Callaway Goes Big for Big Bertha Relaunch

Carlsbad, Calif. — When it was introduced in 1991, Callaway Golf Co.’s Big Bertha driver and its large stainless steel head revolutionized golf. Nearly a quarter century later, after multiple line extensions, considerable time with no Big Bertha product on the market and new leadership at the helm, Callaway was looking for the right opportunity to reintroduce the iconic name. “We knew we couldn’t bring it back on any old next-generation driver,” says Pete Avery, senior retail marketing manager for Callaway. “It had to be something that would be unique and impactful in the marketplace and really live up to the Big Bertha name.”That opportunity arrived when Callaway’s R&D team developed a new technology it calls the “gravity core.” When swung, the club’s vertical center of gravity adjusts so that the ball’s spin rate is independent of the club’s launch angle. “[The technology] is unique to the golf industry and a brand-new technology that we felt would be a good combination with the Big Bertha name,” Avery says.The technology appears in the new Big Bertha Alpha driver, which is best suited for advanced players looking for a lower spin rate and flatter drives. The company also debuted a standard Big Bertha driver that’s more forgiving of off-center impacts. “The beauty of the two-driver format is that it’s really going to impact any range of golfers,” says Avery.To market the new products, Callaway invested in TV ads and inserts in major golf publications. The Callaway Media Productions team also produced video segments for the company’s website and social media pages.Callaway further promoted the drivers with four “Kings of Distance” long-driving events across the country. The first event, in Orlando, Fla., was live-streamed and featured long-driving tips from Team Callaway PGA Tour players. The pros also competed in a “closest to the Ethan” contest in which they tried to hit a Callaway staffer who stood out on the range in full pads and helmet.Callaway also launched a comprehensive in-store marketing effort focused on full-store takeovers. “If you go into any golf store, you’ll see one or two displays,” says David Schwartz of Burbank, Calif.-based Origin LLC, whom Callaway partnered with on the retail displays. “But to really take over retail is a big deal and very unusual for the golf industry.”The in-store displays let shoppers know that Big Bertha is back, while also explaining the distance and accuracy that the clubs can provide. The materials created included graphics for Callaway’s in-store fixtures, shaft tags for the clubs, tent cards, acrylic sign holders, posters, large window clings, counter and floor units, and even covers for front-of-store anti-theft gates.Callaway worked closely with national accounts Dick’s Sporting Goods, Golfsmith, Golf Galaxy, PGA Tour Superstores, Worldwide Golf and Edwin Watts to create customized in-store elements. The biggest display was a 10-feet-tall and 9-feet-wide arch that appeared in Golfsmith locations. Dick’s received exclusive two-sided displays featuring the Big Bertha clubs on one side and Callaway’s new Speed Regime balls on the other. “We wanted to impact consumers immediately as they walked in from a window perspective, to front-of-store where they could actually see the product, and to the hitting bay where the goal was to have them hit the product and fall in love with it,” says Avery.The store takeovers began in mid-February and extended 60 to 90 days. The campaign’s success will be judged on consumer awareness and sales, Avery says. “Partnering with Origin to develop something unique and new to the golf space and to have retailers get excited about the product and the elements that bring it to life in-store was extremely exciting and rewarding for us. We’re looking forward to a very successful year.”Callaway also worked with Taco Truck Creative, Carlsbad, Calif., on print and TV advertising.

Callaway Goes Big for Big Bertha Relaunch

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