Along with other types business, the golf industry is faced with a digital emergency. The evolution of communication has hit warp speed at least a couple of times throughout history, but nothing compares to the rapid change in technology we’re seeing today.
The practice of early communications like cave painting and petroglyphs lasted for tens of thousands of years. If you stop and think about it, smoke signals were once, an advancement in long range communication. From the late 1800s through the early 1900s rapid change in communication began to occur. The transcontinental telegraph started putting pony express riders out of work in 1861. The first telephone call happened in 1876. The development of radio technology began prior to the telegraph and telephone and the first public radio broadcast in 1910, threatened print for the top position in mainstream media. After several decades of advancement, it became obvious radio had a major competitor in television. By the mid 1920s (the course of 40 years), we saw all this advancement, along with automobiles and airplanes. So, compared to earlier forms of communication that era certainly represents rapid change.
The telegraph, telephone, radio, television, and eventually computers led inventors and forward thinkers to envision global computer connectivity as early as the 1960s. Yes, that was well before Al Gore’s claims. It wasn’t until the early 1980s that widespread infrastructure made possible the world wide web, or the information superhighway as it was called. The www promised to change everything with the ability to transport data at the speed of light. Email and websites became part of normal communication, and we began to learn ways to harness the internet for the purpose of marketing.
Perhaps the era of most rapid change is upon us right now. It has taken several decades for the internet to be considered a formidable competitor for previous communication methods. That the internet will soon encompass ALL other forms of communication is now evident. Internet radio (in terms of listeners) surpassed its rival, terrestrial radio, in 2008. Internet television is threatening cable networks in a way that is changing the way they market right now. The advent of social media, smart devices of every sort, apps, and an ever increasing demand of user attention, is fueling change at an alarming pace.Suddenly, every business is faced with learning about search marketing and evolving search engine algorithms. Being found on the internet requires having a “digital strategy” in addition to everything else.
Competition for attention, and demand for instant gratification and response have created a digital emergency of sorts. Early adopters are certainly going to be the clear winners. If you haven’t created and updated your digital strategy in the past twelve months, you’re probably missing business! Sadly, most reading this will not have such a strategy, and most likely have not updated their websites in over two years. The golf industry is lagging behind at a time when it needs to accell. Many hold on to dying technology as if they think it will somehow miraculously once again rise and become effective. It will not! Email campaigns are becoming less effective with every passing month. Print media, as we knew it, is already gone. Look at our history and realize the need for immediate change, or your business may be a casualty. It is that simple. If you would like to discuss your digital future, contact iNetGolf HERE.