Hyperlocal Marketing for Golf Clubs

 

If there’s one thing Miklós Breitner knows, it’s golf. He’s a renowned golf club marketing professional with over 10 years of experience in the industry, and his widely known successful blog, the Golf Business Monitor is an official media partner of the IAGTO, the PGAs of Europe, and the European Golf Course Owners Association (EGCOA).

In this post, Breitner fills us in on hyperlocal marketing and why it’s so important for golf clubs.

Last year, during my keynote presentations at various conferences (e.g. CNIG, ADGF, CMAE etc.) I tried to explain regarding customer experience development that our golf club members, guests, and in general the empowered customers are expecting from us highly relevant and personalized communication messages, offers, products, and services.

Importance of hyperlocal marketing

In 2019, and in the coming years the importance of hyperlocal marketing will grow.

In this post I will explain why and how you should utilize this trend in your golf club marketing strategy. If you are not familiar with the hyperlocal marketing term, then let me explain to you. It means targeting prospective customers in a highly specific, geographically restricted area, sometimes just a few blocks or streets, often with the intention of targeting people conducting “near me” searches on their mobile device.

With hyperlocal marketing we want to capitalize on near-me searches, which have strong commercial intent.

I think people in these days will not drive more than 20 miles (cca. 30 km) or 20 minutes for a golf club.

Just imagine, that situation when you get any of these questions, “Darling, where shall we go out to eat something?” or “Could we try another gym” or “Is there any interesting event in the town?”

Or if you are abroad in a country that is not known as a golf country (e.g. Hungary), but you want to give a try then you will be interested in “near me” search results.

Google says that in the last two years the number of ’near-me’ type of mobile searches grew by over 500%!

‘Near-me’ search is very popular in the food and entertainment categories.

Therefore, worth investing in hyperlocal SEO (Search Engine Optimization), but in local reviews as well.

BrightLocal’s latest Local Consumer Review Survey found:

• 86% of the consumers read local reviews for local businesses;

• Consumers read an average 10 online reviews before feeling able to trust a local business;

• 40% of consumers only consider reviews written within 2 weeks – up from 18% in 2017.

We can also say that review quantity, velocity and diversity really matter.

Reviews are also an important factor in local search ranking. A Moz Survey found that reviews account for 10% of local search ranking.

Make sure you have your NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) listed, verified, and matching across as many services as possible (E.g. Yelp, Tripadvisor, Leadingcourses.com etc.).

Today, more and more people are willing to provide their exact location on their mobile if they can get tangible benefits.

A Verve research found that 73% of consumers now allow apps to access their mobile’s location, and one in ten (11%) say they always allow apps to do so.

 

It was interesting to find that people dropped ZIP code usage because they assumed that advanced mobile technology would help them to find the most relevant results. This is not just about finding a place, but also about finding things, inspirations, or even ideas. So, we can say that our potential customers are rightly expecting marketers among the golf clubs to provide exactly what they want, exactly when they want it. I would not neglect to ask golf club employees how the club can gain more local business and of course, promote the golf club’s offers and services.

Hyperlocal marketing: AdWords & Facebook ads

When you get into your AdWords account, go to settings then select Locations. Within Location select ‘Enter another location’. Here you will be able to define the distance. Similarly, in Facebook, you select Local Awareness ad format from the list of ad formats in the Ads Create tool, then enter the address of your business + the distance. If you want to be really sophisticated, then you can specify what kind of people do you want to reach:

• Everyone in the selected location;

• People who live in this location;

• People recently in this location;

• People traveling in this location -> This will reach those Facebook users who are within 125 miles (200 km) from your selected location.

You can read the original article here

Author Bio:

 

Miklós Breitner is the author of Golf Business Monitor, the world's #1 B2B golf business blog since 2009 which covers the latest business challenges and initiatives of the golf industry focusing on golf club management and marketing, golf tourism, and golf equipment. In addition to this Miklós is providing golf club marketing consultancy.

Golf Business Monitor is an official media partner of IAGTO, the Golf Course Association Europe, the PGAs of Europe, and the Portuguese National Golf Industry Council (CNIG).

He is a member of the Golf Management Association of Germany (GMVD).

Since the foundation, some of the leading golf industry players recognized his blog, among them Troon, IMG, European Tour Properties, John Deere, Callaway Golf, Marriott Golf, EZLinks.com, 59Club, Club Car, KPMG, IAGTO, Syngenta.

FAQ

Q1: What is hyperlocal marketing, and why is it important for golf clubs?

A: Hyperlocal marketing targets prospective customers in specific geographic areas, often through "near-me" searches on mobile devices. It's crucial for golf clubs to capitalize on this trend to attract local customers who are within a short distance from the club.

Q2: How do local reviews and SEO play a role in hyperlocal marketing?

A: Local reviews and SEO significantly impact a golf club's visibility in local search results. Positive reviews and consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) listings across various platforms improve search rankings and credibility, influencing potential customers' decisions.

Q3: What are some practical strategies for implementing hyperlocal marketing, such as AdWords and Facebook ads?

A: AdWords and Facebook ads offer tools to target specific local audiences based on location, demographics, and behavior. Golf clubs can use these platforms to reach potential customers within a defined radius, ensuring their marketing efforts are highly relevant and effective in attracting local business.