Golf Business News 856

Online tee time giant GolfNow, iconic Ryder Cup venue The Belfry, and state-of-the-art addressable TV advertising platform AdSmart from Sky, have embarked upon a first of its kind partnership to promote The Belfry’s championship courses.

Using audience targeting including household age, income, subscription to Sky Sports Golf status and Local Authority location, AdSmart served targeted ads to golfers in the Midlands to encourage tee time bookings at both the Brabazon and PGA National courses via golfnow.co.uk.

The campaign went live on 21 July and ran until 18 August 2020, delivering more than 150,000 impressions and reaching over 41,000 households in Birmingham, East Staffordshire, Lichfield, Nuneaton, Bedworth, Solihull and Tamworth.

• In the four-week period while the media was live total revenue across The Belfry’s courses increased 19% YOY
• 83% of golfers who booked The Belfry’s courses during the campaign had never booked at The Belfry with GolfNow before
• Average booking lead time also increased YOY, moving from three days to six days in advance at The Brabazon and from just one day to 11 days at the PGA National  – showing golfers are now planning their rounds much further ahead
• Page views of The Belfry’s courses on golfnow.co.uk increased by 55% YOY

GolfNow and The Belfry both invested in the advertising campaign, made possible through GolfNow’s partnership with Sky. GolfNow’s creative team produced the advertising spot, incorporating stunning footage from The Belfry showcasing their courses and club house.

Gail Aldridge, marketing director at The Belfry, says: “In my role I am always looking for new and innovative ways to promote The Belfry and its courses to new golfers. The opportunity to work in partnership with GolfNow to harness the power of AdSmart technology and target local golfers was one not to be missed. In the current climate, with less golfers coming from overseas to play golf in the UK, it’s more important than ever that we appeal to the right domestic audience. Our relationship with GolfNow allowed us to run a TV advertising campaign to golfers in the Midlands and the results speak for themselves.”

David Sanderson, director of AdSmart, says: “We are delighted that the Belfry has enjoyed so much success from their first AdSmart campaign. We know that TV lands an idea with more power and impact than any other media, and AdSmart (Sky’s addressable TV platform) means that you can focus that impact exclusively on the right type of Sky and Virgin homes within whatever radius matters to your golf club.  We are enjoying working with a number of leading clubs – of which the Belfry is the highest profile – and we look forward to working with many more in the future.”

Karen Moss, marketing manager at GolfNow, says: “At GolfNow we simply want to grow the game of golf in the UK and Ireland and we have an unmatched selection of 1,700 courses to choose from. However, some golfers may not know that we offer tee times at many of the country’s best and most beloved courses, including The Belfry. Through AdSmart technology we can encourage local golfers in the Midlands to book their next tee time at The Brabazon or the PGA National and they can experience the magic of walking the same fairways as Seve and other Ryder Cup heroes! Due to our partnership with Sky we are able to offer our course partners exclusive media opportunities like these as part of our ongoing commitment to promoting the game of golf.”