Frontofshop Stopping golfers in their tracks
Steve Bird is retail development manager at Foremost Golf, and here he offers valuable advice on how professionals can convert golfers into paying customers
M
erchandising is critical, yet often overlooked at green-grass golf retail. Products tend to get positioned ‘where there is space’ rather
than strategically. Yet correct merchandising is more important in on- course retail stores than in the majority of other retailers. For instance, when customers go to the supermarket
or a retail park, they are in ‘buying mode’; they actively look at displays to see what they will buy. In a golf shop, on the other hand, the likelihood is that the golfer will be in ‘golf mode’ - not looking to buy anything other than a drink and a scorecard. So a pro has to work extra hard to turn that visit into a sale. Displays and ticketing have got to stop the golfer in their tracks. Here’s a great tip for club professionals on how to achieve this: Walk out of your shop and into the car park. Imagine
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you are a specifi c type of customer turning up at the club; a fi rst-time visitor; a regular member in a rush; a woman looking for a husband’s gift; or someone wanting to enquire about lessons. Then walk back into the shop as if you were this specifi c customer and ask yourself these questions:
Is there information to help me or get me interested before I enter the shop?
Can I instantly locate the products or information I am looking for?
Are there clear displays to make me stop and take notice?
Are the items clearly priced? Can I easily make a purchase?
You need to make it as easy as possible for customers to spend. Take away all the barriers that might stop a sale. For instance, consumable products (balls, tees, gloves) should be right by the counter and clearly ticketed, so while a customer is waiting to be served they can buy all three while barely having to move. Never have consumables behind the counter, as most people would rather not ask to see a product, for fear of being committed to buy. Create walkways around the shop, which channel
customers past your displays. Don’t make it possible for the typical ‘pro shop traffi c’ to take place, when the carpet between the door and the counter gets worn out while customers miss your displays. Position your drinks fridge to divert people around the shop. Set up a ‘hot spot’ display right in front of the entrance, which is not only a great chance to show off your latest deals or new stock arrivals, but will act as a physical barrier to stop the customer walking straight to the counter.
Contact Richard Payne e:
richard.payne@
sportsmarketingsurveysinc.com “Small
hardware stocks are fine, but professionals need to sell the dream of being custom fit”
t: + 44 (0) 1932 345 539
A MODERN LOOK: the recently re-fi tted pro shop at Beaconsfi eld GC in the UK has been laid out strategically, while remain- ing welcoming and uncluttered (picture courtesy of Millerbrown shop fi tters)
Ration the racks In recent years, the rules of merchandising hardware have changed dramatically. The emphasis on custom fi tting has seen a shift from lavishly stocked iron racks to more rationalised displays. Yet far too many shops do not promote their custom fi t proposition properly (or at all), hence the customer walks in and thinks that because there isn’t much choice, there is no point even enquiring. Small hardware stocks are fi ne, but professionals need to sell the dream of being custom fi t. Instead of having 25 sets of irons on the hardware
wall, have 5, and fi ll the rest of the space with impressive, professional signage. This should shout about the benefi ts of being custom fi t, how the process works and crucially, how the customer can access the service. Never assume your customers know. This strategy will serve as a great prop for staff to
book fi tting appointments, and allow staff to explain that ‘nobody buys off the racks anymore’. At Foremost, we are helping our professionals implement these ideas, and we are seeing huge shifts of golfers who are now buying hardware from their pro, without seeing the need to look elsewhere. YOU, professionals, are the custom fi tting experts, so
tell everybody!
www.foremostgolf.com
www.sportsmarketingsurveysinc.com
| SGBGOLF
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