What is Your Current Perception of Golf Brands?

MSB256

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A company's brand is kind of your gut feeling about a company. This feeling or your perception of a corporate brand can be influenced by factors such as their activity in the community, the way/how much they give back, the social causes they support, the quality of their products, their customer service, etc. All this can contribute to your perception of thebrand.

When I was thinking about this, I was thinking more about the clubs they produce, but you can include other aspects if you like. So, what is your perception of golf brands today? I think it would be interesting to have people just list random thoughts. Add other brands if you wish. This could also be valuable input for these companies to read so they get an idea of where their brand stands in the minds of consumers.

Taylormade - One of the top two brands in golf right now, the other being Callaway. Innovative in drivers, from the R9, to the white drivers, now the M line. White drivers seemed like a cool way to enhance golf's cool factor and of course great for marketing (when you saw a white driver on TV) so I consider that move innovative. Innovative putters with the spider, although I think they could have missed an opportunity to compete with Scotty and appeal to putter purists when they stopped featuring the Kia Ma line - those were sweet. Not sad to see them separate from Adidas as I'm not a big fan of Adidas golf apparel. Solid irons at times, although there seems to be a gap from the 2014 CB/MC/MB to now where people weren't thrilled with them, but perhaps the 750 and 770 will bring that back. xFT wedges seem innovative, what happened? Although I may not have been crazy about the feel of them.

Bottom Line: Drivers and the spider putter.

Callaway - The other of my top two brands in golf right now. Seems to do everything well with clubs from the driver to putters and everything in between. Solid equipment all the way around, even in irons and wedges. Balls too. Truvis balls seem innovative although they may take off more if they could get a tour player to use them. Can they use them on tour? In terms of having a complete bag of all one brand and all of it being solid, I would go with Callaway as the best. Cool marketing with the bombs and head covers and items they give away. Hashtag Chad does a good job for them on social media. Not really interested in their shoes or clothing.

Bottom Line: Best equipment from top to bottom. Best for doing it all well, not just specializing in one club.

Titleist: Purist. Equipment seems solid from top to bottom. Probably best thought of for the Vokey wedges, Cameron putters, and balls. Maybe the second brand that if I had to have a bag of all one brand, it would be them. Even though their prices are probably similar, they seem like the luxury car of golf brands which isn't a bad thing.

Bottom Line: Solid from top to bottom, yet doesn't seem to have the hype of Taylormade and Callaway.

Ping: Not really sure what to make of them. Underrated maybe? My i20 irons seem pretty good. Why do I feel like they aren't up there with the previous three mentioned?

Bottom Line: unsure

Cleveland: Wedges. Really good wedges.

Bottom Line: Wedges

Srixon: Cleveland's other stuff. Seems a bit niche. Reviews of their equipment seem solid, but lower on the radar overall.

Bottom Line: Flying under the radar a bit. Maybe not as much marketing?

Bridgestone: Balls

Bottom Line: Balls

Mizuno: Afterthought

Bottom Line: Really don't even think about them.

Edit:

Cobra: Thought of them but then forgot to add them. Cool color concepts. Appealing to the younger generation. Solid reviews of woods.

Bottom Line: Rickie Fowler. Younger Generation. Cool Factor

Wilson Staff: Afterthought. Didn't think about them to even add to this list. Aware of driver vs driver but didn't really watch it.

Bottom Line: Don't really think about them. Padraig Harrington.


*** Keep in mind these are my thoughts, what comes to mind for me in terms of golf brands. Not meant to be offensive toward any brand. I think it would be cool to know what comes to the mind of others.
 
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Funny you didn't even mention Wilson Staff.
 
One of the things about this that might be interesting to me is to compare different people's thoughts on brands. Is there a wide range of thoughts about particular brands? Is there a consistent thought about any particular brand?
 
Or Tour Edge. If Cleveland is in there - and they should be - then so should TE, in my view.

Good topic, because share of mind precedes share of bag, and a number of the brands mentioned struggle to gain share of mind.
 
One of the things about this that might be interesting to me is to compare different people's thoughts on brands. Is there a wide range of thoughts about particular brands? Is there a consistent thought about any particular brand?
For me, it's that they all make quality clubs.

I have my personal preferences, so I play what I play, but I certainly get a desire to play most everything - from every OEM - once I lay my hands on it. Thing is, I only have so much money to spend ... so I pick and choose.
 
Or Tour Edge. If Cleveland is in there - and they should be - then so should TE, in my view.

Good topic, because share of mind precedes share of bag, and a number of the brands mentioned struggle to gain share of mind.

Ah, good point. I know of Tour Edge, but they didn't come to mind when I was typing that. I suppose they don't currently have much share of my mind.
 
For me, it's that they all make quality clubs.

I have my personal preferences, so I play what I play, but I certainly get a desire to play most everything - from every OEM - once I lay my hands on it. Thing is, I only have so much money to spend ... so I pick and choose.

I agree they make quality stuff. With technology these days, I think one could play one of multiple drivers and be fine. I guess it's more about perception, not the end result.
 
I have about an equal opinion of all the major brands although I do think Callaway has the edge with their driver technology right now.

I gravitate towards whatever works and looks good to my eye but I prefer lesser known brands everything else being equal, evidenced by my Snell ball choice. My Srixon irons are a perfect example of what I look for in a brand - beautiful to look at with amazing performance without following the herd.
 
From an irons perspective, I think the companies that are an "afterthought" or "not on your radar" make the best irons on the market...Srixon, Wilson Staff, and Mizuno.

This simply might be a marketing/hype thing which is sad. Just goes to show how some of the buying public makes decisions based upon what they see VS feel and playability
 
From an irons perspective, I think the companies that are an "afterthought" or "not on your radar" make the best irons on the market...Srixon, Wilson Staff, and Mizuno.

This simply might be a marketing/hype thing which is sad. Just goes to show how some of the buying public makes decisions based upon what they see VS feel and playability

Sure, and I'm a marketing and communications guy, so you would think I understand that. And I do, but I think I'm still susceptible to it.

I agree people have good perceptions of the brands you mentioned. But the idea of the post was for others to list their perceptions, not just analyze mine. Maybe the THP one word drill will get better results in terms of collecting thoughts.
 
make the best irons on the market...Srixon, Wilson Staff, and Mizuno.

That is my opinion on your first post...I dont really care about drivers/putters since Im still bagging the ZL Encore and a Cure RX3 putter (some say the ugliest putter ever), dont plan on letting them go anytime soon.

Maybe Im the wrong person on this side since I wear and play what I like not what I see on TV or in magazines.
 
TaylorMade: Good stuff, quality woods and some interesting putters. Company seems to have over extended themselves, and are struggling.

-Bottom line: Buy now before they're gone

Callaway: Market leader, and one of the most fun companies out there right now. Way beyond just golf equipment, they're quickly becoming a lifestyle brand and are having a blast doing it.

-Bottom Line: Buy now, cuz they're awesome!

Cobra: If you want fun clubs, and off the wall stuff here's your brand. They'll fit your bag top to bottom and deck you out in stylish duds too.

-bottom line: if your driver needs to match your shoes, get to a CPG fitter.

Titleist: Quality, pedigree and history. This is a golf company, and they're not afraid to be a golf company. They're not all about being young and hip, but if you're serious about your game, they'll get you straight and you'll know you've got some of the best clubs on the market in your bag.

-bottom line: BOAT: Bust out another thousand, quality aint cheap.

PING: they make golf clubs. They're similar to Titeist, except they're more boring.

-bottom line: Good gear

Mizuno: Irons, Irons and more irons. They make great irons, and while they make really good other clubs, they're an iron company in my mind.

-bottom line: Great irons, if you can play them.

Cleveland/Srixon: Great irons and wedges. High quality stuff at a decent price, and a really good variety for different skill levels.

-bottom line: Give them a shot, they're better than you think

Bridgestone: They've just ceded the American market in clubs to everyone else. They're still making some awesome balls, and they're determined to go after the other guys.

-bottom line: Balls

Tour Edge Exotics: You should probably be playing some of their gear. They make solid equipment at competitive prices, and they're serious about making good quality stuff that seriously performs. Even their less expensive lines are pretty solid

-bottom line: If you can find their stuff, go hit it.
 
From an irons perspective, I think the companies that are an "afterthought" or "not on your radar" make the best irons on the market...Srixon, Wilson Staff, and Mizuno.

This simply might be a marketing/hype thing which is sad. Just goes to show how some of the buying public makes decisions based upon what they see VS feel and playability

Also, I don't think it's all sad. I do think it shows that marketing works. There are two things I think draw me in and I'll publicly admit them: tour players and customer interaction. If something it's sad, maybe it's the marketing/tour player part.

However, I think Callaway's level of involvement from a customer interaction perspective is fantastic. Think about it: Hashtag Chad giving stuff away on twitter, in person at events, the Grandaddy - some might call this hype. I call it engagement.
 
TaylorMade: Good stuff, quality woods and some interesting putters. Company seems to have over extended themselves, and are struggling.

-Bottom line: Buy now before they're gone

Callaway: Market leader, and one of the most fun companies out there right now. Way beyond just golf equipment, they're quickly becoming a lifestyle brand and are having a blast doing it.

-Bottom Line: Buy now, cuz they're awesome!

Cobra: If you want fun clubs, and off the wall stuff here's your brand. They'll fit your bag top to bottom and deck you out in stylish duds too.

-bottom line: if your driver needs to match your shoes, get to a CPG fitter.

Titleist: Quality, pedigree and history. This is a golf company, and they're not afraid to be a golf company. They're not all about being young and hip, but if you're serious about your game, they'll get you straight and you'll know you've got some of the best clubs on the market in your bag.

-bottom line: BOAT: Bust out another thousand, quality aint cheap.

PING: they make golf clubs. They're similar to Titeist, except they're more boring.

-bottom line: Good gear

Mizuno: Irons, Irons and more irons. They make great irons, and while they make really good other clubs, they're an iron company in my mind.

-bottom line: Great irons, if you can play them.

Cleveland/Srixon: Great irons and wedges. High quality stuff at a decent price, and a really good variety for different skill levels.

-bottom line: Give them a shot, they're better than you think

Bridgestone: They've just ceded the American market in clubs to everyone else. They're still making some awesome balls, and they're determined to go after the other guys.

-bottom line: Balls

Tour Edge Exotics: You should probably be playing some of their gear. They make solid equipment at competitive prices, and they're serious about making good quality stuff that seriously performs. Even their less expensive lines are pretty solid

-bottom line: If you can find their stuff, go hit it.

That was good!
 
I don't think I've seen any mention of PXG yet...
 
Also, I don't think it's all sad. I do think it shows that marketing works. There are two things I think draw me in and I'll publicly admit them: tour players and customer interaction. If something it's sad, maybe it's the marketing/tour player part.

However, I think Callaway's level of involvement from a customer interaction perspective is fantastic. Think about it: Hashtag Chad giving stuff away on twitter, in person at events, the Grandaddy - some might call this hype. I call it engagement.

No argument there, I think that interaction is great...As I said earlier I might be the wrong person for something like this, Im a social media ghost. I dont do Twitter, Facebook, Snap, etc.
 
I don't think I've seen any mention of PXG yet...

PXG: Have you heard of Bob Parsons? Don't worry, he'll be glad to tell you he runs a great golf company. Ultra customized sets, you won't find an off the rack set of these anywhere. They're good, but boy oh boy do you pay for them.

-bottom line: If you're a tour pro and looking to make a change, ask Zach Johnson and Lydia Ko how PXG is working out for them.


I too forgot W/S

Wilson/Staff: NO! Not the Wilson Reflex box sets. These guys make amazing irons, and they crowd sourced their last driver. Ask a THPer who's been to an event with W/S, and they'll tell you that if you're not considering them you're a damn fool. Their gear is top quality and it seriously performs. They have no problems pushing bounds and building on what works.

-bottom line: Go find some and try to hit them. Now....seriously stop reading this and go try them.
 
Wilson/Staff: NO! Not the Wilson Reflex box sets. These guys make amazing irons, and they crowd sourced their last driver. Ask a THPer who's been to an event about W/S, and they'll tell you that if you're not considering them you're a damn fool. Their gear is top quality and it seriously performs. They have no problems pushing bounds and building on what works.

-bottom line: Go find some and try to hit them. Now....seriously stop reading this and go try them.



:banana::bananadance::banana::bananadance:
 
Taylormade: Giant company that has paid a lot of money in advertising with sponsoring players and such. Make a good product that everyone seems to love to hate.
Callaway: Becoming the new Taylormade in a golf industry that is crippled. Very good products.
Bridgestone, Srixon, Wilson Staff: Make clubs as good as anyone else, yet marketing and availability seems to be focused on the golf ball and not the clubs.
Mizuno: Same as Bridgestone, Srixon, Wilson Staff minus the golf ball.
Titleist: Expensive. At one point seemed to be cutting edge but the others have caught up. Quality and excellence that can be found cheaper in other brands.
Ping: Small company with large footprint, great products, something for everyone, and refuse to discount anything until the public shows they don't want it.

This is my opinion, and availability is based on where I live.
 
I don't get the mantra that titleist is expensive? Their driver is the same price as the Callaway and the Taylormade. And their irons are the same price as the rest of the industry except for maybe wilson staff that sells their forgings for 999

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I don't get the mantra that titleist is expensive? Their driver is the same price as the Callaway and the Taylormade. And their irons are the same price as the rest of the industry except for maybe wilson staff that sells their forgings for 999

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Many refer to price with them because of the cost of the golf ball.
 
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