Selling Golf Services in An 8-second, 3-Click World

No matter how busy goes the tee sheet, the property has several services to sell beyond a membership or a round of golf. Not only are you forced today to serve and sell in a world mired in a pandemic, you and your team are selling in a world occupied by people who aren’t paying attention. The average attention span today is now at 8 seconds. Count ‘em…..one alligator, two alligator, etc. Not much time to make a point, or a sale. In addition, we all expect to navigate to the various screens in our worlds in three clicks….or less. Today, people want customization, people want it right, and people want it very, very quickly. How is this all working with a golf course packed and a short staff?

Depending on the type of golf property, there are several sales opportunities at the golf course.

The menu might include: weddings, corporate or community meetings, family reunions, Toastmasters meetings and other gatherings that can be vital sources of revenue. No matter the age of the prospect, your team needs to understand how to communicate and sell in this new age. This highfives post offers five thoughts on ways you and your team can improve the success rate for the many golf services you offer. Here are today’s highfives:

What You Need to Know to Sell Your Golf Services to Customers

1)    Know your services cold: Have the facts nailed down. Know all of the options, the calendar availability, as well as the features of the menu. You may need to add features, value or discuss pricing, so be prepared

2)    Know the competition: You and the sales team must know who you are competing against. What are the prospect’s options? Know the options, the pricing, and service history for each competitor.

3)    Know your prospects: Get to know as much about your prospective customers as you can. If they live in your community, talk about the area and their time living there. Friends buy from friendly people. Show genuine interest in every prospect

4)    Don’t talk about price: Provide time and space for your prospects to learn what they need to know. Have your specific team members that work in that area of service meet with your clients. Price will always be a part of the conversation but set the proper tone first. When prospects like the facility and know and like the staff, it is tougher to say no

5)    Follow up is essential: Have the departmental team members all send the client a thank you e-mail. At the same time have someone send a handwritten thank you note, signed by the team to the client as well. People have complicated lives, and your property is not on the first page of their to-do list, so stay connected. If you do not get this deal, no problem. Know this client can be back again for any number of reasons. Do not believe a customer is lost. One sale was lost, so do not give up on any prospect.

In this difficult time, with people moving in many directions, your team must be fully prepared to speak about the property, the services, the options as never before. With events beyond a round of golf coming back slowly, the team must be made to understand that red carpet service, attention to detail, together with quick response time should be standard operating procedure. Providing convenience, saving prospects time, and paying close attention to what is being said will win you more and more business. There is very little time to get sales right in this digital age, and even less time to get it wrong. Be smart, be sharp, but also be human. Work with the team that handles sales in the various departments weekly. Getting the sales pros on your team to nail the presentations will help you sell you golf, and everything else. When people know the deal, they can tweak every presentation to the tone and the clock of the individual prospect. Teach them well, the clock is ticking.

Jack Dillon writes the highfives post. This is year 11 for the highfives. Jack is a coach, speaker, and consultant. He is an expert in the golf shop, in purchasing, service, communications and operations. Contact Jack to help you with your shop, your team, your business. Don’t let another week go by. Reach Jack at dillonjack53@gmail.com. Or call him at 407-973-6136. Jack lives in Orlando.