Make Them Eye It Before They Buy It

Point-of-purchase displays and materials now being made available can help meet several retailing challenges—provided they're used correctly.

by Julie Sturgeon (editor@clubandresortbusiness.com)
February 2006
 

Visual merchandising typically ranks among pro shops' trickiest challenges. Faced with too little space, too much inventory and a desire to keep the atmosphere fresh, golf pros like Dick Nelson at Indian Hills Golf Club in Stillwater, Minn., freely admit, "I'm no expert when it comes to this."

Like many of his colleagues, Nelson usually thinks of point-of-purchase materials in terms of things that can help make impulse items stand out to the customer. But in reality, point-of-purchase displays and aids can be used to highlight far more than just items positioned at the cash register or on sale racks. Manufacturers of the staples of pro shop merchandise—including shoes, clubs, balls and apparel—are throwing more research dollars into displays and visual aids that can help club and resort retailers jump the stumbling blocks they often encounter when trying to display, and move, their wares.

For example, when it comes to ball displays, Titleist is rolling out what it calls a "brand building" table, best described as a mini-coffee table. Designed to display more than 100 dozen golf balls in a very small space, its ultimate purpose is to help golf shops avoid dropping profit margins to move merchandise. "Creating large 'product builds' like this can help stimulate sales without discounting price," says Keith Duffy, a marketing coordinator for Titleist. "Consumers often think 'sale' when they see larger displays."

One of the most common retail mistakes that club and resort pro shops make, Duffy contends, is to strictly rely on three-ball sleeves at the sales counter as the full extent of their ball "merchandising" efforts. "[Shops] can grow golf ball sales simply by making more of an effort to merchandise by the dozen," he feels. "A well-placed, 40- dozen floor display near the counter at least gives the consumer the option to buy a dozen, versus buying a sleeve."

Kenny Langlois, head professional at Cherokee Run Golf Club in Conyers, Ga., uses all of the ball displays his various manufacturers offer. "It makes the brands the first thing customers see; it's like giving them a license to fish with dynamite," he says. "Anything that attracts your eye to the ball is good." Langlois also tries to position as many items as possible near the counter, believing that "word of mouth is everything in this industry. If they see it and have heard something about it, they buy it," he feels.

But simply offering 20- and 40-dozen ball floor displays wouldn't cut it with David Christenson, Director of Golf at Circling Raven Golf Club in Worley, Idaho.His shop's rustic décor—he focuses on elements such as grasses, rocks, and antlers that reflect the club's location on the Coeur d'Alene Reservation