Posts made in March 2019

First sales tip…it’s NOT “sales”! That word tends to freak people out…especially if they’re not in sales! So let’s go with “marketing”. Your committee members need to know HOW to market the golf outing to potential golfers and sponsors. Don’t be afraid to ask around for some ‘professional’ help; having a seasoned sales person come in and speak to the committee about basic do’s and don’ts can make a world of difference. There ARE some tricks to the trade:

1. What are your goals when calling on businesses to be potential sponsors (and what alternate goals do you have if the original one(s) aren’t met)?
2. Ask “open-ended” questions that engage the prospect in conversation; if you just ask ‘do you want to be a sponsor at our charity golf tournament’ and they say ‘no thanks’…there’s nowhere to go from there! (Try…”so what sort of events have you guys sponsored in the past?”)
3. Let people know what you’re going to do next after the call…and then do it!
4. The fortune’s in the follow-up 🙂

Don’t assume your committee members are sales people. And don’t assume even if they are, that they are comfortable asking people for money. Give them some tools to make their job easier!

First, there is no right or wrong answer here. With that out of the way, here are some things to consider:

1. Private courses cost more
2. Private courses are only available on Mondays
3. Your golfers might be enjoy going to a private course they couldn’t otherwise play.

In a nutshell, those are the three most important variables you need to consider. You should call a few of each…and get some pricing.
Once you have some data to compare one with the other, perhaps a visit to each is in order. Maybe even one year you try a public course, the next year go to  private venue. The results…in terms of golfers that come and your net profit after each will speak for itself.

If you have any questions…we’re happy to share our experiences from the last 26 years helping organizations just like yours raise more money.
info@tournamentpros.com, 800-790-4653

One of the first–and possibly most important–questions your committee will have to deal with straight out of the gate is…how much should the entry fee be to play in your charity golf outing? Here are some basic guidelines:
1. Don’t try to make all your profit on the “green fees”.
2. Don’t charge your golfers too much more than the golf course is charging you.
3. Look to make your money from other revenue sources other than the entry fee.
Sensing a theme here? We hope so!
Your golfers know (or can easily find out) what the regular cost is to play the course you are having the event at.
Yes, it’s easier to increase that cost significantly more when playing at a private course golfers can’t otherwise play,
but you still never want to gouge your group on the green fees. It just looks bad. Once players have signed up,
then all bets are off:  Players now EXPECT you to do all that you can to get into their wallets…
after all, it is a CHARITY golf tournament! But no one likes to be “played” for a sucker when you double or triple the normal cost to play the course. Not cool. So don’t do it. That’s what the raffle is for. And the contest package. And the mulligans. And the auction. And the game holes. Give us a call or send us an email and we’ll share some of our wisdom gained over the last 26 years regarding all these different sources of revenue to be “mined” the day of the outing, none of which your golfers will mind…as long as the cost to play is not one of them!  800-790-4653, info@tournamentpros.com

Congratulations! Half the battle is won once you’ve decided not to go it alone and formed a committee to plan
and oversee your 2019 golf outing. Now the key to your success becomes…to delegate. Each person needs to be assigned a
specific set of duties. Give them clear, concise tasks and most importantly, a timeline within which they
need to get them done by.  Then…hold them accountable. Once you decide how often to meet (perhaps once a month if you’ve started far enough in advance, then twice a month within 3 months of the event, eventually getting
down to once a week as the tournament approaches), let each committee member know that they will be called upon
to tell everyone the status of the tasks they have been assigned. And when it’s all said and done…reward
them for their effort with a gift as well as recognition at the awards ceremony. Those things go a long way
to making others consider joining in on the fun the following year. Not sure about the tasks to delegate?
Here’s a few things your committee will need to focus on: golfers, sponsors, prizes, food/beverage, auction,
player gifts, contests, registration, etc. Feel free to call Tournament Pros at 800-790-4653 or email us at info@tournamentpros.com;  we would be glad to pass on the knowledge we’ve gained since we first opened
our doors in 1993!

It takes a village. Alright…not a whole village to plan a successful charity tournament, but definitely more than me, myself and I (meaning you!). (In fact, TOO many people can be just as big a problem as not enough.) Tackling your charity golf tournament all by your lonesome is a) way too much work, b) nearly impossible and c) a big mistake (see A and B). However, there is ONE thing you can do by yourself; form a committee to help you plan the golf fundraiser. ANY extra help you can get is good, but shoot for 4-6 people to join the group. If you can get more, great…but, again, not too many more (cooks in the kitchen kind of thing). Everyone has their own circle of friends and influence to draw from…and inside THEIR circle, THEY can find more golfers and more sponsors. They can also use their connections (connections that YOU don’t have) to help secure all the other things needed for a successful tournament like raffle prizes, player gifts, auction items, etc. etc.. (Tournament Pros at 800-790-4653, info@tournametpros.com can help with all of that too!) Just remember, a successful charity golf tournament involves a great deal of planning and two heads–or five or six–are better than one. So don’t go it alone!