I find this very interesting.
Well-known and seemingly affluent clubs are forced to drive guest and society play just to pay the bills!!!
Why not just raise the dues???
SHOCK HORROR!
But you say, the economy is bad all the members already complain about the prices. There are plenty of other places they can go that are cheaper! Yes, both arguments are no doubt true. People the world over complain about prices, whatever they are and yes they could go somewhere cheaper BUT. And it’s a BIG BUT! They could also buy cars that are cheaper; meanwhile the parking lot is comprised in a large part BMW, Mercedes, Lexus and Jags…!
The situation at UK clubs is not unlike the situation I found in the martial arts business 20 years ago. Clubs starving for members, hoping nothing goes wrong because if it does, a drought, a fire, an infestation of Bo weevil bugs, they simply won’t survive.
On a visit to a club in Manchester charging around 500 pounds a year for membership a committee member told me that there was no way they could put the fees up. I asked whether or not any of the members ever went to a United game, he said yes and admitted that the last time he had taken a couple of clients to a match, the day, (DAY) had cost him 460 pounds or just about what he pays for a year of golf!!!
To Raise Membership Fees You Must:
1. Decide what position you want you club to hold in your market place. You must hold a superior position in some way to those around you!
2. Next you must decide what level of condition you want the course to be in.
3. Then decide what level of F & b service you wish to offer.
4. How much guest play do you want, how accessible do you want tee times to be for members?
5. Finally you must decide what amount of money should be in reserve for emergencies and on going capital improvements.
6. Now based on the above costs, divided by the number of members you have currently, you have a real figure of what your membership should be! (we can talk about gaining members another time)
Imagine for a moment you doubled dues from say 500 to 1000 pounds we are still only talking 80 pounds a month, 20 pounds a week or if you were to play twice a month just 5 pounds a week. In London that’s equivalent to a single pint of beer for a week for unlimited golf, social networking and fun!
Now if you did double the dues how many members would quit?
If 20% quit and you have 500 members now you will still increase income by a staggering 150,000 pounds a year!
You will be astonished how few people quit if the increases are done right and of course they don’t have to be 100%, perhaps 20% would work for your club. Small changes in billing or the packaging of memberships can often make the difference between success and failure. For example including the ability to pay monthly via electronic draft instead of a yearly lump sum. 79 pounds a month come to just under 1,000 pounds a year!!
This is a complex issue that demands carefully thought but the fact is that most clubs cannot survive on what they are charging now and must find ways to provide enough value so that fees can be raised to an appropriate level. This all starts with communication. Constant communication via e-mail and the club’s website, re the events and value of membership. Communication about the very real costs of running a club about which few members have any clue! A clear understanding among membership of what the clubs position in the market should be, high end, low end, high volume, low volume, etc. The recruitment of the right type of future members and these are just a few of the issues.
To find out more details on how to raise dues without losing all your members call me 07867691184. It can be, has been and must be done!
In the meantime write Mr. Brown using the governments new e-petition and see what you can do to lower petrol prices!
