Golf Marketing Hub

28/06/2023

Time is running out to claim your membership to the Golf Marketing Hub, funded through the England Golf ‘Give It A Shot’ campaign.

Any English golf club that hasn’t previously applied is eligible for a year’s membership worth £397.

Don’t miss out on your chance to gain access to:
Social media templates ✅
Content calendars ✅
Video tutorials ✅
Advice on recruitment and retention ✅
And much more… ✅

We have the answer to all of your questions, contact your England Golf CSO to sign up today!

22/11/2022

We're 3 days away for our first ever Black Friday offer, and I'm incredibly excited to announce it will be a 50% reduction on a full price membership!

If you have any concerns about the coming year in the golf business, this is the chance for you to make it a huge success for less than a single green fee every month for virtually any club!

A 12 month membership of Golf Marketing Hub will:

• SAVE YOU TIME - with ready made resources for social media and marketing
• HELP YOU PLAN - with monthly calendars for all things golf!
• SHAPE YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY - with simple guides to increase impact
• GIVE YOU SUPPORT - with the Hub team on hand to answer questions and a private community of golf club professionals on Facebook.

If you need to get the spend signed off, get on to the committee now! The special Black Friday rate will be £248.50 and will run from 25th November to 2nd December.

You can access the rate through this link, but it doesn't go live until Friday!

https://golfmarketinghub.thrivecart.com/checkout/?coupon=BLACKFRIDAY

Hope to see you in the Hub soon!

David. Co-Founder, Golf Marketing Hub

Checkout page for Golf Marketing Hub.

16/11/2022

The 3 biggest mistakes golf clubs make

I’ve been a member at a few golf clubs and worked with even more. If I’m being honest, it was a tougher job narrowing this list down to 3 than thinking about the mistakes golf clubs make!

That isn’t to say that golf clubs are bad, mad and dangerous to know, as the saying goes, but that with so many competing priorities, sometimes the little things that make a world of difference can easily get overlooked.

So here’s my list of 3 mistakes that golf clubs make - that you can rectify right now

1. Make hay while the sun shines!

Over the last couple of years, golf has gone through an incredible period of growth and stability. We’ve all benefitted and dare I say it, some of us have got a little complacent.

Fast forward to present day and inflation is up, cost of living is through the roof and we’re a couple of months away from renewal time. But it’s not too late!

My advice:
#1 – Poll your members right now. Find out what they want you to be doing better. Because if you can iron out any issues before they have to weigh up the value of their next membership, you will be in a great position

#2 – Even if your memberships are full right now, start recruiting as you WILL have some drop offs. How about arranging a winter beginners’ group? Get a new group of people in the habit of being in and around the club over the next few months and groom them to be your next set of members when the inevitable happens.

2. Give your new members a full introduction.
New members are your most vulnerable. A couple of wrong moves and the time, effort and marketing spend you’ve put into attracting a new member can be a complete waste!

My advice:

#1 - Make sure you diarise time with new members. On day 1 make sure they have a full tour and are introduced to key staff and members. Make sure they know any local rules or pieces of club etiquette. Make sure they have people to play with.

#2 - Check in with them by email, phone and in person. Ask them what they think and if there’s anything they need. Be their ‘go to’ resource and they will most likely stay for the long term.

3. Make your members feel at home. This could probably be listed as 2(b) but that’s not nearly as catchy as 3 reasons 😊
This is particularly applicable for new members as again, they are the most vulnerable to leaving, but it goes across the whole club.

My advice:

#1 - The more that the club, and not just the game of golf, becomes integrated into a member’s life the less chance is that they will want to leave.

So make the club the place they socialise, make the club the place they choose to do business. Make the club the only place they would hold a family occasion or go out for Sunday lunch. You not only need to make sure your members know that they can use the club for all of these things, you need to make sure that it has the most welcoming, friendly environment that people want to come in to.

#2 - With new members, I’d even go as far as to personally invite them to social functions. That first event is the hardest to get them to, so make it harder for them to say no!

We cover all of these mistakes and dozens more in Golf Marketing Hub.

We’re just about to set live new modules on Winter Memberships, Using MailChimp for newsletters and a brand new Social Media Advertising section. If you want 12 months access to these and many more modules, downloads and planners for less than £35 a month visit www.golfmarketinghub.com

If you’re a previous member of the Hub, get in touch with David at [email protected] for a returning member discount.

Happy golfing!

As a Member of GMH you’ll get instant access to video tutorials, checklists, ready-made social media templates and exclusive access to a supportive community.

09/11/2022

Member retention in a cost of living crisis!

Inflation is up, fuel prices are up, don’t even think about putting the heating on!

And just around the corner, your members will soon have to decide whether or not golf club membership is something they can afford.
What are we going to do about it?

The first thing I think we need to do is frame that question the other way around. How do we make golf club membership something that your members can’t afford to lose?!

It’s a simple reframing of a question but it changes the way we approach the problem. In one of the recent posts we made at Golf Marketing Hub we reflected that however tight money becomes, people will always want to spend any extra they have on the things that make them happy. When times are good that list might have 5 things on it. When belts tighten, it might go down to a list of 3. All we need to do is to give such a fantastic experience that we make the top 3 on that list.

And I think that’s all member retention is. Making people value their experience at your club above competing costs and experiences.

The first thing I would do is to find out what my customers want. We’re just about to make a new module live in the Hub all about member surveys. We look at Survey Monkey which is a free service that can help you understand what it is that your members value. Don’t just guess this, ask!

There are lots of paid services, even golf specialists, that do a great job of member surveys. If you can afford that, then it gives great insight. But even with a free service and a little knowledge you can find out if members want more social events, you can understand the strengths and weaknesses of the course and you can find out the key drivers for retaining members.

Collect the data you need to make their experience better and you’ll go a long way to making sure you’re in the top 3 on the list. Even the act of being asked shows you care about their needs – just make sure you do something with it!

If you want 12 months access to hundreds of videos, downloads and planners for less than £35 a month visit www.golfmarketinghub.com If you’re a previous member of the Hub, get in touch with David at [email protected] for a returning member discount.

Happy golfing!

As a Member of GMH you’ll get instant access to video tutorials, checklists, ready-made social media templates and exclusive access to a supportive community.

01/11/2022

The one piece of advice marketing agencies won’t tell you…

It’s in my interest for marketing to be difficult. In the most basic terms, if you can’t do it, you have to pay me to do it for you!

It’s in my interest to bamboozle you with funnels, pixels, adwords and algorithms, but marketing doesn’t have to be that complicated.
Don’t get me wrong. There’s a place for expertise, and some of the things you can do digitally nowadays will blow your mind. But for the average golf club, getting the basic fundamentals functioning well will put you in a great position, and most likely, ahead of your local competition.

But that’s not even the one thing most agencies keep a secret….
At Golf Marketing Hub we’re very open to the fact that knowing the basics and getting the fundamental’s right will be great for your business. It’s the model that our whole business is based on. We want to teach you the fundamentals and provide downloads and resources that will help you make a great job of your marketing. If you’ve been a member of the Hub, you know that’s what we’re all about, and if not, take a closer look at www.golfmarketinghub.com

But that’s not the secret…..

Come closer. I will say this only once 😊.

For all our digital expertise, our design knowledge, our website optimisation skills, the one single best piece of marketing for your golf business…..is word of mouth.

Satisfied members, societies who have had a great day, guests who have had an amazing event, they should be your #1 source of referrals. They are living breathing proof that when people choose to part with their hard earned cash – which is quickly becoming a far more precious decision – that they will get great value and an amazing experience.

For the Golf Marketing Hub series ‘The Hubbub’ we recently spoke to Ian Kelsall, an expert in Customer Experience. You can watch a snippet of my chat with him on our LinkedIn page here where he cites a piece of research that found 50% of people believe what they hear about in the paper, 70% of people believe what they read online, and 92% of people believe what they hear in person from a trusted source.

So make sure that wherever you can, ask for feedback, get reviews, ask if you can put quotes on your social and website. What we marketers call ‘Social Proof’ is gold dust for your marketing.
Also, use your members for member recruitment. This might be a bit controversial, but I 100% believe that you should be offering member referral discounts – it makes financial sense and for some members they will become your most active recruiter. The amounts are up to you, but if you gave a free membership for 5 new member referrals, and then held on to those members for 3 years each, the investment is a tiny proportion of the return.

It isn’t all easy sailing though. Word of mouth works for negative comments too. So get right on top of your customer service. Attend to any complaints in a timely and polite manner. It’s often said that it’s more important how you respond to a problem than the problem itself, so make sure that you recognise the potential negative effect and act accordingly.

A long way round to share a secret, but at Golf Marketing Hub you always get more than you were expecting 😊

If you want 12 months access to hundreds of videos, downloads and planners for less than £35 a month visit www.golfmarketinghub.com If you’re a previous member of the Hub, get in touch with David at [email protected] for a returning member discount.

Happy golfing!

As a Member of GMH you’ll get instant access to video tutorials, checklists, ready-made social media templates and exclusive access to a supportive community.

30/10/2022

3 easiest social media wins for golf clubs

It can be daunting knowing where to start with your social media channels. Sometimes it feels like you’re creating and thinking and posting and it just gets you nowhere. But before I descend into a marketers existential crisis 😊 let me re-assure you, even when you do this for a living (I’ll say this bit quietly) some things you do just don’t work!

And none can be as frustrating as social. The algorithms can change on a whim, your viewers can just turn off and perhaps from a golf club perspective the most important – you can quickly run out of ideas what to post about. So what I’m about to give you is 3 quick wins

In Golf Marketing Hub we provide some easy solutions. We create social media downloads every month for you to use on your channels. We also give you monthly ideas and tips for getting your content ready with our marketing calendar. But we also share our easy wins for content. The 3 ideas here are covered in much more detail in the Hub Pathway on Improving Member Communication, but I’m feeling kind today and am sharing enough here to give you a head start….

1. Use the course (Luke) – one for the star wars fans there 😊
Your course is your greatest source of content. Clubs will often have hero shots or drone footage. Those early morning professional pieces of photography that show the course in its very best light are great for social. But we love the more unusual. Once a month take a buggy and a phone and spend an hour snapping the course from every angle. Jump in a bunker, snap through a bush, take a 10 second video off every tee. Don’t worry about what you’re taking, just get it all and take a look when you get back. We guarantee you’ll have some fantastic content that will work a treat on social. In the Hub, we even give you some captions to use!

2. People are engaging
Part of taking course photos is catching people having fun. Social is great for looking at pretty pictures, but people are engaging. So ask someone teeing off if you can take a snap or a video. Look back down a fairway at the group playing up. Get lots of people having fun and your social automatically becomes more fun!

And the same goes for the clubhouse. Get people on the patio laughing, people at a social event or in the Pro Shop. Anyone anywhere enjoying your club is great for your social.

3. Get people involved
As we know from point 2, people are engaging. So get them to make your content for you. Ask every staff member to take some photos or do a short video. From bar to office and on to the greens, every member of staff will have something interesting going on.

And get members involved. Ask for their favourite photos of the club and incentivise the best picture of the month.

There’s content all around you, you just have to know where to look. Some of it will fly and other bits will barely get off the ground – that’s life in social – but, at least you have a great idea for where to start!

If you want 12 months access to hundreds of videos, downloads and planners for less than £35 a month visit www.golfmarketinghub.com If you’re a previous member of the Hub, get in touch with David at [email protected] for a returning member discount.

Happy Golfing!

As a Member of GMH you’ll get instant access to video tutorials, checklists, ready-made social media templates and exclusive access to a supportive community.

28/10/2022

This post has just gone live in our Member's section. Take a look at www.golfmarketinghub.com if you'd like to be part of our growing community of budding marketers!

We have a new module live, all about Winter Membership Deals.
You can find it here, in the Business Development section https://members.golfmarketinghub.com/.../2-creating.../

Inspired by a question from a member, Nicole has put together a short 3 video module to get your creative juices flowing on the best way to attract new members at this time of year.

We've also got 2 more pieces of content about to go live. The first that should be up next week takes you through the free survey platform Survey Monkey, while the second from our digital expert Fee refreshes our social media advertising section. That one should be with you the week after next.

All this, and November's social downloads and planning calendar have just gone live!

Enjoy!

As a Member of GMH you’ll get instant access to video tutorials, checklists, ready-made social media templates and exclusive access to a supportive community.

04/10/2022

Dave had a fascinating conversation last week with Customer Experience expert Ian Kelsall for the latest episode of Golf Marketing Hub's HUBBUB.

Ian is not only an expert in CX, he's been chairman, captain and board member at his local golf club, giving him a truly unique insight into how golf clubs can benefit from better understanding the experience of their customers.

Below is a snippet of a longer conversation that is hosted on the The Golf Marketing Hub members page where Ian breaks CX down into simple actions golf businesses can take right now to improve member retention and amplify recruitment campaigns.

This is well worth a watch for any golf business.

www.golfmarketinghub.com

24/08/2022

Every month we provide a marketing planning calendar with important dates for golf businesses. This month we let you know about the Macmillan coffee mornings and link through to the fantastic content they're sharing

We also produce over 35 pieces of ready made social content for you to download and use on your channels

For all this, plus over 150 video tutorials for less than £35 a month, there's a lot going on at Golf Marketing Hub!
www.golfmarketinghub.com

19/08/2022

Hot on the heels of yesterday's post, the National Golf Foundation have added their weight to the idea that clubs need to think about the next phase of our economic calendar right now!

Like me, they believe that there's plenty we can do to minimise effects - so take a look at this short video that highlights a couple of simple ideas you can put in play to reduce the chance that your business will become one of the expenses that customers cut when the economic situation bites.

So much of the answer comes down to communication. If you're not already a member of Golf Marketing Hub you can watch the first module in our Improving Member Communication pathway for free here https://www.learndesk.us/class/5586794244472832/improving-customer-communication-for-sports-clubs-and-coaches

Take a look and you'll come away with a host of ideas for future proofing your business

18/08/2022

I'll let you into a secret......... I'm worried about golf.

I'm worried that there are a lot of clubs and pros that aren't looking past their full tee sheets, bulging diaries and even waiting lists, to think about what happens when the cost of living bites.

Now I'm not the prophet of doom. I think there's a lot that golf businesses can do. They just need to think fast and act now to make sure that when belts are tightened, they aren't one of the things that gets the chop!

We need to ask the question 'What can I do today to make it harder for people to leave tomorrow?' And for me a lot of that comes down to engagement.

But what is engagement? We hear the word A LOT in marketing, but what does it actually mean? In this video from late last year Dave takes a look at engagement and talks about a few things you could do today to make your golf business an important part of your customer's future. Take a look and ask yourself, am I ready if the winds of the industry change?

27/07/2022

Could a 'Spooky Tree' double your club cresting business?

Dave looks at a simple idea from a golf club in the U.S. that doubled their cresting business. And most importantly, this is something you could easily put into action at your club or Pro Shop right now.

Take a look at the 2 minute video and find your Spooky Tree moment!

www.golfmarketinghub.com

28/06/2022

A new module has just gone live in the Hub that is a 'must watch' for anyone who has found themselves with 'social media' on their job description without really knowing how!

Known in the office as 'A day in the life of Nathan' the official title of the module is 'Saving time on social - tactics for juggling jobs!' Before Nathan started with us, he was front of house supervisor at his local golf club. In a story many of you will recognise, the club social media became his responsibility without him really knowing how. Plus he still had his actual job to do!

This module draws on all of Nathan's experience at the club, and all the things he's learned since working here that he wishes he'd known then.

In seven simple lessons, Nathan takes you through planning, scheduling, simple design tricks and tips for growing engagement. If you have social media on your job description alongside your actual job, this is a must watch resource!

For access to this module, over 125 other video tutorials and hundreds of marketing and social media downloads, check out GMH membership for less than £8 a week at www.golfmarketinghub.com

15/06/2022

Telling a story that connects with your audience is the best way to communicate the benefits of your business.

Dave takes a look at the value of emotion and the power of telling stories. If you can engage someone on an emotional level, they will hear far more of what you want to communicate than if you simply tell them what you can do

Filmed at Christmas, rather than a ploy to connect with your Christmas spirit!

www.golfmarketinghub.com

27/05/2022

We looked at this great data from the NGF earlier this year around the value of Converted golfers over Retained golfers.

In a market where Retention is often the goal, this was a fascinating insight for Golf Marketing Hub members just before club membership renewals started to kick in.

I love how the NGF re-frame ideas like this with real life data and help us devise important strategies for the long term health of golf clubs and coaching businesses.

www.golfmarketinghub.com

19/05/2022

Released to Golf Marketing Hub members at the start of January, this video is a great starting point for any golf customer recruitment campaign.

We always need to think about where the next round of customers is coming from, but knowing where to look can feel like finding a needle in a haystack.

While all the stats coming out of the game point to full member lists, record numbers of golfers taking lessons and growing numbers all round, Golf Marketing Hub members are reporting that they still need new customers. And even if your lists are full, every business needs to be thinking 2 steps ahead.

In this video, Dave looks at some research out of the U.S. that points directly to where clubs and coaches can find a huge pool of potential new customers. There's a large and growing number of golfers out there who have fallen for the game. They just need a nudge to be persuaded to come and enjoy it with you!

www.golfmarketinghub.com

11/05/2022

We put this video live in the Member area of www.golfmarketinghub.com this week, but as we think it's one of the most pressing issues for all golf businesses right now, we wanted to share on our public channels too.

In the video, Dave shares a couple of pieces of research from Marketing Week that look at the pending cost of living crisis and the uncertainty that brings for us all.

While golf is going through a golden period right now, it's important to think about what comes next and how the wider world can have a direct impact on our ability to retain customers.

While there's no magic answer, take a look at Dave's thoughts on how we can best prepare for any eventuality.

Do you think there's a potential problem on the horizon or will golf continue with it's current levels of popularity?

Let us know what you think, along with any ideas you have for the coming months and years.

04/05/2022

In this video Dave looks at the hardest customers to retain and some of the simple things we can be doing to make sure they form deep attachments to your club or service.

Let us know what you think and if there's anything you do to keep customers coming back

For more marketing tips, monthly social media and marketing resources, plus hundreds of marketing video tutorials take a look at www.golfmarketinghub.com
Memberships available for less than £8 a week!

25/04/2022

May Social Media Content is now live in the Hub!

We've improved a couple of things this month, including our brand new social media and marketing planner designed specifically for PGA Professionals.

We've also added more ideas into our standard marketing content calendar for clubs and Pro's. Whether it's a tip for a social post, an awareness day or a reminder of an upcoming event, you'll have plenty of ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

As always, Nathan's prepared lots of social posts to go with both calendars that you can download and use straight away - and he's marked off all the PGA Pro posts so you can find them easily.

For more information on how to access these monthly resources, plus hundreds of marketing video tutorials and quick marketing fixes, take a look at www.golfmarketinghub.com

Memberships available for less than £8 a week!

21/04/2022

Are PGA Pros and golf clubs missing out on huge numbers of potential customers by looking in the wrong places?

Dave reflects on some great research from the National Golf Foundation in the U.S. that looks at golfer's playing habits and shows exactly where the next generation of Golf Club members and PGA Pro students could come from.

For more tips like this, plus in depth tutorials and monthly marketing resources, take a look at becoming a member of www.golfmarketinghub.com

12/04/2022

"Chuck Norris Golf Pro"

I couldn't see that without learning more. Can you?......

For more tips like this, plus in depth tutorials and monthly marketing resources, take a look at becoming a member of www.golfmarketinghub.com

04/04/2022

Let's kick off Masters week with a couple of great tips from the team on how you can use the biggest events in golf to engage your members and get the club excited for the new season

Nathan has a tip from his time working the bar at a golf club, and Fee adapts the idea for use on social media. Take a look and let us know what you think!

Check out membership of Golf Marketing Hub at www.golfmarketinghub.com

Tips, tutorials, ready made social media posts and simple marketing resources - for less than £8 a week

28/03/2022

Dave's just back off a society weekend, where he experienced a simple piece of marketing that will definitely contribute to the society returning to the venue.

And the Pro actually made money on it! 👀

Check out membership of Golf Marketing Hub at www.golfmarketinghub.com for more tips, tutorials and Marketing resources

24/03/2022

Dave takes a look at the idea that 80% of our business often comes from 20% of our customers.

In this short video insight he highlights how rewarding your 20% and knowing how to find 'lookalikes' in your customer base can help you to grow your business.

If you would like access to more quick tips like this, along with in depth video tutorials, a monthly marketing calendar and ready-made social media content every month, you can sign up to www.golfmarketinghub.com for less than £8 a week

18/03/2022

Golf Marketing Hub is packed with simple tips for getting the best from your golf business.

In this 4 minute video, GMH co-founder Dave looks at why 95% of people don't want your products, and he shows how that piece of information should help shape certain parts of your marketing.

Let us know what you think of this fascinating idea

If you would like access to quick tips, in depth video tutorials, a monthly marketing calendar and ready-made social media content every month, you can sign up to www.golfmarketinghub.com for less than £8 a week

18/11/2021

Every month we create a social media calendar with ideas for content, plus around 30 ready made social media posts you can download and use.

We'll be uploading December in the next 24 hours so members can start preparing for their Christmas and New Year posts

03/11/2021

We are 1 today!! 🎂

So much has happened in the last 12 months and we are delighted to have you all in the Hub.

18/10/2021

Good morning from GMH HQ! We can't believe it's the middle of October already - what a year it's been 😷

We're in the middle of planning for 2022 and wondered when you take time to reflect and plan for the year ahead? And, is there anything we can help you with?