How To Rapidly Build a Large List of New Outing Prospects
1) Keep a database of all past event contacts. Keep a copy on your computer with a three ring binder copy as back up. Lock it in the safe, it’s that important!
2) Watch the local paper LOOK, REALLY LOOK at all local golf events. Watch announcements, results or feature articles. Look at local web sites, TV, radio and cable. When you find an event, locate the organizer.
3) Ask every player who walks through your doors if their company or group holds outings!
4) Build a list of at least 1000 people, organizations and businesses that you KNOW or at least suspect hold golf events each year. Use the Internet, local papers, yellow pages, Thomas Guide, chamber of commerce, business, charity and church directories. All can be found at your local library.
5) Telemarket every one on your prospect list. Every charity, fraternal organization, hospital, church, radio station and car dealership in your area. Then add in fire stations, bars and any other organization, company or person you think might hold a golf event.
- Ask if they ever hold golf tournaments? If Yes;
- Ask who is in charge?
- Get the name, address and phone number of the person in charge. Try for the e-mail. (The best way to do this is to offer them something, like our booklet on “How to Run a Successful Outing.”
- Ask when they hold their outing.
- Ask how many players typically play in their outing.
- Ask where they held their outing last year and whether or not they have booked it this year.
- Get the person’s permission to send them information on your tournament packages.
- Ask the person if they know anyone else who holds golf outings. (You will be astonished by how many referrals you will get by tacking on that simple question.)
- Enter all the data, especially any extra info you can glean that might help you sell this prospect, into the Customer Relationship Manger part of your website.
During the telemarketing effort to build your prospect list, you will uncover a number of hot leads that are ready to book an outing now! It’s quite common to uncover a dozen or more really hot leads during the telemarketing effort.
Here are some real examples of leads from telemarketing:
John at the Post Office would like Eagle Sticks to contact him about outing options. They used to hold their outings at the Country Club, and most recently at Crystal Springs, with about 100 golfers attending. They haven’t held an outing for 2 or 3 years but are currently discussing it and will be holding a meeting Wednesday the 19th to make some decisions. In the past they’ve held their outings in October, on Columbus Day.
Donna from the Bar Association would like someone to contact her with outing options and information for their outing. Last year their outing was held at Bent Tree in August and 110 golfers attended. The outing is always held on the 3rd Monday in August.
Sonya at the Car Center has not yet planned this years outing and would like Eagle Sticks to contact her. Last year the outing was held at another local club in August and 144 people attended.
Other Benefits from Proactive Telemarketing
While the main goal of the telemarketing campaign is to build a database of outing leads, there are several other benefits that go along with the proactive nature of the campaign. You will uncover lots of informal groups such as firemen or police officers that might travel from course to course under everybody’s radar but are great sources of incremental business.
You will find groups or organizations that ask you for offers or coupons that they can give out to their group. You will also be calling several thousand people and touching them with the name of your club. This has a trickle down effect in driving incremental play just based on top of the mind awareness and suggestion.
