Home |
Press
Room |
Press Release Archives | Golf Club Brands Awareness & Usage
For Immediate Release October 13, 2003
Contact: Cristi Allen
callen@decisionanalyst.com
Phone: 817-640-6166
Golf Club Brands, Current Marketing Efforts Have Little Impact On Users,
Decision Analyst, Inc. Survey Shows
Arlington, Texas - When it comes to ranking golf club brands, both in terms of
company profile and the clubs they sell, the golf-playing public often pays
little heed to the brands' marketing efforts, according to a nationwide study
by Decision Analyst, Inc., a marketing research and marketing consulting firm.
The study (completed by a nationally representative sample of 3,805 golfers)
delivered findings that may well prove to be troubling reading for many (though
not all) club manufacturers.
The survey respondents had great difficulty judging which brands are most likely
to be found in the bags of their fellow golfers - be they amateur or
professional. When asked to pick which club brand is most played, the top
choice was Callaway with 20 percent, yet the true market share for Callaway is
approaching double that level. Similarly, just one percent of respondents
identified Cobra as a leading club manufacturer, a long way short of the ten
percent market share enjoyed by the company.
"Few amateur golfers appear to have any real idea whose clubs are in their
fellow players' bags," said Decision Analyst, Inc. Vice President Bruce
Crandall, who supervised the study. "The data shows some companies - Ping and
Wilson for example - have built a brand equity significantly stronger than
their true market share, while others - notably Callaway, TaylorMade-Adidas,
and Cobra - have plenty of room for improving brand awareness."
One key explanation for the lack of brand awareness may lie in the club
purchasing process. The survey found the number one factor determining club
purchases was "value for the money" (chosen by 28 percent of respondents).
Known product quality and prior personal experience (22 and 16 percent
respectively) were the other key factors. Compared to these considerations,
just 3 percent of respondents said they base their buying decision on
recommendations by a well-known spokesperson or tour professional, and an
identical percentage considered brand popularity to be important.
"The survey findings suggest that the marketing power of many brands is very
weak, and that the recommendations of touring pros carry little influence when
it comes time to buy," said Crandall. "Take the case of Titleist, for example.
It was considered to be the second most popular professional-played brand, yet
only 9% of those golfers we surveyed were interested in winning a set of
Titleist clubs (compared to 21 percent who would like Ping clubs and 24 percent
for Callaway). A lot of the club brands have their work cut out for them if
they are to convince the amateur golfing public to buy their products."
| |
Most Played Overall?
|
Most Played By Pros?
|
Would Most Like To Win In A Prize Drawing?
|
|
Wilson
|
14%
|
5%
|
4%
|
|
Titleist
|
13%
|
19%
|
9%
|
|
Callaway
|
20%
|
22%
|
24%
|
|
Ping
|
16%
|
16%
|
21%
|
|
Top-Flite
|
4%
|
4%
|
3%
|
|
MacGregor
|
5%
|
3%
|
3%
|
|
TaylorMade
|
12%
|
11%
|
10%
|
|
Dunlop
|
3%
|
2%
|
1%
|
|
Ben Hogan
|
2%
|
2%
|
4%
|
|
Nike
|
2%
|
3%
|
6%
|
Methodology
The results are based on a nationally representative survey conducted online
among 3,805 golf club owners, which was referenced with Census Bureau data for
gender, age, geography, marital status, presence of children, and income. The
study's margin of error is plus or minus one percent. Survey respondents were
members of the American Consumer Opinion� online panel, one of the largest
consumer panels in the world, which includes over 3.5 million consumers. The
survey was open to adult consumers in the U.S.
Detailed findings
More information, including detailed data breakdowns, from the study is
available online at Multi-Brand
Awareness, Attitude, and Usage Survey
About Decision Analyst
Decision Analyst, Inc. is a leading marketing research and marketing consulting
firm specializing in advertising testing, strategy research, new product
development, and advanced modeling for marketing decision optimization. The
firm delivers competitive advantage to clients throughout the world in the
consumer packaged goods, telecommunications, retail, high technology, medical
and pharmaceutical, utilities, and e-commerce industries. Decision Analyst
operates American Consumer Opinion� Online, one of the world's largest Internet
consumer opinion panels, with more than 3.5 million participants.
For additional information contact:
Cristi Allen
Publicity
Email: callen@decisionanalyst.com
Phone: 1.800.ANALYSIS (262.5974)
Address: 604 Avenue H East
Arlington, TX 76011
Visit our Logos
& Images page for photographs and logos,
if needed.
