When Brian and Rory Smith graduated from Queens University in Belfast, they had no idea they would become Aces of the golf software world in just a few years!
As ‘BRS Golf’ the two brothers started modestly enough, developing system for their own golf club (Belvoir Park in Belfast), alongside another prestige course in Northern Ireland (Ardglass).
Fast forward just over 5 years: they are now closing in on their 300th club, and last week passed the 100 club mark in England. So why has their product become so successful in such a short period of time? The answer is three fold:
First, they have developed the product specifically to address the needs of a modern forward thinking golf club.
The 100th BRS customer in England was Stratford Oaks, a privately owned club in the Midlands. Nigel Powell, Director of Golf, was immediately impressed when he saw the system. “It’s obvious the system has been developed with a great deal of thought, it operates they way we do, yet it’s very simple to use. BRS will help us market our club, offer a better service to our members, and help generate incremental revenue.”
Secondly, there has been an ethos of delivering good customer support, and delivering new functionality, keeping existing customers extremely happy.
Nick Fernihough, director of two courses in the Midlands, Gaudet Luce and Little Lakes, has been very impressed with responsiveness of support and the quality of the software.
“We initially bought the club Administration module for both courses, this allows us to book in societies and visitors; it helps us be more professional and efficient in our back office. Since then we have added the Facilities Module effectively giving us an electronic diary for room and function bookings. We are now about to go live with on-line booking for members. This means our members can now book tee times from home or work, offering them a first class service. Everyone at BRS has been very responsive and helpful throughout our project.”
Finally, the timing of the delivery of the product to arrive with the rise in internet usage and the need for golf clubs to outwardly and inwardly market themselves meant that the BRS solution hits all the right buttons.
Steve Marr, the professional at Withington Golf Club in South Manchester, uses the system as a communication tool with the members. “I e-mail the members at least once a month with various offers, and promotions. We have never failed to get a reaction from these messages. The system is simple to operate and effective, it’s delivering a regular return on the investment the club has made. We also use it to book in visitors who telephone rather than book on-line. The whole system helps to streamline the operation and helps us to collect information which we use to send out special membership offers and promotions.”
BRS Golf’ www.brsgolf.com