User:SportsTheory/CourseTrends

Introduction
CourseTrends is an online golf course marketing company located in Austin, Texas, and it handles online marketing for about 1,500 golf courses throughout North America. It was founded as a start up company in January, 2003, by experienced Austin-area software consultants. CourseTrends has expanded from its original location in a founder’s home to a 5,500 square foot office in North Austin.

Clients
Currently CourseTrends handles online marketing for about 1,500 golf courses in North America, including the United States and Canada. Some of CourseTrends more noteworthy clients are Rush Creek Golf Club in Minnesota, Mercer County Golf Courses in New Jersey, Autumn Ridge Golf Club in Wisconsin, and Seven Bridges Golf Club in Illinois.

History
CourseTrends began in January 2003 out of the home of the company’s founder, Alan Stalcup, a high-tech industry veteran who led the expansion of Momentum Software and the launch of one of the automotive industry’s largest online marketing strategies. The first client for CourseTrends was Avery Ranch Golf Club in Austin, Texas. Avery Ranch remains a client of CourseTrends to this day. By the end of 2003, the company had a total of 10 clients. In 2004, the company expanded to a 600 square foot office with a total of five employees and 70 customers. In 2007, the company moved to its current location in North Austin, and it currently operates out of a 5,500 square foot office space and serves a total of 1,500 customers with 50 employees.

Services
CourseTrends provides customers with many marketing services, including website content, online specials, online stores, sales leads, promotions and weekly conference call updates on the status of marketing efforts. In addition to websites, CourseTrends also builds mobile sites for customers, provides technical support, data entry, security and online training. The goal of CourseTrends is to handle all online marketing services and simplify technology use for golf courses, eliminating the need to cobble together technology expertise from many different sources.

Volunteer Efforts
CourseTrends employees participate in a number of volunteer efforts throughout the year, working with international and local service organizations, including Open Arms, a group designed to help refugee women living in the Austin area. CourseTrends has also sent employees on service trips to needy areas in Honduras, Nicaragua and parts of Africa. Every employee gets paid time off and all trip expenses paid for one week abroad annually. Other groups the company supports include www.workforlifeafrica.com, www.theopenarmsshop.com, www.austinsamaritans.org, and www.hondurasgoodworks.org.

Category:Golf