Hurricane Season Is Here-Are You Ready?
The National Hurricane Center has predicted another above-normal hurricane season, and already five storms have affected Florida and Gulf Coast residents. Forecasters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which began June 1, will have up to nine hurricanes, including five that could become major storms, ranked as Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane strength.
 With severe weather season under way, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., Columbus, Ohio, offers the following steps to prepare your business for a hurricane:
• Before a storm, examine your property to ensure there are no physical and/or liability hazards present.
• Find out if your clubhouse meets current building code requirements for high-wind regions. If you are uncertain, call a qualified professional architect, engineer, building contractor or your local building department.
• Protect three critical areas where wind can enter: the roof, windows and doors. Either you or a building contractor can build and install temporary protection, such as approved wind shutters or plywood coverings for windows and entry doors, and install heavy-duty door hardware.
• Turn off power and water.
• Move anything on your property that can become flying debris inside.
• Replace gravel/rock landscaping material with shredded bark and trim trees in precarious positions.
• Read and understand your insurance policy, especially disclosures. Be sure you have adequate coverage and deductibles reasonable for your needs.
• Inventory valuables and contents in the clubhouse with pictures or video. Note the approximate value of each item and the date of purchase.
• Make sure important documents, such as insurance policies or mortgage papers, are stored in a safe-deposit or fire-safe box. 
GCSAA Offers Golfer-Oriented Articles
The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America has added five golfer-oriented articles to its web site. The new articles complement GCSAA's series of articles that range and course owners can use in their customer newsletters or on their web sites. Article topics help educate golfers on course maintenance activities and the superintendent profession. The recent additions cover the practice of overseeding, what to do on the course when inclement weather strikes, what superintendents do in the off-season, how the type of sand in a bunker can make a noticeable difference in play and how a tree maintenance program can produce healthier turf and enhance safety on the golf course.
How Does Your Marketing Measure Up?
It's the middle of the year, but you probably have more than half of 2005's sales in the bank already. And you've probably already spent well more than half of your budgeted marketing dollars. So how's it going?
Most range operators have a sense for how the business is doing, but they have a hard time backing up that feel with facts (i.e., numbers). If you're measuring the results of your marketing activities, then you should be able to answer such a question with quantitative measurements, not a subjective, vague answer, such as, "Well, we're up versus last year and/or versus plan."
There are many variables that can affect sales. Marketing is just one. So you can't rely solely on gross sales to measure your marketing efforts. Ultimately, you're trying to arrive at a profit or return on investment (ROI) measurement. Here are few ideas to take into account as you begin to measure your success:
Preplanned measurement. It's hard to evaluate the results of a promotion if it's not designed to be measured. For example, a print ad without a coupon, or some sort of mechanism to indicate that it was the driving force in your customer's decision to come to your range, will be difficult to measure.
Baseline sales versus incremental sales. Measure the extra sales generated by the marketing activity, not the total sales for the day/week/month. Sales for a given time period during your campaign are made up of baseline sales (i.e., sales that would normally occur without special promotions), plus the extra sales resulting from the promotion.
Coupon redemption fallacy. Do not attribute 100 percent of sales from coupon redemptions to your promotion. Some of those coupons are being redeemed by people who would have come to your range anyway. So that is not an incremental sale. The coupon may have brought some new customers to your range, and it may have encouraged loyal customers to buy more that day. Your task is to estimate the amount of incremental sales. Generally, it is wise to assume that no more than 50 percent of the sales driven by a coupon can be incremental/extra.
Total costs. Some costs are obvious, such as the insertion cost to put an ad in the paper. Others are sometimes overlooked. One hidden expense is the extra labor required to service a promotional event, such as a demo day-and don't forget about the extra effort on your part to set up and execute the event. Perhaps the most overlooked cost is the unintended discount to regular customers. For example, suppose you had 100 buy-one, get-one-free coupons redeemed. Using the 50 percent rule, 50 of those coupons were redeemed by your regular customers who received a free bucket of balls that they might have normally paid full price for. Theoretically, that redemption cost you a sale, and that cost should be counted just like the newspaper insertion cost.
Value of awareness. Your marketing campaign has value beyond generating incremental sales. Each marketing exposure you make on a potential customer is working toward bringing that person to your facility at some point in the future. So even though the activity may not have driven a sale on a given day, it is part of the overall marketing effort that raises total sales. Of course, the awareness impact is tough to measure. The point is that only a portion, perhaps 50 percent, of the insertion cost should be counted as a specific cost to be compared to event-driven sales.
Admittedly, some marketing efforts are difficult to measure with a high degree of accuracy, and you will be making some guesstimates. But the longer you are in business, the better your feel will be for the success or failure of a marketing effort. And, your feel will be backed by some hard facts and figures. Those facts and figures will come in handy, especially when comparing the results of one marketing activity to another.
2005 PGA Fall Expo Changes Ahead
After posting a 20 percent gain in PGA professional/buyer attendance to the 2005 PGA Merchandise Show, PGA Golf Exhibitions announced major changes for the industry's fall marketplace, the PGA Fall Expo. Originally scheduled for Sept. 26-28, the expo has been moved to Sept. 28-29, an adjustment show organizers made to reduce weekend and potential overtime expenses associated with exhibitor move in and move out. Other changes in store for this year's show include an enhanced demo night and networking party at Callaway Golf Center, a streamlined education conference and new exhibit hall hours. More than 300 manufacturers are expected to exhibit at this year's show, which also will feature an indoor Equipment Test Center and New Product Center.
Upcoming events:
FunExpo
Sponsored by the International Association for the Leisure and Entertainment Industry, the American Amusement Machine Association and the Amusement & Music Operators Association
Academy: Sept. 11-15
Exhibition: Sept. 14-16
Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas
IAAPA Attractions Expo 2005
Presented by the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions
Conference: Nov. 14-18
Trade Show: Nov. 16-19
Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta
For a complete list of upcoming events in the golf industry, check out the Industry Calendar on Golf Range Times' home page.
Just Right
One size doesn't fit all when it comes to miniature golf. The secret to success is finding a design that fits your market. Luckily, there are several types of courses-and companies that design and build them-for range owners to consider. Read the July/August issue of Golf Range Times to determine which course model is best for your range.
| Be sure to check out these other features in the July-August issue: |
Best New Range Award Entries Due Oct. 6
Applications to be considered for the 2005 Best New Range Award are due Oct. 6. Ranges that opened or underwent major renovations after Sept. 1, 2004, and that operate as the primary business (revenue generator) of the facility are eligible to enter the competition. All candidates must complete an entry form and submit photographs and other materials to illustrate the achievements of the new facility. The Best New Range of 2005 will be announced online at www.golfrangetimes.com and in the January/February 2006 issue of the magazine, which is read by thousands of range owners, developers and key industry personnel and distributed at golf's largest annual event, the PGA Merchandise Show.
The Only Directory You'll Ever Need
The 2005 edition of the Golf Range Times Buyers' Guide and Directory is now available. It's the only directory published exclusively for the golf range industry, and the one resource you'll refer to all year long as you make important purchasing decisions. More than 180 alphabetical company listings are cross-referenced by product category, making it easy to find the equipment and services you need. In addition, the directory includes information on purchasing large equipment such as pickers and washers and what various suppliers offer, as well as a checklist outlining smaller equipment needs. All Golf Range Times subscribers receive a complimentary copy of the directory. To purchase additional copies for $35 each, download an order form here.
Sell Used Equipment Fast
Got pickers, washers, balls, mats or tee dividers taking up space? Convert them to cash with a classified ad in Golf Range Times. Special low rate for range owners: $50. Plus, we'll help you extend your reach by posting your ad online at www.golfrangetimes.com-for free! Contact Sally Schall, advertising representative, to place your ad in the September/October issue. Classifieds are sold on prepaid basis only.
Back Issues Available
Missing an earlier issue of Golf Range Times? Or looking for reference articles on adding amenities, insuring your facility or hiring qualified and committed staff? Click through all back issues of the magazine to find these topics and more here.
About the Golf Range Times e-Newsletter
The Golf Range Times e-Newsletter is a free bimonthly publication sent to range owners and developers who have provided e-mail addresses. You can subscribe online here.
Don't hesitate to forward a copy of this newsletter to friends and associates or to let them know that they can subscribe at www.golfrangetimes.com.
Have a tip or idea?
Contact Marshall Norton Jr., Golf Range Times managing editor, at 804-272-9100, ext. 112, or by e-mail at marshall.norton@douglasmurphy.com.
© Copyright 2006 Golf Range Times
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