It wasn’t that long ago that most golfers were considered what sociologists call “late adapters” of technology – individuals who don’t embrace electronic innovations until well after they’ve become part of everyday life for others.
Whether true or not, it’s clear from a new survey of technology use by the National Golf Foundation that golfers are just as plugged into the latest devices – computers, smart phones, personal digital devices and MP3 players — as the rest of society.
The NGF study conducted this spring found that most core golfers are online or check e-mail every day – and 88 percent use it several times throughout the day. What do they do? Well 83 percent go online just for fun or to pass the time. And younger golfers (18-34 years) are even more active online – doing everything from researching the latest in golf gear to playing fantasy golf.
One statistic that makes this relevant to individual course operators is that 61 percent of golfers survey had arranged tee times online in the last year. And 38 percent had researched or found recommendations online about golf courses. Add to that the fact that nearly two of every three core golfers has visited a social networking services (such as FaceBook or LinkedIn) and it’s easy to see that there’s a great opportunity for reaching golfers on a one-to-one basis.
How have you taken advantage of technology to reach the increasingly Web-savvy golfer? How has that impacted your own bottom line and how has it paid off for your overall operation? Or do you know of another operator who’s effectively used technology to reach customers? We’d like to hear from you.