Summer is in full swing and so are golfers at over 16,000 courses from Connecticut to California. And before stepping up to the first tee, 75 percent take 10 minutes or so to warm up.
Sponsors’ logos embedded in golf practice mats is a new program in an area that’s traditionally free of advertising.
To find out how to leverage your client’s message on the links, read on.
This is one in a Media Life series on buying the new out-of-home venues. They appear weekly.
Fast Facts
What
Branding artificial turf practice mats at high-end golf courses.
Who
2aTEE Golf, headquartered in New York.
How it works
Sponsors place their logo and tag line on the high-quality artificial turf mats in golf courses’ practice areas. The program is called Virtual Turf.
“When you show up to play a round of golf, on a private or public course, you warm up,” says president Keith Fiore. “A longstanding problem is that the practice mats don’t have a natural feel. The design of Virtual Turf provides natural feel, give. It feels exactly like playing out on a course.”
The advertiser’s logo and message are embossed in four-color process using the same technology that’s used by the NFL on football stadium turf.
Mats measure 46.5 inches square. The message area is 36.5 inches wide and 28.5 inches deep.
Another component of the program is the installation of tabletop displays in clubhouses and pro shops for distribution of the advertiser’s literature. “All programs are customizable and can include imprinted premiums like customized, branded balls,” Fiore says. Contests, such as hole-in-one challenges, can be added.
Specific courses can be targeted. “For example, Comcast wanted upscale, private courses in Maryland for a product rollout,” Fiore says. “We were able to deliver four courses that were previously not doing any advertising.”
Advertisers are local, regional and national. Exclusivity is built in.
Markets
The mats are available is all 50 states, Fiore says. Currently the branded mats are installed in Maryland.
Numbers
There are 2,200-plus golfer interactions per mat per year, according to a study conducted by Atlanta-based Institute for Mobile Marketing Research (IMMR).
There are 16,000-plus golf courses the U.S., 2,850 driving ranges, and some 500 million round of golf are played each year, with another 375,000,000 practice sessions.
How it is measured
Players using and mats and numbers of games are tracked.
Research
Studies conducted by Dr. Phil Hendrix, head of UMMR, found that:
-Awareness and recall of messages placed on Virtual Turf are nearly double those of traditional media (defined in this case as place-based media consisting of a mix of video and wall media with an awareness in the 20 to 25 percent range). Factors that contribute to findings follow.
o The uncluttered environment of golf course practice areas.
o Duration of exposure is typically 10 to 15 minutes compared to the 10 to 15 seconds for other media like billboards or elevator interiors.
o The context in which the ad is presented is positive in that it is a recreational setting.
What product categories do well
Luxury items like top-end automobiles, jewelry, liquor and financial services fit well. Golf-related products and equipment are also a top category.
Demographics
Targeting is done by market, zip code, golfer profile and by type of course, private or public.
Making the buy
Lead time for production is four weeks and for course selection is two to four weeks.
Campaigns are season-long, which means 12 months in many markets, Fiore says.
“Most golf courses nationwide are open all year, with the peak season starting in April and lasting through October, except for Phoenix or Florida, where the peak is October through April, or Los Angeles, where it’s year round.”
Programs can start any time in the 12-month cycle. Rates are $15,975 per course per year, including production, for an average 15 mats per course.
Who’s already on Virtual Turf
Comcast
What they’re saying
“This Comcast product is one of the fastest technologies out there, and it’s only available in some zip codes, in upscale neighborhoods. So we were looking for something primarily geo-targeted to reach an upscale audience. We were also looking to do something and be somewhere where the competition wasn’t, and this program matched those criteria.” – Laura Major, media supervisor for the Philadelphia-based Star Group, which did the buy for Comcast High Speed
Web site info
2aTEE Golf at www.2ateegolf.com
