Will Dannon Be "Punting" on Greek Yogurt?

Yogurt giant Dannon announced yesterday that it will be advertising during the Super Bowl, making it the first yogurt company to do so. SportsBusinessDaily reports the 30-second spot will air during the third quarter of the game and is expected to be just one piece of a fully-integrated campaign.

While the big game may be a new platform, major advertising and promotional spending is nothing new for the major yogurt competitors. According to Brandweek's annual Superbrands report, Yoplait and Dannon each spend in excess of $100 million in measured advertising in 2010.

Going Greek

Health-concious consumers have made aggressive moves towards Greek-style yogurts in the past three years.  According to Mintel, no product trend has had more impact int the yogurt category in a shorter period of time.  Twice as high in protein, Greek brands emphasize natural ingredients and add little or no extra sugar. The category has been dominated by Fage and Chobani while Yoplait and Dannon have struggled to keep pace, partly because of their uber-long ingredient list and their inability to claim to be all-natural or organic.

But don't look for the Super Bowl ad to target the Greek-style category but rather, as Sr. Director of PR Michael Neuwirth says, "communicate a broader effort to get people to eat more yogurt." With such a broad message, Dannon risks "punting" on the Greek-style category and growing the entire yogurt pie instead. Additionally, by possibly focusing on product benefits that are inherent to all Greek-style yogurts, the advertising may succeed at least in boosting the entire Greek category at Dannon's own expense. Fage and Chobani will be thankful.


Source: Mintel

Wartime Golf Rules

The following temporary rules were posted at England's The Richmond Club during Wartime in 1940. And I thought the USGA's Rules of Golf were bad. A stroke penalty for a bomb explosion?

Rock Hard Balls

Aside from my Twitter avatar - and a few episodes featuring Kramer and Stan The Caddy - rarely do two of my favorite things (Golf & Seinfeld) come together. That's why I was thrilled when a buddy sent me this irreverent promo for Rangé golf balls.

Starring John O'Hurley, Patrick Warburton and Matt McCoy (J. Peterman, David Puddy and Lloyd Braun), it was done as part of a promo for the Charles Schulz Celebrity Golf Classic, held each May in Sonoma, CA.  Hurley serves as the event's host and while it's great to see him hanging with his Seinfeld colleagues, it's also interesting to see an off-color approach to raising money for charity. I like it.

Golf needs more of this. 

Olivas Links Golf Course: Not Your Average Muni

Challening Par-3 14th

While I initially had mixed feelings about making the 65 minute trek out to Ventura from Santa Monica, I decided to take a couple of folks’ advice (Thanks, Alex & @TheGolfChick!) and see what all the fuss was about. Besides, it takes an hour to drive anywhere in L.A.

Conveniently located off the 101 Freeway, in sunny, relaxing Ventura, CA, I decided to hit up Olivas Link, a Forrest Richardson designed gem I kept hearing about. Olivas offers a great golf experience for locals as well as tourists and those braving the traffic from neighboring Los Angeles and Santa Barbara counties. Having finally played, I can now see why it was just named the #32 muni course in the nation by Golfweek. I promise the 83 I shot had nothing to do with it. 

 Facilities

The entire course was rehabbed about seven years ago. This included the construction of a new clubhouse along with a course enhancement. Well, the clubhouse was never built and what’s left are a couple of glorified trailers from which a snack shop and pro shop are left to do their thing. Not the best sign when you roll in the entrance, but when you see the natural grass driving range complemented by two large putting and chipping greens, you’re reminded that you’re here for the golf anyways and instantly forget about the lack of clubhouse. 

Service

You can’t tell this is a muni course. Honestly, it was one of the best course staffs I’ve encountered since moving to Southern California nearly two years ago. I arrived just after 8AM on a Monday morning to notice a crowd of older golfers occupying the practice facility and was worried about when I might get on and how long of a round I’m looking at. The pro shop staff – along with the Sales Director Nadia Osborn - greeted me warmly with casual conversation and was kind enough to put me in after the Seniors Men’s Club teed off (instead of smack dab in the middle). That gave me enough time to work out some of those weekend kinks and get used to the local greens. In all, from the pro shop staff to the starter to the Jersey Mike Sub-slinging food cart attendant, everyone was happy to be at work on a Monday morning. Again, I can’t stress enough how “un-muni” the course is. Good times.

Course

While my local playing partner said it’s technically a links-style course, the strategically placed cypress tress along with how the greens are cut might lead you to believe otherwise. Still, the links-style ocean breezes will not only keep you cool, but will have you second guessing your club selections all day. I was lucky to be playing with a local. Without his knowledge, it would have been tough to navigate some of the rolls and blind second shots on some short, tricky dog legs. 

The course measures 6,818 rolling yards of well-manicured fairways and true-rolling greens. The bunkers are truly beachy with their light, fluffy sand, which was a nice surprise for someone who hasn't seen much of that at public courses in SoCal, especially at munis.

Olivas Links is just one of Ventura’s pair of municipal courses, the other being Buenaventura which is right up the road. Both facilities are managed by Kemper Sports who should be proud of themselves and their staff for delivering a delightful golfing experience at only a muni price. 

Course Details:

Olivas Links
3750 Olivas Park Drive
Ventura, CA 93001
Golf Shop Phone: (805) 677-6770

http://www.olivaslinks.com

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Olivas-Links/176538421942

Directions from Los Angeles/Southern California:  Take Hwy 101 North and exit at South Victoria Ave. Turn Left under the Hwy and follow signs to the Olivas Links Golf Course.

Directions from Santa Barbara/Northern California: Take Hwy 101 South and Exit Harbor Blvd. Turn Left (East onto Olivas Park Drive. Golf Course entrance will be on your right.

Morning Drive, Morning Miss

Last December, when I heard the Golf Channel was set to air its first live morning show, I was ecstatic.  Out here in L.A., one can handle only so much NPR and Colin Cowherd in the morning, so this was a true blessing in my life. Even during my time in Chicago, I was thirsty for some commuter-friendly golf content to complement the morning shuffle.

Did GC drop the ball on this one?

I was familiar with Erik Kuselias from ESPN and had heard good things about Gary Williams from the PGATour Network. And while the content would focus primarily on golf, it promised to feature news and commentary about stories from a wide range of subjects. Right up my alley, for sure. Well, not entirely so.

While they set up the studio to look like a radio show, it’s strangely only distributed on television. In taking something out of the world-wide leader’s playbook (they clearly copied the production of ESPN’s Mike & Mike in the Morning),  did they forget it was a radio show before it was simulcast on television?   In addition to no radio stream, Morning Drive has no podcast or smart phone app. I’ve reached out to show personnel to see if there was something in the works and…..Bubkis.

The show does air at 6 AM out west, so I am able to get about 15 minutes of content from the other room while I’m performing my morning routine. I’m sure the advertisers love that.

Perhaps there’s not a big enough market to justify a national syndication for the show, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be distributed through some sort of smart phone technology (app, podcast, etc). How have they missed this? Granted, I haven’t looked at their ratings so maybe the numbers look good and the show’s doing enough for their loyal advertisers to justify their ad spends.

So if the Golf Channel’s target markets for Morning Drive are golf bloggers (and others that work from home) and retirees sitting on their couch at 7AM, well done, fellas. You’ve nailed it. But if the Golf Channel wants to reach anyone else – you know, the majority of golf fans that are on-the-go – they might want to rethink how they’re distributing a show like Morning Drive.

The Golfer's Ultimate 6-Pack

     Golfers love beer and beer loves golfers. It's continues to be a long-lasting, meaningful relationship. Can someone package that up for us, please? Absolutely. Bridgestone, the #1 ball-fitter in golf, is partnering with Michelob ULTRA this summer in a way golf and beer lovers have not yet seen.


The Golfer's Ultimate 6-Pack will be hitting retailers on May 23rd, just in time for those Father's Day rounds. Believe it or not, it should be the first retail package to combine beer and golf balls (Bridgestone e6's) at a single point of purchase. No word yet on exactly where these points of purchase will be.


The promotion serves as a great complement to Bridgestone's more conservative commercials where staff members gloat about their high-performing balls while sipping on iced tea in a dark clubhouse.


And this is hardly the first venture into the golf world for Michelob, the official beer sponsor of both the PGA Tour and the LPGA. With only 95 calories, Michelob ULTRA serves drinkers who like to think they have 'active lifestyles.' It now aims to be the on and off-course six pack for those golfers who want to maintain their six packs..... all while getting 3 sheets to the wind on the course with their buddies. 


My question is why limit this to Father's Day? I'm sure there's some Moms that would be down with this, right? Plus, this would be a great stocking stuffer, hand out at charity scrambles and bachelor parties.  

Private Equity Firms Lead In Acushnet Sweepstakes

Over the weekend, Fortune Brands CEO Bruce Carbonari updated CNBC by saying, "..there is very active interest from a broad range of perspective buyers." Of course there is, Bruce.

Despite all the reports though, according to sources in the business, there are only two realistic outcomes of the Acushnet situation: They will either be sold to a Private Equity firm or spun off from their parent to run independently. Here's why:

As far as an industry sale is concerned, the redundancies outweigh the synergies for potential buyers. The double dipping in footwear brands should alone keep Nike and Adidas out of the running. In addition, lingering anti-trust concerns should prevent another industry competitor, namely Callaway, from getting a deal done.

Golf media companies, whose revenues are highly dependent on selling ad inventory to equipment manufacturers, are wary of this as any industry consolidation (of an already consolidated industry) would spell less demand/competition for their precious ad space.

No need to worry though. 

Reports are that Blackstone Group - previously assumed to be bidding alongside Callaway - will now be going in alone. Going in sans Callaway eliminates the anti-trust concerns, thus paving the way for Fortune Brands to fetch close to their $1.3 billion asking price from a highly capable buyer. Additionally, word on the Street is that two other PE firms will be placing bids some time today. In the end, PE firms are flushed with cash, motivated, and looking to buy at early on in the cycle. They also don't have redundancies or anti-trust concerns to detract from any deal value. This should allow Fortune to avoid a spin off and find a fit with a motivated buyer in the investor community.

PGA Tour Volunteers: Leaving Their Mark

     Last week I had the opportunity to volunteer at the Northern Trust Open. I was on break from grad school and with the tourney being held up the street at Riviera CC, I saw it as a chance to see a side of golf tournaments I had been curious about for some time. I submitted my application and was assigned to standard bearing Friday - Sunday. Due to an oversupply of volunteers on Sunday, however, I reassigned myself to working the 17th hole where I worked shot-link and "kept the peace" at the tee and green. While this was a great opportunity for almost any fan to get inside the ropes, I walked away with far more than a front row seat. I walked away with a new appreciation for the role of volunteers and how their work is integral to the success of the Tour.

     Most people know that the PGA Tour generates more dollars for charity than any other sport, estimated to reach $2 billion in aggregate charitable giving by 2015. The Northern Trust alone has generated over $50 million for local charities in the past, and with Jerry West now at the helm, they look to up the ante in years to come by leveraging the wealth of nearby Tinseltown.
     What must not be forgotten though is that the selfless commitment of hundreds of volunteers - who now have to pay $70 to "volunteer" each and every week - enables the Tour to generate these millions for charity (and keep ticket prices so cheap). It speaks not only to the character of the volunteers, but it speaks to the game, its values and the mission of the Tour to come into a community and make a difference. Describing his commitment to L.A. charities Jerry West explained, "In golf, it's what you put in that counts." No one embodies this better than the hundreds of volunteers dedicating their time (and money) at PGA Tour events each and every week.

TaylorMade: The #1 Driver In A Shrinking Market

     Last Thursday, TaylorMade's new R11 driver was made available to the general public. This came about a month after the Carlsbad, CA manufacturer launched one of its most aggressive (and expensive) advertising campaigns ever, titled "Only R11." In addition to its staff professionals endorsing and sporting the products for the first month on Tour, the brand's promotion strategy included a "white out" at the Farmer's Insurance Open and at other offline and online locations. The now familiar TV spot listed below, courtesy of indy shop, NYCA, goes against the grain of golf manufacturers' traditional 'cookie-cutter' promotions. The spot includes children's voices singing a chorus "One of These Things is not like the Other" as traditional, black-crowned drivers from competitive brands cross the screen in an almost Apple-esque digital parade. The final driver is TaylorMade's category changing, white-crowned TaylorMade R11 Driver which dramatically interrupts the procession followed by the call to action: "Go online, research the driver and go fork over $399 for our new product. We'll talk to you next year."  

     I salute TaylorMade for doing something different. It's innovative, creative and differentiating as it goes from cookie-cutter to cookie monster. And people are definitely talking about it. What's come crystal clear to me though, in the past two weeks as I read blogs and speak to serious and casual golfing friends, is that this TV spot represents the ongoing battle of manufacturers for a bigger piece of the same pie. A pie where perceived value reigns king at the premium price point. The target market consists of only serious golfers and those that need - and can afford - something more than a good golf swing. TaylorMade thought outside the box and perhaps they'll capture even more than their current, industry-leading 40% market share. 
     According to Mintel, during the past 15 years, the classic 'Baby Boomer' has made up more than half of the male golfing population. In turn, the golfing industry has relied heavily on this retiring, wealthy demographic as its primary consumer. But as this generation ages (the first wave of the Baby Boomer generation is now entering their mid to late 60s), the sustainable growth of the game - and equipment sales - comes into question. With increased competition from active sports and financial constraints hindering increased participation on multiple levels, TaylorMade must give more attention to the 'Echo Boomers' and navigate a strategy towards younger demographics, that essentially creates a bigger pie for themselves. 40% market share sounds good in the short-term, but it doesn't mean much if that market is getting smaller and smaller. Their long-term growth depends on it. And it'll require a heck of a lot more than a Sesame Street song and a white driver. 

TaylorMade's R11 arrived at golf stores last Thursday, but this was hardly the first time we've seen it. The Apple-esque been part of TaylorMade-adidas Group's biggest media spend ever