The 2014 Golf Club Membership Questionnaire has been sent to all clubs in England and the results will provide a picture of what is happening within the sport, as well as highlighting trends, key themes and examples of best practice.
It will help support the forthcoming England Golf Strategic Plan, which sets out to inspire people of all ages to make golf a part of their life and aims to reverse the trend of declining club membership.
The research is being carried out by SPORTS MARKETING SURVEYS INC on behalf of England Golf. The biennial questionnaire can be completed online, or returned by post, and all clubs which submit their response by 31 March 2014 will be entered into a prize draw to win one of three Apple iPad minis.
A national results booklet, collating all the data, will be produced later in the year, together with individual county breakdowns.
Richard Flint, England Golf’s Club Services and Development Director, commented: “The results of this survey will help us support golf clubs in the most effective way and to ensure that any future resources and programmes that are developed focus on creating a healthy and successful sport.”
Since the first survey was distributed in 2002 the research has helped England Golf to identify significant changes and challenges facing clubs and to direct finances and resources.
For example, the 2012 survey identified golf clubs which had experienced an increase in membership in the previous two years, despite an overall drop nationwide. As a result, England Golf commissioned SPORTS MARKETING SURVEYS INC to research the successful methods adopted by these clubs and to share best practice.
The results showed that all the clubs placed emphasis on flexible membership packages, friendliness and low-cost opportunities to get into golf. The report, Membership Recruitment & Retention: Key themes for implementation, can be viewed by clicking here.
Golf clubs can complete the 2014 questionnaire by clicking here.
England Golf www.englandgolf.org