Capstone Case Study: Golf Membership Sales & Hawks Ridge Golf Club

Hawks Ridge Golf Club is a privately-owned club located outside of Atlanta, Georgia. Known for their excellent golf, dining and events, the club has been recognized in Golf Digest’s “100 Greatest” and “Best Courses in Every State” awards several years running. The amenities include an 18-hole championship golf course, a 9-hole par 3 course, advanced practice facilities, a fitness center, and on-site private cottages. 

Hawks Ridge first partnered with Capstone Hospitality in September of 2019 to grow their golf club membership. The team at Hawks Ridge Golf Club stumbled upon Capstone while looking to hire a new membership director. Their membership director at the time wasn’t able to meet the tours and sales goals the club set, but they also found hiring a new membership director to be an unexpected challenge.

Since partnering with our team here at Capstone, Hawks Ridge Golf Club has seen:

• A 505% increase in the number of initiation fees sold from the year prior to partnering with Capstone

• An increase of 150% in the dollar amount of initiation fees

• 160+ new members join since bringing Capstone onboard

With these successes, Hawks Ridge Golf Club has been able to accomplish everything they have wanted and more, all by partnering with the team at Capstone rather than just hiring another membership director. 

Here are three key takeaways from the experience Hawks Ridge Golf Club has had with Capstone. 

1. On-the-ground Capstone Hospitality team members seamlessly integrate into your private club and dedicate themselves to selling memberships.

While the sales team members from Capstone are not employed by the private clubs directly, it’s imperative that they seamlessly integrate themselves into the club atmosphere in order to understand your members, the market you’re in, and the way the club has historically handled membership sales. As Jennifer Oliff, General Manager at Hawks Ridge, explained it: “Many members probably don’t even know our sales rep isn’t employed by us directly.”

She found, however, that Capstone ensured the performance of the sales team members working at the club. “Capstone really holds their employees accountable for tours, sales and keeping up with their budgets,” Oliff pointed out. 

And now, the club is on track to meet their membership cap in the next month and start a waitlist, which is a major source of security for a private club. Should any current members resign their membership, the Hawks Ridge team will have new members waiting in line having paid a deposit, guaranteeing their commitment to joining the club. 

2. Capstone Hospitality uses a multi-prong approach to golf membership sales, including increasing initiation fees. 

One of the methods Capstone used to help Hawks Ridge meet their membership goals was through initiation fees. Subsequently, Capstone was able to to increase the club’s initiation fees by 150% and increase the number of initiation fees sold by 505%.

Initiation fees are key because they reflect the value of a golf club membership relative to the marketplace, in addition to allowing the club to make improvements on amenities, renovations and upkeep of their facilities. It also grows the club’s capital reserves and maintains pressure on the market place in a way that benefits the club. 

3. With Capstone Hospitality, your club has access to experts at the push of a button. 

Having a Capstone-trained sales representative on the ground at the club is only one aspect of the Capstone partnership. Clubs are also able to benefit from Capstone’s proprietary CRM system, which organizes and tracks sales leads in the pipeline to help form a successful strategy. While Capstone’s Lead Generation Center is off-site at the company’s HQ in Neptune Beach, Florida, they’re constantly driving lead generation programs to help the on-site Membership Sales Directors book tours and close more deals. 

Oliff noted that the guidance and experience of Capstone’s team members played a huge role in the success of the partnership. “It’s nice to be able to call up the team and ask questions about things they have seen at other places, even if it isn’t always membership-related,” she expressed.

After the growth in initiation fees and the increase in memberships sold, Oliff would absolutely recommend Capstone’s services to other private clubs. “If your sales are struggling, you really don’t have a reason not to give them a try,” she advises.

If you’re interested in how Capstone Hospitality could revitalize your private membership club sales or you’ve been having trouble looking for a membership director, take action today and learn how partnering with Capstone could not only lead to achieving, but surpassing your sales goals.