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By Jay Karen
I just finished reading an article in the Wall Street Journal about the movie theater business and the challenges theater owners face to stay alive. No surprise here, they have been seriously disrupted by streaming entertainment services, such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, etc.
Traditional movie theaters have been closing down around America, and yet entertainment and movie consumption has been on the rise. Like with traditional golf courses, movie theaters only survive and thrive if people show up. And that’s an existential question, when consumers are getting used to everything coming to them, wherever they may be (think: DoorDash, Amazon, Netflix, etc.)
In the face of such adversity and change, the article highlights theater owners who are investing – all the time – in enhanced customer experiences. As a result, they see positive financial returns. Upgraded seating, new projection and sound technology are musts. Instead of just Milk Duds and popcorn, think quesadillas and your local IPA on the menu. Theaters are employing mobile apps for customer engagement as well.
I see a few lessons for golf course owners and operators in this story.
1. No matter what the macro story of supply and demand may be in our industry, a great business owner will change with the winds and find the openings to success. Did you move the check-in counter to the bar, and are you serving up local brew? Are you opting for the best-in-class golf cars with great GPS, charging stations and bluetooth speakers? Are you selling Haagen Dazs ice cream bars from the F&B cart, rather than just Snickers? Are you installing gamification and entertainment centers on the range?
2. Think about downsizing capacity to upgrade the experience. When theaters rip out the old seats and go for the big, comfy ones that take up twice the space, it means they have less inventory to sell. When the busiest weeks of the year hit theaters, imagine having 50 percent fewer seats to sell. That’s a risk! But that elbow room and ability to recline is what theatergoers want. Could a golf course that goes to 12- or 15-minute tee intervals become the course of choice in the market, because of the upgraded experience? Could you begin by doing that on non-peak times at first? Movie theaters don’t have the luxury of changing out seat sizes, once they are installed. But you could try it for a couple of months and gauge reaction.
3. Instead of standing in line, movie patrons can pre-order their tickets, food and beverage on mobile apps. That removes one of the most annoying parts of the traditional experience. What should golf courses be doing to remove any of the annoying experiences? Can your golfers interact with you via text? If I can do this with my vet and my dentist, I should be able to do this with my favorite golf courses. But lo and behold, I can’t. We can do better. We have a nation of young people who would rather communicate by typing than talking. How are we moving towards them, instead of waiting for them?
What about the golfer experience at your place is significantly different than 10 years ago? If the answer is nothing or very little, it may be time to evaluate your business goals. I do realize every public golf course is capital-challenged, but I will argue that’s true for any small business. There are opportunities to improve the experience without having to raise half a million to put in new seats. As the WSJ author points out, if you want to succeed, don’t look to what your investors want (and that may be the person reading this) – look to what your customer wants. That’s the only way forward, my friends.