From just over 5 years of playing footbag, I've noticed some common trends in the general public's reaction to our sport and players' attitudes towards promoting it.
First off, the majority of players want to see the sport expand in many ways, such as number of players, corporate sponsorships, media coverage, competition funding, etc. Knowing what we want is a good start.
From my personal experience, here is a list of problems integrated into our sport, hindering its ability to become more recognized and prosper:
(Solely my opinion -- sorry if any of this appears blunt)
1. Footbag tricks are getting more complex. The untrained eye cannot travel at the rate of the bag. It becomes harder to distinguish subtle differences when a variety of multiple dexterity moves -- hence, common advanced shred moves may appear similar or even identical to the viewer.
2. The entire general public is far behind the times of modern freestyle. Perceptions of what is the epitome of footbag is neither accurate nor representative of today. The majority consider kicks to be the main aspect of footbag, and the most desirable attrribute to have is a high number of kicks. This MUST change.
3. Footbags are too small/not visible enough. Even with relatively simple tricks, distinguishing a small airborne footbag from the surroundings (i.e. background) is not an easy task. This is true especially when the bag has faded or dull colouring of panels. Visibility HAS to be considered more highly in public performances.
4. There are not enough internet/commercial footbag videos geared towards promotion/public viewing. Even with the greatest footage of the best players, with 1. and 3. true the video will have limited success. The focus must be towards audience comprehensibility/appreciability.
5. Players don't perform/practice in public as much as potentially possible. (self-explanatory)
6. Routines/stage performances are generally not paced enough to allow for a viewer to become progressively more immersed in the sport and understand the increasing difficulty levels.
7. To the uninitiated, footbag (Hacky Sack) isn't dangerous, thrilling, nor extreme.
8. Players often don't have promotional materials available when confronted by interested observer(s). This includes personal information, a brief description of the sport, and resources (like footbag.org, clubs in the area and sites to buy shred equipment).
9. More videos must be geared towards effective basics instruction. As serious players continue to improve, the tendency for beginners is to observe these players and rush through the basics. We need easily accessible videos to emphasize the importance of form and consistency for foundation moves (basic kicks!).
10. For videos and performances, clothing should not distract from the airborne footbag. There should be a significant colour/shade difference between shred clothing and the footbag. It is not you that should be the main feature in performances, but the bag itself.
Let's show the world there are no physical limits -- only that of the imagination. Show them the true light -- the aesthetic and prestigious sport of freestyle footbag.
I'll post my suggested solutions to these problems when I wake up in the morning.
Jorden
Footbags need to stand out amongst their surroundings. We need brighter, more striking colours of bags of larger size. The most eye-catching colour pattern is to have one uniform solid colour imo. The most ideal colours are pure white or anything neon/fluorescent. 
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