Have you ever just teed up a golf ball and wailed away at it? Never aimed or aligned yourself with where you are trying to hit it, but literally just teed it up and swung.
I often ask my clients this question and most say “No. I need to hit toward my target.” or “I have a pre-shot routine that I do before every shot.”
I say, “That’s great!”
Then I ask “Do you have a pre-shot routine and target for your marketing in Q1 of 2018?”
Most say that they will increase their budget a little over last year. Others say, “We’ll keep doing what we are doing and see what else pops up.”
Unfortunately, this is like standing over the ball and swinging. A random target of “more rounds or $PR” and a pre-shot routine of “We’ll see” is not the way to grow your top line revenues.
As a PGA Master Professional and 20 year veteran of working at public, private, and semi-private facilities, I understand that the immediate concern of the managers and golf professionals is to make sure current players have an amazing experience while they are at the facility. That is how we were trained — run a great golf tournament, spearhead a league, or give great customer service to a guest that needs a little extra help. In addition, most golf professionals put together some great “Grow the Game” programs that are advertised on-site with a flyer by the golf shop or in the locker room.
But how do we contact people outside of the bubble?
Currently, general managers and golf professionals are consistently contacted by sales professionals that are working for different outside marketing channels promising great deals to sign up with them. Most of these professionals don’t really have the goals of your club in mind when they put together your program. To get even more realistic, a good portion of them do not even play golf. Are these the people you want to trust promoting the golf experience?
How can you navigate these waters and find the best possible ways to use your marketing dollars?
Bringing on a marketing professional that has your company’s goals and targets in mind is your best bet. Give them a budget, let them meet with all of the potential marketing companies, and coordinate all of the programs so you can get the best use of your marketing dollar. This will give you the freedom to concentrate on providing a great on-course experience and let the marketing be done by a trained marketing professional. You can delegate production of all of your print advertising, management of your social media, responses to customer concerns on behalf of the facility, and development of a plan for upcoming years to inspire upward growth of top-line revenue. Allowing them the ability to put together your pre-shot routine and coordinate with you on your targets can grow the top-line revenue can get your facility clear and focused.
THE DIFFICULTY: The average salary for a marketing manager in 2015 is $128,750. On the low end, they earned $66,090 and the highest paid making $185,000 or more according to the U.S. News & World Report’s website. As we all know, the perks of the golf industry can drive salary requirements down from the average, but most golf courses cannot afford to bring a full-time, experienced, marketing manager on staff. Some courses attempt to bring out fresh grads that understand social media and expect them to be able to run a multimedia platform and design a budget with ROI expectations. Unfortunately, these qualities only come with experience.
THE SOLUTION: Rockhold and Associates, Inc is your fiduciary partner to help navigate through the marketing arena. Our full-service, experienced team can give you the freedom to outsource some or all of your marketing concerns. R&A can help you develop a plan for your facility’s success by offering different programs that give you the flexibility to delegate as much of your marketing concerns to us at FAR less expense than bringing someone on staff.
Our team can give you the guidance and support that you need to stand confidently over the ball and drive it right down the center. Leave those days of errant shots into the rough and scrambling to recover in your past. Let Rockhold and Associates design and implement a plan for a focused and profitable future.
Email us at jason@rockholdandassociates.com to start on a path to prosperity.