Throughout the industrial era of modern history, thinkers have railed against the real and imagined evils of technological “progress.” From Dickens (Oliver Twist) to Thoreau (Walden) to Carson (Silent Spring), writers have decried the loss of some tangible good to the grindstone of advancement.

We have all felt it in our lives- bottled water, spam, oxygen bars, cell phones, identity theft and the list goes on and on. One of the more annoying facts of modern life is the loss of that personal touch in areas such as customer service. Everyone has experienced the frustration of automated messaging services that never quite reach the needed information. There are entire organizations that exist just to circumvent these systems.

Golf, as an industry, is not immune from this pitfall. With the constant pressure to maximize profitability, the allure of cost-cutting technological deployment is certainly necessary; but how far is too far?

There is nothing wrong with having an automated phone system, as long as it offers the ability to reach a live person (I particularly like clubs that have a good Scottish brogue on their system). Too many clubs, particularly private clubs, use the phone system as a way of taking the responsibility of answering the phone out of everyone’s job desciption. The result tends to be that only the pleasant calls are returned and the disgruntled are left to stew. Technology can lead to a lack of communication.

Technology can also lead to too much of the wrong kind of communication. This is most prevalent in public courses with a variety of amenities. These days you hear a lot of lip service paid to the necessity of consistent email marketing. I am one of the biggest advocates of this ideology. However sending information [emails / ezines/ newsletters/ specials] needs to be constrained by certain parameters. Three really common mistakes are made with email marketing programs.

1) Frequency issues- Too frequent communications are the cardinal sin of email marketing. There are a couple of ways to establish consistent, effective communication- use a periodic newsletter approach (e.g. a monthly ezine that appears on the same day each month) or a less systematic communique that is ONLY triggered when you have something IMPORTANT to communicate.
2) Irrelevant content- Regardless of how structured your frequency is, you MUST transmit relevant content. This is a function of having a properly segmented database and recognizing what messages are appropriate for the different segments within your database.
3) Ill-formulated content- Your communications should be clearly written and as succinct as possible. You have just a second or two to peak the interest of your subscriber. Otherwise your message will be banished to the trash bin. Don’t get too cute and flowerly. Put your top offer at the top and don’t make the reader dig for it. Have a good hook and present it early.

There are certainly other ways in which technology can impinge on a club’s relationship with its clientele, but the potential to communicate more effectively utilizing these tools is infinitely greater than any problems caused. I went to the course to play deliberately….Bad pun. Sorry Mr. Thoreau.

Next time- using technology to communicate effectively.

Yesterday the new BCS rankings came out, and I, like many other college football fans, am once again miffed with a terribly flawed system. Florida was selected out of the list of one loss teams to play Ohio State in the national championship game. As incomprehensible as this choice was, I was even more distubed that a two loss Notre Dame team was chosen for a BCS berth above one loss SEC and Big Ten teams and my own two loss WVU team (no offense Brian).

Every year I find myself complaining about the free pass handed out to Notre Dame by the voters and computer rankings. I mean this team lost to its only two tough opponents all year. But what I am beginning to realize is that my real complaint is against the very thing that I promote- the power of branding.

Notre Dame’s free pass is really a testament to the power of a great brand name. The tradition and history of the Fighting Irish have worked time and time again to push them ahead of other teams in the rankings. Couple this historical positioning with the consistency of messaging coming out of South Bend and you have a powerful public relations machine.

Key to this is the absolute belief by everyone associated with the program that, despite any suggestion to the contrary, Notre Dame is a winner. This mantra has been so internalized by the players, coaches, alumni, students and administration that it has become its own sort of absolute truth- in the Augustinian tradition ( had to sneak a Catholic philosophical allusion in there).

There is a great lesson to be learned in this.

Your product can only be as good as you and your people believe it to be. I have seen this too many times- great courses suffering because the staff doesn’t take pride in their association with the facility. One client comes to mind immediately. This company has a wonderful stable of courses, but has one that systematically underperforms. The reality is that this has nothing to do with the quality of the course, but rather the quality of the management and personal investment of the staff. They have not been adequately infused with pride in their product. They don’t believe that they are winners. They have not internalized the brand.

This piece is too short to get into the need for team building and good management techniques, but suffice it to say that if the GM is doing the job properly, every member of the staff exudes the brand. This ALWAYS leads to better service, improved public perception and increased sales.

Try this- analyze every touchpoint between your club and the public. Watch the staff and the way in which they interact. Look at your website, your email communications, your newsletter. Are all points of contact providing a positive reflection of your brand? Without this internalization of brand you will never be able to move up the rankings, ahead of your competition. And as a true blue Mountaineer fan, I know of what I speak.

Next Time- Balancing the use of technology.