What the golf course can teach you about your marketing

Learn how to ‘putt’ your best foot forward when marketing your business

Are you an avid golfer? If not, that’s ok, you can still learn a lot about marketing from the following analogy.
If you have ever set foot on a golf course you will notice something right away. Everyone is on the range getting ready before their round, and they are all hitting their driver. You can hear that telltale ‘ping’ of titanium making contact with a ball. Over and over they swing. PING! Retee a new ball. PING! Of course you want to be ready for the first tee box but ask yourself this first, “Why are they hitting the club on the range that they will use the least on the course?”
The answer is most likely that they enjoy the perceived control it gives them. After all, we all want to hit it far and straight, to prove we are here to succeed and we are going to do it with authority. But I have a secret to share, that only low handicappers seem to understand. It’s not how far you hit it, it’s how close you hit it. The strokes you regale over in the clubhouse bar afterward are usually the 8 iron you hit from the rough to the green that stopped next to the pin, the fifty-foot putt or the sand shot you holed out.
How does all this relate to marketing your business? Simply put, we often do what looks good but doesn’t give us sustained success. Putting up a billboard, filming a television commercial or buying radio time is all appropriate for most businesses. However, in this day and age, you need to do the basics better. Your clients, and more importantly your potential clients, are researching you. They are scouring social media, doing internet searches for your product and even reviewing what other clients are saying online. Too often companies go for the glitz but don’t build the foundation.
Your website is like your putting stroke. It makes you money and is the tool that gives you that sought-after finality. If your website isn’t up to par (sorry I couldn’t resist) the rest of your game doesn’t matter. Your social media presence is your iron play. It gets people’s attention and makes it easier to convert traffic that will end up on your website.
Finally, don’t lose sight of the importance of a consistent brand and logo. These eye-catchers make people pay attention and recognize you. Think of a nattily dressed golfer as opposed to the garishly dressed. One gets a passing look and even a snicker, the other gets attention from their play – in this case, your brand recognition.
Stop trying to mimic the professionals and bomb that driver 300 yards down the fairway. Instead, concentrate on the marketing basics and start seeing real results.

This blog was written by our Director of Business Development and avid golfer Greg Ezell.