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Dan Kelly

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How would you advertise excellence?
« on: March 28, 2009, 12:01:21 PM »
An offshoot of the "Those days are over!" thread:

I just got my new Minnesota Golfer magazine, and happened to linger on one advertisement -- for the Territory Golf Club in St. Cloud, Minnesota. (I've never played it.)

Here's how it touts itself:

" 'Best Golf Day Trip' -- MPLS/St Paul Magazine"

"Central Minnesota's Premier Golf Experience"

"GPS GOLF CARTS"

"7000Yd -- Par 72 -- Championship Course

"* Flowing Elevation Changes

"* Expansive Water Features

"* Wide inviting fairways

"* Huge undulating greens"

---------------

Sound good? Well, even those "expansive water features" must sound good to some people -- in the absence of anything more persuasive.

Then I got to thinking: It seems as though the only effective golf-course advertising you ever see is the endorsement-type ad. To wit (or some portion thereof): Golf Digest gives it X number of stars, and Golf Magazine says it's one of America's best courses under 50 bucks, and GolfWeek says it's one of "America's Best Courses You Can Play."

How would one advertise excellence, if one had excellence to advertise, and there were no magazine rankings and listings?

Pick a course you love. Write a print advertisement for it that SELLS its excellence as a golf course.

Can it be done?
« Last Edit: March 28, 2009, 12:19:15 PM by Dan Kelly »
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"There's no money in doing less." -- Joe Hancock, 11/25/2010
"Rankings are silly and subjective..." -- Tom Doak, 3/12/2016

Philippe Binette

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2009, 12:22:51 PM »
You can advertise something good by pretending it's great...

Greatness or excellence simply exist and cannot be define into words or images... it just is
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Tom_Doak

  • Karma: +3/-1
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #2 on: March 28, 2009, 02:21:34 PM »
Dan:

One reason golf course architects are overpaid is because our names are a principal element in the marketing plan ... certain architects are reputed to be "excellent" and that trumps others' general descriptions.
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Mike Wagner

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #3 on: March 28, 2009, 02:58:09 PM »
Best marketing slogan/tagline/whatever I can think of is "Golf as it was meant to be." 

Can anyone think of a better way to capture the place???  Maybe adding...."in heaven."
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Jeff_Brauer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #4 on: March 28, 2009, 03:00:40 PM »
Dan,

In that specific example, could they compare it to the Wilderness or Quarry? ;D
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Jeff Brauer, ASGCA Director of Outreach

Mark Bourgeois

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #5 on: March 28, 2009, 03:19:07 PM »
Athens Golf Club

"Arete as Aristotle meant it to be !!!"

"Elenchus-based lessons available 24-7 !!!"

"Free hemlock shakes at the turn!!!"

"Try to conquer our 16-17-18 finish, aka 'The Hot Gates' !!!"

"Peripatetikos welcome weekdays and after noon on weekends !!!"
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TEPaul

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #6 on: March 28, 2009, 03:26:18 PM »
"Write a print advertisement for it that SELLS its excellence as a golf course.
Can it be done?"


DanK (sm):


Can it be done? Well, I don't really know but here's what I would do; I'd throw a total curve-ball at 'em and perhaps one they didn't even understand; perhaps because they'd never seen anything like it before (the ad, that is).

I'd say:

"This is arguably one of the best courses in the world but we positively refuse to even attempt to tell you why. For that you must come to see it for yourself and determine the reasons why on your own."


That kind of curve-ball can really works sometimes. Years ago when I sold real estate I got so tired of the general syrupy bullshit boiler-plate real estate advertizing I decided to create one that was a total curve-ball and one I hoped would create almost total confusion as to its meaning.

From years of reading Country Life Magazine (English) which has always had some amazing real estate listing in the front of it, I noticed that in England they rather regularly describe a large estate that has beautiful views and such as simply a Beautiful or ideal "Situation."

So I created an ad for a farm I had that simply said: "A Beautiful Situation."

Basically our phone rang off the hook on that ad and about 90% of the callers wanted to know what "Situation" meant.

But the point is the ad got about ten times more calls than the usual crap real estate ads here we were using. ;)

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Jason McNamara

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #7 on: March 28, 2009, 03:39:36 PM »
Quote from: Mark Bourgeois on March 28, 2009, 03:19:07 PM
Athens Golf Club


"Ranked #2, just behind the Platonic ideal!"

"You'll love our triangular greens."

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Peter Pallotta

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #8 on: March 28, 2009, 03:42:50 PM »
Mark - funny! (Q: What are you worried about, Socrates? You said that everything is eternal A: No, I said HEAVY things - rocks, statues!) But maybe simpler: "What is an excellent golf course? If you think you know, you don't"

TE - great story, and not surprising. I can't be the only one who's a sucker for all things English. Did you ever try "Grade II Listed country dwelling, fishing rights, Ipson-upon-Wellwich - 4 kilometres".

Dan - a dastardly question for one who, pressed to create advertising copy, would hold his manhood cheap if forced to resort to numerical rankings. I am stumped.  The best I could come up with (off Mike's post) is "The Mines: Golf as it was meant to be played....in 1930...just after the stock market crash...when your money, if you had any, went a lot further".

Peter    
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TEPaul

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #9 on: March 28, 2009, 03:55:59 PM »
PeterP;

How about this one for a print ad?

"Are you EMOTIONAL? If so, you absolutely MUST see this golf course!"


Talk about mysterious and covering your ass at the same time. OH MY!


By the way, it took me about twenty years but I finally figured out what those "Grade" numbers meant on those English real estate ads. They are all about architectural significance. Maybe TomD should use them here for his list suggestions of the architectural significance of courses to be preserved or restored.
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Mark Bourgeois

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #10 on: March 28, 2009, 05:55:53 PM »
Quote from: Mark Bourgeois on March 28, 2009, 03:19:07 PM
Athens Golf Club

"Arete as Aristotle meant it to be !!!"

"Elenchus-based lessons available 24-7 !!!"

"Free hemlock shakes at the turn!!!"

"Try to conquer our 16-17-18 finish, aka 'The Hot Gates' !!!"

"Peripatetikos welcome weekdays and after noon on weekends !!!"

"Your chiros is waiting for you"

"And when Alexander birdied the 18th he wept, for there were no holes left to conquer."

The benefits of a classical marketing education!
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Mike_Young

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #11 on: March 28, 2009, 06:05:48 PM »
Excellence advertises itself....the immediate gratification so often sought today by developers rarely obtains true excellence.....and IMHO this golf business will not really correct itself untll developers  and golfers quit being concerned over who the architect is on a project and more on the excellence of the project....that's is when we will begin to get true value back n this business..... ;)
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"just standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona"

Jim Thompson

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #12 on: March 29, 2009, 12:50:48 AM »
Quote from: Mike_Young on March 28, 2009, 06:05:48 PM
Excellence advertises itself....the immediate gratification so often sought today by developers rarely obtains true excellence.....and IMHO this golf business will not really correct itself untll developers  and golfers quit being concerned over who the architect is on a project and more on the excellence of the project....that's is when we will begin to get true value back n this business..... ;)

Here, Here!  Bravo!
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Jim Thompson

PCCraig

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #13 on: March 29, 2009, 09:04:08 AM »
"Signature Excellence brought to you by......"
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H.P.S.

Adam Clayman

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #14 on: March 29, 2009, 10:40:45 AM »
The worst case of a lack of truth in advertising...

http://www.dunmaglas.com/
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"It's unbelievable how much you don't know about the game you've been playing your whole life." - Mickey Mantle

Jim Nugent

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #15 on: March 29, 2009, 10:41:10 AM »
"Playboy bunnies serving free drinks around the course"

Will work like gangbusters for any course in the nation.  
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Richard Choi

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #16 on: March 29, 2009, 12:37:45 PM »
Quote from: Jim Nugent on March 29, 2009, 10:41:10 AM
"Playboy bunnies serving free drinks around the course"

Which course is that and how do I get there?
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Joe Hancock

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #17 on: March 29, 2009, 01:46:28 PM »
Quote from: Adam Clayman on March 29, 2009, 10:40:45 AM
The worst case of a lack of truth in advertising...

http://www.dunmaglas.com/


Wouldn't that be a "best case"....?

 :)
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" What the hell is the point of architecture and excellence in design if a "clever" set up trumps it all?" Peter Pallotta, June 21, 2016

"People aren't picking a side of the fairway off a tee because of a randomly internally contoured green ."  jeffwarne, February 24, 2017

Stewart Abramson

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #18 on: March 29, 2009, 04:52:14 PM »
"How would one advertise excellence, if one had excellence to advertise"

Guarantied to enjoy playing this excellent golf course or get your green fee back
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RJ_Daley

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #19 on: March 29, 2009, 11:42:31 PM »
Once you've discovered the true excellence of our golf course, you will never mention it to anyone but your special golf companions with whom you really enjoy great golf experiences.

or;

This course is best enjoyed either when playing and walking along alone with just your dog or in the company of only your very best golf friends.

or;

Our golf course is an official qualifying site for the open faithful golfers tournament in heaven.

or to borrow one of Mucci's lines;

When you finish your round at our course, your only thought is if #1 tee is open so you can go around again.

alas, I can't top Mark's classics...  :D
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Rich Goodale

Re: How would you advertise excellence?
« Reply #20 on: March 30, 2009, 09:35:41 AM »
Dan

To be honest I would never advertise "excellence," particularly in this socio-economic climate.  Rather, I would, in order:

1.  Make damned sure that the product was excellent, in terms of deisgn, conditioning, ambience, cart girls, etc.
2.  Price it very sharply, focusing on getting people out to see that excellence and find out why it is excellent for themselves.
3.  Overperform in relation to the pricing
4.  Get feedback on all of the above, adjust as necessary and go through the loop again.
5.  Once you have begun to fill the tee sheets, adjust the product/price/performance relationship accordingly.

Rich
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