Variety is the Spice of [Club] Life

IN THE LAST ISSUE of Club Director, I focused on how the average member profile is changing. As of 2015, there are now more young adults (born approximately 1980–2000) than there are baby boomers (born approximately 1945–1965). While clubs as a whole likely won’t be threatened by this massive generational shift, many may need to adapt due to the vastly different value structures of many young adults compared to boomers.

More than three in four young adults (78%) would choose to spend money on a desirable experience or event over buying something desirable. Statistics provided by Eventbrite show that 55 percent of young adults say they’re spending more on events and live experiences than ever before.

Couple this with a multitude of competing factors to get a member’s attention and many clubs may find that they cannot afford to focus on only one area of interest. Many will need to become a family activity/experience hub to stay competitive. When a private club can be looked at as both the escape from the everyday, as well as the hub of their member’s community, then clubs have a stronger argument when appealing to younger demographics. An industry that has seen this shift first hand is the travel industry. According to travel research firm Phocuswright, travel activities (tours, attractions, events, etc.) are the third largest segment of travel at $129 billion and are growing faster than the total travel market. To accommodate these changes, the travel industry now focuses on providing an all-inclusive experience, with a wide range of activities, to help provide a personalized vacation that the whole family can enjoy.

If we take a closer look at what makes a cruise vacation so appealing, we’ll find some great ideas that have the potential to make club membership both more attractive to young families, and more valuable to your existing members. After all, a club’s business is based on offering a one-stop hub of experiences.

Fitness Focus

Young families are more focused on health and fitness, forcing the travel industry to quickly adapt to this change. Cruises have created an enhanced health conscious environment by updating fitness centers, providing ample space
for group classes, and offering wellness programs, personal trainers, healthy food options and more.

According to an annual survey from the American College of Sports and Medicine, four out of the top 10 fitness trends for 2018 are high-intensity interval training, group training, educated and experienced fitness professionals, and fitness programs for older adults. Focusing on trends such as these may be the key that unlocks interest in fitness that even existing members didn’t know they had.

Family Friendly

The cruise industry has shown a special ability to provide activities that both kids and adults can enjoy—whether together or separately. Every parent knows that entertaining and caring

for children can be exhausting, which is why cruise ships offer family movie nights, daycare and other kid friendly options to help provide an experience the whole family can enjoy.

One Stop Shop

Once you board a cruise, you quickly realize the breadth of their amenities. Today’s vessels are equipped to offer free Wi-Fi, restaurants, water slides, in-suite spa treatments, and anything else you could possibly need, so passengers can have a relaxing and stress-free experience.

You don’t need to spend millions building new fitness facilities to better engage your membership. This might not even be what your membership needs or wants. There might be smaller, more affordable ways to offer a convenient and family-centric experience to your members.

The Sarnia Golf and Curling Club Takes a New Approach
A great example of how a club can offer a personalized one-stop shop is the Sarnia Golf & Curling Club in Ontario, Canada. Since early 2017, the club has begun implementing numerous new initiatives to help engage their membership. General Manager Michael Hearse, CCM, worked with his team on an in-depth self-identification project to better understand their members and learn about potential opportunities in the surrounding area.

Through the self-identification process, the club classified the current membership demographics, as well
as the current and projected future makeup of the local community. These findings allowed the club to establish where they needed to be in the next five to ten years in order to continue servicing their members, as well as adapt to the changing demographics of future membership.

The end result was that they now understood that programs and amenities alone were not enough to foster club culture. The club then looked within to define its mission, vision and values. Equipping themselves with these three key elements ensured that staff could share in the journey the club was about to embark on, and emphasize them through their day-to-day performance.

• Test Programs—The self-identification process showed the club how important it was not to alienate existing members during a new time of growth, so test programs such as yoga and mature fitness were introduced to engage existing members in the coming changes.
• Club Branded Honey—In 2017, the club partnered with Operation Pollinator, an international biodiversity program designed to boost the number of pollinating insects. This social and environmental initiative came with the added benefit of a regular production of local honey, which the club now bottles and sells to their membership.
• Going Craft—With a regular production of honey, the club has partnered with a local microbrewery to produce what they have proudly named “Paul’s Honey Brown.” The name was chosen in remembrance of the club’s former superintendent, and a portion of all proceeds go to a college fund for the grandson of the much loved former employee.
• Family Outdoor Movie Night—Members of all ages experience bouncy castles, snow cones, cotton candy, face-painting, balloon twisting, barbecue, candy bar, popcorn station and music—with golf carts lined up like a drive-in theater.
• Treasure Chest—A quick and simple program where each time a child comes to the club they can go to the treasure chest and pick a toy to take home. 
• Date Night—Parents come for dinner while children experience a kids cooking class, dinner, craft station, their own chef’s hat, a trip to the treasure chest and the chance to watch a movie together.
• Children’s Menus—Designed internally, these interactive and club-specific children’s menus feature puzzles, activities, and coloring areas. Crayons, markers and other activity books also typically accompany them.
• Kids Eat Free during Spring Break—An initiative that lets members receive one free children’s meal with the purchase of an adult entrée during the week of spring break, which has helped increase member traffic during what is normally a slower week.

While these are only a few of the new initiatives that the Sarnia Golf & Curling Club have implemented, the themes are clear to see: every day usefulness and multi-generational family focus are the elements the club believes will keep it successful for years to come.

Sarnia Golf & Curling Club is laying the foundation of what many of tomorrow’s clubs will look like, and maybe more importantly, how they will make members (and their families) feel.