Whether you’ve been in your role for a month or a decade, it’s crucial to keep up with the current trends and continue growing to meet the ever-changing demands of your new and existing members. How do you accomplish that? Continuing education.

By Melissa Hansen; Director of Membership and Marketing; The Club at Olde Cypress; Naples, Fla.

The roles and responsibilities of membership and marketing directors continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Member demands are quickly shifting, and they expect their club experience to rival that of what they experience in everyday life: Personalized communication, consistent entertainment both on and off campus, and a tailored experience specific to them. Whether you’ve been in your role for a month or a decade, it’s crucial to keep up with the current trends and continue growing to meet the ever-changing demands of your new and existing members. How do you accomplish that? Continuing education, of course. I was honored to be joined by three of the most talented individuals in the industry during the Club + Resort Business Membership and Marketing Webinar.  

Here is what I learned:

Session One: Telling Your Club’s Story: Communicating to Prospects and the Outside World

Featured Speaker:  Melissa Hansen, Director of Membership + Marketing, The Club at Olde Cypress

Close your eyes and think about the top three brands you interact with on a consistent basis.  Whether it is Amazon, Uber Eats, or Netflix – they all have one thing in common: Personalized communication. When it comes to communication at your club, there are five key steps every club should take to ensure your club communications are on point:
Step 1: 
Take Inventory of Your Club’s Communication Avenues
Step 2:
Define What Makes Your Club Unique
Step 3: 
ID Your Target Audience & Use it in Your Efforts (Segment your audience and don’t over communicate unnecessary information)
Step 4: 
Allow Your Audience to Get to Know You and Feel a Sense of Connection
Step 5: 
Showcase the Human Side of Your Brand (Your Club)

And lastly, if multiple department heads are responsible for your communications, make sure everything is consistent and always on brand. 

Graphics, text, messaging – it should all be representative of “the club.” 

Session Two: Getting Off Your Island: How Other Club Departments Can and Should Help with Membership and Marketing Efforts

Featured Speaker:  Ben Lorenzen, Creative Director and Director of Aquatics & Fitness, Champions Run

As marketing directors, we simply can’t be at every event all the time. So it’s essential to get the other members of your staff involved when it comes to creating magical moments and entertaining the members at your club. In this session, Ben shares with us the five key facts:

WHAT WE KNOW:
– Members love our staff.
– Members love seeing staff in marketing.
– Staff love being appreciated.
– Members love entertainment.
– We want our members to be informed. 

How many times per week do you hear members say, “I didn’t know about that event?” It’s inevitable. In today’s fast-paced world, we simply don’t take the time to read all the information that’s out there. Yet if the information provides entertainment for your members, they are more likely to consume and retain it. For example, Ben uses the idea of weekly food-and-beverage specials. Most of us simply place that information into a flyer for our members to read. Yet at Champions Run, they take it to the next level by capturing a video of their Chef showing off the new items on the menu so members can get a visual. After all, marketing is a team effort and the more entertaining you can make the information you provide to members, the better outcome you will receive. 

Session Three: Telling Your Club’s Story:  Do’s and Don’ts of Member Communication

Featured Speaker:  Danielle Duran, Club Design Studio

Danielle shares with us an insightful list of Do’s and Don’ts when it comes to our member communications. Here are a handful of easy-to-implement suggestions you can bring to your club today:

Do: Add engaging material to your e-mails. Member photos, video, seasonal graphics.  

Don’t: Just let it be informative. When was the last time that you read pages and pages of e-mail text? We simply don’t have the time nor the attention span. We are here to engage and entertain and the more we can do that, the more successful your communications will be. 

Do: Plan e-mails with a strategy in mind. So often we are just trying to get the information out and check things off our list but it’s important not to get sucked into the trap of just “winging it.”

Don’t: Overload your weekly newsletter with everything. If your newsletter is too long, it causes information overload for your members. Allow dedicated e-mails to do the heavy lifting. 

Session Four:  What I Learned From my Days in Membership & Marketing That I Continue to Use in my Current Role as Director of Operations

Featured Speaker: Jerrod Tumbleson, Director of Operations, Grey Oaks Country Club

Jerrod finished out the series with a bang as he shared his incredible journey of how he grew from golf cart and range attendant to Director of Operations at one of the most prestigious clubs in the country. He spent a lot of time in the membership world and what he learned from that was a valuable lesson: relationships are the foundation for all clubs.  

No matter what position you’re in or trying to grow into, acting as an ambassador for new and existing members is crucial. Getting to know your team members is key. Getting involved within the local community and visiting other clubs will allow you to network, learn and develop as an individual. Whatever your position, it’s the relationships you create that matter. 

As we conclude this series, Jerrod offers a few key pieces of advice: Create your own journey, don’t be afraid to grow. Continuously look for new ways to improve what you do and, most importanly, have fun. A sense of fun helps people to have a more positive mindset, enjoy higher levels of well-being and will provide overall happiness in everyday life.