In a continued drive to provide helpful services to both golfers and golf clubs, Golfshake has launched a print based marketing campaign to complement its already popular and influential course review and recommendation system.
Golfshake is the UK’s leading online resource for golf course information and reviews. The course listings provide golfers with a valuable resource to search and find information on golf courses, including contact information, green fee pricing, and independent reviews from fellow golfers.
These ratings now total more than 200,000 in number on the website, with reviews being left by regular golfers to benefit others like them. Based on expectations and their experience of the venue, this section offers an indispensable wealth of information that is highly valued by travelling golfers in search of somewhere different and new to play, in addition to being a potential useful channel for golf clubs and courses themselves to promote and raise awareness of their facilities.
Expanding the parameters of this resource, Golfshake last year decided to launch the online ‘Highly Recommended’ web images, highlighting courses that excel throughout each category on the rating system, including value for money and quality of service, identifying widely acclaimed venues that golfers would play again or recommend to others. This imagery is now available in offline print format for clubs to showcase these earned accolades from regular golfers and visitors.
Golfshake MD, Darren Ramowski recently visited the highly regarded The Shire London, which continues to receive praise from users of the website and ranks #1 within the M25 based on the Golfshake reviews and the expectations of golfers, to issue the first ‘Highly Recommended’ window sticker and course review promotional cards.
Darren commented: “Having seen more and more golfers coming online over the last couple of years to leave and read reviews, customer service and feedback is a powerful tool that golf clubs can use to enhance what they do. Our research as shown that golfers generally go online to leave positive reviews to reward a job well done. The window stickers provide a great way to show recognition for their work.”
As previously seen with holiday destinations and restaurants, reviews and recommendations are becoming ever more important within the industry, as more golfers transition online. The Golfshake website continues to see year on year traffic growth with monthly visits set to hit 300,000 during the peak 2017 golf season, and 170,000 of those visitors expected to access the golf course section.
Furthermore, research has shown that 80% of active travelling golfers read reviews online and use that information to assist in making decisions on where to play, underlining the importance of this section to regular golfers and the potential influence it can have on clubs and venues looking to maximise the promotion of their facilities, illustrating that a Golfshake ‘Highly Recommended’ sticker is a seal of approval that could make a significant impact