1 minute read

64 new members vs 149

£96,000 in new member revenue vs £228,000

Volunteers are fantastic. Many sports clubs, not just in golf, wouldn’t be able to run without the people who donate their time to help their club thrive and save it money.

But, when it comes to marketing for golf clubs, volunteers are almost NEVER the most cost-effective option…

Here’s why.

The 2 figures above are from a recent partner club.

The first number is 2023/2024, when they ran the marketing through volunteers and stretched office staff.

The second is 2024/2025, after we took responsibility for both sales and marketing for membership.

More than twice the revenue, and an extra £132,000 in the bank in one year from new membership subs alone.

This is NOT to take away from the efforts of volunteers.

But often, by their own admission, they have:

• limited experience and expertise in modern marketing and how to apply it to the golf industry
• limited time to dedicate to the club, and other things that have to take priority when they come up

As well as an understanding that both of these hamper sales and marketing, despite their best efforts.

Whereas we:

• capitalised on our understanding of both the golf market and sales and marketing, from our work with dozens of golf clubs around the UK
• Implemented a comprehensive marketing plan
• Set up a CRM to help nurture enquiries
• utilised previously untapped data resources
• managed all membership leads, from enquiry to application

None of which the club had before.

And the results speak for themselves.

Marketing is often seen by golf clubs as a box to tick, whilst spending as little as possible to tick it.

But whether it’s to replace or to work alongside volunteers, sometimes it’s worth investing in both expertise and accountability.

With the right partner, the returns will – as you can see here – far outweigh the investment.