SOCIAL MEDIA: IT’S A MUST
13 Feb 2014

SOCIAL MEDIA: IT’S A MUST

As golf teaching professionals, most of us are independent contractors. Some of us might work for a golf club, driving range, or golf school.  Like most businesses, we are always looking for ways to grow our business, gain new clients, and solidify our trade.  Social media is a great way to advertise, reach new clients, and stay in touch with current students. Websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are free to use and efficient, as many of your students are most likely already using these sites.  By accessing these forms of marketing, you can stay connected to your students and grow your business for free.  Free is always good for small business owners! When you start a Facebook page, it will help you expand in many ways.  You are able to show pictures of your business.  You can highlight training aids you use and show pictures of people taking lessons.  The people in the pictures are most likely on Facebook, so make sure you “tag” them.  Their network of friends will see these photos, thus growing your business without paying for advertising.  People will “like” the photo, and thus send your business information to others whom you wouldn’t be able to reach directly without paying for it. Next time you visit a local business, look to see if they ask their customers to follow them on social media sites.  Think of other successful businesses and pull up their social media sites for ideas.  If you think it’s too hard or you are not “techie” enough, think again.  It is a must for small business owners to connect to social media, especially for those of us in the golf business.
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12 Feb 2014

THE IMPORTANCE OF A GOLF CART FLEET

By Marc Gelbke, Contributing Writer, US Golf Managers Association Often overlooked by golf course managers is the importance of a golf cart fleet at our facilities. Fleets directly relate to revenues and budget, and must be successfully managed. Most managers are not aware of the fact that our fleets are the second-largest source of revenue (after golf fees), and often the largest profit center. This article is designed to explain in some detail and point out the importance of a cart fleet and how it could be viewed from a manager’s point of view. I will touch on other aspects of cart fleet management in future editorials, such as:  How to make a fleet program successful; the responsibilities of a fleet manager; how to determine fleet size; and, maybe even how to decide between electric and gas-powered carts. For now, I would like to return to and point to the realization of the importance of having a fleet. Based on US averages, a typical rental concession should generate about $1,900 in income annually per cart (of course, lots of facilities generate even more).  That translates into an average fleet size of 57 cars to $113,430 of annual revenue/profits. Based on these numbers, it is obvious that it is an important part of your operation, and many facilities use this revenue to afford things like an on-site golf professional, pay for improved services, staff, or equipment. Now that you are aware of the importance of a fleet in terms of revenue, profits, and services it can provide to your facility, let’s move on to the “value” a golf cart brings to a facility and your operation. Of course, as managers we all want to provide services to our golfers, as it creates repeat business (again, our number one source of revenue is golf fees). The services a golf cart can provide to our golfers, are, for example: –          It provides a means of transportation to the golfer who can’t walk the course due to physical or health reasons and would otherwise not be able to play your course. –          It eliminates the need to carry your clubs, especially important in rough climates and rugged terrain. –          The use of golf cars can increase the speed of play if properly managed. –          The car rental income has continually offset golf fee increases to golfers, which I am sure golfers can greatly appreciate. Some pretty convincing values to a car fleet, don’t you think? However, on the other side of the spectrum is the facility or your operation, so let’s look at some values a cart fleet provides to your facility: –          It’s a direct source of income and profits. –          The rental income helps pay for salaries, services, and equipment. –          Having carts can increase your facilities image and reputation. –          Car fleets promote more rounds played at your facility, which directly can impact and result in increased merchandise sales in your shops, as well as your food and beverage operations. Once again, some pretty good arguments for the importance of a fleet from the facilities point of view.  In closing, the importance of a golf cart fleet is obvious, and we as managers should be directly and deeply involved in managing our fleets to assure maximized profits for our operations.
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LEAVE IT TO THE GOVERNMENT TO LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH
6 Feb 2014

LEAVE IT TO THE GOVERNMENT TO LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH

The business consultant Peter Drucker said that what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to get their work done. If I were to apply this to government, I could say it consists of making it difficult to conduct business. ESPN recently did an exposé on the charitable giving of the PGA Tour and noted that a watchdog group gave them a zero rating because they don’t give enough to the charities they support. The basic issue comes down to the fact that the PGA Tour gets tax-exempt status, and according to the report, they have been able to avoid $200 million in taxes over the past 20 years. The fact that the tour has raised over $2 billion for charities appears to mean nothing. Now, some of our so-called astute leaders in Congress want to take away the Tour’s tax-exempt status. Don’t they have more important things on their plate? A quote from the watchdog group:  “The lion’s share of the money is going to big prizes, cash prizes for athletes, and all the promotion around it, so it’s really pathetic, actually, every single taxpayer in this country ultimately is bearing the burden of having to pay the taxes for this wildly inefficient organization that’s giving so little to charity.” This makes no sense. The PGA Tour is a business. Their primary function is entertainment, at which they do a pretty good job. Each event is a major undertaking that supports a significant number of big and small businesses. The fact that the tour has decided to help charities is a bonus. I would also bet that the taxes paid by all the people employed by the tour to run each tournament and those paid by the athletes far exceed the annual exemption the tour receives. Didn’t Phil Mickelson say he pays 65% of his income in taxes? I don’t feel the burden and neither should the government.
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PROVIDING CUSTOMER SERVICE
3 Feb 2014

PROVIDING CUSTOMER SERVICE

Teaching golf is a service industry.  It falls in the same category as restaurants, tourism, and entertainment.  The client does not have to take a lesson; he wants to take a lesson.  It is important to remember this, as golf lessons are basically luxury items. As a teaching professional we should: • Promote the game of golf. • Provide superior teaching techniques. • Deliver excellent customer service. Some interesting statistic concerning customer service: • 96% of customers who feel they were served poorly do not complain. • 90% of those who feel they were served poorly will not return for a lesson. • Each poorly served customer will tell at least nine people and some will tell over twenty. • 95% of customers will return if their problem is resolved on the spot. Providing good customer service yields “word of mouth” referrals and students who continue to take lessons. Remember to evaluate yourself by putting yourself in the customer’s shoes.  Try to imagine what it is like to take a lesson.  For instance, sometime as teaching professional we forget what it is like to be a beginning golfer. Our perception of ourselves is not always the reality.  Therefore, it is important to honestly evaluate your actions.  To grow as a teaching professional, continue your education.
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