Memberships have become one of the most important pieces of building a sustainable pickleball business. But there is no set formula for how they should be set up. Some clubs highlight community-driven open play, while others combine low-cost memberships with pay-to-play court access.
Despite the many different models, the goal for all is to build a system to support engagement, retention and long-term growth.
Building Buzz Through Pre-Sales
For many pickleball clubs, membership sales begin long before players step on a court. Establishing awareness, credibility and early commitment from the community can be critical to a facility’s launch.
At Dill Dinkers in San Antonio, owner Brian Birdy began selling memberships months before opening the doors. “The newer you are, the more people don’t know about you,” he said. “And the earlier you need to get out and start doing things to become visible in front of the community.”
Birdy started pre-selling memberships roughly four months ahead of opening and aimed to sell 100 memberships by the time they did. The club reached that goal about a week before opening. That early momentum helped establish a foundation, but it was only the beginning.
Founding memberships are what incentivized those early sales. Dill Dinkers gave its first members a 15% lifetime discount, creating both urgency and loyalty. According to Birdy, the promotion proved highly effective.
Finding the Right Membership Structure
While early sales tactics matter, the structure of the membership itself ultimately shapes the long-term economics of the club.
At Dill Dinkers, the model emphasizes affordability and flexibility. The club offers a relatively low-cost membership that unlocks discounted court access rather than unlimited play. The membership is annual but can be paid in monthly installments.
That approach balances accessibility with court utilization management. Visitors can still play — typically paying full price — while members benefit from reduced rates.
Other operators look to build their entire business around the membership community itself.
For Chris Sears, the founder of Indianapolis Pickleball Club (IPC), the membership model exists to primarily strengthen community ties. “From day one, our focus wasn’t just selling court time,” said Sears. “It was driving commitment to the community and the facility.”
Open play serves as the core to that model. Sears believes it creates the social density that keeps players returning. “Once you build that network where members see familiar faces, build friendships and feel like they belong, retention becomes natural,” said Sears.
In other words, membership is not just about revenue. It’s a mechanism for reinforcing community behavior.
Valuing Membership Over Competition
When it comes to pricing memberships, both operators emphasize value over reacting to competitors.
“We believe we have a solid model and offer unique features that people want to be a part of,” said Birdy about competition influencing pricing.
Instead, the focus is on aligning pricing with operational costs and perceived value.
In IPC’s early days, Sears focused on pricing low enough to remove friction and drive adoption. Over time, as the community grew and the value strengthened, prices increased. But the initial pricing strategy deliberately left room for what Sears calls “consumer surplus” — ensuring members always feel they are receiving stronger value.
Creating Pathways to Membership with Programming
One lesson operators repeatedly share is that memberships rarely sell themselves. Instead, programming and player development often act as a leading funnel.
At Dill Dinkers, one of the most successful of these has been their beginner instruction. The club runs a structured multi-week training program designed for new players. Once players build confidence and skill, membership becomes a logical next step.
“The process of selling a membership isn’t just one avenue,” said Birdy. “Sometimes you have to sell the thing that gets them in your club, and then being in your club is what sells the membership.”
Sears follows a similar philosophy, but it begins even earlier. His clubs frequently introduce new players through free clinics and open play exercises.
“Our Pickleball 101 program has been one of our strongest retention drivers,” said Sears. “When new players feel capable and connected, retention naturally increases.”
Both approaches emphasize the same principle — experience first, commitment second.
Strategies for Retention and Engagement
Selling memberships is only half the challenge. Keeping members engaged, and ensuring they continue to see the value, requires constant operational attention.
At Dill Dinkers, Birdy monitors visitor spending patterns to identify conversion opportunities. If a frequent visitor spends more than they would have as a member, the team reaches out directly.
The club also uses automated retention tools that flag inactive members and trigger outreach to encourage them to return.
Meanwhile, IPC focuses heavily on maintaining the quality of the player experience, even when it requires making difficult decisions.
“As we’ve improved the open play product — verifying ratings, leveling skill groups, limiting certain reservation behaviors — that can occasionally rub people the wrong way,” said Sears. “But those policies exist to protect the overall experience. Sometime protecting the majority experience means making decisions that not everyone loves. That’s part of building a consistent, scalable model.”
That focus on consistent experience helps preserve the community dynamics that drive retention in the first place.
Key Insights for Sustainable Success
Across both models, several lessons stand out for operators evaluating their own membership strategy.
Many operators tend to start building awareness and selling memberships well before opening, using early adopters to generate momentum in the community. They also design membership structure around how players in their market actually engage with the sport, rather than focusing in on a one-size-fits-all model.
Programming often becomes the most effective sales engine, with beginner clinics, leagues and instructional programs introducing new players to the facility and naturally leading to membership conversions.
Pricing strategies, meanwhile, are most effective when they reinforce long-term value rather than chasing competitors or relying heavily on discounting.
Ultimately, retention depends on consistently delivering a strong player experience that keeps members returning not just for court access, but for the community they’ve built around the game.
As pickleball continues to grow, membership strategies will likely continue evolving. But the operators finding success today are learning that memberships work best when they are built around people, not just the courts.
Gain a competitive advantage
Subscribe to Pickleball Innovators for insider tips, expert insight and the latest trends to help your pickleball business thrive.
Jordan Meek is a staff writer for Pickleball Innovators, where she covers the rapidly evolving business of pickleball — from facility growth and technology to player experience and industry strategy. A graduate of Denison University with a degree in Journalism, she joined Peake Media in 2025 and brings a passion for storytelling and curiosity to every piece. Jordan is driven to spotlight the leaders shaping the sport and uncover insights that help operators thrive in the fastest-growing game in America.
