Well, if you aren’t sure if your newsletters are working or why they aren’t, I want to show you a few tricks and ideas to re-ignite the spark in your email campaigns.

What is the purpose of your newsletter?

Knowing who your audience is and what you are trying to say is half the battle. Find out exactly who this newsletter is going to target and what you want to tell them. You also want to be very clear about what you want your users to do after they read your email. Do you want them to 1.) Click on a link to read further 2.) Call your golf shop to book a tee time 3.) Perform some kind of action?

Knowing exactly who you are talking to and what you want to tell them will guide the direction of your newsletter and form it into a powerful piece of communication.

Who is creating the content?

Do you have a dedicated person on staff (such as a membership director or marketing director) to draft up the newsletter? Or do you, the golf professional, create it yourself? Do you get help from the head of each department (like F&B, Tennis, Membership, Grounds, etc.) or do you simply write updates for each department yourself.

It’s good practice (and can help you with your content) to have each department head write something to add into the newsletter, but make sure to have them submit it to you well before the deadline. If you have a dedicated marketing director, make it their job to proof-read and add additional content to each department’s section of the newsletter.

If you are creating a newsletter to draw in more rounds, then you will need good solid content that sells your product (or service). You want users to read your email, then take some kind of action. Well written text can make them click on your email right away – or mark you as SPAM. And spam is the last thing that we want! I know this is for “website copy” – but here are 7 simple steps to good web copy: click here.

What is your call to action?

Most people write an email without any clear call to action. This can be as simple as a large font that says “Call Now” or as complex as a conversion form on your website that collects user information, generates a coupon for the user, and tracks their time on the site.

Just having a call to action is the most important thing. Keep your copy short and sweet, then make the user CLICK on something that will take them to your offer! People just love to click on things. If you are using a mobile optimized newsletter – then use the tel: prefix in your website code so that a user can have a one-click dial! The syntax would look like this (minus the spaces): < a href = "tel:888-287-2641" > Click here to dial < / a >

I cannot stress enough the importance of having some sort of call to action on your newsletter!

So hopefully these tips have helped you to develop an understanding of how to better organize your campaigns and communicate more effectively.

We see so many bad websites everyday; and help so many companies change the way they have been doing things – after all, this isn’t 2006. If your website can’t do what your customers need it to do, then it’s time for a change – stop wasting money on a product that is there for your customers, but they don’t use!

The sole purpose of a website is to get information to your customers when it is convenient for them (the Internet is open 24/7). Making the information easy to access, current and appealing to the eye, all add a level of user experience that helps define your business.

Here is the reality – your customer, whether consciously or subconsciously, makes a decision about your business based on the website. If your website is old, out dated and just plan ugly to look at this is what it relays the customer:

“If they don’t care about something as important as their website, how are they suppose to care about me?”

That is a fact. Think about this – do companies like Nike, Sony, Apple and Google know this, absolutely. They want you to be blown away when you visit them online. They know the importance of having a professional website, and it’s not just about looks – it’s about getting the customer information – EASILY.

We help businesses everyday assess their website and improve their customers experiences – give us a call and find out what your customers have been expecting from your business.

The future of mobile apps and smartphones is an exciting one. Everyday, there is more and more talk about the next iPhone, the next Android operating system, the next big thing, etc., etc…  We hear talks about the iPhone 5 now and then as well as various other new technologies that are emerging.  The best part of all this is when the actual technologies become a reality.  So far we have seen huge advacements in the current smartphones that we all carry around.  We’re basically carrying around small computers in our pockets. Tablets are another new technology that are becoming more popular. Some golf professionals are already using the new iPad 2 to teach their students.

Mobile apps continue to push the envelope as they take advantage of what phones can do.  Just a few years ago, a GPS-based yardage book wasn’t even a possibility! Now, it’s commonplace for an app to tell you where you are, where your friends are, and how to get there! The ability for phones to do “new tricks” means that we can make our apps do the same. One example is how some of our golf courses are currently using Push Notifications to broadcast golf course specials to their members and guests.

As we progress towards the future, Golf Web Design will be taking advantage of these new features that smartphones will have embedded within them.  Such new features like phone to phone interaction and interactive yardage guides will soon become the norm.

Another new exciting realm that will soon become more robust are web apps.  Web apps are basically smartphone optimized websites that act almost just like a native app. There are some great advantages that web apps have over native iPhone or Android apps:

• Web apps can work across all mobile phones – no need for a iPhone app AND an Android app
• There’s no approval process – web apps can instantly go “live”
• Web apps are cheaper to build

There are definitely some major drawbacks to web apps as of right now, but as you can see, there are some fantastic qualities they have too. So if you have any questions about what we can do for you in the way of a web app, please contact Golf Web Design.

We appreciate any feedback you have about mobile apps, web apps, tablets and other technologies that can help your facility.  Mobile phones are the future and we’re ready to take advantage of what they can do. Soon everyone will have a smartphone and we want to make sure your golf course is ready to take advantage of this incredible platform.

The mobile device has completely changed the way the world communicates. The question you have to now ask yourself and your business is “How should I respond? What is my business’ mobile strategy, and how can I make it happen?”

That’s where understanding the mobile market and how it can benefit your business will separate you as a business person and leader in the golf industry. What allows the mobile platform to be so great is the low cost and the high return on investment that this form of advertising produces.

What a business would pay for advertising in a magazine they can have a mobile app developed for their golf course. The beauty is that the app doesn’t expire – or go on to the next issue. The app is there to stay and you can update it whenever you want.

The marketplace is primed and only getting stronger when it comes to people demanding information in the palm of their hand on their smartphone. Make sure your business is doing what it set out to do – reach new and existing customers, keep those customers engaged, and make money!

Let’s look at some remarkable statistics.

• By 2013, 40% of all Internet traffic will be attributable to the smartphone.
• Smartphone ownership rose by 64% in 2010. The Android platform rose over 1,000% in 2010.

It has never been easier to get in the mobile marketplace. The question we want to help you answer is – Will your business be available for download when your customers are demanding it? We hope so; and would like to help you get there. We are the leader in golf course mobile apps – offering the best designs, best functionality, and unsurpassed customer support.

We are PGA Golf Professionals working for PGA Golf Professionals to help educate, improve, and grow your business.

Please checkout our last Mobile Apps segment next week when we discuss the Future of Mobile Apps.

These are great questions that I want to answer right now, so that you can gain a better knowledge of how we work and what you can expect during the mobile app development process.

How does the development process work?
We try to simplify everything we do. Simplicity means things are simple. Simple is good. We start by collecting information from you. We have everything put together in one nice packet for you to fill out. We collect information like course phone numbers, facebook fan page URL, tee time booking engine, etc… Once we get all of that information from you, the ball is in our court. We build the app and occasionally ask you a few questions along the way. Once the app is ready to go, we send you a video of the app in action. You sign off on the app and we submit it to the app stores. Pretty simple right?

How long does it take to build an app for me?
The information gathering process usually takes the longest time. We ask you to gather all of that information, so however long it takes a client to get us that information + about 4-6 weeks is how long it takes to build your app. Most of the time this number is even less, but just to make sure we cross our t’s and dot our i’s, we tell you 4-6 weeks.

What do you need to get started?
We always start our projects with a contract. Once we get the contract back from you – then we send you the appropriate information. All you need is an email address and access to the internet. Then we can send you a list of everything we need. Most of the time we need stuff like your domain name, tee time URL, images of your course, general facility information, phone numbers, and possibly your blog feed. Don’t have a blog feed? Not a problem because we can use your Facebook fan page!

So that wraps up how the development process of a mobile app is structured. Pretty simple huh? We try not to over-complicate things here at GWD.

Check out next week’s post on Understanding the App Marketplace for Apple and Android phones.

• $1,000,000 for ONE 30 second commercial at the Super Bowl.
• $50,000 for a six month billboard
• $10,000 for an ad in a magazine
• $4,000 for a radio station plug
• $800 for a newspaper ad

Those are real cost associated with some of the different forms of advertising. The question that we ask our clients is “What is going to get the best bang for your buck?” We build the best Golf Course Mobile Apps in the business – but they’re not for everyone. We can tell you that because we are in the business of helping our fellow PGA Professionals grow – not shrink their revenues.

We recently received a phone call from a retirement community that was so excited to get a mobile app for their course and events that it was heart breaking when we asked them if their members used smartphones – their response “They barely know how to use e-mail, but they are getting better and wanting to use the website”. So instead of selling them something their members won’t use, we are actually working with them to rebuild their website and make it more user-friendly and interactive for their members. We concluded that would be better money spent.

Our Golf Course Mobile Apps are the best in the business – hands down for many reasons. Here are just a few of the reasons that we continue to set the standard in mobile development – and our competitors are racing to catch up:

1. Best Overall Functionality
2. Most Features
3. Best Price in the Business
4. Work with PGA Professionals that Understand Golf
5. Fastest Turnaround Time
6. Most Comprehensive Golf Course Apps on the Market Today

With all the resources available to our fellow professional our standard app costs just a fraction of what the industry normally charges. One great part is that our “standard” app is what our competitors consider their “top-shelf” or “platinum” package.

Compare that to what everyday apps you use cost to build:

USA Today App: $100,000 +
Pandora: $50,000 +
Facebook: $100,000 +
Redbox: $50,000 +
Skype: $100,000 +

why spend the money.

Why spend the money on a Golf Course Mobile App? We put together this Mobile App Series so that you can read these articles, learn more about what an app can do for your business and reap the benefits. We say this all the time to clients:

“Mobile Apps are what websites were 10 years ago”

Getting in on the ground floor when other clubs in the area don’t offer an app is a great way to capitalize on the market.

Next week we will talk about the development process and how easy it is to get an app for your golf facility.

Now fast forward a few years – handheld GPS units such as Sky Caddie have made a great impact on the game. They still sell at a premium price and they are a great luxury to have while playing golf. Fast forward to NOW and you’ll start to see mobile apps with a GPS feature built right in. That’s what Golf Web Design does – we can build a custom app for your golf course with a golf course yardage book that displays distance to the front, center and back of each green.

How is this great for a golf course? A small investment in an app turns your customers’ iPhones and Android phones into a GPS unit. Who doesn’t want a GPS unit? That means more people download your app. The more people that download your app, the more people that look at the rest of your app and see what’s going on at the club. Utility apps have been proven to have a longer life-cycle than typical games or other apps. This means more customer engagement. More customer engagement (especially through features like our push notifications) means more people who will recognize your brand, feel trust in your company and who will want to play your course when it comes time to think about where they want to play. Your customers have a choice of where they want to play – keeping them engaged makes them want to come back and play more often.

For a private course, our GPS feature in your course’s app can mean one more perk for your members that no other club in town has. Give your members the benefit of not having to purchase an expensive GPS unit – build it right into your app and engage members on a deeper level.

For more information on how we can build a great app for your golf course, check out our mobile apps section.

Golf Web Design builds apps for golf courses that utilize the most up-to-date technologies – one of them being the ability for our customers to update their app. Yes, you read that correctly. We build apps that YOU, the customer, can update. Similar to a website built on a content management system (which gives you the ability to update the website without knowing any HTML or fancy programs), our apps can be built with the ability for you to update them.

Why do you need to update your app?
There are a million different reasons of why you would want to update your app. Let’s take a look at a few fundamental reasons why updating your own app can be so beneficial:

• Your customers want NEW, FRESH INFORMATION delivered directly to their phone.
• You don’t have to pay us everytime you want something updated within your app.
• Your app won’t lose it’s appeal because it has new content (the average time an app is used for is only one month)
• You can send push notifications which will notify your users with ANY kind of information you want.

Here are some practical applications for a golf course to regularly update their app:

• Update your golf course calendar – add member events, course closures, big events, tournaments, golf shops sales
• Update your news feed – keep your membership (or the general public) informed as to what the latest news is at your course. Announce tournament winners, recent holes-in-one, upcoming sales, weather conditions, etc.
• Send push notifications to alert your users about important notices. These can be very powerful marketing tools for you to advertise a sale in the shop, tee times that need to be sold, and more. Push notifications have a tremendous impact on user interaction with your app. A user must interact with your app if you send a push notification.

Now you can see the importance of being able to update your own app. It’s a benefit that no one else in our industry is offering. We are working to develop easier ways for you to market to your target audience and bring more golfers through your doors. Mobile app technologies keep growing and Golf Web Design plans on making them a powerful marketing tool for golf courses.

We have developed the “foundation” of a solid app through marketing and advertising research; and offer the options to add whatever functions our clients need for their specific facility. Think of it as building a golf course, we have already developed the “concepts” such as “grass, 18 total holes, and that there will be tee boxes and greens.” Now it is up to that individual course to develop the “feel & functionality” such as “type of grass, 18 unique holes, how many tee boxes and what color flags on the green.” We offer a guide to what works and leave the option available for each facility to determine the direction they want to pursue.

It is truly a one-of-kind industry leading product that has many imitators but no duplicators. With the help of our fellow PGA Professionals we have set the standard for how a Golf Course Mobile App should look, cost, function, perform and provide to each and every user that downloads the app. To look at the ever growing list of features that we offer please check out our Golf Course Mobile App Features Section.

Here are just a few of some special features that PGA Professionals have used in their courses app:

• GPS
• Multiple Photo Galleries
• Weather
• Multiple Grill / Dinner Menus
• Events Sign-up
• Directories
• Course Locator
• App Only – Golf Packages
• Post Handicap
• Promotional Videos

What makes the mobile platform so great to build on is that people have their mobile phones with them EVERYWHERE! Your course is only a click away. We help professionals grow their business and use the resources that their customers are using. A Golf Course Mobile App is what websites were 10 years ago – they are quickly becoming a “must-have” addition to your marketing strategy.

the best design. the best price. the best functionality. the best service.

Next week we will talk about Updating Your App – Getting Out New Information.

Jim was also the 2010 recipient of The PGA of America’s Patriot Award.

Great job Jim, we love when our clients give back to the game and local communities. Keeping the tradition of PGA Professionals as positive role models in the lives of others.

To read more about what the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition does visit their website, click here.