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ANNOUNCEMENT Live Chat: Ethan Ganot with Callaway Golf

SuperStroke
billyh said:
@EthanatorCG what is your favorite Callaway product you like to promote? What is the hardest?
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Apex irons are great to promote, they're so money! And all of our drivers are so clearly better than previous versions that those stories almost tell themselves.

Hardest -- hmmm. Golf ball is always an interesting challenge because most people can't tell the difference from one ball to another. But we've got so many differentiating characteristics that it does make it a little easier...
 
@EthanatorCG, what process of elimination are you employing to choose what questions to answer and in which order?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
DataDude said:
@EthanatorCG what is the overriding ethos of Callaway marketing? What do you want people to think when they think of Callaway?
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Personally, I want people to think that regardless of ability/avidity, Callaway's here to help you have more fun playing golf. "Fun" can have different meanings for different people -- some people want to break par, some people want to beat their friend, some people just want to be able to carry the pond on #6.
We're here to help educate, entertain, and support you in however you approach the game. And one of the biggest ways (but not the only way) we do that is by creating the best equipment in the game.

Within the group we have a few informal mantras -- team first, gotta hustle, gotta have fun. No job too big, no job too small. And, there's always a story to tell...
 
What is the status of your quest to become the 4th Beastie Boy?
 
@EthanatorCG what do you think of those of us who like to play strictly by the RoG all the time?
 
@EthanatorCG If you had to play 18 holes with one club what would it be? What is your score?
 
MichiganGripRip said:
@EthanatorCG You have a unique sense of humor in your personal social media dealings, who are some of your idols or inspirations in regards to this?
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Oh man, get ready for a deep dive into obscurity. I think I pick up things from everywhere and that all gets filtered (ok, not filtered) into what comes out of my keyboard or phone...
me and my brother still quote books we read when we were ten years old, from high school (Catcher in the Rye, etc)
there are movie and tv quotes (Wes Anderson, Superman III, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, the Simpsons)
the Jerky Boys, the Beastie Boys, all kinds of music
play by play announcers from NY sports teams (shout out to Mike Breen and Clyde Frazier!)

Basically, what are the bits and pieces that most readily stick in my memory and how can I apply those to the situation at hand? Better yet, will anyone have any clue what I'm talking about...
 
EthanatorCG said:
Oh man, get ready for a deep dive into obscurity. I think I pick up things from everywhere and that all gets filtered (ok, not filtered) into what comes out of my keyboard or phone...
me and my brother still quote books we read when we were ten years old, from high school (Catcher in the Rye, etc)
there are movie and tv quotes (Wes Anderson, Superman III, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, the Simpsons)
the Jerky Boys, the Beastie Boys, all kinds of music
play by play announcers from NY sports teams (shout out to Mike Breen and Clyde Frazier!)

Basically, what are the bits and pieces that most readily stick in my memory and how can I apply those to the situation at hand? Better yet, will anyone have any clue what I'm talking about...
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One follow up, which do you think is the better Wes Anderson movie Grand Budapest, or Life Aquatic?
 
@EthanatorCG Was there ever a product that you thought would connect with the consumer, but didn’t?
 
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@EthanatorCG I have a question for you. So, let's say we're in the middle of a heated match. Halfway through the match, one of the competitors stops in to have a putter fitting done and his lie adjusted. Does their impending victory deserve an asterisk?

@McLovin What would you say? ;)
 
Thanks E for the diversion. Always enjoyable talking Callaway. You guys are the best!
 
Jman said:
Easy E! My guy!

@EthanatorCG what’s the HARDEST thing you ever had to market, and why?
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JMan! Two quick barely-relevant anecdotes before I answer your difficult question --
1) my dad was in Sales for a long part of his career. He used to say "I am not a true salesperson. A true salesperson just wants to SELL. They will sell anything. It's their goal to make you want something that you might not want. A real salesperson would be excited to sell you a bucket of rusty nails." -- I think that's a bit true in marketing too, which leads me to an interesting point #2
2) in grad school we had guest speakers from some pet food company. They were in the marketing department and spent 45 mins telling us about how they market pet food, the target audience, the ins and outs of doing tv shoots with pets that don't obey, etc. It was fascinating. They knew everything in a pet owners' mind. At the end during Q&A someone asked "What kind of pets do you have?" and one of the guys said "Huh? Pets? Oh hell no. I hate pets and don't have one. " I was shocked at how invested and insightful he could be about marketing to pet owners yet he couldn't' have cared less about animals.

So what I am getting at is that things being hard to market could have to do with the product itself or the level of attachment you're able to create with the target audience. Honestly for us, the products are always useful and new and exciting so that part is easy. But understanding a relevant connection is tough - Superhot golf balls come to mind. They're an amazing ball at the price point they play in, but it's tough for me to put myself in the shoes of someone who will only spend in that price band so it is tough to differentiate the product because it's hard to find an insight or problem that we're solving with that ball. It's sandwiched by potentially better options at higher and lower price points.
 
EthanatorCG said:
JMan! Two quick barely-relevant anecdotes before I answer your difficult question --
1) my dad was in Sales for a long part of his career. He used to say "I am not a true salesperson. A true salesperson just wants to SELL. They will sell anything. It's their goal to make you want something that you might not want. A real salesperson would be excited to sell you a bucket of rusty nails." -- I think that's a bit true in marketing too, which leads me to an interesting point #2
2) in grad school we had guest speakers from some pet food company. They were in the marketing department and spent 45 mins telling us about how they market pet food, the target audience, the ins and outs of doing tv shoots with pets that don't obey, etc. It was fascinating. They knew everything in a pet owners' mind. At the end during Q&A someone asked "What kind of pets do you have?" and one of the guys said "Huh? Pets? Oh hell no. I hate pets and don't have one. " I was shocked at how invested and insightful he could be about marketing to pet owners yet he couldn't' have cared less about animals.

So what I am getting at is that things being hard to market could have to do with the product itself or the level of attachment you're able to create with the target audience. Honestly for us, the products are always useful and new and exciting so that part is easy. But understanding a relevant connection is tough - Superhot golf balls come to mind. They're an amazing ball at the price point they play in, but it's tough for me to put myself in the shoes of someone who will only spend in that price band so it is tough to differentiate the product because it's hard to find an insight or problem that we're solving with that ball. It's sandwiched by potentially better options at higher and lower price points.
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This is an epic answer. Thank you!
 
BoilerCLE said:
@EthanatorCG What are your thoughts on local breweries getting bought up by the MillerCoors/Anheuser-Busch's of the world? Is it leading to a level of consolidation by pushing out the little guy or is it encouraging more start-up breweries now that they have a chance at a "lottery ticket" buyout?
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Might be my last answer for a bit as I have some must-attend meetings. I will be back to answer everything later! Thanks for all the great questions!

I think the beer scene has re-evolved to where it was before the big guys came around -- beer started as being very very regional. Mainly due to freshness and the ability to ship the product. I love how many regional options there are. and I love traveling and trying what's locally relevant.

I think too many people think they make "good enough" beer and they'll be shaken out soon enough and we'll have some stronger regional options.

The days of the "national microbrewery" are probably gone for a while...

For anyone interested in the history of beer in America, this is a great read
 
Sorry if I missed this but what was attractive to you about making the change to work for Calloway?
 
If you did not get your question asked, please feel free to post it in here and if Ethan has time he will make his way back in and get to them.

Thanks E for getting to so many.
 
Thanks again!!!
 
radiman said:
@EthanatorCG I have a question for you. So, let's say we're in the middle of a heated match. Halfway through the match, one of the competitors stops in to have a putter fitting done and his lie adjusted. Does their impending victory deserve an asterisk?

@McLovin What would you say? ;)
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not sure what you're talking about. I spent the entirety of that match either promising God that i'll never drink again, or engaged in a heated internal debate on the pros and cons of forcing myself to throw up in the pristine landscaping of the hideaway.
 
We all know you are a connoisseur of the more exotic libations like malort. If you had your choice though, on a perfect day, what would be your choice of beverage?

Thanks for doing this today @EthanatorCG , sadly I missed it, but figured I would fire off a question after the fact.

PS autocorrect on phones is the absolute worst.... malory instead of malort wtf
 
Thanks @EthanatorCG much appreciate you spending some time with us!
 
Just missed this one. Looking forward to reading back on some of these-Ethan is throwing out some seriously well thought out answers. Love these Q&As!
 
@EthanatorCG What is the biggest marketing flop in golf history... Either because the product was less than stellar or the campaign was less than stellar. Any other bad campaigns you want to touch on?
 
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