Page 34 - GBC Spring 2019 ENG

booked? Who are they playing with and what prompted this booking? For example was it a push noti ca- tion, geofence, a special offer, or any other variable.
Step 2, check in at the course. How did they pay? Did they hit balls on the range, buy some merchandise? Did they head over to the grill and get something to eat? Did the customer use a coupon, get some special rate, or pay rack?
Step 3, the in round experience. What was their pace of play? Did they play any on course games or keep score? Were there additional purchases from the beverage cart? Were your customers making any social media posts. Finally, who did they play with?
Step 4, the round is now com- plete. How did they play? Did your golfer make any post round purchases. Do you have a loyalty program where they earned points? Most importantly did they enjoy their round?
Like Amazon, as course opera- tors you want to encourage this cycle to continue and your mobile provider should be able to help you rinse and repeat this formula.
Mobile also provides a conve- nient method for your golfers to book tee times, which is paramount. In 2019, tee times should be easy to book. Today’s golf consumer wants to be able to go through a short 2-3 step process to book a tee time from their mobile device 24 hours a day 7 days a week. They may even want to be prompted via a push noti cation to book through their phone immediately!
ENHANCE THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
There is an also opportunity to enhance your customer experience through mobile. Courses are always looking for ways to keep their cus- tomers informed about what is going on at your club. Traditional methods include news-letters, email, and website updates. These methods are okay but often not as timely or as ef- fective as mobile.
Through mobile, a course operator can ensure their messages are seen through push noti ca- tions. Industry data indicate a targeted push noti cation is 300% more effective than email.
A push noti cation means you are able to choose exactly who and when a message is seen. It goes straight to the customer’s phone. It cannot be missed. Geofencing, or location based messaging is the same thing as a push noti cation except the message received is based on the customer’s location anywhere around the club, around town, or around the world.
Your mobile application should also have a place on the home- screen titled News items. This section of your app should be updated regularly so at any time your golfer can simply open up your app and see what’s going on
at your course immediately. In round, your golfers may also see a pop up noti cation as they reach a particular hole. Examples may include a prompt to order F&B at the turn, a membership drive, hole sponsor, etc.
EFFECTIVE MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS
Marketing and getting the word out about special offers has come a long way from print magazines, newspapers and expensive radio ads. With a mobile enhanced mar- keting plan you can send targeted push noti cation. Making sure your app has social media integra- tion can enhance your club engage- ment. Maybe you want to target a speci c customer or group of customers, you should be able to create individualized special offers within your mobile application.
Play Golf Calgary COO, Slade King, provides an example of mar- keting through mobile. He says, “With my mobile solution, we have a powerful tool to connect our customers to our brand and keep them up to date on new offerings with push noti cations. Overall our branded club app is becoming the central hub to our marketing strategies.” For more on Slade’s use of this mobile technology, read his winning Canadian Idea article on page 42.
INCREASE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SALES
Food and Beverage sales are an important revenue stream to most golf facilities. On-course Food and Beverage performance can be enhanced by mobile in several ways.
With click to order, your menu is not only expanded but order size has been demonstrated to skyrocket. Your application with click to order is like your best employee, it’s always upselling and people are likely to spend more when they are pushing buttons instead of speak- ing to staff standing right in front
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Golf Business Canada