Pilot Programme — GMLB | Golf Membership Lifecycle Benchmark

Why your participation matters.

Beyond producing individual Membership Reports, our aim is to establish the first national benchmark based on membership lifecycle analysis. This will enable clubs to compare their retention, membership structure and ability to develop long-term established memberships against consistent, evidence-based benchmarks drawn from clubs across the country.

Those benchmarks can only be built through participation. Every club that joins strengthens the quality of the data and improves the insight available to every club that follows.

The pilot programme is therefore more than an opportunity to receive a comprehensive Membership Report. It is an opportunity to contribute to the development of a benchmark that will help golf clubs make better strategic decisions for years to come.

In return for sharing your data and feedback, your club receives detailed analysis and early access to insights that would not otherwise be available.

Every club in the programme is working towards the same fundamental goal: not simply to attract members, but to develop them into the established core on which the club's future depends.

A complete picture of your membership structure.

Every participating club receives the full suite of GMLB analysis — the same work we would deliver to any club, applied to your data with individual care.

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Comprehensive Membership Report

A full lifecycle analysis of your membership, covering retention patterns, structural trends and demographic breakdowns across six analytical dimensions.

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Executive Summary

A concise overview of the key findings — written to be shared with a board or management committee without requiring prior knowledge of the methodology.

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Structural Risk Assessment

An honest assessment of where your membership is exposed — early-tenure concentration, at-risk cohorts, and the structural factors that may be limiting the growth of your long-term established membership.

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Benchmark Comparison

Where sufficient benchmark data exists, your results are contextualised against the developing GMLB reference dataset — so you understand not just what your numbers are, but what they mean.

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Board-ready Insights

Findings presented in a format designed for governance. Clear conclusions, evidence-based, with no requirement to interpret raw data.

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Review Meeting

A scheduled call to walk through the findings with your chairman, general manager or secretary — and to answer any questions the report raises.

Straightforward to participate.

Participation requires no significant time commitment from your team. The process has been designed to be as simple as possible.

Limited data export from your club management system

Attend a short call to confirm data fields and context

Review the completed report and follow-up summary

Provide feedback on the findings and the process

Permit anonymised and aggregated data to contribute to the GMLB benchmark research programme

Every GMLB Membership Report is produced individually.

The analysis involves manual data preparation, detailed interpretation and a personalised review. It is not an automated or templated process. Every conclusion is drawn from your club's data, membership structure and strategic context.

To maintain the quality of that analysis, we work with only a small number of clubs at any one time. The pilot programme is therefore intentionally limited, ensuring that every participating club receives the time and attention the process deserves.

If your club is interested in taking part, we encourage you to apply early. Once the pilot programme is full, applications may be placed on a waiting list until capacity becomes available.

Answers before you need to ask.

Is our membership data confidential?

Yes. All data shared with GMLB is handled in strict confidence. Your raw data is used solely for the purpose of producing your club's analysis and is never disclosed to any third party in identifiable form. We are happy to sign a non-disclosure agreement prior to data transfer if your board requires it.

Who owns the data?

Your club retains full ownership of its data at all times. GMLB does not claim any rights over the information you provide. The only use we make of your data — beyond producing your report — is to contribute anonymised, aggregated statistics to the benchmark research programme, in accordance with your agreement to participate.

Will other clubs see our results?

No. Your report is produced exclusively for your club and is not shared with other participants or any third parties. Benchmark data is always anonymised and aggregated — individual club results are never identifiable in any published or shared output.

What membership management systems can you work with?

We work from a standard data export — typically a spreadsheet of member records including join date, category, status and basic demographics. Most club management systems can produce this directly. If you are unsure whether your system can provide the required data, we are happy to discuss this before you apply.

How long does the process take?

From data receipt to delivery of the completed report, the typical turnaround is three to four weeks. The onboarding call usually takes around 30 minutes. The follow-up review meeting is typically an hour. The process is designed to make minimal demands on your time.

What happens after the pilot?

At the conclusion of the pilot, you will have a comprehensive Membership Report and a structured understanding of your membership lifecycle. There is no automatic continuation or follow-on service. If you wish to commission further analysis or tracking work, that would be discussed and agreed separately at the time.

Is there any obligation to continue after the pilot?

None whatsoever. Participation in the pilot is a one-time engagement. There are no follow-on commitments, no subscription, and no expectation that you will purchase further services. The only commitment is the one described above: to provide feedback and allow anonymised data to contribute to the benchmark.

Join the GMLB Pilot Programme.