fraction of nonprofits have embedded AI into organizational goals, budgets and strategy.
From her experience, White said the organizations she respects most aren’t asking “How can we use AI?” Instead, those teams ask, “Where’s our staff time being lost, and where are our members experiencing friction?” Then they look at technology as a tool to address those specific gaps. That framing is what produces real outcomes.
“The leaders I talk to across community centers aren’t confused about what good member engagement looks like,” said White. “They’ve been building community relationships for decades. What’s changed is the scale at which they’re expected to deliver that kind of attentiveness, and the complexity of doing it across more channels, programs and member segments than ever before.”
The trend White is watching closely is the growing recognition that data collection was never the hard part — turning that data into timely, relevant action is.
“Most organizations are sitting on more data than they’ve ever had,” said White. “The organizations gaining ground right now are the ones investing in the connection between insight and execution, not in collecting more data.”
Virginia Harrell, the executive director of marketing and communications at the YMCA of the Virginia Peninsulas, said one of their most successful marketing strategies has been combining mission-driven storytelling with highly targeted marketing campaigns.
“Rather than promoting programs as individual transactions, we connect them to larger community outcomes whether it’s water safety, youth development, family wellness or social connection,” said Harrell. “That approach resonates strongly with our communities because people want to understand the impact behind the services they support.
One strategy the Y is emphasizing is what the team calls “mission-first marketing.” Every campaign begins by identifying the community impact behind the program. Then, the Y builds its creative strategy around that story.
Instead of simply promoting swim lessons, they talk about drowning prevention. Instead of promoting camp registration, the Y showcases confidence-building, friendships and life skills that campers gain.
Also, Harrell said the team is heavily invested in creating customizable marketing toolkits and templates that allow centers across their association to stay on brand while localizing content for their communities. This creates consistency while still allowing each center to tell its own story.
“Some of our most effective social media content has featured real people and real outcomes,” said Harrell. “We’ve found that photos of participants, families, campers and volunteers consistently outperform polished promotional graphics.
Harrell added that centers should spend more time identifying their unique role in improving quality of life and less time competing solely on features or pricing.
“Recreation agencies are often solving significant community challenges, from youth development and mental wellness to social isolation and water safety,” said Harrell, “But those outcomes don’t always make it into marketing messages.”
Katelynn Hrywark, the marketing manager at JCC Binghamton, said the J’s most successful marketing strategy isn’t a campaign. Instead, it’s creating an environment where people feel welcomed the moment they walk through the J’s doors. That’s when their best tool shines through — word of mouth.
“When families have a positive experience, they naturally become our greatest ambassadors,” said Hrywark. “Those personal experiences, combined with an active social media presence and engaging website, help us tell the story of who we are and invite others to become part of the JCC family. What makes our center truly special are the relationships we’ve built over generations. We have families whose children grew up at the JCC, and who are now bringing their own children and grandchildren through our doors. Those stories are what define us.”
One strategy Hrywark said that’s been effective in increasing word of mouth is being present in the community. The J makes it a priority to attend local events, festivals and community celebrations. These events give the team an opportunity to introduce themselves to people who may not be familiar with everything they offer and start conversations.
The team at JCC Binghamton has also found collaboration to be a very valuable tool in marketing. When the center partners with other nonprofits, local businesses, schools and community organizations, everyone benefits.
“At the end of the day, marketing is about people, and there’s no substitute for face-to-face connections,” said Hrywark. “When it comes to social media, our most successful posts are typically those that celebrate community. Our other consistently high-performing content features our Early Childhood Center and Camp JCC. There’s something universally joyful about seeing children learning, exploring, making friends, and having fun. Those authentic moments resonate with parents, grandparents, alumni and community members alike.”
Despite these promising strategies, hurdles still exist for the industry. Fortin said one of the biggest challenges for centers is effectively leveraging data to make smarter decisions. Without a clear view of participant behavior and trends, it becomes difficult to optimize programming.
“Another challenge is audience segmentation and personalization,” said Fortin. “These organizations often serve diverse audiences through a wide variety of programs, making it difficult to ensure members receive communications that are relevant to them.”
To overcome these issues, Fortin said to rely on the “4 Ps” of marketing:
- Product. Ensure programs and services align with the needs and interests of your community.
- Price. Clearly communicate value and make sure your pricing strategy reflects both market realities and participant expectations.
- Place. Make it easy for participants to discover, register, and engage with your offerings across digital and in-person channels.
- Promotion: Deliver the right message to the right audience at the right time using the channels your community actually uses.
For White, the biggest challenges are disconnected systems, limited staff capacity and uncertainty around AI adoption. She offered four principles that have guided organizations toward progress:
1. Start with outcomes, not tools.
When you start from outcomes, tool choices become clearer and the investment becomes more justifiable.
2. Connect existing data before collecting more.
Most organizations don’t have a data shortage. They have a data connection problem. Before adding new systems or sources, it’s worth making the data you already have more accessible.
3. Focus on practical applications that deliver visible value.
High-impact, lower-complexity applications of AI exist in every organization. Starting there builds confidence and buy-in.
4. Build governance and trust early
Organizations that approach AI adoption thoughtfully will be better positioned not just legally and ethically, but competitively. Trust is very hard to rebuild.
Lasting Advice
Harrell’s advice to other centers is to create an annual content calendar. Successful marketing is rarely reactive, so she said to plan campaigns several months in advance, coordinate content across departments and align your marketing with operational priorities to prevent last-minute promotion.
Meanwhile, Hrywark is certain rec organizations can do more to remove barriers that prevent people from participating. She said sometimes the biggest barrier isn’t cost — it’s the fear of walking through the door for the first time.
“People want to see themselves represented in our photos, videos and stories,” said Hrywark. “Show families and individuals from diverse backgrounds enjoying programs together. When people can picture themselves participating, they’re much more likely to take that first step. If we focus our messaging on belonging, community and the positive impact recreation has on people’s lives, we’ll encourage more people to discover everything our organizations have to offer.”
Finally, White saidthe industry sits at a unique intersection, as rec centers are trusted institutions and have longitudinal relationships with families and community members that commercial businesses would pay billions to replicate.
But the risk White sees is in a world of increasing noise and competing priorities, these organizations treat community engagement as a marketing function rather than an organizational capability.
“The leading organizations I’m watching don’t have better marketing. They have better intelligence,” said White. “They understand who their members are and what’s happening in their engagement journey. The future of this work is not more technology for technology’s sake. It’s the intentional use of intelligence to strengthen the relationships and community outcomes that are at the heart of this mission. Organizations that understand that distinction will define what success looks like for the next generation of nonprofit community organizations.”
