With the PGA’s Buick Invitational in San Diego, the appearance of the season’s first new ad campaigns are as predictable as a Tiger Woods victory. Last year, the early-season hype was square-headed drivers.
This year it’s quieter: Tiger hawking Buick Enclaves (a given) and PGA tour professionals sharing how they mark their Titleist golf balls (with a Sharpie in all manner of fun and colors).
Golf balls come in boxes of a dozen. They can fetch up to $50 or more when in high demand. They produce great margins. Major golf companies have gone to extreme lengths to position their products as technologically superior — Low-Drag Performance (LDP), three-piece, four-piece, hexagon-shaped dimples, 332 dimples, 360 dimples, 378 dimples, 392 dimples with Icosahedral pattern and a Staggered Wave parting line.
But what sells most golf balls?
Word of mouth.
It’s how Titleist seized more than 50% market share in the early 2000s with the launch of its Pro V1 and holds a dominant lead today. Word of mouth spreads in many ways. Here’s how manufacturers are encouraging word to spread about their golf ball offerings off the golf course and outside the clubhouse.
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On the Titleist website, no sign of a viral component, but links to TV ads (old-school).
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On the Nike Golf website, a “send” button for visitors to forward info to friends (new-school).
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On the TaylorMade Golf website, a “print this page” button (study-school).
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On the Callaway website, video and charts (one-way instructional school).
What school do you belong to when marketing your products online?
