Tag: media

Defined by Passion

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This article was authored by Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry magazine.

Golf is a service business that attracts people who have a passion for the game and its values. Identical twins Daryl and Derek Crawford were born and bred for the job.

© times publications

“Our father was a skycap at TWA in Phoenix and taught us the importance of service to others,” Daryl says. “He passed that along to us.”

He also told his sons they would be defined by their actions, not the color of their skin. A father’s guidance has proved invaluable over the course of his sons’ lifetimes and three decades in the golf business. Their story is one more example of the disparate ways golf can serve as the foundation for lives that are well lived.

The Arizona Golf Association’s 2020 Updegraff Award, given to Derek, an executive with Phoenix-based Gibson Golf Management; and Daryl, the general manager at Papago Golf Course in Phoenix, is only the most recent example. The award, named for Dr. Ed Updegraff of Tucson, a longtime supporter of amateur golf in Arizona, is earned by those whose actions exemplify the spirit of the game.

Golf was an early influence in the twins’ lives. Growing up, they were like most little guys, playing whatever sport was in season. They were introduced to golf at a municipal course in Phoenix and soon became fixtures. “We liked being at the golf course and were always looking for reasons to be there,” Derek remembers.

They began to compete as teenagers, and that’s when they met Bill Dickey, a former winner of the Updegraff Award, and other members of the Desert Mashies, a Phoenix-based group of minority golfers who help young golfers connect with the game. “Bill and Alice Dickey embraced us as family and always helped us when we needed it,” Daryl says.

They played on the first golf team at St. Mary’s Catholic High School in Phoenix and walked on at Arizona State. Good players and enthusiastic competitors, they were attracted to the game’s attributes and values. Accountability, striving toward a goal and staring down adversity or disappointment were part of their DNA.

They worked at courses in the Phoenix area, first in bag rooms, where they refined their service skills, and later in management positions with increasing responsibility. Soon they were being recognized as role models, especially for other young people of color.

In the 1990s, they both left the club life to work as PING tour reps on the men’s and women’s European tours. They became trusted friends and suppliers to the some of the world’s best golfers.

For Daryl and Derek, it all seemed a natural progression.

“We did as our parents taught us, to listen to and learn from good advice,” Derek says. “And we never lost the joy of playing the game.”

“They were brought up in the game and continue to grow as business leaders and all-around golf ambassadors,” said Phil Green, COO and Principal of OB Sports Golf Management, which manages the Papago course where Daryl is the general manager. “Their love for golf, years of experience and strong work ethic have served them well over the years, and they haven’t forgotten to give back along the way. Their story is a great example of the way golf can become the foundation of success.”

As African-Americans, Daryl and Derek stand out in most golfing circles, where black and brown faces are significantly underrepresented. But it’s their actions, not their race – as their father predicted – that have defined them.

“We never felt anyone was trying to stop us or hold us back,” Derek says, as if anyone could.

“We have been blessed,” Daryl adds.

As have we all through their actions and their friendship.

 

Running Toward Change

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This article continues a series of communications from GGA Partners to help private club leaders address challenges confronting their businesses and their employees because of the global health crisis. Today, Henry DeLozier suggests that change on a massive scale is no longer something that should surprise us.

Technology’s tools give clubs a way to prepare for the new normal.

We’re hearing a lot these days about the “new normal” and how the coronavirus has forever changed the ways we work, shop, travel and interact.

But wasn’t it not long ago that we were talking about another new normal? Remember the new normal that followed the financial crisis of 2007-2008, which led to a global recession? That pivot from the previously abnormal to a new normal ushered in more stringent guidelines for financial institutions and in a much larger sense ushered out the sense of trust we had in many other institutions and the people who ran them.

And although the term was not yet in vogue, didn’t the seismic shift from analog to digital – the tipping point came in 2002, when the world began storing more information in digital than in analog format – qualify as a new normal?

All of which led some creative soul to design a bumper sticker that said it all: Change Happens. (You may remember it with a synonym for change.) The most adaptable among us learn to deal with change; the most successful turn it into a competitive advantage. How do they do it?

Don’t be surprised – be prepared.

When he first heard Bob Dylan’s 1965 anthem “Like a Rolling Stone,” Bruce Springsteen said, “[It] sounded like somebody’d kicked open the door to your mind.” With that song, Dylan changed how artists thought about making music. Major change often seems to arrive suddenly – with the speed of a stone rolling down a steep hill – and without warning. Its capriciousness makes us anxious. But if we know it’s coming, we shouldn’t be surprised. We should be prepared.

An embrace of the tools that technology now affords us is an important key to our preparation.

Derek Johnston, a partner in our firm, says although club leaders could not have anticipated the pandemic, they could have been better prepared.

“Many clubs were ill-prepared to quickly analyze the potential impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, to run initial scenarios, to easily gather more information, to test their hypotheses with their membership and, ultimately, set a course of action,” he says.

That is not to say that clubs have responded poorly. On the contrary, club leaders have performed in truly admirable fashion. Many clubs just had to work much harder than those that had already implemented data analytics processes and plug-and-play dashboarding tools, like MetricsFirst or continuous member feedback tools like MemberInsight.

“Some club leaders still question the need to bother with data analytics tools and programs. This misunderstanding is simply misguided,” Johnston says, adding that the term “analytics” seems to intimidate some and conjure visions of data overload and complexity. Another fallacy, Johnston says. “Data analytics, when executed properly, is intended to actually simplify information and present insights in very crisp, clean, and easy to understand ways.”

Ginni Rometty, executive chair of IBM, told Fortune magazine editor Alan Murray, “There is no doubt this [coronavirus] will speed up everyone’s transition to be a digital business.” She identified four areas of impending change: 1) the movement to the cloud; 2) the move toward automation; 3) the overhaul of supply chains, and 4) the movement toward new ways of doing work. Each force will happen in accelerated fashion, she predicts.

Rometty is not alone in her assessment. Almost two out of three respondents to a recent Fortune survey of Fortune 500 CEOs expect technological transformation to accelerate. Doug Merritt, CEO at Splunk, a big-data platform, pointed out two important observations: 1) a rapid digital transformation and 2) the elevated importance of gathering and interrogating data.

Top-performing clubs will similarly leverage the pandemic to implement advanced methods for executing work and providing services. Retooling such routine practices as monthly billings, guest policy tracking, and point-of-sale transactions will happen quickly. Likewise, separating work from jobs will trend even more in the wake of the pandemic.

“Clubs that are actively maintaining both real-time operating dashboards and strategic dashboards, combined with a proper financial model, are taking preemptive steps toward dealing with change,” Johnston says. “When it happens – and we know it will – they will experience far less conflict amongst their management team and their board. Ultimately, their preparation will enable better decisions, faster.”

Planning For a Crisis

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This article with authored by Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry magazine.

On March 4, 2015, a single-engine, World War II-era training plane crashed onto the Penmar Golf Course in Venice, California, shortly after takeoff from a nearby airport. The pilot, who sustained only minor injuries, was none other than Indiana Jones, aka Harrison Ford.

Coverage of the plane’s crash and its famous pilot was extensive in local Southern California markets and across entertainment and mainstream media. A New York Times story the next day quoted spokespeople for the Los Angeles Police Department, the LA Fire Department and the Federal Aviation Administration – but not from the Penmar Golf Course. Public relations professionals would call that an opportunity squandered.

What if Indiana Jones landed on your golf course … or your data system was breached and hundreds of members’ credit card numbers were exposed or, heaven forbid, an employee died after being infected with COVID-19? Are you ready to deal with major media opportunities and crises professionally and in a way that, depending on the event, either enhances or protects the club’s and the course’s reputation and brand?

We like to say that you can’t predict a crisis, but you can – and definitely should – plan for one. The same goes for an opportunity to shine your brand. Here are four important steps to do both:

1. Designate a spokesperson.

Everyone on staff – especially at the management level – should know who has the authority to speak to media regarding these types of events. Usually there is only one person with this authority. Consolidating official comments and responses through one spokesperson – ideally someone with media training – keeps messaging consistent, reduces the likelihood of inaccurate information being disseminated and clarifies sources for media. Everyone at the course and around the club should know to direct all media inquiries to the appointed spokesperson.

2. Establish communications protocols.

The media react and report on their schedule, not yours. That means that you should have an established protocol that identifies and prioritizes what must be done, when it should be done and by whom. Having anticipated the media’s needs – including their first and most logical questions and the steps you’re taking to respond – puts you in control of the situation and keeps you from playing defense as the story unfolds. Other protocols include:

– Knowing which emergency responders should be notified. (Keep their contact information handy and updated.)

– Knowing who will notify the course owner, club president and board members.

– Knowing who will notify staff and what they will be told. (All employees must be notified of dangerous on-the-job conditions.)

3. Prepare for the unexpected.

Plan your work and work your plan. Knowing that unforeseen events always seem obvious in retrospect, develop an after-action perspective to anticipate circumstances that could arise:

– Request that your insurance provider conduct a risk assessment of the course, clubhouse and all club amenities. Conduct what-if evaluations with experienced professionals whose advice can be incorporated into your plans.

– Request a site review and evaluation from police and firefighters to anticipate problems that can be prevented or lessened.

– Assign key managers at your facility regular check-up actions to mitigate risks identified by the experts.

4. Inform and educate staff. 

Knowing what to do is critical. That’s why the military calls it training. Assume direct responsibility for training your team; do not delegate this important duty. When you thoroughly educate team members, they’ll understand that this is a mission-critical topic.

– Conduct department training meetings. Put the collective knowledge and intelligence of your team to work by asking line-level staff to identify any threats or risks.

– Rehearse the unexpected. Stage situational training during off-season or slow periods to help your team focus on preparedness.

What are the odds of Harrison Ford dropping unannounced onto your golf course? Or of a cyberattack or COVID-19 victim at your club? Not good, right? But is that a bet you want to take?

Global Golf Advisors Announces Exciting Brand Transformation

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– Trusted advisor to the golf, private club and leisure industries becomes GGA Partners™
– New brand identity supports firm’s progression into a new era, beyond golf
– GGA Partners™ targets further expansion across a changing private club, leisure and investment landscape

(Toronto, Canada – February 6) Global Golf Advisors, the international consulting firm working with many of the world’s most successful golf courses, private clubs, resorts and residential communities, today announces the start of a new era as it becomes GGA Partners™.

Established in 1992 as North America’s KPMG Golf Industry Practice and headquartered in Toronto, Canada, the company has provided industry-leading advisory services to more than 3,000 clients worldwide.

Its team of experienced professionals assist owners, asset managers, club and community leaders, investors and real estate developers tackle challenges, achieve objectives and maximize asset performance.

Its evolution from Global Golf Advisors perfectly links its rich business heritage with new and significant market opportunities, reflecting a changing private club, leisure and investment landscape, while continuing to emphasize its perennial values and its trusted position across the global golf industry.

Over the past decade, the firm has been increasingly engaged in a multitude of successful consulting projects in the club and leisure space where golf amenities have not been present – from private city clubs to business clubs, beach clubs, mountain clubs, yacht clubs, destination resorts and residential real estate developments.

Derek Johnston, Partner at GGA Partners™, commented: “Today is an important milestone in the continued advancement of our business. Our new brand proudly celebrates the heritage of Global Golf Advisors by continuing with the acronym by which the firm has become commonly known; but it also acknowledges the growth we have enjoyed and communicates our bright future, as a consulting firm that has evolved into a club and leisure powerhouse.”

Significantly, three ‘progression bars’ that form the visual icon within the new GGA Partners™  logo reverberate the firm’s process, ‘Insight, Strategy, Success’, leveraging in-depth business intelligence and proprietary global data to deliver impactful strategic solutions and lasting success for its clients.

The company’s new brand colors symbolize stability, professionalism, trust, health, virtue, and force, while dynamic typography accents the bold, modern, and striking approach to its work.

Johnston concluded: “Our new brand excellently positions us for continued growth, reflects our status as a leading international consulting firm, and underlines how we work in partnership with clients to tackle challenges, achieve business objectives and maximize asset performance.”

GGA Partners™ has offices in Toronto, Canada; Phoenix, USA, and Dublin, Ireland.

For further information about GGA Partners™ visit: www.ggapartners.com

 

— ENDS —

 

To access high resolution GGA Partners logo and image of Partner Derek Johnston, click here: https://we.tl/t-vblo2VJj79

Press release issued on behalf of GGA Partners™, by Landmark Golf Marketing & Communications.

 

GGA Partners™ contact:

Bennett DeLozier
Manager
t: +1-602-614-2100
e: bennett.delozier@ggapartners.com

Media contact:

Michael Roberts
Head of Digital Marketing
Landmark Golf Marketing & Communications
t: +44 (0)1780 752790
e: michael@landmark-media.com

 

About GGA Partners™

GGA Partners™ is an international consulting firm and trusted advisor to many of the world’s most successful golf courses, private clubs, resorts and residential communities.  We are dedicated to helping owners, asset managers, club and community leaders, investors and real estate developers tackle challenges, achieve objectives and maximize asset performance.

Established in 1992 as the KPMG Golf Industry Practice, our global team of experienced professionals leverage in-depth business intelligence and proprietary global data to deliver impactful strategic solutions and lasting success.

ggapartners.com

Think Big Entering A New Decade

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Thinking of big changes in 2020?  Writing for Golf Course Industry Magazine, GGA Partner Henry DeLozier shares four macro changes to consider as the new decade begins.

Golf no longer exists in a vacuum, separate and distinct from market forces that shape other mainstream businesses. Gone are the days when golf club and facility managers could operate without a sensitive finger on the pulse of social, environmental and political changes affecting their business. As we enter the third decade of the 21st century, here are four macro changes to be aware of and to use to your advantage.

1. New solutions to labor shortages

Traditionally, labor costs for golf courses have ranged from 52 to 56 percent of golf course maintenance budgets. With increases in minimum wages and the ripple effect throughout organizational charts, labor costs continue to escalate. Derek Johnston, a partner at Global Golf Advisors, says labor costs have jumped as much as 6 percent.

Operators managed the first wave of escalating labor costs by reducing head counts and outsourcing certain activities to third-party contractors. Now, they are being forced to get more creative to deal with what is by far the facility’s single largest line item. Some have reacted by flattening their org charts, eliminating supervisory positions and restructuring responsibilities for some managers and staffers. As a result, staffing levels that ranged from 19 to 25 employees per 18-hole course are in significant decline.

Labor will remain a primary focus and concern for operators in 2020. Suggestions for managing rising costs are to re-evaluate all operational activities with an eye for possible benefits to be gained from outsourcing; take labor-intensive components of your operation and determine how the work could be accomplished more efficiently; and look at non-golf sectors for solutions being implemented in other fields such as hospitality and manufacturing.

2. Increased environmental awareness

Golf courses throughout North America have embraced opportunities to increase their environmental stewardship. Beekeeping, which sustains the bee population and ensures ongoing pollination; bat houses, which address mosquito infestations; and habitat restoration for butterflies, especially monarchs, whose habitat supports pheasant, quail, waterfowl and many other species; have been introduced at many locales.

Making golf courses and their surrounding grounds environmental sanctuaries is resonating with key market influencers, including millennials and women, who are also prime targets for increasing play and membership. Audubon International CEO Christine Kane reports that clubs as sanctuary communities are on the rise nationwide: “Audubon-recognized sanctuary communities have increased more than 20 percent over the past five years,” according to Kane.

Progressive superintendents and golf managers who expand the reach and impact of their environmental efforts will be viewed favorably by community leaders as well as current and prospective members and customers.

3. Expanded reach of social media

Superintendents and facility managers have become important sources of content relevant to club members and consumers. Photographic images of flora and fauna on club grounds are of interest to members who take pride in their clubs’ beauty and connection to the environment.

Instagram and Twitter can be used to show images sourced by staff members — golf course workers, cooks, janitors, golf professionals — who are alert to opportunities to snap butterfly habitats, wildflowers and all sorts of wildlife that call the club home. Such images are often posted to the club website and distributed to club members and visitors as a means for extending brand engagement.

Gone are the days of the cut-and-paste guidance for how to repair a ball mark. The increased relevance and timeliness of today’s news is attributed to the capability and proliferation of social media.

4. Comprehensive planning

The growth of strategic planning (supported by specialized plans for marketing, communications, finance and membership) is another example of general business’s influence on a more enlightened group of golf managers. Just as most any business relies on a strategic plan to guide its decision-making, golf is recognizing the importance of establishing a clear vision that serves to prioritize programming and investment. Top performers rely on data-based plans to distinguish their facilities not only in overcrowded markets, but also with consumers debating their leisure activities and spending. Those facilities that create market differentiation will prosper in 2020 and beyond.

A Better Way to Communicate

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Churning out communications to your members with little thought for who you are speaking to and what medium you are using is not a recipe for success.

As GGA’s Henry DeLozier explains, putting a little more thought and attention to detail into your communications is an impactful, and cost effective, way to make your members feel valued and included.

“Communication in our club is poor”

A phrase that is commonplace in surveys and focus groups we run on behalf of clients across North America – often despite the best efforts of club leaders to improve communications at their clubs.

As much as we would like to prescribe a formula that is guaranteed to improve member relations, the reality is that the communications world evolves continuously, including the ways members consume and exchange information, and the platforms on which they do so.

While this can present a challenge, the evolution in communications technology has also brought opportunities to the fore: opportunities to increase the relevance of your communications, learn more about your members habits and preferences, and branch out to networks of potential new members.

With that in mind, there are some tactics you may wish to consider to enhance your communications relationship with members and club stakeholders:

1. Keep your club website relevant.

As Linda Dillenbeck, a director at Global Golf Advisors and a communications expert, observes, “Most clubs’ websites are outdated, disconnected, and dysfunctional.” Dillenbeck estimates that a private club website has a relatively short shelf-life of around three years. When did you last update your website?

Incremental improvements which factor in the latest in web technology enhancements can increase the aesthetic appeal, user-friendliness and accessibility of your site ten-fold.

Think too about regular updates to your image portfolio and news sections. Investing the time and not letting them become dormant shows members that you care and invokes a sense of pride and belonging.

2. Empower club members to communicate.

The advent of mobile camera technology has handed the power for members to become regular content creators, some of whom may produce high quality photographs and videos of your club.

While you cannot control what they say or post, compelling content drawing on the attributes of your club and amplified to member and stakeholder networks can enhance the club’s reputation among members and the outside world.

Vindicate their efforts by engaging through club social media channels, via email or otherwise. It shows you are interested and supportive, and gives a sprinkling of kudos to what they have produced.

3. Organize information into communication “bites”.

The relative attention span of most recipients is shrinking, so the club should look to communicate in small “bites” – morsels of interesting activities, friends enjoying mutual interests or snippets from club events. Keep it short and to the point.

4. Use tailored media.

Rather than indiscriminately provide all things to all members, ask them to personalize their information expectations and preferences into a member profile so that the club may communicate with each member on the member’s terms.

Regular prompts to update their preferences can provide useful insights into any trends developing over time and how this should be translated to what and how you provision information to them.

5. Measure effectiveness.

Monitor engagement levels from all outgoing communications. Track which members are – and are not – receiving and engaging with information from the club.

By doing so you can start to build out segments of members (starting with engaged / not engaged) and begin to increase the relevance of your communications methods and messages.

 

Crafting the right messages takes time and attention, as does knowing how to communicate them. By better understanding what methods and messages are most influential to members and stakeholders, you can start making meaningful progress and increasing engagement.

In any case, make it personal.

Boosting Your Club’s Brand Through Events

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Sustaining a lively events calendar can be challenging – on a practical level, operational level and commercial level. However, even though they may not always pay their way, they are fundamentally important to conveying what your club is, and what it represents. GGA’s Linda Dillenbeck explains why.

Beyond access to an enjoyable round of golf, people join golf and country clubs to socialize with each other and participate in unique experiences. To many, the social aspect of country club life is even more important than the golf, particularly when only one member of the household is an avid player. Whether it is a member/guest golf event, wine tasting dinner, holiday celebration or speaker series, events will build relationships and friendships within the membership that will increase the sense of community throughout the club.

Equally important is the fact that well-planned and thoughtful events will provide the Club the opportunity to enhance its reputation and standing among members. One of the best things that can happen after an event is to have participants telling their friends about the incredible experience, which creates a desire to be part of that experience.

Anyone who has planned an event understands that success doesn’t happen by accident. Rather it requires a combination of creativity, organizational skills, cooperation and, most importantly, a keen attention to detail.

Present Your Brand in a Creative and Consistent Manner

The type of events to include on your club’s social calendar should reflect “who you are” as a Club, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be fun and have a creative theme that sets your event apart from the myriad of options available to private club members.

Creativity does not have to mean expensive. As a private club member I recently spoke with told me, “My favorite event is the Show Up and Shut Up Halloween tournament.

“Everyone comes dressed in costume and on two holes you hit your drive wearing a pumpkin on your head. It’s so different from so many other events in which I play and provides an entire day of fun and entertainment for my guests.”

While a Show Up and Shut Up event might not be in keeping with your brand image, that should not discourage your creativity in developing themes and memorable touches more in keeping with your brand. This might be a badge of honor tee gift (think beyond shirts, hats and golf equipment), a surprise egg with a special present in the annual Easter celebration or a wine not available to the general public presented by the winemaker during a special dinner. Your goal should be to think different, because when you do, your brand and club will become known for its must-attend events.

The Devil is in the Detail

Small details can have a big impact. They can be the difference between a good event and a great event, between memorable and forgettable, or the difference between clearly communicating who you are and being vague and predictable.

Are all names spelled properly on place cards? Are the pins set in spots that will allow for a quick pace of play? Is there an adequate quantity of the proper wine glasses for the tasting? Can your team identify all members by name? Is there adequate signage to direct guests to the proper place within the club? All of these questions and more should be asked and answered before event day.

Events Create Content

Another benefit of a robust event schedule is that is provides fresh content for your club newsletter, social channels and website. To capture the content, a staff member should be assigned the task of taking photos, not only of the members and guests, but of the special details. For example, the place setting for a wine dinner, the line-up of carts or the baskets of treats to be given out during a Halloween event. Pictures are a very effective way to tell your event story so create a wish list of the images you want and need, and take plenty.

To encourage participants active on social media to post about their experience create a hashtag of your event name and include it on invitations, golf carts and tables. This will help to expand your story across all social platforms.

When appropriate, it is beneficial to consider inviting a prominent member of the media to participate in your event. For example, the food writer might be invited to a wine tasting dinner or the business editor could be invited to a speaker series session featuring a noteworthy presenter.

Successful events don’t happen by accident. They require a lot of hard work. But when done properly, events will provide members and their guests with experiences they can’t get anywhere else. When that happens, your brand becomes the talk of the town – and that will deliver prospects to your door.

What Works on Social?

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The most popular channel may change over time, but the social media momentum continues to grow. For some clubs it can be difficult to know what to post, when and how often. We asked GGA’s Linda Dillenbeck to spell out all things social.

There is not a day that passes that doesn’t have a news report about something posted on a social media channel. Nor does a day pass when you don’t see consumers glued to their devices and feverishly typing the latest content they simply must share.

Whether we like it or not, social media has changed the way consumers communicate and gather information. Today, brands must have a social media presence or they miss the opportunity to reach 78% of the U.S. population who rely on these platforms to connect, gather information and socialize.

Consider these facts from Statistica and the Pew Research Center:

  • 68% of U.S. adults report they are Facebook users. Roughly three-quarters of those users access Facebook daily.
  • Facebook use is relatively common across a range of age groups, with 68% of those in the 50 to 64 age range and nearly half of those 65 and older report they use the site.
  • Over 70% of Instagram users are between the ages of 25-65. The share of users 35-54, a key target for future club prospects, is 30.2%.
  • Twitter has 67,000,000 users in the U.S. Of that number, 46% access the site daily.
  • LinkedIn has approximately 154,000,000 users in the United States, around half of whom are college graduates living in high-income households.
  • Women are nearly three times as likely as men to use Pinterest (42% vs. 15%).

Despite the reach of social media, we often hear the reason clubs are not active on most of these platforms is because they don’t have enough time. Our first recommendation is always this: Find the time.

Your members and prospects are engaging with these platforms on a daily basis, and what they read, see and hear there plays a part in their decision-making. Without any Club presence, you forego this opportunity to engage with their lives and influence them.

Furthermore, a lack of presence can leave you at a competitive disadvantage. In the cases of Instagram and Facebook, these social media platforms will create “unofficial pages” displaying user photos and comments about their experiences. This hands consumers control of your brand message, allowing them to dictate the tone of conversation and could lead to a misrepresentation of your Club in this space.

Channel choice

To select the social sites most appropriate for your Club it helps to understand each platform’s purpose as well as consumer expectations for the type of content they seek.

Facebook users want to be entertained, educated, informed and obtain answers to questions in real time. On Facebook, your posts can be longer and include website links. You can also create events (open or closed) to promote to your members, prospects and wider stakeholders.

Instagram is a platform to share your story through photos and video. When users log onto Instagram, they want to be inspired and surprised by what they see at your Club.

The primary purpose of Twitter is to allow people to share thoughts, opinions, news and events with a large audience. Tweets that generate the most engagement are “how-to” lists, questions and quotes.

Remember, both the nature of the platform and demographic of the users there will dictate that not all are appropriate or impactful for your Club. So be selective, and double up your efforts on which are most fruitful rather than spreading yourself thinly across too many of them.

Crafting your message

The thought of creating content for social sites can be intimidating at first, however, we believe there is plenty of information to share. A few examples include:

  • An individual post of each golf hole with a short description of how to play the hole (that’s 18 or 36 posts).
  • Photos or short videos of your chef preparing signature menu items.
  • Unique and interesting design features found in your clubhouse.
  • Member events and activities. A word of caution here, never post a photo of a member unless they provide permission when the photo is taken.
  • Short golf, swimming or tennis videos offering tips from the professionals on staff.
  • Announcements of staff hires, renovations, special events, etc.
  • Flora and fauna found around the grounds of your Club.

Once you begin posting your content, it is important to monitor the statistics for likes, shares and comments. This information will help you to understand the type of posts generating the most engagement. Once you are equipped with that information, you can focus on how to generate more of the same.

Social media marketing does require time and effort. But once you establish a habit of a monthly or weekly content plan and roll this out you can manage your time investment efficiently, and focus your efforts on establishing a two-way conversation and social identity for your Club. One that, crucially, is consistent with its brand and ethos.

Inspiration

Instagram

Twitter

Facebook

 

This article was authored by GGA Manager and Marketing expert Linda Dillenbeck.

Three Steps to Connect Marketing to Sales

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In theory, sales and marketing should be two of the most integrated and connected aspects of your Club’s operation.  The reality, unfortunately, is that in some businesses they are operating almost independently and singing entirely different tunes.  For the Club, what this divergence leads to is ineffective messaging and lost prospects.  The importance of connecting sales to marketing is clear, so the question is: how can we achieve it?

To understand how to improve this connection, it is first important to understand the difference between the two disciplines of marketing and sales.

Marketing is a management planning process; it is focused on the strategies and techniques of crafting goods and services, all the way from a concept to an end-product or service.

The sales process is focused on the strategies and techniques of convincing a customer to exchange their cash for that product or service.

The marketing process develops a perceived need for your product in the mind of a customer, and the sales process then allows the customer to satisfy their perceived need for your product by purchasing it.

Although separate and distinct disciplines, marketing and sales efforts must be carefully aligned to achieve their highest potential in generating a steady stream of customers for your Club.

Using this three-step procedure to connect your marketing to sales will put you on the path to generating more qualified prospects and selling more memberships.

Step One – Clearly Define Your Four P’s

Successful marketing captures your business through the lens of your customer’s needs – and the satisfaction of those perceived needs – by defining the “Four P’s” of your offering: Product, Price, Place, Promotion.

To test how well-defined your product is at this moment, ask each member of both your management and sales teams to give you their “elevator pitch”.  If those pitches are not identical, or if they are not focused on precisely what differentiates your Club from its competition, then you have work to do.

Defining your Product properly begins with your mission statement – the single sentence that describes why you exist.

Once you have that definition, you must develop your brand position – an expression of what makes your Club distinct, unique, and fills a particular consumer need in a way that none of your competitors can.

Your brand position is critical: If you do not understand what you are offering, neither will your prospects.  Even more disturbing is this reality: If you don’t define your product, someone else will, and you may not like their story.

After “product” comes Price, Place and Promotion:

Price is self-explanatory.

The definition of Place is a clear analysis and understanding of the specific target audience for your product, and the tactics you have selected and employed to reach that audience.

Your definition of Promotion is the complete list of methods you will use to broadcast your product to your audience – for example: brochures, a website, mobile apps, print or digital ads.

With your “Four P’s” clearly defined and in hand, let’s move to Step Two.

Step Two – Singing from the Same Sheet Music

Step two along the path to connecting marketing to sales is teaching your team, particularly your sales force, to “sing from the same sheet music”.

To do this you will need to train your team to:

a) be comfortable with presenting your Club according to this script

b) understand the importance of presenting a consistent image and message when promoting the Club in the marketplace

Consistently reinforce and remind your staff of its importance in all employee communications.  You could do this as part of your email signature, through a notice on employee message boards, or verbally during employee meetings.  Just as consumers are bombarded with over 3,000 messages a day, so are your employees.  Make sure it’s your message that sticks.

Constantly encourage employees to share how and when they have promoted the Club and reward them with both private and public recognition for their efforts.

With your marketing in place and your implementation team deployed, it’s on to Step Three.

Step Three – Track, Analyze and Adjust

Your Club is now positioned consistently across all communication channels and your employees are all singing from the same sheet music, but how do you know for certain that marketing is now connected to sales?

The answer is through data collection and analysis.

  • Ask consumers where they learned about you when they visit or call the club
  • Incorporate unique URLs and telephone numbers into published advertising to identify what technique connected with what specific audience
  • Google analytics provides a wealth of data about prospects who have visited your website: where they visit from, what pages they visit, how long they spend on your site and more
  • Social media sites also provide data on likes and engagement
  • Tracking pixels can also be added to emails and webpages to follow the activities of users

Review and analysis of this data will expose what is working and what needs to be adjusted to create maximum impact.

The combination of a clear and consistent Club message, the effective broadcast of that message to your target audience, your sales team singing the same song, and close attention paid to what is working and what is not will connect your marketing to sales – providing a steady stream of qualified prospects to your door and new members to your Club.

This article was authored by GGA Senior Associate and Marketing expert Linda Dillenbeck.

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