Build Your Business Success on the Golf Course

By Jennifer Layman, PGA of Canada, Forward Thinking Consulting

As a speaker, you run a business. You need to attract clients, and in order to do that, you need to be where they are. One of the places where you can get some face-time with potential clients is on the golf course.

In addition to being an NSA speaker, I’m also a golf pro and PGA of Canada member, so I have a unique insight into both of these industries and how connections can be easily made. As a marketing consultant, I also have a few ways to promote your new-found golf opportunity. So, let’s get started.

Part 1: Making the connection on the course

There are many ways to build an opportunity on the golf course as a golfer, both as a regular player and as someone who plays often, or not at all. Here are five considerations:

       1. Forget the Foursome

Instead of gathering up three more people to make a foursome, ask the golf shop to pair you with a group instead. I have met many business owners and organizational leaders this way, currently working and retirees who volunteer with impactful organizations. I have handed out business cards after my rounds multiple times for corporate work, and made LinkedIn connections as well.

       2. Link to a League

Whether you’re a member of a club or a non-member golfer, there are often weekly leagues you can join and it’s a great way to get a round in while meeting other people. There are leagues that play at the same facility, and leagues that travel around to different courses. When you connect with a league, you not only connect with the people in your group that day, but with the whole group in general.

       3. Engage an Event

With so many charitable events taking place every year, there’s sure to be one that connects with a potential audience. Whether it’s a chamber of commerce golf tournament, or an event that raises money for a particular cause, spending the day with folks where you already have something in common with is a win!

       4. Support as a Sponsor

Golfers and non-golfers alike can be great event sponsors, and a little forward thinking can make a difference. Ask for opportunities to sponsor a hole and spend the day there, meeting everyone in the event field. You can have a giveaway, or volunteer to manage a hole-in-one competition for the event host. This is a great opportunity for golfers and non-golfers alike.

       5. Provide a Prize

You can package your services into a prize for a single or team winner, or you can provide a gift for each golfer. I have provided baskets with my book and a special speaking engagement option, and I have poker chip ball markers with my book information printed on them as giveaways for every golfer.

Now that you have some ideas on how to get your speaking expertise connected to golf, now you need to market it.

Part 2: Marketing the connection off the golf course

Golf courses are beautiful places ,so they make for great photos. Here are some ways you can use your golf experience to your advantage.

       1. Serve it up on Socials

Event organizers and golf courses love to be tagged in photos, so make sure your next golf outing includes some photos of you playing the course or participating in the event. Not only can you post about your day on the course, but you can also post again a week later about a reflection you had while playing.

       2. Promos with Photos

Take a photo of your giveaways, your setup at the sponsor hole or use the opportunity to take some personal photos against an amazing backdrop. Speakers can never have too many photos at their disposal so find ways to capture the promotional moment.

       3. Extra Experiences

Look for other sponsors that might be worthy of a photo shoot. Some courses have sponsored scorecards or tee signs that are an easy photo to share, tagging the organization and making a connection in the post. Other sponsor gifts, apparel you like or other hole sponsor setups can also be opportunities to make a connection while supporting the event host.

       4. The Larger the Lens

Other photo ideas include corporate vehicles with great graphics in the parking lot, found balls (or balls donated) that have logos on them and sponsor lists on the dinner table. Inspiration can come from anywhere!

A Final Note

On the golf course, don’t be a speaker; be a listener. Let the people you’re with do the talking so you can work at drawing parallels. I once golfed with a retiree of a community college who ran the entrepreneurship department. I nearly fell over because entrepreneurship is my focus! I learned a lot about the curriculum. I gave him my card, and he connected with me on LinkedIn with some information about an upcoming event. Not only was it a great time on the course, but it was also the start of a relationship with someone who could refer me.

Til next time, golfers, hit it well and not too often!