Page 24 - MGG - Venue Audit

GOLF CLUB NAME - VENUE AUDIT

MEMBERSHIP CONCLUSIONS
The membership environment surrounding XXXXXX Golf Club is an extremely difficult one due to the
number of courses and low local population centres. Form ESRI study on golfing trends in Ireland, it is
noted that time issues are one of the key barriers to potential members joining clubs. A long journey time
to the course for most members means they are passing a high number of other courses to get to Tulfarris,
making it more difficult for them to decide to join or renew.

1. Membership Retention
Ultimately one of the biggest issues to be tackled is the increasing non-renewals. This is a worrying trend
which is having a detrimental effect on growing the club base. For a club with a modest membership,
the level of turnover per year is worrying, and if this trend was to continue the club will not grow in any
significant manner.

2. Membership Promotion
Currently, membership is not properly promoted throughout the entire year. While the club is promoting
membership for a period around renewal time each year, this needs to be expanded to cover a full
twelve-month term. Flexibility to advertise pro-rata pricing and long term offers must be allowed to
provide a platform for growth. We will require flexibility to offer reduced rates in the future to help with
attracting first year new members.

3. Club Committee
While the club committee is an important part of the running of the club their needs to be made clear that
they are not part of a member-owned club and that the resort is a business which must generate a profit.
From previous experience, we have encountered committees that have made it difficult for clubs to grow
due to an unwillingness to break the status quo as the current situation suit their personal needs (e.g.
availability on the timesheet). Going forward, a relationship must be built with the club committee so that
there is limited discontent to membership pricing advertisements and other issues that may arise over the
coming years.

4. Member Communication
Can be vital for creating a sense of connection with members that do not get to visit the club often and
in fact can help tip the decision on whether to re-join for the coming year. It is an important part of a
membership engagement plan. In particular, with regards to the member's newsletter, we would see room
for improvement in the frequency and presentation to reflect the overall standards of the venue.

5. Member Events
We would be in favour of membership appreciation events; however, these can prove tricky to get buy-in.
This is a challenge for Tulfarris due to membership numbers and location. Perhaps it would be best to
incorporate an element of these events into a regular club competition throughout the year.

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