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Keep the ball rolling
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Photo illustration by Kelly Neis |
There isn’t a golf course facility owner or general manager in the world who would argue that getting the most for your money isn’t good for business. So, communicating the full value of your GCSAA Education Conference and Golf Industry Show experience can show your employer that your attendance in Anaheim in February was a great investment.
Making the most of your conference and show trip means that your journey didn’t end when you returned home. Communicating what you learned and how those lessons can have a direct effect on your facility can help keep your show attendance part of your facility’s expense budget for years to come. Taking some very simple post-show steps can maximize your experience.
- Consider completing a report for your staff, your peers and your supervisor/employer. Use this opportunity to educate them on industry trends and what they mean for the facility.
- Share your experience with golfers at your facility. This is an opportunity to educate them on how your attendance can enhance the facility and how it may directly relate to current projects.
- Justify the cost of attending by evaluating what, if you had not attended, would have been the cost and time to do the same amount of business.
- Calculate the money you saved on show-only specials.
For more information on how to capitalize on your attendance, visit the Attendee Tool Kit at www.gcsaa.org/gis/toolkit/default.asp.
An additional way to highlight your attendance is to let your community know. To help promote your attendance at the GIS, GCSAA has created a news release template that highlights the significance of the event. The template is available at www.gcsaa.org/gis/2007/special/GISnr_
form.asp and is a quick and easy way to announce your attendance to your local media.
To create your own news release, simply fill out the requested information, print out the results and send it to whatever media outlets you choose. This personalized news release can broadcast your attendance and serve as a starting point to start talking to your local media about your profession and association.
If you have never sent a press release to local media, this is an easy way to break the ice with business or sports reporters in your area.
Orlando 2008
After your initial communication with your employer or supervisor, you can refer back to how the show benefited you throughout the year when applicable. If a particular education seminar in February helped you solve a problem in August, let your employer know.
And it is never too early to start planning for 2008. Meet with your employer to compile a list of quantifiable and appropriate objectives for the 2008 conference and show in Orlando. Make sure your employer thinks it’s vital that you attend in 2008 and that the GIS is a can’t-miss event for your facility.
Pronghorn, the private golf community outside Bend, Ore., that includes a Jack Nicklaus Signature course and a Tom Fazio golf course side by side, has hired Michael Marion as its new director of golf. Marion previously served as director of golf for two championship courses at The Ranch Club at Promontory in Park City, Utah. There, he earned the status of Best Golf Instructor by Golf Digest for three consecutive years. Kevin Neal, CGCS, superintendent at Anaheim Hills GC, was recently named Superintendent of the Year by ValleyCrest Golf Course Maintenance. The company honors superintendents based on performance in customer satisfaction, leadership, managerial excellence and contributions to the profession. |
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