Month: December 2021

WELCOMING NEW MEMBERS THE RIGHT WAY

Friday December 17, 2021

You’re long past it now, but try to harken back to your days as a middle schooler or teenager, full of angst and hungry for friends and meaningful relationships. Maybe you were one of the cool kids who never had trouble making new friends, but for a lot of people – especially for those who moved into a new school district – building new relationships was full of difficulty and anxiety. The same might be said for new members joining a private club. And if your members are paying dues to be a part of a community instead of simply taking advantage of the facilities and amenities, it’s imperative to make them feel welcome and part of the family.

According to 59club data from their proprietary member survey tool, the majority of high-performing private clubs are welcoming new members the right way, but a large percentage of clubs are falling short in key areas of new member integration. Let’s get to the numbers.

The Welcome Call

If your sales staff or marketing team spent a ton of time and a lot of money wining, dining, courting and signing a prospective new lead at your private club, you would assume they would be running – and fast – to call the new member to welcome them to the club. According to 59club data, only 52% of new members at private clubs received a formal “welcome to the club” phone call. Not exactly a great start to a budding new relationship.

The Formal Induction meeting

The practice of hosting formal induction meetings for new members is not for every club, but all but guarantees your members an opportunity to meet, learn about and formally welcome a new member of your private community. On average, 26% of new members at private clubs took part in a formal induction meeting, but among the highest scoring clubs in the world, this number dramatically increases to nearly 90%. It might be worth fleshing out and implementing this program at your club in the future if not already in place.

Staff Introduction and Networking

As your members spend more time at the club, your staff will invariably pick up on some interesting tidbits, facts, likes and dislikes from your various members. And in that regard, your staff is armed with networking abilities well suited to help your new members make new friendships. Less than 50% of new members surveyed said they were introduced to legacy members by staff members, but again, the best clubs in the world make this a regular practice.

Knowing Your Name

One of the quickest and easiest ways make someone feel at home is simply by addressing them by their name. shockingly, less than 60% of members surveyed report private club staff members demonstrating they know the name of the newest members.

Adding it All Up

When you take a look at the numbers above, it’s easy to see why only 65 percent of new members at private clubs report making new friendships within their first few months. And for a model that requires camaraderie and inclusion, leaving it up to your members to make friends on their own without any tips and tricks to get the process started is a recipe for member stagnation.

Learn more about the 59club Member Surveys here: https://www.59clubusa.com/satisfaction-surveys/

59club USA Client, Landscapes Golf Management, in the news

Wednesday December 15, 2021

Landscapes Golf Management has been making news lately with a handful of key developments, bolstering their position as one of the 10 largest golf course operators in the country.

In September, the company expanded its existing partnership with Swing King, which operates a fully automated hole-in-one contest at golf courses, country clubs and resorts. The partnership will expand to include more than 30 of LGM’s properties nationwide.

The company then teamed up with 59club USA over the summer and by fall had seen the fruit of that relationship. 59club USA offers satisfaction surveys, mystery shopping and employee training at 20 of LGM’s daily-fee and private properties. The datapoints gathered from these activities have helped LGM to fine tune the experience of going to their properties.

In November, the company was selected to operate the River Run Country Club in Davidson, N.C. River Run features an 18-hole championship golf course as well as event spaces and a sports campus. LGM will be in charge of every facet of the operation, including sales, marketing, staffing, merchandising and more.

LGM has made a career out of being the strong, silent type. Founded in 2007 as an outgrowth of Landscapes Unlimited, a golf course developer and construction company, the company has slowly expanded ever since. It’s portfolio spans 20 states, 54 properties and features a number of regional offices.

LGM touts its family-owned nature as one of the main reasons for its success. Not being subject to third-party constraints opens many doors in how the company can deal with its clients.

“Our teams take relationship building extremely seriously and smart training is critical,” said Tom Everett, president of Landscapes Golf Management. “After all, we recognize that it doesn’t cost us one extra dollar to provide warm hospitality to every golfer, member and guest at our properties. Conversely, we understand how detrimental only one instance of poor service can be.”

The Power of the Phone Call – New Membership Prospects

Friday December 3, 2021

The internet and the myriad new ways it allows people to connect has forever changed the personal and professional communication landscape. Text messages, emails, digital direct mail and online forms make it possible for people to digest and respond to messages on their own time and keep a sense of privacy – which is great for rudimentary transactions and appointments. But when it comes to private club memberships or other high-value propositions, there is simply no substitute for the old-fashioned phone call.

According to 59club data, on average, only 31% of polled private club prospective members said they received a follow-up phone call from the club. When compared to the leaders in the industry, however, the number jumps up to 100%, meaning the best of the best in the country recognize the importance and power of the phone call.

“Following up with prospects after they have expressed interest in joining the club is a major issue,” said Mike Kelly, managing partner of 59club USA. “These prospects have taken time out of their day to call and tour the club and they simply aren’t getting a call back. Some clubs say they either send emails or text messages, but that is frankly not good enough. In order to continue to build rapport, nurture the relationship and be an effective sales staff, you have to pick up the phone. Period.”

According to 59club, while making the effort to speak with prospective members on the phone is the bare minimum, there are five key components of a truly successful follow-up phone call.

Timeliness of the follow-up call

Prospective members tend to lose interest the longer they have to wait for the next communication. Prompt replies after an initial site visit ensures the emotional connection to the club is still fresh in the prospect’s mind.

Direct communication

Gate keepers like assistants and voicemail messages make it easy to leave a message and move on, but successful sales calls are almost wholly reliant on direct communication so nothing gets lost in the shuffle.

Trial close

As a sales professional, your goal should be to sell the membership, not have a nice chat on the phone. Forgetting to engage in a trial close is the quickest way to lose out on new memberships.

A personal call specific to the prospect

Sales scripts are a great way to make sure nothing is left out of each individual call, but blanket statements with no regard for the other person on the line – their likes, dislikes, pain points, first and last name, etc. – have the feel of a text message or a disengaged staff member. Make the call personal and specific to each person you contact.

Friendliness

Above all, membership sales calls should be friendly and personable. After all, no one wants to be a part of a group of curmudgeons. Your sales staff represents the club at its base level and should reflect the positive aspects of your club.

59CLUB USA ADDS 19 NEW CLIENT PROPERTIES THROUGH AGREEMENT WITH ESCALANTE GOLF

Thursday December 2, 2021

59CLUB USA ADDS 19 NEW CLIENT PROPERTIES THROUGH

AGREEMENT WITH ESCALANTE GOLF

STATHAM, Ga. – North American customer service satisfaction and benchmarking firm 59club USA announced today they have agreed to terms with 19 golf properties owned and operated by Escalante Golf. 59club USA will provide mystery shopping services for each of the 19 properties – both private and daily fee – to identify strengths and potential areas for improvement throughout the individual golf experience at each property. To date, 59club USA has provided customer service benchmarking services like mystery shopping, employee and member survey tools and online training for more than 170 golf and hospitality properties in the United States.

“We’re extremely excited to be assisting the high-end properties in the Escalante portfolio with their customer service operations,” said Mike Kelly, managing partner of 59club USA. “We’re thrilled to get started and look forward to providing detailed feedback for each of their unbelievable golf courses.”

Click here to view a complete 59club USA client roster: https://www.59clubusa.com/venues-tested/

“The golf business demands attention to detail and extreme focus on the customer experience and member satisfaction,” said Jeff Kindred, EVP, Club & Resort Division . “We set exceptionally high standards at each one of our properties, but we also realize there is almost always room for improvement. By using 59club USA, we will be able to identify our needs more easily and, if necessary, make immediate changes. We’re eager to begin.”

59club is a service-based management tool and customer service provider which uses objective data points and images to measure, improve and then maintain standards of customer service, in turn increasing visitor and member retention. Results of on-site testing from 59club are a boost to customer satisfaction, revenues and profits for clubs who use their services such as customer satisfaction surveys, mystery shopping services and employee training – both virtual and on-site.

59club USA has established and developed relationships with more than 170 well-known golf clubs and resorts in North America including 14 TPC Network properties, Reynolds Lake Oconee, The Mid Ocean Club in Bermuda, Haig Point in South Carolina, and We-Ko-Pa Golf Club in Scottsdale. Additionally, 59club USA works with other owners and management companies such as Bobby Jones Links, Landscapes Golf Management, Arcis Golf, Brown Golf, Hampton Golf and now Escalante Golf.

About 59Club USA

59Club USA is specifically designed to elevate sales and service standards. 59club USA provides mystery Shopper Audits, Customer Satisfaction Surveys, and Training Services, empowering venue managers to analyze their entire visitor and member experience, enabling them to set targets, monitor performance and ultimately make informed decisions to enhance their guest services. To learn more about 59club USA, visit https://www.59clubusa.com/.

About Escalante Golf

Founded in 1991, Escalante Golf is a boutique owner and operator of 17 luxury golf properties across nine states. The Fort Worth, Texas-based company has quietly assembled an impressive collection of exclusive clubs in key markets. Many have hosted several prestigious amateur and professional golf tournaments including the U.S. Mid-Amateur Golf Championship, the Charles Schwab Cup, the WGC Match Play Championship and the Shell Houston Open. The firm’s culture emphasizes personal service, integrity, long-term stability, and operational excellence. Operating partners David McDonald, Elcio Silva, Robert Silva and David Matheson direct the Escalante team.

For more information: www.escalantegolf.com  817.386.9721.