Top 10 - Benefits of a Golf Course Flyover Project
It's easy to be captivated by aerial photos and videos making the benefits of an aerial film project seem obvious; but there might be more than meets the eye. Taking the time to understand the potential uses of aerial photos and videos, as well as the longevity of their use, can help ensure you make the most of your investment and that you capture everything you need.
Our internal team at Eat Sleep Golf has filmed and produced nearly 500 promotional and hole-by-hole videos for golf courses and resorts from coast to coast; combined with our partner agencies, we've collaborated on over 1,000 worldwide videos. Throughout this journey, I personally have learned a lot about what golf courses are looking for as well as the best use cases for aerial photos and videos. Here's a look at my top 10 list of how golf courses are benefiting from aerial film projects. Once you've properly identified the benefits that best suite your facility, you can move on to finding the right film agency to capture what you need.
1. Aerial Photographs
This one is probably the most obvious... But compiling a library of stunning still shot aerial photographs is something that will be used by your facility for years to come. From online photo galleries, use on your website, printed material, media use, marketing campaigns, social media and more. Golf courses and resorts often have a couple go-to photographs, but with a aerial film project, you should be able to produce an entire library of stunning photos.
Here's a few samples from our collection:
2. Promo Video
Using highlight reel footage from your facility including signature holes, panoramic views, clubhouse shots and more, a promotional video can be one of your best marketing assets. Your promo video will likely be viewed thousands of times by members, guests and the general golfing public. A promotional video can not only be posted on your website and social channels, but can be shared with prospective members, media outlets and more. Give some thought to how you want to use your video. Consider making a couple versions (using similar footage, but varying lengths). I'd recommend a 30 second (fast paced) version, a 60 second version as well as a full length 2-3 minute version. If you go any longer than 3 minutes, most viewers will loose interest. Our stats indicate the average length of golf course video views is about 45-75 seconds.
Here's a sample promo video (video credit: AirSwing Media):
3. Hole-by-hole videos
Creating individual hole-by-hole videos is MUCH better than having one super long video that includes every hole. Having a separate video for each hole, makes the footage much more versatile and easier to share. Your members and guests will love to share a video of their favorite hole, or the hole where they got a hole-in-one. These simple tee-to-green videos collectively create a great library and virtual tour in an easy to consume format. Place all 18 videos on a single webpage, or separate them into their own 'hole layout' pages complete with hole descriptions.
If you're doing an aerial film project, I'd strongly advise getting each hole captured. To view a sample of a completed course page, click here to view our work at Dundarave Golf Course.
Here's a sample hole video (video credit: Eat Sleep Golf):
4. Sharing with Tourism and Media
In my experience, regional tourism and media agencies are constantly on the lookout for captivating content to share with their audience to promote the area. Be sure to reach out to these organizations to ensure they have access to your aerial photos and videos, which will undoubtedly generate increased exposure for your facility.
5. Social Media Use
With the growing popularity of social media, a properly executed flyover project will give you a wealth of content to share through social media. Statistics show that social posts that include pictures have significantly higher exposure and engagements. Furthermore, video posts take it a step further, and make excellent posts. Consider doing #FlyoverFriday posts or something similar where you can share a different hole each week.
6. Implementation on your website
Depending on your website layout, there are a few ways of utilizing your /photos videos to enhance your websites user experience. The photos can of course be used throughout the site to make it more visually pleasing. Videos can often be integrated as your homepage background, giving your site a captivating look. Additionally, creating a 'Course Tour' section where visitors can view all hole-by-hole videos is a must, and will likely become the most visited section of your website.
7. Inclusion in Cart GPS/Mobile App
If your golf course offers GPS in your carts, or on a mobile app, your hole-by-hole videos can often be incorporated directly into these solutions. What a great experience for golfers, as they pull their cart up to the next hole, the in cart monitor automatically begins to play the flyover video for that hole. Amazing!
8. Exposure Through the Right Film Agency
Selecting the right film agency to work with on your project can in itself be a huge benefit. Although 'drone pilots' seem to be a dime-a-dozen, there are only a select few who are setting the professional standard in the golf world. By choosing a well known, reputable, golf focused film agency, you'll not only get great quality footage, but you'll also generate the exposure that comes along with their network. This includes having your course showcased on their website, and their social networks. Be sure to tag them in your posts and provide 'photo credit' to extend the reach of your posts. If you're looking for recommendations, please feel free to check out our official partners/contributors or reach out to us, and we'd be happy to recommend someone suitable in your area.
9. Use in Marketing Material
Golf courses are always in need of different print material from event sheets, scorecards, brochures, handouts etc. Having a variety of on the ground photos along with aerial photos helps to create a great contrast and an attention grabbing design. Your marketing department will love the abundance of content to choose from.
10. Use at Golf Shows
If your facility attends golf shows, what better way to illustrate the look and feel of your property than by having your videos playing on an in-booth display. It's sometimes tough to differentiate your facility from the dozens of other courses on display at trade shows. Having a captivating video, will help to draw people into your booth for more information.
I hope this article has helped shine some light on the amazing benefits of an aerial film project. If you have any questions about aerial filming, or if your facility is considering an aerial film project, we'd be happy to speak with you to answer any questions you may have (email us). Our internal team, as well as our partner agencies are able to accommodate projects worldwide. Let us know how we can be of assistance.
