Golf car businesses are popping up all over. According to Club Car and E-Z-GO dealer locator tools, there are over 250 golf car dealers within South Florida alone. This number does not include other brands or custom golf car builders, and realistically totals well over 1000 within a 250 radius. It is both exciting and scary for golf car dealerships and custom builders. How does your business stand out in the sea of golf car saturation? One thing is certain, marketing is important and here are a few ideas that can be easily implemented for any golf car business.

1. Be Flashy

Golf cars are big, bold and stand out in a crowd. Using your golf cars is the best form of advertising. Tie balloons to them and park them by a busy roadway or directly in front of your business. If your business is less visible, partner with another business with better visibility and park the golf car in front of their business.

Are there restaurants near your business? Drive your golf cars to lunch and park right in front while you eat lunch. Drive your custom golf car in the local parade, to the ball field, or trailer it behind your truck as a mobile billboard. You get the picture. Signs, logos, and vehicle wraps only go so far. Customers are attracted to actual golf cars.

2. Get Listed

It is an advantage to have a fancy website with high volume traffic, but it isn’t necessary. If your golf car business needs more action, list your business for free on local business listing sites. The following drive the most traffic:

• Google
• Bing
• Yahoo!
• Yelp
• Facebook
• Merchant Circle

Be sure to include accurate and consistent business and contact information on each listing and it will not take long for your phones to start ringing.

3. Network

People love doing business with people they know. Build trust within the community and get your business name out by networking. Call a few local professional groups and ask if their membership already includes a golf car dealer. Be the first and you have gained hundreds of loyal customers. A few groups to try are:

• MasterMind Groups
• Chamber of Commerce
• Local Merchant Association
• Kiwanis
• Rotary
• Optimists

Not only will you meet new people regularly and participate in service projects, but you will meet some of the most successful professionals in your community and some will be ready to buy from you.

4. Host Contests and Giveaways

Hosting a carefully planned contest or giveaway can deliver your perfect customers right to your door. Follow these steps:

• Decide on a prize. The prize should be something that your target customers will love. The bigger the prize, the more publicity it will receive. For maximum benefits, give away a custom cart.
• Implement. If your contest is online, use KingSumo or another platform that will collect information about the entrants and will randomly select a winner. If the contest is in person, decide how you will collect information and make sure that the drawing is conducted in public and is random. Select a start and finish date and plan an event to announce the winner. The email addresses you collect will allow you to continue advertising your business long after the contest is over.
• Advertise. Call radio stations, issue press releases, promote through social media and through email. The goal is to get the word out to every potential customer you can imagine.
• Announce. The announcement of the winner should be a spectacle. Announce the winner live on the radio or over a mic at an event. Think big.
• Focus on your business’ strengths and what differentiates it from hundreds of other golf car businesses. Ask your customers why they prefer your business and learn from them to attract new customers. Golf cars are only growing in popularity, so there is room in the industry for everyone. But, those businesses that successfully market will rise to the top.