As the landscape of the country club industry changes, and the longtime members of existing clubs age out or move on, who becomes the new country club demographic one might ask?
The Audience
One need look no further than the generations that have followed and already come of age: millennials, Gen X’ers, and families with kids still at home are ripe for recruitment.
Unfortunately, for most millennials and Gen X’ers, country clubs are not only outdated, but they’re also irrelevant. They harken back to a time when people dressed for dinner, and single-income families were the norm. They are seen as more of a celebration of wealth and exclusivity, than as symbols and collective centers of their communities.
As such, it’s no wonder that country club memberships are down and business is suffering. Existing country clubs are going to have to innovate if they intend to survive.
Where to Find Them
Many of us know that the easiest places to find millennials and Gen Xer’s is online, thus initial and ongoing engagement of these groups should be digitally focused.
Clubs should take an inventory of their current online presence, and scale up from there. Devote more time and energy into the club’s social media strategy, and consider hiring a dedicated social media manager. Make sure that the club website is attractive and current. Grow the club’s email marketing contact list, utilize automation, and be strategic in your communication efforts.
How to Appeal to Them
Fortunately, there are a number of things country clubs can do to attract these potential new members if they are committed to keeping their doors open.
The best way to appeal to the adults in these groups will be to emphasize the aspects of the club that focus on health and wellness, with recreational offerings and exercise that extend far beyond the golf program.
As for family appeal, country club memberships are much easier for a family to justify when it benefits everyone within it. Families are always looking for solutions that create a balance between quality time with one another, and time spent on individual activities. A full roster of activities for children and adults will help to make membership more attractive to families.
Whether a busy family on the go, or millennial club members flying solo, all of the aforementioned groups will appreciate a more relaxed dress code and atmosphere. Convenience is important, and these new members will want to feel a sense of continuity between the club and their regular home life.
Designing modern, welcoming, flexible spaces will help to create not only a sense of belonging for these groups, but the flexibility will also help the spaces themselves adapt to the changing needs of the new clientele, rather than the other way around. NanaWall opening glass walls can help create spaces that are truly multifunctional, and used for a wide variety of activities.
Due to their transparency, opening glass walls have the ability to provide not only the physical separation that barriers generally afford, but also enable visibility to be maintained between the spaces they separate—perfect for parents trying to keep an eye on their kiddos!
Still need more ideas as to how to make a country club more appealing? Check-in with us next week for more insight!
Questions about NanaWall opening glass walls and country clubs? Connect immediately with a NanaWall expert.