With its nostalgic roots, bowling is a cherished past time, but behind the scenes, is also a dynamic industry that has expertly evolved with the changing tides of marketing. This week, Jenn and Kalli are joined by John Harbuck, President of Strike Ten Entertainment, to discuss how he has turned bowling into a modernized experience and how he has turned casual players into loyal fans.
imPRessions Season 3 Episode #8 Transcript
Kalli: Hey, Jenn.
Jenn: Hey.
Kalli: So, Jenn, when was the last time you went bowling?
Jenn: I actually went about a year ago. One of my friends had a birthday and she wanted to do something a little different. It was kind of in the dead of winter, and we decided to go bowling and we actually had to wait like almost 2 hours to get in because it was so bad. But it was actually really fun, like playing as an adult like I hadn’t played in a long time and playing it as adult was really fun, and that was the first time in a long time. Yeah, so so randomly, oddly enough, I went about a year ago. How about you?
Kalli: Uhm, I actually went a couple of months ago. Kind of, not for a birthday, but you know, it was winter. It was cold and you’re trying to think of something fun to do to get out of the house and, you know, bowling makes sense. And now they’re, you know, I know when I was little, it was really just your average bowling alley. But now there’s so much more to them, you know, they have the bowling, there’s food, drinks, arcades. They really cater to so many people. So, actually, joining us today is John Harbuck, who is the president of Strike Ten Entertainment, who’s gonna chat with us about, you know, the business of bowling and you know how they’ve not only taken a timeless game and you know, make it always at its current and people still want to go, but also what other brands can learn about the immersive experience that bowling is.
Jenn: I love that. Bowling has a long history, so I’m really curious to hear what he has to say about how he and his fellow colleagues kind of keep the classic feel to it. Sort of keep like their real core foundation, but sort of add a modernized flair to it. So good one today. I’m excited for this.
Kalli: Yeah, let’s get to it.
Kalli: Today, we’re diving into the business of bowling and how a game with such deep roots continues to evolve, inspire loyalty, and create unforgettable experiences. Whether you’re rolling strikes or just there for the nachos, there’s a business lesson in every frame. Joining us is John Harbuck, president of Strike Ten Entertainment. With more than 30 years in sports marketing, licensing and consumer sales, John knows what it takes to turn a game into an enduring business success. Since joining Strike Ten Entertainment in 2015 and becoming president in 2017, he’s been at the forefront of keeping bowling thriving as both a sport and a social experience. Today, we’ll explore the secret to maintaining customer loyalty, creating immersive experiences, and adapting to changing consumer expectations, lessons that apply far beyond the lanes. John, thank you so much for joining us today.
John: Hey, thank you for having me. Looking forward to it.
Jenn: Hi, John. So, I’d love to talk about bowling. I feel like it’s one of those games that’s been around forever. We’ve seen it in a lot of pop culture and I think it’s making a comeback. And if you ask, like the older generations, I think even Fred Flintstone was known for his love of the game of bowling. So, I’d love to know as it has such like a timeless feel to it, what is the secret to keeping something so classic relevant to today’s world?
John: Yeah. Hey, I think the word that comes to mind is simplicity. I think bowling is, it’s kind of simple. It’s see pin, knock pin down, and repeat. And our bowling centers are set up unlike a golf course or unlike, you know, a tennis court. The ball comes right back to you. You can engage with your friends while you’re bowling and you know you, you get a lot of, people are kind of surprised you get a lot of exercise when you bowl three games. A lot of people go out casually to bowl. They don’t get a sense that they’re really getting exercise, but they get down at the shows that when you do get quite a bit of exercise if you bowl three-four games. And it’s funny, you know, you mentioned Fred Flintstone because early in my career, you know, I’m not a bowler. I’m a marketing guy in the bowling business. We launched a youth program as our bowling centers began to pivot away from being what people would associate with the bowling alley: smoky, you know environments where the 3rd shift from the factory come in and drink beer and smoke and bowl. We pivoted away to be more family friendly locations. We created the Cartoon Network Bowling Club. We had, we partnered with Post cereals and Fruity Pebbles and we put a free bowling game on the back of hundreds of thousands of packages of Fruity Pebbles cereal and we had over 30,000 youth bowlers come in and participate in the Cartoon Network Bowling Club and they got a part of their part of their reward for bowling in our club, they got a Fred Flintstone bowling ball. Or they could choose a Scooby-Doo bowling ball or Johnny Bravo, but we had over 30,000 kids come through. So, we just try to keep it simple. It’s a fun sport. And it’s a fun activity that people can socialize and get together and then just have a fun night out or a fun afternoon out. So, keep it simple.
Kalli: You know, for something that’s so simple, there’s so many benefits. Like you said it’s a social, it’s social, it’s exercise, you know, it’s a fun place to go for families. But I do want to talk a little bit about bowling leagues, you know, I know we’ve all seen them. We all probably know someone or more than someone in a bowling league, and they really have some of the most loyal players, you know, of any games. What’s something that brands can learn from that kind of lasting loyalty when it comes to building their own real customer loyalty?
John: Yeah, it’s a great question. The, you know, I think being on a team, there’s something to being on a team and that’s one thing that we, that our sport brings. Other sports do as well. But you know, we find ourselves in kind of a unique environment where, you know, you share experiences with your team. That pays invaluable dividends. And it contributes to the success of what we experience is the loyalty, because bowling is America, you know it, we we’re Ford 104. And so we reach across all demographics, full spectrum of the demographic from age to gender to diversity and race. We, you know, we’re all of that and so we bring that shared experience to the table and being part of the community, I think, sets us apart because when we emerged from COVID, and you know, our industry got hit really, we got hit very hard coming out of COVID because we were lumped into other categories that that may not allow for our centers to be open. Our league bowlers were the first ones to roar back. Like we’re their clubhouse. We’re their, you know, we’re their country club and they were very quick to come back and helped us rebound very quickly from COVID. And coming out of 2019 into the 2020 COVID where our industry ground to a halt, we roared back in ‘21 and ‘22 and we continue to see our sales trends in our centers or or are increasingly growing now. You know we’re flattening out as businesses do, but we rebounded tremendously from it because of that very loyalty and that avid league bowler helped us rebound for sure.
Jenn: Yeah, my grandparents met in a bowling league. So, definitely has that social factor and that fun factor and that ability to let loose. And one thing that’s really cool about the industry right now is its ability to sort of evolve and adapt. So, I’m from New York and there’s a place in Brooklyn called Brooklyn Bowl, which a lot of people are very familiar with here in the city. And it has like a full blown bar, it like, you could order like cocktails and mixed drinks. It has a very elaborate menu of food. It has a concert venue. I mean, this is like not just your, you know, single bowling lane. So, I’m curious, John, from your point of view, because bowling alleys have evolved from that, you know, basically into a full blown entertainment space, how can other businesses or other industries follow this example? Maybe they want to shake things up, but they still want to kind of keep that that specialness about what makes them that legacy, like bowling has that real legacy feel to it, but they want to kind of keep up with the times. What, like, what would be some of your advice for them?
John: Yeah, I tell you, an immediate disruptor in a sports category comes to mind. Top Golf.
Jenn: Oh yeah, my brother loves Top Golf.
John: Yeah. Yeah. OK. And so, we were Top Golf before Top Golf was Top Golf. And when I say that, I mean, our proprietors are or you know, or were, you know, we’re a trade association for the industry, right? So, our members are independent proprietors and they’re innovative. They’re creative. And they’re looking at ways to invigorate the sport. And so, the technology and our sport, it’s been amazing to watch it evolve over the years going from what we call cosmic bowling or extreme bowling, where, you know, you turn on the black lights and you have the balls are made with the glow-in-the-dark material, the oil in the lanes glow, the pins glow, and that was the, kind of the first step into the kind of the rock and bowl, cosmic bowl, extreme bowl world for our centers and innovation that brought forward you know a new and unique way to experience this sport. Now, I’ll tell you, the competitive league bowler, is not a big fan because they want to be able to see, you know, they want to be able to see the arrows. They want to see the marks, they want to see all the things that they see when they’re bowling, when they’re trying to bowl for a high score. But our casual bowler, they don’t, not necessarily care so much about their sport. So then you then you look at that innovation and all I’ll say this just about all the new money that is coming into our sport investor groups and people that are expanding or renovating are all leaning into the technology. Enhanced audio visual, you know lasers that are casting imagery down on the lanes where you know you’re seeing your ball track down the lanes with the latest technology, you’re seeing the enhanced food and beverage where, like you said, Brooklyn Bowl, going in and having, you know, a craft martini with enhanced food options that are not your grandfather’s bowling alley food. So, with that. And then then you look at our gaming and arcades when you come in, you could do laser tag. You can do escape rooms, you can do rope courses. You can have, kids can go into the arcade and you know, not come out and pick up a bowling ball. Mom and Dad are out bowling having a good time and the kids are in the arcade. So, our centers have evolved to where they’re they offer multiple attractions. They’re offering a wide range to suit a wide range of consumers and, but at the end of the day, the anchor of all of our centers is bowling. And it’s never gonna go away. But we’re offering a wide range of attractions. So, my message to other brands is just how can you diversify and innovate within your, you know, within your consumer base to introduce new and innovative ways to experience either the product or the service that you’re that you’re offering your customers.
Jenn: And thank God it has evolved to where you could get a good drink because I need a couple to actually play a decent game.
Kalli: It’s coincidental, but the more drinks I have, the better I get, or at least I think I get.
John: That’s all of us, I’ll tell you what.
Kalli: Yep. Yep. I like what you said that like the game is the anchor and that, you know, bowling is extremely unique in that: yes, it’s about the game, but the experience, it’s so much more than that. You know, you’re not just going to play, you’re going to hang out compete, you know, celebrate, you know, whatever it is that you’re doing. And, you know, I know we talked about how to optimize that experience, but what is it that brands outside of bowling, like what advice would you give them to help them create a, you know, a very immersive and memorable experience for their customers that’s going to keep them wanting more?
John: Yeah, well, that’s, you know, look, we have a unique place with our customers. Over 70% of our members and our association, and we have 3400 members, are largely independents. And they are part of the communities that they’re in, their businesses are in. So, when you take that and the proprietor is a member of the church, the proprietor is on the, is in the Rotary Club, the proprietor lives in the community, their kids go to school, they, you know, they’re part of the fabric of that local culture. And so, when you have that piece of the puzzle, that variable that brings that unique opportunity to deliver an amazing experience, and that local proprietor who is part of the community is going to go the extra mile because to a person, if you talk to any successful proprietor in our business, it’s that customer service, that level of customer service that that local proprietor is going to extend to his neighbor, any customer that comes in, but really when you’re part of the community, you go that extra mile. And so, it’s basics, providing that customer care that customer service, greeting your customers, knowing your customers. Going down to the settee or, and that’s the area where the bowlers are sitting and they’re waiting to bowl and they’re looking at the scores and they’re talking, they’re engaging. Going down, shake a hand, buying a beer, buying a soda. That’s what sets our independent proprietors apart from maybe some other, that larger chains may not be able to deliver on that level of customer service, but that would be my key thing for any advice that I could give another brand.
Jenn: And who isn’t happy working in the bowling industry? I mean, you’re just seeing people have fun, you know, let loose. It’s just like a really nice environment and experience to be part of that.
John: Well, hey, we, we’re blessed in that. You can’t speak to a person who’s gone bowling and they had a bad time. It’s funny, you know, with utilization of social media and that you, you know, you never want to ask a question that you don’t, that you don’t know the answer to. But we had a campaign kind of backfire on us a little bit. But we asked, we asked the question through our social channels: when was the last time you went bowling? And our vision was that we were gonna come back with all these great stories, but to a person, everyone came back saying the last time was bowling was XYZ I had a blast. It was a birthday party for the kid. But one of the things that we didn’t wanna have him to say was that, hey, last time I went bowling, you know, I was 12 years old and I’m 24 now. I didn’t want to hear that. So that means we have to double down and work a little harder. But to a person, anyone you speak to will always tell you they have a great time bowling and I think that’s where we have a leg up on a lot of other out of home entertainment options is you’re gonna have a good time when you come into our centers. It is what I like to call it, it is entertainment comfort food.
Jenn: Oh, I love that.
John: There’s something about the sound of a bowling center and just that vibe, that feel that is comforting. And I tell you it, it lowers my blood pressure when I go in and sit down and have an adult beverage with the guys that we, we go out and have a casual bowling night with. That’s one of the secret secrets to our success.
Kalli: You know, that makes so much sense. And it’s funny, when I was probably like towards the later part of like, high school and college, like, you know, my friends and I would go bowling all the time because it was like it was something to do rather than just going to a bar, like you had both. You could have a drink, you would play a game, you know. And there were, I mean, I’m from Long Island, so there’s bowling alleys literally in like every town, and it’s something that even like now I do, you know, I’ll take my kids bowling cause it’s something we can do as a family. And like my niece and nephew who are older, like are able to do it. So, it’s so true. But it’s funny. Like, I’m thinking back to, you know, initially it started going bowling. I’m gonna date myself here. There wasn’t like, social media wasn’t really a big part of our social lives then, like it was kind of just coming out and people weren’t using it in this way that they are today. So, but I can tell you I definitely, there would have been videos of me using like the kiddy push thing that you put the ball on.
Jenn: Oh, the bumper.
Kalli: Yeah, because it was the only, the only time I would be able to get any decent kind of points.
Jenn: But that’s the fun part about bowling. You don’t have to be good at bowling. You could have the worst score and have an amazing time. So, John nowadays and to Kalli’s point, back in our day, you know, yeah, we’re a little, we’re a little bit older. We didn’t have social media and we actually interviewed, last season, somebody from the American Camp Association and we sort of asked them the same question. And I’m curious to hear your thoughts. Today, kids are very immersed in technology, as we know, they wanna play video games. They wanna be kind of glued to their iPads and on their phones, how does bowling and in your, and give some advice if you can on how brands can speak to audiences of different ages, especially those that skew a little younger to get them interested in maybe putting the phone down, going to bowl, have a good time without losing the core message of what you know, bowling kind of encompasses?
John: We’re lucky. I keep saying that, you know, I think I got the best job because what we’re, what we’re able to do with our centers, but our bowling centers are user-generated content factories. When you bowl, you’re bowling and you have three of your friends who are, you know, you got a videographer and a photographer, all sitting there watching you bowl. So, they’re capturing content. They’re posting. We have curation, content creation tools that are going out, and we’re gathering that and we’re getting permission to use the content. So, we’re leveraging that experience, that fun, shared experience that people want to share and because it, because it is funny and it’s a cool environment and you know people like to, like to embrace the technology and then we are able to curate that and utilize it to show the fun experience is bowling because that’s what we’re trying to convey. We’re trying to convey our sport is fun. You know, we’re lucky we got a leg up on the activity because it is such a fun experience. But we’re looking at it and you know, I think I touched on, you know, one of our fails, you know, we have some wins, we have some fails and I touched on it a moment ago and they, you never know what you’re going to get when it comes back. But the large majority, vast majority of the feedback we get is that the consumers are having a great time and we’re able to visually share those experiences because let’s face it, everybody’s got a strike dance. When you bowl that strike, you’re gonna turn and you’re gonna pump your fist and you’re gonna high five and all of that just conveys one thing to our consumers, our fans, our social media channels that they’re having a great time, and our battle cry is “go bowling.” That’s our call to action and that’s the brand that that we use throughout all of our marketing activations as the Go Bowling brand.
Kalli: I love that and in the probably less than 10 times I’ve gotten a strike, I can guarantee you those are like, those are my glory moments and I would definitely have done some fun dance moves as if I was like in the Super Bowl winning the game, you know, and that’s something that people really do love to share those moments like their wins and also for players like me, their fails across social media, so what’s something that brands can learn about how just naturally social and shareable bowling is?
John: Well, yeah, I mean, like I said, we are fortunate in that you don’t, we’re keeping score for you automatically. We are delivering the ball right back to you, you know, in your hands. We have one of our service attendants delivering your favorite food and your favorite beverage, and now all you got to do is use that second screen that, to capture the moment and post. And so we have just a number of ways that we, as a matter of fact, we’re launching a digital, out-of-home advertising network in our centers across the country that allow consumers to take their content that they’re shooting there and upload it so it’s being shown on the screens. If you go to any pro, you know, sporting event, they have that Kiss Cam or that moment where the camera is hitting the crowd and they can go to the QR code and they can upload. We have that ability in our centers as well and our customers love to be able to upload that content, have it go up on the screen right there in the center and post it as well as see it right there in the center while they’re bowling, so we’re leaning in and leveraging that newer technology, that QR technology, QR code technology to engage, post, and show all of that content in our centers. So, we really lean in on that technology quite a bit in our centers.
Jenn: That’s great. And that’s such a great way to kind of incorporate the new and the old. And I think that you’re doing an amazing job with that and it does strike, pun intended, a fine balance, right? And that’s kind of what bowling is like, you could play a solo game and you can play with a team, just like PR/marketing, right? Which is kind of what this show is about. It really does have that really nice balance for it. What is your secret to kind of having that marketing/PR balance when it comes to bowling? So, we want to reach out to the right audiences and we want to be sure that we’re reaching new people, but we still are incorporating some of that newer technology. Like you just talked about and those new concepts like having a concert venue like Brooklyn Bowl, but we want that old classic feel of bowling. So, how do you balance the two?
John: The interesting thing is that as you look at today’s marketers and advertisers, they’re embracing bowling in, in the content that they are putting in their advertising, you can look, I can, you know, GEICO, you can just roll them off. State Farm. Major, high profile brands are using bowling to expand their brands, to pull consumers in and have a relationship with their brand. And they’re using our sport and we’re blessed for that. I’d like to take the credit for, you know being, you know, arranging some of these things, we do arrange and we influence others. Just, we just, it just comes organically. But it’s a testament to our sport. And what it means to the American culture that major brands are using it to sell their products and services. So, when you look at that, the secret there is just as I said it earlier, the shared experience that consumers have with it and we leverage that through some of the marketing, you know, strategically. The marketing events that we, we get involved with strategic partnerships with things like the Rose Parade and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and NASCAR and some of the other things where we are evangelizing our sport up through the brand, Go Bowling and driving consumers to you know, our website to find the center. And so, we’re using that from a marketing strategy standpoint and a PR standpoint to gain that top of mind awareness. Remind consumers to go bowling through the events that we partner with and just use the earned, owned, and paid media approach to getting more people to think about bowling because our research shows us if you’re reminded about fun bowling, the experience that you had the last time you went bowling, you’re going to go again and that is, that is our objective, is to get that casual bowler who may bowl once every six months to bowl twice. To get that avid bowler to buy the next product and upgrade and get better, take a lesson, do something to bowl better and so that across the board I think would be, you know, my message to other brands and other services you know in, in, in the space that we live in.
Kalli: You know, that’s really amazing and that it is definitely great advice. I mean, it goes into my next question and maybe there’s, if there’s anything that you want to just add to it or maybe something else that you think of. But you know, if you had to take one major lesson from bowling and apply it to marketing or PR, what would that lesson be?
John: You know that lesson would just be get to know your customers and listen to your customers. Provide them an environment that they can enjoy and feel comfortable in and our environment is, as we’ve been talking about earlier in the show, is unique and we are part of the community. We deliver, you know, a high level of customer service. We deliver an experience that you can go to a birthday party with your child and just have a great time. You can go bowling on a weekend night and listen to great music and have a really cool experience and, you know, an audio visual experience. With our cosmic bowling and some of the other things that we bring to the table, you can go in and go into arcade and take your child into our arcade and they can have a great time or, and you can have the nice food. So, we have a wide range of services and attractions and features that we deliver to and, you know, our consumers and I think that, it’s key to anything is that diversify and offer a broad range of ways to experience your brand or your sport or your service like we are able to in our centers. And so, I don’t know if I’ve delivered a great big lesson, but that would be my advice to anyone listening.
Kalli: That is really great advice and you know, we’re, thank you so much for, you know, sharing that piece of advice and all the insight, you know, on the business of bowling and what makes this timeless game continue to thrive and everything that other brands can learn from bowling. So again, thank you so much and to our listeners: thanks for tuning in. If you have any questions, guest suggestions, or want to share your stories about brand loyalty and customer experiences, we’d love to hear from you. So, drop us a line at impressions@pollackgroup.com. Until next time.
