The document discusses 5 major shifts taking place in private club marketing. It notes that attention is now the most important variable due to decreased organic reach on social media. Content should focus on delivering value to specific audience personas rather than interruptive messages. Branding and direct response are converging, so clubs can build awareness and then directly ask prospects to take action. Finally, marketing needs to follow prospects through a lifecycle from unaware to member by nurturing them with personalized, automated communications at each stage of consideration. The presentation provides examples and strategies for clubs to take advantage of these shifts.

1. Big Shifts, Trends and Themes in Private Club Marketing
PRESENTATION
The Golden State Chapter - Sacramento
PREPARED FOR
04.05.2016
DATE

2. • We are a digital-first agency that helps lifestyle and leisure brands tell their stories to
the right audience to enhance brand and drive actual business results
• Founded in 2008 by golf industry executives through this single observation:
/ PIPELINE
leisure and lifestyle brands weren’t using the same kind of
advanced technologies and techniques that were optimizing
sales and marketing in practically every other setting

3. • Implemented marketing services and/or software at 900+ clients primarily consisting
of private clubs, golf courses, real estate communities, special event venues
• Team represents 100+ years of collective marketing expertise on behalf of lifestyle
and leisure places
• Services
• Targeted Awareness + Lead Generation: Digital Marketing
• Sales Enablement: CRM + Marketing Automation
• Campaign Collaterals: Creative + Design Studio
• Marketing + Sales Optimization: Strategy
/ PIPELINE

4. / AGENDA
TODAY’S PROMISE:
DISCUSS 5 FUNDAMENTAL MARKETING SHIFTS TAKING PLACE RIGHT NOW
(AND HOW PRIVATE CLUBS CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE)

5. TOPICS
• Attention
• Reach
• Message + Content
• Branding + Direct Response
• Lifecycle Marketing
• Q+A
/ AGENDA

6. / ATTENTION
Attention
BIG SHIFT #1:
It’s the fundamental
thing that we are all
competing for

7. Millions of ways to get it…
/ ATTENTION

8. 10 YEARS AGO
NOTHING THAT MATTERS IN ATTENTION TODAY
EXISTED
/ ATTENTION

9. “BUT MY MEMBERS AREN’T ON SOCIAL MEDIA…”
• “Youth-ification” Phenomenon
• Age 42 Today = Age 29 Just 10 Years Ago
• Facebook: ‘Grandma Effect’
• Instagram: 42-49 Year Old Female Selfies
• LinkedIn: 41% of US Millionaires
• Every Platform Starts With Kids
/ ATTENTION

10. 1. Use Digital Marketing to Attract Attention
• Storytelling
• Content Amplification
2. Use Traditional Marketing to Help Nurture Interest
• Engagement
• Education
/ ATTENTION

11. / REACH
Organic Reach is Plummeting
BIG SHIFT #2:
Don’t Bother Following
us on Facebook
Anymore

12. Facebook Organic Reach
/ REACH

13. • It no longer matters if you have 1 follower or 1 million followers – social
media platforms have subsidized down their organic reach
• If you post content on your company page, or boost it, is a waste of
time
• What matters most is that you understand who your customer is, and
you have the skills to identify which people, cohort, or segment you
want to reach
/ REACH

14. BIGGEST OPPORTUNITY:
SOCIAL MEDIA DARK POSTS
/ REACH

15. / REACH
Social Marketing: Dark Post Campaigns
Target Audience Newsfeed: Post Appears Public Facebook Page: Post is Dark

16. / MESSAGE
Message
BIG SHIFT #3:
Marketing with a
magnet, not a
sledgehammer

17. Reaching the Modern Buyer
/ MESSAGE
Consumers buy differently than they did 5–10 years ago
PRE-INTERNET
• Media: Something People Watch
• Buyer: Relatively Uninformed
• Buyer Journey: Linear
• Marketing: Interruptive
(cold calls + advertising)
TODAY
• Media: Something People Do
• Buyer: Well Informed
• Buyer Journey: Fluid
• Marketing: Native + Targeted
(content + context)

18. Outbound vs Inbound Messaging
/ MESSAGE
OUTBOUND
Unsolicited content delivered via
cold call, print ad, or purchased
list, that communicates only what
is in best interest of the company
INBOUND
Online content that delivers value
to a targeted audience and pulls
them in to want to learn more
about the company
DELIVER VALUE IN ADVANCE

19. • Serve a Community
• Deliver Value
• Focus on Benefits & Outcomes
• Be Authentic
/ MESSAGE
Every Business Is a Media Company
Try to Put the Magazine that Your Ideal
Customer Is Reading Out of Business

20. Value: Inform, Educate, Inspire or Entertain
• Community Information
• Real Estate Information
• Price Guides
• How To
• Virtual Tours
• Calculators
• Dept. Head Contributions
/ MESSAGE
• Trends
• Testimonials
• Behind the Scenes
• Efficiency
• Recipes
• Contests
• Surveys

21. / MESSAGE
Come Up With 3 Content Ideas That Add Value To Your
Membership Prospects
Challenge

22. / BRANDING + DIRECT RESPONSE
Branding + Direct Response
BIG SHIFT #4:
Two Ends of the
Marketing Spectrum are
Converging

23. / BRANDING + DIRECT RESPONSE
1. Get Our Name Out There (Branding)
2. Get More Leads (Direct Response)
3. Get More Qualified Leads (Nurturing)
Top 3 Things We Hear Clubs Want:

24. Two Schools of Marketing
/ BRANDING + DIRECT RESPONSE

25. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING
Lifecycle Marketing
BIG SHIFT #5:
Hold On ‘Til That
Journey Ends

26. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING
Realizing that people go through stages as they interact
with your club, and that each stage requires different
marketing and sales actions
Lifecycle Marketing

27. The Modern Membership Marketing Lifecycle
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING
Brand Marketing Direct Response Marketing

28. Stage 1: Attract
1. Platforms: Where Are They?
• Then: Traditional (Referrals, E-blasts, Direct Mail, Mass Media)
• Now: Digital (Social + Search)
2. Audience + Targeting: Who Would You Like to Reach?
• Then: Broad / Based on Existing Members
• Now: Focused / Based on Ideal Members
3. Messaging: How Will You Get Their Attention?
• Then: Advertising
• Now: Content + Value
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

29. Platforms: Traffic Sources
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT
Social Marketing: Content + Storytelling
Search Marketing: Visibility + Retargeting
Awareness
New Audiences
Discovery
Have a problem, need
a solution
Decision
Know your brand
DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGYBUYER FUNNEL

30. Define Ideal Audience: Marketing Avatars
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT
DEMOGRAPHICS
Location, Age, Gender,
Family Makeup,
Marital Status
PSYCHOGRAPHICS
Lifestyles, Personality,
Interests, Values, Beliefs,
Wants, Needs, Fears
SOCIOECONOMICS
Income, Net Worth, Home Value,
Occupation, Seniority,
Education Level, School
BEHAVIORS
Shopping, Dining, Online Activity,
Travel, Subscriptions, Connections,
Affiliations
AVATARS

31. Develop an avatar for every distinct category of membership
Your Ideal Member
54 YEARS OLD
MARRIED + 2 KIDS
TECHNOLOGY
SALES
$150K YR
FAMILY
FRIENDS
TENNIS
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

32. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT
Come Up With a Prospective Member Avatar
Challenge

33. Targeting: Main Layers
Location: Where people live, work, or even where they’ve visited recently
Demographics / Socioeconomics: Age, HH income, net worth, real estate, life
events, family, profession, seniority, education, etc.
Interests: Sports, shopping, news, travel, lifestyle, etc.
Behaviors: Online search keywords, browsing history, consumer credit card
purchases and people looking to buy something big such as a car or house
Connections: Reach people who like Pages – and their friends, too
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

34. Targeting: Advanced Layers
Custom Audiences: Reach people on your existing contact list, or people who
visit your website or landing page regardless of whether they convert
Lookalike Audiences: Find more people who share traits – like location, age,
interests – with your existing members or customers
Other:
• Weather (current or forecast)
• People currently near your location
• Time of day/day of week
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

35. TRADITIONAL
MARKETING
MODERN
MARKETING
PRODUCT EMOTION
PRICE EVALUATION
PLACE EXPERIENCE
PROMOTION EVANGELISM
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT
Storytelling Concepts: Modern Marketing Mix

36. Emotion
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

37. • In 18 months, increased catering revenues by over 6x
• In 30 months, increased on the books revenues by 10x
• Average price per event increased by over 2x
/ THE RIVIERA COUNTRY CLUB / CATERING OUTCOME

38. Evaluation
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

39. • January – March 2016, sold 30 memberships
• Lookalike targeting + lead generation focus
• 100% attributed to social marketing lead generation
/ DOVE CANYON COUNTRY CLUB / MEMBERSHIP OUTCOME

40. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT
Experience

41. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT
Experience

42. • March 2014-15, generated over 1,200 targeted leads
• Converted 73 into new membership sales (67 Full Equity)
• Since March 2015 converted over 35 additional members
• Equity membership pricing increased nearly 4x
• No product until mid-2017 and a wait list to join
/ ROLLING HILLS COUNTRY CLUB / MEMBERSHIP OUTCOME

43. Evangelism
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / ATTRACT

44. • In 12 months, branding campaign (no “ask”) generated over 350 leads
• Membership sales increased nearly 3x over prior year – momentum continues to build
• 70% of all membership conversions attributed to social campaign
/ THE LOXAHATCHEE CLUB / MEMBERSHIP OUTCOME

45. / MARKETING ENVIRONMENT
Stage 2: Convert
1. Call to Action
• Lead Magnet: Value in Advance
2. Capture
• Landing Page

46. Landing Pages
/ ATTRACT / LEADS

47. Begin Building a Relationship
• Engage
• Segment (Listen and Learn)
• Educate
• Qualify
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / NURTURE

48. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / NURTURE
Sales Touch Points: Journey Map

49. The Fortune is in the Follow-Up
• Create a series of touch points and contingencies
• Each touch point is reverse-engineered from the desired outcome
• Needs to engage and create a next step
• Segments interest based on interactions
• One-to-one and personalized (email, direct mail, phone, in-person)
/ LIFECYCLE MARKETING / NURTURE

50. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / NURTURE
Personalized Plain Text Nurturing Email
Branded HTML Awareness Email
Nurturing Postcard

51. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / NURTURE
CRM
Marketing Automation
Pipeline Management: Sales Enablement Technology

52. / LIFECYCLE MARKETING / CLOSE + DELIGHT
Closing Becomes the Opening
• Offer
• Motivate
• Close
• Deliver Wow
• Referrals

53. / TAKEAWAYS
Marketing Shifts:
1. Attention is the absolute variable to successful marketing because it’s
harder to get
2. Organic reach is rapidly shrinking – dark posts
3. Content should offer value first (pull vs. push) to a very specific avatar
4. Once you have built up enough deposits (branding) you can ask for
something (direct response)
5. Leads aren’t ready to buy – they must be nurtured through a Lifecyle
Marketing process

54. / TAKEAWAYS
Challenges:
1. Understand where your ideal member is (unaware, discovery, aware)
2. Define specific avatars for each distinct category of ideal member
3. Design content focused on creating value for each avatar
4. Target / retarget that interest through targeted dark posts
5. Reverse engineer each touch point in the process it takes to become a
member and identify opportunities to automate and build contingencies

55. Q+A