How to Manage Memberships and Loyalty Programs
The United States has more than 11,100 country clubs, making competition fierce among the clubs. How can you use effective golf course management to keep your memberships active? Finding ways to engage your members and improve their loyalty is an ideal way to keep your golf club members signed on.
But how can you accomplish these goals and improve your golf course's membership? If you're interested in improving your membership numbers, we're happy to help. Read on to learn more about memberships and loyalty programs.
Managing Memberships
Your golf club members aren't signed on for life, and keeping them around is a full-time effort. Here are three ways to improve your golf club member retention.
Retention
To begin, what does retention entail? To retain guests means to keep their membership renewing, stopping your membership numbers from dropping.
While growing your membership numbers is important, keeping old members around is just as vital. Your club needs these loyal long-time members to stay afloat, as they're more reliable than other members.
Developing retention strategies is unique to each club. You should think about what your golf club membership offers that others don't. From there, you can emphasize which points you think will most affect retention.
Outreach
Golf club membership is more than a club that members can walk into. What are you doing to reach out to your members?
You can cement yourself as a vital part of their lives by being present in and out of the clubhouse. Don't hesitate to reach out to your members and have a presence in their life. Such outreach can be to remind them of events or to thank them for their membership.
Engaging Members
Who are the most likely members to fail to renew their membership? Identifying the most "at risk" members is a crucial part of retaining them.
By identifying if a member won't renew, you can focus efforts on improving the likelihood of retaining them. You may target them with a lower fee to renew, better perks, or something as simple as a one-on-one conversation.
To identify "at risk" members, look at their attendance. Have they been absent from the club for most of the year? Do they seem to be avoiding the members-only events that the club holds?
You can also look at their relationship with other members. Are they an active part of the social life, or do they come and go to enjoy their perks in solitude?
Finally, consider what perks they use most. Are they focusing on perks that aren't unique to your club? They may find the same perks in a preferred environment somewhere else.
Reach out to these members and discuss whether they're enjoying the club. At times, you may have members that won't be convinced to stay.
It's best to let these members leave the club peacefully. Badgering them with offers or denouncing them for leaving is unprofessional. They may return at a later date if your parting is an amicable one.
Improving Loyalty
One crucial point of golf club member retention is loyalty programs. Mixing loyalty rewards into your retention strategies will help show your members reasons to stay. These loyalty programs can be as simple as a discount or as extravagant as unique, member-only events.
Here are some ideas for your loyalty programs to help you retain golfers.
Steady Rewards
Arguably the best tactic is to reward loyalty. While having your appreciation is nice, most members will want something more than annual thank-you cards.
Think of what rewards your club is able to offer. The golf business lends itself to countless rewards. Exclusive games, tickets to an upcoming tournament free of charge, and other such rewards are ideal.
One strong tactic is to negotiate Reciprocal Rights. In golf, this term is also used as Reciprocal Play or Reciprocals.
Reciprocal Rights is an agreement between clubs to let their members play each club's golf course. As a result, members of either club are more keen to keep their membership, as it provides two courses rather than one.
Not all private clubs have these rights, and it's up to you to decide if it's right for your club. You also may have your club in an area where no other club is close enough to offer such a perk.
In this event, don't let distance stop you. Many members of exclusive clubs travel frequently, often to visit other clubs. Holding Reciprocals with a club states away is still an excellent benefit.
Exclusive Events
While most private clubs are exclusive to members, there are public persons that will appear on the course. Some golf courses are open to the public while the clubhouse is exclusive to members, for example. Consider the best methods to leverage this exclusivity for your member's benefit.
The best way is with exclusive events that reward your member's loyalty. These may be holiday-centric events that only members are allowed to engage with.
Another excellent option is days where the public isn't allowed on the course. Members can rest easy knowing the course won't be clogged with tourists or one-time course-goers.
You can discuss these events with your membership directly. A great perk for members is the ability to have their input taken and valued. Show that you aren't ignoring this perk by discussing what events they'd like to see and implementing the feedback.
Perfecting Your Golf Course Management
Golf course management is only one part of your golf club member retention. Think of all the benefits and perks your golf club membership offers from the clubhouse to the 18th hole. Focus your retention strategies on loyalty programs, enhanced perks, and more.
For more information on how to keep your club flourishing, be sure to contact us. You can also browse our site for more exciting reads.