Companies with head in sand lose customers and sales reps

Was talking with a friend about a tennis pro who was coaching a huge named player on the ATP tour. Couldn’t believe how little this coach was being paid for his time. His weekly salary was comparable to that of a wallpaper hangar. No diss intended to wph’ers just making a point.

Got me thinking about the Matt Kuchar saga.

In case you haven’t heard, Kuchar played and won a golf tournament in Mexico, the 2018 Mayakoba Classic. His regular caddie couldn’t make it so he used a local guy named David Ortiz from a local club.

Kuchar won the tournament (first win in 4 years), and a grand prize of $1,296.000 of which Ortiz received $5000.00.

That’s .0039% of total winnings!

PGA Tour caddies typically get 10% of earnings, expenses paid and bonuses if their player finishes within the top10.

That’s bad.

Not only was it a measly pay-out but a really poor look for Kuchar, his “brand” along with his agent Mark Steinberg the worlds premier golf agent who also happens to manage Tiger Woods.

It gets worse.

Social media blew up calling Kuchar ”el cheapo”, jackass and worse yet he continued to hold his ground not budging from his defense.

Adding insult to injury, when asked about the evolving debacle Kuchar’s response was “I certainly don’t lose any sleep over this”.

Ouch!

Eventually Kuchar caved-in and paid Ortiz $50,000 plus an additional donation to charities in the Cancun area.

By denying the problem and defending his actions, Kuchar created a PR mess that could have long lasting negative effects on his career.

The point here is golf manufacturers help drive sales and create staying power by listening to customer and/or sales force complaints, admit when they are wrong, are open to change OR better yet, fix the problem.

Companies who make promises they can’t keep or slack on quality control or have chronic difficulties with recruiting and “high” turnover or struggle with brand recognition, don’t last very long in the golf industry.

These are the same organizations who are closed minded and get defensive or “ghost” when complaints appear…a recipe for disaster.

Instead be smart, listen and adapt.

Oh…one last thing…if you’re fortunate to have a few great salespeople or two on your team, treat them like gold!

It’s very difficult to recruit and keep honest, hard working independent golf reps. The good ones will “work their buns off” for you and become loyal brand ambassadors if treated fairly.

Speaking of recruiting, if your company needs sales talent exclusive to the golf industry check-out details below regarding our recruiting services.

Dawn Schlesinger
Chiefgolfjobologist

/by

What’s donuts got to do with resume?

Let’s face it, it’s tough to get a good job in the highly competitive golf industry.

At GolfSurfin.com, I’m always preaching that candidates need to stand-out, do something different, take a different tack when applying to jobs.

Heres a great example.

A few years back a new young transplant from Lithuania named Lukas Yla was seeking a marketing gig in Silicon Valley, another nasty competitive industry full of talent.

Lukas got real creative by dressing-up as a Postmates delivery guy and delivered boxes of Mr. Holmes Bakehouse doughnuts to some of the biggest Bay Area tech companies like Lyft, Uber, Instacart and Postmates with a pitch: give him a job.

The result?

He scored over 10 interviews with the companies and ad agencies.

According to Yla “People appreciate this approach. They understand that it requires time, creativity and a hustler attitude”.

This approach may be a bit too extreme or gimmicky for you (I for one think its pretty ballsy) but this story does make the point that creativity is rewarded for those bold enough to be different.

Not everyone has to dress-up as imposter to get her/his foot in the door.

There are various ways to make a good impression during the job application process.

One way is to use the easiest, most cost effective job seeking tool in the industry called GolfSurfin.com’s “White Glove” service.

Through White Glove your quick-read headline will highlight your unique qualities and great benefits you will bring to the table and send it directly to hiring managers, HR executives and golf company owners.

We’ll help present the best “you” possible in a timely, profession and honest manner at a price that won’t break the bank.

Want more details? Click here to get started.

Dawn Schlesinger
Chiefgolfjobologist

/by