Marketing yourself more important than ever

Players, management need to know just how much you know

By Scott Wogomon

No one likes the guy who takes every opportunity to tell us just how much he thinks he knows about every topic under the sun. But there’s probably a little of that in all of us and that can be a good thing when times are tough and you need to make sure the people that sign your paycheck know just how valuable you are.

Marketing yourself to your players, members or those in management has become critical as the grips of a down economy tighten and people are losing their livelihoods all across the country. How you go about it can have a dramatic effect on how you and your staff are viewed at your facility and can give you some peace of mind at a time when everyone in the golf business needs it.

“A lot of members want to know what I’m doing to tighten the belt and what kind of excesses we’ve eliminated on our side,” says Bill Irving, superintendent at Lawrence (Kan.) Country Club. “They want to know that we’re very conscious of the dollars that go out the door. Our side of this business is all expense and they want to know we’re using it wisely.”

Improved visibility

Irving says he takes every opportunity to introduce himself to members of the Lawrence private club and make himself visible in the clubhouse or other areas of the course when the time is right.

“I will occasionally try to make myself available at the first tee…I try to give them opportunities to ask me the questions that they might have,” says Irving, the PR/communications director for the Heart of America GCSA who’s been at Lawrence CC a year now after a four-year stint at Kearney (Neb.) Country Club. “Obviously, the agronomic side is my area of expertise... But really what I do is not talk to them about what I want to talk about; I let them bring a subject up to me. I will answer questions or have a discussion about that.”

Irving says he thinks in this day and age providing top course conditions is important, but maintaining these open lines of communication with your membership or clientele can be just as critical to your success.

“I think they go hand in hand,” he says. “I think a good golf course is definitely going to market your skill set. But being available for comments or feedback and not holding anything back is really the best way it works.”

Irving says members’ questions can be very specific and your ability to answer them can enhance your “marketing” at the facility.

“They’re pretty pointed -- what kind of labor are we cutting? Where else are we backing off? What are we going to do about the price of fuel and how has that affected our budget? Are we going to be able to keep the same conditions using less money?” Irving says. “My members are pretty savvy. That can be a blessing and a curse.”

Scott Wogomon is a free-lance writer in Tonganoxie, Kansas, and has worked on the maintenance staffs of three Midwest golf courses. The former sports editor was associate editor for GCSAA’s Golf Course Management magazine and is senior writer for the Kansas Golf Association.