The years of ‘if you build it, they will come,’ have long passed,” says Greg Dukart, general manager of GolfLinks PEI, which promotes Canada’s Prince Edward Island as a golf destination on behalf of its member courses.

Dukart could be speaking the mind of most any golf course operator today in the U.S. or Canada. As recently as 2000, the market for golf courses in North America appeared well positioned for continuing strong growth. But a glut of new courses constructed in recent years, combined with better, more professional management, has flattened the once burgeoning golf course market. The result is that it has never been more difficult for golf course operators to attract new and repeat customers.

“What used to work in the past is not generating the same response,” explains Eric Lohman, general manager for Black Gold Golf Club, an upscale daily-fee course in Yorba Linda, Calif., managed by KemperSports. “We have to blow up the status quo and rebuild stronger, meaner and hungrier.”
But how does a golf course operator become stronger and meaner at attracting business? It would be one thing if the challenge of golf course marketing was simply a matter of promoting one’s course to an eager market. Yet, as Ron Lambert, general manager and golf professional for Mill Creek Golf Club of Mebane, N.C., points out, “more golfers exit each year than enter.” Golf, after all, is a demanding game. It requires patience and commitment, not to mention increasing amounts of money to play. And with growing family demands, fewer people are inclined to spend a majority of their weekend on a golf course.

Despite these socio-economic challenges, the good news is that many operators are finding ways to differentiate their services and grow their revenues in an otherwise stagnant market. Some operators are learning that today’s electronic technologies, such as the Internet, e-mail and customer relationship management (CRM) tools, afford unprecedented opportunities to build vital relationships with customers. Others are finding that e-marketing programs, when employed as part of a larger strategy for delivering a favorable customer experience, are powerful instruments for differentiating courses competing for the same dollar in the same market.

The truth is, the market has changed and operators must change with it. As Lambert, a former club professional turned GM, explains, “Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result” is an exercise in futility.

Getting to know your customers

If the same old tactics no longer work as well as they once did, what are the keys to successful golf course marketing? And what is the role of electronic technologies in a marketing strategy? Mark Burris of Burris, a branded marketing communications company based in Greensboro, N.C., explains that the goal of any traditional or e-based marketing program is to communicate messages that will appeal to groups of golfers who share common preferences and comprise a target market. Based on his experience, the “more sophisticated operators will target specific messages to specific golfers.”

In order to deliver specific messages, an operator first needs to know who his target markets are and how to communicate with them. “What I tell the people we’re working with is that you’re trying to develop the right message, with the right frequency to an interested audience,” says Jim Koppenhaver, president of Pellucid Corp., a Buffalo Gove, Ill.-based research and marketing firm. “And you can’t do any of that unless you understand who is playing your course and what brings them there.”

The golf industry “does a good job of welcoming them (customers) once they walk in the door … but the problem is we do a terrible job of understanding who they are when they’re sitting in their homes and getting them from their house to our door,” Koppenhaver adds.

Dukart, whose GolfLinks PEI represents five of the 25 golf courses operating on Prince Edward Island, echoes Koppenhaver, explaining that “our experience suggests that effective golf course marketing is research based.” In order for marketing to succeed, Dukart advocates the use of customer relationship management tools for collecting information needed to shape targeted messages.

“Being able to build a qualified database of consumers enables golf course operators to avoid the pitfalls of so-called ‘shot-gun marketing’ versus marketing directly to consumers who have already facilitated your business, may have visited your Web site or simply expressed interest in information on your product or services,” Dukart says. An experienced golf management software provider can guide an operator’s selection of a golf software system for integrating customer relationship management and e-mail systems to create a database with relevant, accurate customer data.

The Largest Database Wins

Once a golf course operator understands the target market, the next step is figuring out how to communicate most effectively. Increasingly, operators are opting for e-mail.

“A lot of operators are working to build their own (email) database so they can communicate” with their golfers, explains Burris, whose firm has represented a number of golf courses and resorts. Recognizing the value of a name, golf course operators will “do anything to capture that e-mail address,” from providing discounted tee times to buying an ad in a golf magazine.

Capturing e-mail addresses takes an investment in time and money. An effective e-mail marketing program includes buying addresses, developing messages and setting up a system for measuring results. It’s a process that Burris says operators often are surprised to find is “not free.” Fortunately, industry vendors, such as Active Network, Golf, offer golf course software, such as CRM tools within their tee sheet reservations software, that can help operators track the preferences of their customers. Using these tools, operators can develop compelling e-mail messages that promote more sales and ultimately a return on investment. Technology vendors also may provide their customers with access to databases of golfers and other sports enthusiasts that are larger and more targeted than the lists operators keep on their customers, promoting greater market reach.

E-mail campaigns also can be an adjunct to other e-marketing strategies. Operators are increasingly learning that online tee-time software – whether on their own Web site or via a reputable technology company’s Web site – will attract new business by offering flexibility and convenience. And an operator looking to bring in more business can provide discounts and other promotions via e-mail blasts targeted to price-conscious customers.

In some respects, e-mail programs are more challenging to implement than they were when electronic technologies were relatively new and not widely used by golf courses. “It is a little tough to get the same response than, say, five years ago, when there were fewer spammers and our competition didn’t utilize this marketing strategy as much as we did,” says Lohman. “In the past, if you had a list of 5,000, you were good; now you need 20,000 e-mails to obtain the same closure response.” In order to cut through the e-mail clutter assailing target customers, Lohman says his course now focuses on “memorable ideas and promotions.”

Keeping costs down, driving revenues up

E-based marketing programs, such as e-mail marketing campaigns, may present challenges, but they are proving far more cost-effective than traditional media. “Our experience is that an e-blast costs pennies in comparison to, say, print, TV or radio,” explains Dukart.

He also notes that technology, when implemented effectively, will eventually pay for itself. “Speaking for our company … the return on investment was almost immediate.”

Dukart’s experience would hardly surprise Koppenhaver. “Among our clients … on average we’re seeing about a 7 percent increase in rounds, about a 12 percent increase in revenue and (an increase of) about 11 percent in unique customers.” With those types of numbers, it is perhaps surprising that the industry has been slow to adopt technology, when compared to other industries. “Quite frankly, I’d be amazed if more than a quarter of the golf courses out there are employing any form of golf course marketing,” says Koppenhaver. “It’s not a great report card, but it does give us a big opportunity to improve.” The irony is that implementing an effective e-marketing program simply requires partnering with a reputable vendor who has a track record of using its golf software systems and/or golf course marketing technology to help courses achieve their marketing goals.

Designing the Customer Experience

Shaping the overall customer experience is another opportunity for improvement. With new golfers harder to attract, creating favorable experiences, such as through networking and social events that appeal to specific target markets, can help bring in business. Lambert’s course, for instance, is “selling more on lifestyle” than in the past. He finds that would-be golfers will come to an event to socialize and never step foot on the course. By focusing on the social aspects of golf, Lambert contends, “even when rounds (have been) down, net income would be up.”

Mark Schmitz, principal and creative director for ZD Studios, a visual and culture design company based in Madison, Wis., takes the idea of creating a favorable experience one step further in his consultations with course operators. He argues that the most successful golf course marketing users make “a dramatic connection with the rounds of golf and the story they are telling” about how their course fits in the “lore of the game.”

Schmitz cites an example of one operator who recreated four holes inspired by famous golf courses. The course then set up video cameras at the four tees to create videotapes, which were provided to golfers after their round. The tactic, Schmitz contends, is a way to form an “emotional connection.

In less abstract terms, Koppenhaver echoes Schmitz’s contention that successful operators need to market an experience, not just rounds. “The e-marketing relationship works like a friendship. In the best of relationships, you don’t just hear from a friend when he wants something from you. You hear from him when he’s got something to say that he thinks you would find interesting and valuable.”

If marketing an emotionally charged experience is essential to a successful golf course marketing program, why aren’t more operators doing it? Part of the reason might be that some operators have an “old school” approach to marketing. Schmitz also claims most operators are “tragically behind technologically” at creating experiences online that communicate golf’s unique values – such as sportsmanship, honor and respect – and their course’s particular appeal. As a result, they are missing out on opportunities to form relevant relationships with customers.

Schmitz believes that the best way to form a long-term relationship with a customer is to build on prior experiences while teaching something new. While communicating news about discounts and other promotions to sell more rounds is important, operators could provide digital golf tips via e-mail from the golf pro to keep the “emotional connection alive.”

Lambert also points out that any online communication, whether via e-mail or a Web site, must harmonize expectations with actual experience to generate repeat business. “If a course promises a certain experience in an e-mail, for instance, but doesn’t deliver once the golfer arrives at the course, the program likely will backfire,” he says.

The Next Frontier  

In some respects, golf course operators can be forgiven for being slow to adopt new golf course marketing approaches, particularly those based on electronic technologies. Golf, after all, is a sport, played outdoors, in small, solitary groups. It feels worlds away from computers, the Internet and the cyber-chatter of online communities. Plus, many operators seem to have hidden behind the “traditions” of the game to avoid golf management software and technology as long as possible.

Yet, golf has certain characteristics that align well with electronic social media. It is played by people who share a fervent appreciation for the game and the values it represents. Their interest in sharing a round with fellow golfers may also stem from larger social motivators, such as a desire to network. Is it possible that just as golf course operators are learning the basics of effective e-marketing they now must concern themselves with the bewildering universe of consumer generated media (CGM), including blogs, forums and social networking sites?

The answer, some may argue, is yes. In fact, a number of golf Web sites are already incorporating elements of CGM, providing forums and other venues for golfers to share experiences, recommend equipment and advise each other on the finer points of the game. Koppenhaver also claims that several golf Web sites are experimenting with the “Facebook” of golf. Golf is a binding social thing. You have a relationship with the people you play with and at the course where you play, and that relationship is different than the relationship you have with (people at) Office Max, for example. So we’re beginning to see some companies out there trying to find ways to amplify the social aspect of golf using electronic marketing and electronic connection tools.”

Regardless of CGM’s influence on the golf industry in the future, one thing is clear: online golf course marketing is here to stay. Golf course operators today can take advantage of a plethora of new technologies, from online tee times to e-mail tools, to serve their customers and achieve their business goals.