Are you maximising equipment opportunities mid-season?

David Murch, Business Development Consultant at Foremost Golf, discusses the importance of capitalising on equipment sales mid-season, when the footfall traffic and demand are much higher.

With the season now in full swing, it’s essential that golf clubs and pro shops are putting their best foot forward to capitalise on the wave of enthusiasm in the market. Turning this buzz and excitement into motivated consumers who are ready to make a purchase is a key differentiator among the most successful golf clubs and retailers.

Regularly engaging with your members

Your golf club and pro shop must be the first places your customers think of when they are considering buying new equipment. Despite being in mid-season and footfall being high, golf clubs must be constantly showcasing their offering for their members and customers. Regularly engaging with members when they are not at the golf course is essential as it keeps your business and services in their minds. These channels include your: weekly newsletter, social media, website product pages and designated special mails.

Website

As the central hub for all digital communications with members and customers, it’s vital that your golf club and pro shop website showcases the best images of the pro shop and studio facilities.

The more informative the website, the better members and visitors will feel about taking the next step and making their next equipment investment. Brands We Fit is a custom webpage within a Foremost pro’s personal Elite Marketing Programme (EMP) website, displaying the latest information on which brands they provide a fitting service for, as well as digital content displaying product information and custom fitting expertise.

Fitting days

When executed correctly, fitting days represent a brilliant opportunity to generate sales. ‘Super Fitting Days’ can be hosted by the pro shop team, allowing your customers to try multiple brands in one session, while also allowing you to run a date and time that suits the team. This enables the ‘optimum window’ for maximum bookings, which would include the opportunity of running one during a weekend, providing members are aware of the fitting day in advance. Foremost members can benefit from full digital marketing support for these fitting days to ensure maximum benefit to all. Going one step further, once the interest has been obtained from the digital marketing, customers can book a slot directly online via the automated fitting day support service.

Enticing displays

An extremely high proportion of equipment sales now take place in the swing studio or on the driving range. However, the stock you do have in store should be presented well. Clear ticketing with supporting signage is essential at every touchpoint whilst highlighting the fitting service the team offers. This allows your members and customers to see that you stock the brand, and you have a fitting service available that can optimise the equipment for their game.

Testimonials

Building on the attractive signage for your fitting service, look to promote success stories to your customer base. The best example is your ‘relatable golfer’. An example would be a gentleman in his 60s that plays off an 18 handicap, a common golf club member case study. Showcase the performance gain he has experienced from an expert fitting with the latest technology. Ensure you showcase all the steps from the fitting process, concluding with the progress made by the member, either a lower handicap or generally better scores. This allows you to stand out from the competition and reinforce the message that you ‘care’ about your members and their performance. The desired outcome is other golfers at the club booking in for a custom fitting session to enhance their game.

Trade-ins

Do you offer a trade-in service? This year we have seen an exceptional level of trade-ins going through the EMP Trade-In service. This works hand-in-hand with selling new equipment as the traded item can act as a deposit towards a new hardware purchase. This solution can be the difference when getting customers over the purchasing line.

In summary, it’s important for pro shop staff to be proactive and not solely rely on the increased footfall to drive the business forwards. There are multiple areas you can look to optimise during the season to ensure your equipment business is performing.

For further information on how Foremost Golf can assist you and your business in 2024 simply email membership@foremostgolf.com or call 01753 218890