The Challenge:
The club’s membership plateaued and then inched downward, precipitating an adjustment of the club’s offerings and its value proposition.
Skaneateles Country Club is located on a peninsula that extends into Skaneateles Lake, which is one of central New York’s Finger Lakes. Surrounded by expensive homes in an area growing in popularity, this area is a resort and quality-of-life destination for people throughout the New York region and beyond.
Skaneateles is about 30 miles outside of Syracuse and a five-hour car drive from New York City. Though once considered a remote area dotted with somewhat sleepy lakeside villages, the region has grown in popularity. Its lake now provides a magnet for sailing and other lakefront activities not only for those who are permanent residents but also for the summer and weekend crowds.
The country club’s golf course continues to attract and hold members, but it no longer provides the singular feature that attracts members. Indeed, membership attraction became more of a pressing issue for the club when, in 2012, it saw its waiting list disappear and its membership dip below 600.
The Response:
Skaneateles Country Club succeeded in launching a membership program that was built on several well-conceived elements that squarely addressed the challenge of attracting potential members, while simultaneously lowering perceived barriers to entry.
This club’s approach was two pronged. On the one hand, the membership program had the distinctive urgency that we often associate with temporary, time-limited promotional offers; it began on January 1 and closed on June 30. And, GM Jim Fields says flatly, “When the program’s over, it’s over.” But on the other hand, potential members were given ample time to make their decision, with attractive incentives offered that generally encouraged prospects predisposed toward membership to make the decision sooner rather than later.
Throughout the run-up to commitment, the program was well publicized and succeeded in maintaining top-of-mind awareness among both current members, who effectively recruited new families, and the new families themselves. At the end of the promotional period, the prospective new members were not required to make an ironclad commitment, or pay an initiation fee. Instead, they committed to a six-month trial membership, during which they would become dues paying members.
This trial membership period was crucial as the potential new members gained a more accurate notion of the benefits of club life, effectively reducing the risk associated with a substantial investment that initiation fees would represent.
The Result:
The Skaneateles Country Club’s membership has remarkably rebounded from below 600 to 650. And the club also now manages a wait list.
The membership program provided the right mix of information and incentive. But the club, its leaders and members, also recognized the changing nature of its appeal. With homes around the lake now advancing into the $1 million range, Skaneateles Country Club was essentially able to position itself as “your home on the lake.”
And, indeed, the club is less than 40 feet off the water on that peninsula that extends out into the lake. The 2,400 feet of lake access supports a great deal more than a spectacular view. Swimming beaches, docks and moorings all give rise to a broad range of club attractions—everything from sailing to kids camps, from day-time explorations to night-time campfires, from informal get-togethers to club-wide celebrations. The club’s annual Independence Day observance is especially spectacular and a high point on the social calendar
As a result, the club’s location is at the heart of its smart positioning. It provides the dramatic backdrop that effectively showcases the many activities enjoyed by families and friends in and around the lake. The club’s brand is now expressed with greater clarity and vivid visual evidence that are capable of steadily boosting membership. Not surprisingly, it attracts a somewhat younger, more family-oriented member. This, in turn, further enhanced the club’s reputation for outdoors fun and robust activity. This shift in emphasis continues to attract and hold members.
Lessons Learned:
This case reminds us of the oldest marketing lesson of all—location, location, location. GM Jim Fields is just as succinct, explaining, “We really market the lake.”
Skaneatles’s experience teaches us that clubs need to look closely at what they choose to highlight or emphasize when they communicate the benefits of club membership. This is really the essence of positioning. And while a club’s position in a given geographical market can remain fairly stable and consistent, it should not ignore the need for regular reappraisal and reexamination—even subjecting it to a fair amount of stress testing.
Skaneateles Country Club undertook a close examination of its situation and, moving forward, decided to establish a better fit between the changing demographics and lifestyles that were emerging in the Finger Lakes region with the club’s own distinctive character and unique assets. The club smartly expanded and highlighted a range of activities and services as its basic value proposition similarly shifted to be better aligned with the market’s evolving needs. This pivot was necessary in order to reassert the club’s appeal and to attract new members in an increasingly diverse market.
Club Trends Summer 2015