With the help of his family, PGA Professional Jamie Carney installed a new driving range and fitting studio at Robin Hood Golf Club in Solihull last year.
This investment was symptomatic of Carney’s determination to provide a top-quality service for the golf club members – and it helped him become the Foremost Breakthrough Member of the Year.
Carney emphasises how important it is to build relationships with members and interact with them to the stage where they are treated like a friend as well as a customer.
Here, Carney explained why it is crucial to converse with club members as a Head Professional and how to provide an all-around service for everyone at the golf club.
What did you change and how do you invest in enhancing member services?
The club provided the structure, and then I kitted out all of the studio. That was quite a big investment, with the level of service we can do with custom fitting and lessons with the Trackman.
That was a large investment. The shop wasn't really offering to members - We custom fit for four of the major brands – it’s currently Ping, TaylorMade, Titleist and Mizuno – so we’re making that commitment to stock those clubs, fit those clubs and offer the full fitting service by buying into the largest packs.
The only thing I think about is trying to offer the best service possible. If you're trying to compete with the top companies offering the services, you've got to offer a similar service to the same level, if not trying to do it better.
How important is it to build interpersonal relationships with members?
Extremely important. Everyone is so different, and you get to know everything about everyone, and you strike up conversations and common ground with people based on their hobbies and their interests.
That's really important – just their general wellbeing and stuff like that. Although you're the pro at a members’ club, you still are like a member in terms of you’re part of the family.
Pictured: PGA Professional Jamie Carney (centre)
How would you advise another PGA Member on dealing with club members?
The obvious one is just being very pleasant and chatting to them, but the one that, business-wise, I focus on the most is never letting them down. Always try to provide the highest quality service you can; always reply to them in a very timely manner.
If there are any issues, communicate the issues so that they're never thinking that you're letting them down, and you're never letting them down. They understand when they come to you, they're going to get a good service and that you care, and you're going to get on to it properly, promptly, rather than things not getting done for a week and not getting back to them.
Why is it important to enhance club member services?
You need to be such a figure in the club that they don't consider going elsewhere. You need to provide high-quality coaching, so that if they're in trouble or if they want to work on their game, they don't have any other thoughts than to go to you.
If you provide a high-quality custom fitting service, they have confidence that when they're spending their money, and golf clubs are expensive, they're getting the right service and the right equipment in their hand after. If things go wrong, whether a face cracks or a shaft snaps, or a battery goes on the trolley, you act on it promptly to solve it for them.
Why is it key to have established brands in the shop?
If you booked a fitting and there are only one or two brands, the customer may not feel they're getting the exposure. You can't stock everything, so you have to make the decision based on what you think is the best offering for your membership.
You want to give them a good sample size, so that when they walk out the fitting bay, they know in their heart of hearts that they've had a really good service and tried a lot of options, so the one they're walking away with is the right option.
