When asked to name their club’s greatest asset, most club members will without hesitation say “the green”.
As a green maintenance company you wouldn’t expect us to put up much of an argument against that now would you?
Well, of course the green is of major importance to all clubs, but when your club starts to take a more business focused view on management as described in my recent post (Taking a Business View for Success) of this edition you will soon realise that your greatest assets are your “customers”. Yes I know its funny to think of your fellow members as customers, but the sooner you start to think this way the sooner you will start to reap the benefits that a business focussed club can bring.
In every industry, the businesses that look after their customers best are usually the most successful. High performance businesses look after their current customers, because they understand that getting new ones is 10 times more difficult and 10 times more expensive.
By adding as much value as you possibly can to a membership, you will soon see the difference this can make.
Of course this doesn’t mean that you can ignore everything else. Its important to have robust systems in place for every operational issue in the club, to ensure that the club runs as smoothly and as automatically as possible. By doing this you will free up more time to spend on looking for ways to keep your customers happy.
Its possible to do this with many other aspects of club management too; bar and catering supplies can be dealt with by setting up similar arrangements with suppliers and dealing with the details in short monthly meetings to organise requirements in advance.
By working in this way you create more time to concentrate on forward planning and the important strategic issues.
Of course the most important strategic issue is Membership.
Success in attracting and retaining members can be greatly weighted in your favour by focusing on the benefits of membership like:
1. Club Atmosphere
2. Camaraderie
3. Value for Money
4. Competitive Success
5. Events
6. Facilities
7. Added Benefits
8. Junior Development