The Pellucid Perspective - July 2011 - (Page 6)

PUBLIC RELATIONS Positive P.R. leads to course record revenue month Innovative food waste recycling program, 9-11 wedding giveaway create buzz — and business By Jim Dunlap hen Affinity Golf Management Managing Director Damon DeVito and his partner reviewed the June numbers for the Musket Ridge Golf Club property they manage, they were delighted, but puzzled. Revenues for every department of the Myersville, Md., course were up significantly, but after reviewing the month’s weather, outing and group bookings and marketing efforts, they couldn’t find anything that seemed to hold the key to the banner month. They finally concluded that the bump in business was probably due to positive – and free – publicity the club had generated, almost accidentally, with one innovative recycling program and one bold giveaway. “When I looked at the Dashboard with my partner [in late W CONDITIONED FOR SUCCESS. The golf landscape in America has changed. In a market overcrowded with golf courses and little prospect for demand to grow significantly, today’s course owners and operators are experiencing extreme competitive pressure in nearly every aspect of their business. Never before has there been more reason to work smarter and more efficiently—or more reason to partner with ValleyCrest Golf Course Maintenance. As the national leader in golf course maintenance contracting, we’re a trusted steward of all manner of golf properties throughout America. 24151 Ventura Boulevard Calabasas, CA 91302 (888) 406-GOLF www.valleycrest.com Comprehensive Golf Course Maintenance June[, we realized we were on our way to a record month, and things hadn’t been gradually trending that way,” DeVito said. “We hadn’t really done anything different. The weather had been good, but not crazy good, we were out from under bank ownership, but that had been five or six months ago, and it’s not that we were trading revenue for rounds. Our rounds were up 11 percent, but we’re not discounting, and when we dug into the Flash report, our averages in the shop, food & beverage, banquet and outing business were all up. We decided it has to be good word of mouth and good will, because we have gotten some positive media coverage recently for a couple of things we’re doing there.” The first wave of positive media coverage dealt with the club’s decision to implement an aggressive zero food waste Bokashi recycling and composting program to convert the club’s restaurant food waste into reusable compost. DeVito said the idea stemmed from an environmentally sensitive outing customer who inquired about any proactive ecological programs at Musket Ridge that he might be able to cite in their event promotion materials. “We started thinking about it, and realized we were falling short,” DeVito said. “Our chef really took it on and started using more eco-sensitive cleaning products inside. We’d always been fairly sensitive about outside, water use, etc., but then a friend who is with Rock ‘N Renew (a group of professional musicians dedicated to environmental preservation and sustainability) told us about [Bokashi] composting. Instead of a rotting process, it’s kind of a pickling process. “We told the people at Rock ‘N Renew we’d let them use Musket Ridge as a demonstration site, and they showed us how it works,” DeVito continued. “The process is pretty simple. You just put all the food waste in a large commercial bucket – anything, meat, dairy, vegetables, all your waste. We figured out that we produce 2-4 tons of food waste at the facility per year. We put the covered cans on a pallet out of sight, the waste kind of ferments, and in a couple of weeks you have kind of a super mulch that can be used in a variety of ways. One thing we did was that our chef planted a garden out back and fertilized it with the mulch so he always has fresh herbs, vegetables, etc.” After several local papers have run stories about the practice, DeVito said the club has hosted local elementary school and camp groups to see how it works, and has received several calls July 2011 6 The Pellucid PersPecTive http://www.valleycrest.com http://www.valleycrest.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Pellucid Perspective - July 2011

The Pellucid Perspective - July 2011
Contents
The PGA of America hits the restart button on player development
Permanent tee times, Chicago style
Positive P.R. leads to course record revenue month
Exploring the alternative golf universe
Jun 2011 YtD weather impact, May 2011 YtD utilization
Life at the top of the market
Minneapolis, MN Core Business Statistical Area (CBSA)
Comings & goings
Musings from the rough

The Pellucid Perspective - July 2011