ReTurn On Equity

difficult and expensive sport. New golf equipment’s which are easy to use and make hitting good shots easier are being provided by competitors like Meridian and Primiera. Altius, on the other hand, is concentrating only on golf professionals. Which would have been profitable otherwise, but due to the decrease in the proportion of committed ‘core’ golfers to the number of total golfers during recession, concentrating on this segment is no longer lucrative. Similarly, Altius can no longer judge its success based on how many professional golf tournaments have been won using their balls. Also, with the recession, recreational golfers aren’t ready to pay for expensive products that Altius sells. Thus, the preference for products in off-course shops are increasing. While Altius retains its position in on-course markets (which are mostly for high end customer who can afford the premium pricing), it is losing out on the price sensitive customer base from off-course stores, which accounts for 60% of its sales. The fact that the prior generation golf balls were offered at mid-price range and it was contributing in recovering in sales, indicates that the market was looking for more affordable equipment.

Additionally, introducing a lower priced product wouldn’t only play a major role in the comeback of Altius, they also needed a compelling marketing strategy to cater to ever changing consumer interests. Like the competitors were trying to encourage increase in the customer base by encouraging more and more people to take up golf, Altius would also have to think on similar lines. The non-conforming balls with the Victor TX packaging could help Altius. Non-conforming balls would make it easier for recreational and new players to hit better shots without the fear of being ridiculed. Also, making the balls look as inconspicuous as possible would avoid judgement from seasoned players. The similarity to Victor TX boxes could also encourage more consumers to buy as it would give an impression of being a seasoned and affluent player. Giving the non-conforming ball a name like Elevate instead of Rogue or Outlaw would also reduce biases of players who don’t support the use of non-conforming balls. Altius could also help the overall market by boosting the dwindling interest in golf.

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Recommendations

Though Altius Company is taking many aspects into consideration, some issues which need attention are -

 Launching Elevate golf ball range would be a smart choice as new customer market could be taped into.

 Altius Company should rethink their advertisement budget allocation because even though they have double the sales compared to their closest competitor, a budget of 35 million $ should be justified.

 New marketing schemes should be developed on the lines of “Tee It Forward”,