Wales Golf is to partner with Players 1st, one of the leading customer experience management companies in the golf industry, after a successful pilot scheme with ten Welsh clubs.
The clubs utilised their free access to the platform over the last six months, which helped them better understand and serve the experiences of their club members. The feedback through the results dashboard provided insights into areas of importance to their members’ experience, giving the club confidence in making data-led initial small changes, while also planning bigger changes and longer term strategy decisions.
The clubs benefitted from using the golf specific feedback tool to customise the survey questions and responses relevant to their course and facilities. The results dashboard also provided benchmarks based on other golf clubs which also helped club users interpret the feedback.
Some examples of the positive engagement from the pilot club member survey access are shared from Pyle & Kenfig, Carmarthen and St Mellons. More than half the members of Pyle & Kenfig responded through Players 1st, highlighting concerns around pace of play, visitor booking and other operational aspects which are already shaping the club’s strategy going forward.
Ryan Evans, Assistant Manager at Pyle & Kenfig Golf Club, said: “Surveys are an essential tool for feedback in golf clubs that are designed to maximise member satisfaction. Do not be put off by the negative comments of the ‘loud few’. It is essential for constructive feedback and long-term strategic planning.”
As a result of the surveys, Carmarthen Golf Club decided to franchise out the catering services, manage the pro shop and appoint a new head greenkeeper. Club Manager Sarah Jones said: “I particularly liked the comments feed, which included all comments provided by members. This gave a great overview to feed back to the directors.”
It was the first time St Mellons, near Cardiff, had used a digital solution to gauge membership satisfaction, and it helped them re-engage members in decision making. St Mellons Golf Club Chair Brian Trendell said: “The more you put into the setup and testing, the better the outcomes.”
Wales Golf Club Governance Manager Sophie Brisland-Hancocks added, “It is really important for golf clubs to serve the wishes of their membership, but establishing the wishes of all the members has sometimes been challenging in the past. We felt it was important to helps clubs canvas opinions across the board among their members, and to find ways of using technology to make that process more effective.
“There are plenty of survey tools out there, but Players 1st are specifically designed for golf clubs and also have the background knowledge to help interpret the results in a golfing environment. Once we got the feedback from the 10 clubs in the pilot survey, we were delighted to partner with Players 1st to roll this out across all clubs in Wales who wish to use it. We have already seen plenty of demand from other clubs, so we have signed a 12-month partnership. We will work with clubs to help them use the platform, as well as including the case studies on our club hub and highlighting the work at our governance workshops.
Players 1st Regional Manager Amelia Lewis said: “We’re thrilled with the success of the pilot In Wales. With an average response rate of 59%, the member engagement has been exceptionally strong, providing Clubs with detailed satisfaction insights of their members, as well as access to analysis and reporting features within the Players 1st platform.
“This next stage of collaboration marks a major step forward in helping clubs throughout Wales elevate member experience and strengthen retention, bolstered by the exceptional support and knowledge of the Wales Golf club support team.”
