Inventory in your pro shop is worthless if it stays in your pro shop. That merchandise can be a huge source of revenue for your course—but not if it’s just collecting dust. If your inventory is stagnant, don’t worry; it doesn’t have to stay that way.
While a pro shop is a secondary revenue stream for your business, it’s not a negligible resource. When your merchandise is constantly moving and selling, you’ll wonder how you ever survived without that extra income for your course.
It’s not abnormal for operators to struggle with turning over the inventory they purchase to sell at their course. If your merchandise isn’t making it into your golfers’ hands, we have some pointers to turn that around.
When a customer is on the green or in the pro shop, there are great ways to get them to stay, browse, and buy.
1. Sell pro shop gift cards.
Gift cards are an excellent way to guarantee a customer is buying all of their golf gear directly from your pro shop and not from another seller.
While your golfers may not be buying gift cards for themselves, they will likely be receiving them from friends and family. When a customer has a gift certificate, they have no reason not to simply take a look around the pro shop.
Plus, even when they’re spending the money on a pre-purchased card, they’re building familiarity with your products and staff, and hopefully some loyalty.
Making gift cards or certificates available for purchase online is a great way to increase sales of these items. Some people may not know the first thing about golf and might be intimidated by walking into a pro shop—but most everyone can use the internet. If a grandma, husband, or coworker knows where someone golfs, then all they’ve got to do is find your course’s website to purchase a meaningful gift.
2. Make the most of your displays.
Retail is all about making your inventory look desirable. You might know that the new hats you just got in are stylish and sweat-wicking, but your customers won’t automatically be aware of that.
If your inventory is overcrowded or unorganized, no one will want to find the hidden gems. Try utilizing endcaps and wall displays to really show off merchandise. Make it clear what you want them to see: “New In” or “Best Selling” signs can communicate why you think they should be interested in an item.
Your store can also benefit from frequent rotating. You don’t actually have to constantly be getting new merchandise in, but changing displays frequently presents the image that your stock doesn’t last long.
This will encourage customers to buy now—who knows how long this item will be available for? Keeping displays fresh also brings different inventory to your customers’ attention and might show them something they’ve never noticed in the store before.
But your customers shouldn’t forget about your pro shop the minute they leave. The golf industry is embracing the digital age through tools like cloud-based tee sheets and digital check-ins, and your pro shop shouldn’t be left in the stone age. Digital tools will help you make more sales when you utilize them correctly.
3. Provide sales and special offers.
Discounts are a great way to make less popular items more desirable. If something isn’t selling, it may be that your customers consider the price too high.
Instead of simply marking the price down, turn it into a sale. Make a big deal out of the sale—you can put obvious signs inside your pro shop, and you can send emails to your customers advertising the discount.
Turning the sale into a limited-time event is a great way to get golfers into your pro shop.
You can also try offering pro shop discounts to specific customers. For example, you can give golfers a small discount during the week or month of their birthday. Or, you can send personalized offers out that note specific things about your customers.
If a customer always buys tournament merchandise, send them a targeted offer that it’s available now! Not only is this a great way to make a sale, it’s also excellent customer service and shows that you remember your customers as individuals.
Email automation is extremely valuable when you have deals and sales. The system remembers who gets what offers and can easily reach your entire database when the offer is for everyone.
foreUP Email Automation is a great way to increase communication with your customers and increase foot traffic in your pro shop.
Your pro shop can be a huge source of revenue for your business—if you are making sales. By making an intentional effort to keep your merchandise fresh and desirable, you’ll be seeing more sales.
Curious about trying a new point of sale software? Request a demo of foreUP today to see how great software can improve your sales.
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