For 2 years I’ve run a website called Ultimate Rob (www.ultimaterob.com). In that time, I’ve published roughly 50 articles and posted more than 60 videos. My goal when I started the website was for it to be the go to website for ultimate frisbee but very quickly I realized that it wasn’t feasible – both from a time perspective on my side and from a searching perspective from a user side. I decided to instead focus on writing articles and filming videos that would help people very simply “Play Ultimate Better”.
So far, I’ve seen my fan base grow consistently and that’s been done mostly through word of mouth. I haven’t spent money on advertising, although I know that would have helped me grow more quickly. I also haven’t spammed people like a lot of people do when they don’t understand marketing and so the fans who do follow me appreciate what I do and I can honestly say that I haven’t had 1 negative comment in 2 years on any of my videos or articles. I have had some great discussions with players from all over the world – Ireland, Australia, Mexico, Poland, China, Philippines to name a few – and have been lucky enough to meet some of those players in person. When I started, I had some general ideas about how to monetize Ultimate Rob because I have spent a few thousand dollars to get everything going. However, the more time I’ve spent on the website and the more I’ve connected with people, I’ve decided that I had more value to offer than charging for content. The approach I chose to take was to offer to run clinics for teams and have them pay for my expenses. This would allow me to travel, share my knowledge and meet some awesome people. Although I wasn’t charging for the clinic per se, I was hoping to sell some of my dvd’s (I created a dvd 2 summers ago and have sold roughly 50 copies). With that in mind, I have spoken to some ultimate players in different countries about running a clinic for them – and so far none have happened.
Until now.
On Monday, the captain of the Malaki UFC (Ultimate Frisbee Club) contacted me and asked if I would consider going to Mexico from June 24 – July 4 to coach them and play a tournament with them. It’s still hard to believe it’s happening because, although I knew I could do it, I didn’t think it would happen. Well now, it is.
Monday was a flurry of activity as I was sending messages back and forth with Victor trying to figure out all the logistics and when we both realized that it was going to work, I spoke with my boss, who gave me the thumbs up to book the time off. Victor promptly booked my flight and next Friday, June 24, I will be boarding a plane bound for Mexico City. I will be staying in Querétaro, which from all the research I’ve done so far looks like an amazing city. According to Victor, they have the world’s 3rd largest boulder, a pyramid built by the Chichimecas, it’s a colonial city established by the Otomis indians, then colonized by the Spaniards, they have a huge aquaduct with 72 arches, and the wine there is supposed to be amazing. I’m not sure if I’ll be close to any beaches but I’m pretty excited to see a part of Mexico that most people going to Mexico don’t (as many people visit the resorts on all inclusive deals). It will for sure be the experience of a lifetime and it opens the door for more opportunities like this.
I will be taking pictures and videos and will be blogging while I’m there. This is the first time I will be traveling outside of Canada + the USA so I’m beyond myself with excitement!
I wanted to thank everyone who has believed in me and supported me while I’ve built Ultimate Rob to where it is today. I have many more things planned and I am so excited to share the sport of ultimate (and disc sports) with more people!
Best,
Rob McLeod
aka Ultimate Rob
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