Mark Crossfield now a Cleveland/Srixon/XXIO staffer

[null]

Current bag setup:

Driver XXIO (also testing Cleveland Launcher HB) 

3W HB Turbo or F85 (testing both) 

18 & 22 H85 

5 Cleveland Launcher Turbo or z585 (testing both) 

6 z585

7 z785

8-PW Z Forged 

RTX 56/50

Frontline or Huntington Beach

Z Star Tour Yellow

ASICS shoes 

 

https://youtu.be/i2nln1yf-kI

[Shankster]

Well that is different. Hope it works out for him.

[null]

Really excited for him to give some attention to a severely underrated brand 

[Shankster]

Really excited for him to give some attention to a severely underrated brand 

Yeah, good point. He definitely has a large following to share the good word with.

[perseveringgolfer]

Money talks.

[Miboy62]

I changed over to the z-Star yellow for 2020 myself.

[yungkory]

RTX4's are no joke!

Crossfield is good enough to play anything so I'm not really looking much into him changing. Titleist probably just didn't want to re-up his contact

[PMookie]

RTX4's are no joke!
Crossfield is good enough to play anything so I'm not really looking much into him changing. Titleist probably just didn't want to re-up his contact

These guys get a lot of looks, but he reviews everything, so all of the brands he tests are getting good publicity. I don’t see how a “reviewer” gives enough for one brand to pay them. I’d be curious to see a poll of how many who subscribe to his page have switched to Titleist clubs during his contract, where him playing the brand was the sole reason they went to Titleist.


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[Berg Ryman]

Since I'm thinking of going Cleveland or Srixon with my new iron set this season. I'm interested in seeing him do his gapping analysis with these since he's blending almost everything.

He also said he has a full set of Launcher HB Turbos coming as well and knowing how he hits hybrids and saying he's loved the older clubs in the past, I'm very intrigued.

[Wedgie]

Sweet, now there are two of us gaming a XXIO driver.


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[James444]

11 hours ago, PMookie said:

These guys get a lot of looks, but he reviews everything, so all of the brands he tests are getting good publicity. I don’t see how a “reviewer” gives enough for one brand to pay them. I’d be curious to see a poll of how many who subscribe to his page have switched to Titleist clubs during his contract, where him playing the brand was the sole reason they went to Titleist.


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How many have switched to Titleist because of his sponsorship deal? Probably zero or thereabouts. But that isn't the point. Most advertising (other than the most specific direct advertising) is about what they call "brand awareness", not direct sales. Like when you hear that a sports event is sponsored by a car manufacturer etc, they don't expect people to go out and actually buy a car because of it, but they do expect that when you eventually decide to buy a new car, that they are a brand that you immediately think of and go and try out. Titleist are doing the same thing and just maintaining their brand awareness and making sure people continue to be interested in testing their clubs when they do decide they want new kit. I know they are already a big brand, but big brands do fade and they need to maintain their position. You might think that's stupid, but it is the answer to your question. 

Edited January 2, 2020 by James444

[null]

1 hour ago, James444 said:

How many have switched to Titleist because of his sponsorship deal? Probably zero or thereabouts. But that isn't the point. Most advertising (other than the most specific direct advertising) is about what they call "brand awareness", not direct sales. Like when you hear that a sports event is sponsored by a car manufacturer etc, they don't expect people to go out and actually buy a car because of it, but they do expect that when you eventually decide to buy a new car, that they are a brand that you immediately think of and go and try out. Titleist are doing the same thing and just maintaining their brand awareness and making sure people continue to be interested in testing their clubs when they do decide they want new kit. I know they are already a big brand, but big brands do fade and they need to maintain their position. You might think that's stupid, but it is the answer to your question. 

Nailed it. 

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

26 minutes ago, jlukes said:

Nailed it. 

Yup - branding is just that: getting the name out there. Same thing with Driver vs. Driver and Wilson. That show was NEVER about the driver - it was a branding exercise to get people looking at and talking about Wilson. From that standpoint, the show was a smashing success. 

 

This is very cool for Srixon-Cleveland-XXIO. Gotta admit, the XXIO driver surprised me as I didn't think Crossfield was in the target demographic. That said, the Cleveland driver is really, really good. No idea how it will shake out in Most Wanted, but it's a HUGE improvement over the first HB Launcher. It's definitely in the rotation for next year - we'll see about the XXIO. 

[PMookie]

How many have switched to Titleist because of his sponsorship deal? Probably zero or thereabouts. But that isn't the point. Most advertising (other than the most specific direct advertising) is about what they call "brand awareness", not direct sales. Like when you hear that a sports event is sponsored by a car manufacturer etc, they don't expect people to go out and actually buy a car because of it, but they do expect that when you eventually decide to buy a new car, that they are a brand that you immediately think of and go and try out. Titleist are doing the same thing and just maintaining their brand awareness and making sure people continue to be interested in testing their clubs when they do decide they want new kit. I know they are already a big brand, but big brands do fade and they need to maintain their position. You might think that's stupid, but it is the answer to your question. 

Exactly. Zero!!!!

I watch about 90% of his videos and outside of his FJ on his hat or his shirt, I couldn’t tell you he played Titleist. Waste of money, and not an “influencer” in the sense of current advertising where it moves someone to purchase due to the use by the influencer...

If someone isn’t buying because of you wearing the brand, the company isn’t making money from the wearer. Doesn’t benefit the company, only the wearer. Bye-bye!

In the end, it’s about who has been influenced to buy. Period.

 

 

“Nailed it!”

 

 

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[PMookie]

Yup - branding is just that: getting the name out there. Same thing with Driver vs. Driver and Wilson. That show was NEVER about the driver - it was a branding exercise to get people looking at and talking about Wilson. From that standpoint, the show was a smashing success. 
 
This is very cool for Srixon-Cleveland-XXIO. Gotta admit, the XXIO driver surprised me as I didn't think Crossfield was in the target demographic. That said, the Cleveland driver is really, really good. No idea how it will shake out in Most Wanted, but it's a HUGE improvement over the first HB Launcher. It's definitely in the rotation for next year - we'll see about the XXIO. 

Very different from “Driver vs Driver”, that was 100% Wilson, all-day, all-night. Crossfield is not 100% ANY brand all day, all-night, therefore it’s not the same for getting the name out. Sure, he’s going to give us videos now about his two sets of irons he’s thinking about, and which “rinky-dink” he’ll use, but he’ll go back to testing all the new stuff and not have Srixon/Cleveland front-and-center.
Focusing on one brand, and saying it/showing it repeatedly is different than Crossfield. I’d say he’s not even in the same game as an “influencer” just because he’s brand agnostic once his testing starts. And good gracious, help the person that watches his”Vlogs” on-course. Wow. Talk about boring! Yikers.
DJ plays TM
Rory too
Tiger too
Oosthuizen plays Ping
They’re THAT brand every time we see them. FAR different than a YouTube club tester.... Modern influencer advertising is different from
classic.... By name, they’re supposed to be influencing buying. Early here, Mark might while he gets his bag set. After that, nope.


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[GolfSpy Barbajo]

11 minutes ago, PMookie said:

Very different from “Driver vs Driver”, that was 100% Wilson, all-day, all-night. Crossfield is not 100% ANY brand all day, all-night, therefore it’s not the same for getting the name out. Sure, he’s going to give us videos now about his two sets of irons he’s thinking about, and which “rinky-dink” he’ll use, but he’ll go back to testing all the new stuff and not have Srixon/Cleveland front-and-center.
Focusing on one brand, and saying it/showing it repeatedly is different than Crossfield. I’d say he’s not even in the same game as an “influencer” just because he’s brand agnostic once his testing starts. And good gracious, help the person that watches his”Vlogs” on-course. Wow. Talk about boring! Yikers.
DJ plays TM
Rory too
Tiger too
Oosthuizen plays Ping
They’re THAT brand every time we see them. FAR different than a YouTube club tester.... Modern influencer advertising is different from
classic.... By name, they’re supposed to be influencing buying. Early here, Mark might while he gets his bag set. After that, nope.


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Probably wasn't clear - for Srixon, et al - sponsoring Crossfield is a branding exercise, much in the same way Driver vs Driver was a branding exercise for Wilson. Can't be measured in direct sales as both are part of overall branding initiatives, not direct sales promotions.  Different mechanics and structure to be sure, but the intention of both initiatives is brand building. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[PMookie]

 

Probably wasn't clear - for Srixon, et al - sponsoring Crossfield is a branding exercise, much in the same way Driver vs Driver was a branding exercise for Wilson. Can't be measured in direct sales as both are part of overall branding initiatives, not direct sales promotions.  Different mechanics and structure to be sure, but the intention of both initiatives is brand building. 

 

I understand. The point I was making was about Crossfield as an influencer, causing sales in general. Branding is to result in sales due to additional eyeballs on the name. He’ll have a hat and shirt on that will help, but the club he hits in the video isn’t Srixon/Cleveland/XXIO the majority of the time. So, outside of the hat/shirt, is his branding selling more clubs? That’s, ultimately, what branding does. When one is in the golf store, they saw Srixon somewhere, they walk over to try it. They ask, “What does X pro play on Tour?” The sales person tells them, the consumer tries it, maybe buys it.

Branding is about selling.

How much Crossfield did for Titleist sales has to be negligible at best. For a company, if a pro isn’t making cuts, and they’re losing money on the branding due to no eyeballs, that contract isn’t renewed. No sales. That’s my point. It all HAS to lead to more people buying due to the influencer....

If no one buys, it’s not a benefit to the company.

 

If no one buys the Wilson driver that wins Driver vs Driver, does Wilson continue the branding exercise? No... The outlay doesn’t meet the gain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[StrokerAce]

Maybe I'm off base but I'd be curious how many people really care which clubs he uses.... this might be 'big' news to him.... 

A buddy of mine who doesn't live close to a fitter did this.  He has a high SS and saw that "Rick Shiels" tried these and liked them on YT.  He paid 800 bucks for an iron set, hit about 10 balls and gave them to a friend.

I also wonder how objective his "reviews" will be (if he even does them any longer) when he has a 'business relationship' with a single manufacturer?

[null]

Just now, GolfSpy Stroker said:

Maybe I'm off base but I'd be curious how many people really care which clubs he uses.... this might be 'big' news to him.... 

A buddy of mine who doesn't live close to a fitter did this.  He has a high SS and saw that "Rick Shiels" tried these and liked them on YT.  He paid 800 bucks for an iron set, hit about 10 balls and gave them to a friend.

I also wonder how objective his "reviews" will be (if he even does them any longer) when he has a 'business relationship' with a single manufacturer?

Your friend is dumb for buying something without demoing or getting fitted.

But if someone goes for a fitting, they may ask to try something for Cleveland/Srixon now because they have created brand awareness.

Heck, we are talking about it on here.

Mission Accomplished

 

[StrokerAce]

Just now, jlukes said:

Your friend is dumb for buying something without demoing or getting fitted.

But if someone goes for a fitting, they may ask to try something for Cleveland/Srixon now because they have created brand awareness.

Heck, we are talking about it on here.

Mission Accomplished

 

Happy New Year Joe.

Calling my friend dumb is not a nice thing to do.... I wouldn't call any of your friends dumb.

[null]

6 minutes ago, GolfSpy Stroker said:

Happy New Year Joe.

Calling my friend dumb is not a nice thing to do.... I wouldn't call any of your friends dumb.

Sorry.  Foolish.  I you know it wasn't personal.

We also have to remember that us golf forum guys aren't the norm.  Your friend, who buys something based on social media influence, a commercial, or what a pro plays is far more closer to the average consumer.

[FrogginBullfish]

Crossfield reviewed pretty much every new release during his time as a Titleist staffer and he was as objective as they come. It was the same when he was with Callaway and it'll be the same now he's with Cleveland.

Of course, the perception will remain that he can't be objective, but watch any of his reviews from his Titleist days of other manufacturers and he'll be complimenting them on what he likes about them and saying he could game them.

For me, the best part of Mark's partnership with Titleist, and this was the same for Peter Finch with TaylorMade last year, was the access it provided to Tour players and Tour fitters. I loved watching Mark's vids on range with the Tour pros and Liam working with them. I imagine we'll get the same sort of thing here with Cleveland.

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[James444]

Er, yea, well...I think you may be getting a little over emotional about this. You asked a question and you got the answer. You dont have to agree with the strategy they ran. You are absolutely entitled to think that Titleist's marketing people are stupid and that you know better than them, that's fine, you're welcome to that opinion. But getting upset because you don't agree with their marketing strategy is kind of weird! They did it as a small part of their global strategy on brand awareness (you don't have to get angry about that) and it will have cost them more or less nothing compared to other running costs, and the fact that we are all on here talking about it (including you) means that they have probably got what they wanted. 

[RickyBobby_PR]

3 hours ago, GolfSpy Barbajo said:

Yup - branding is just that: getting the name out there. Same thing with Driver vs. Driver and Wilson. That show was NEVER about the driver - it was a branding exercise to get people looking at and talking about Wilson. From that standpoint, the show was a smashing success. 

 

This is very cool for Srixon-Cleveland-XXIO. Gotta admit, the XXIO driver surprised me as I didn't think Crossfield was in the target demographic. That said, the Cleveland driver is really, really good. No idea how it will shake out in Most Wanted, but it's a HUGE improvement over the first HB Launcher. It's definitely in the rotation for next year - we'll see about the XXIO. 

If the driver that comes out of that show repeatedly fails to match or beat the rest of the brands do consumers that got pulled in or the ones that were aware and waiting for them to do something big in this areas look at the product and think yup still a cheap brand that lacks market appeal and is better at being a box set brand? 

[skrupa15]

2 hours ago, GolfSpy Stroker said:

Maybe I'm off base but I'd be curious how many people really care which clubs he uses.... this might be 'big' news to him.... 

A buddy of mine who doesn't live close to a fitter did this.  He has a high SS and saw that "Rick Shiels" tried these and liked them on YT.  He paid 800 bucks for an iron set, hit about 10 balls and gave them to a friend.

I also wonder how objective his "reviews" will be (if he even does them any longer) when he has a 'business relationship' with a single manufacturer?

When Mark signed his deal with Titleist it was contingent that he could continue reviewing any manufacturer he wanted, same with his new Cleveland/Srixon/XXIO deal.  To Titleist's displeasure he kept his old Ping G25 hybrid in the bag (aka Rinky Dinks) when he switched over although he ultimately did put two 818 hybrids in his bag.  Mark has never said "go buy this club" rather that he simply likes or dislikes certain clubs and puts his launch monitor data up as fruit for thought.  If your friend is buying clubs solely based on YouTube reviews, I wouldn't call them stupid, just ill-informed and impulsive.  Mark has always said, "go get lesson, go get fit" when it comes to equipment purchases.

[jaskanski]

I'm actually in two minds on the video sponsorship approach.

On the one hand, it's an easy short route to brand awareness on the part of Srixon/Cleveland and their sales will probably show an upturn this year as a result. Mark will naturally continue to extol the virtues of the brand and the value of fitting and trying before you buy.

All good stuff I guess - but even though the reviews will continue to be vlogged for other brands, it still has to be considered that Mark is being told what to put in his bag rather than playing what he wants in his bag - there is a limited choice for the sponsorship deal after all. And with it comes an ethical dilemma - can you objectively review any product you're being paid to use? I think not. But that doesn't necessarily mean anything bad - it probably means a different perspective from a different brand for another year - a refreshing change some might say. We shall see what the future holds.

In the meantime, I look forward to what Mark can offer in terms of new ideas and reviews. Preferably without the need for product alignment.

 

[perseveringgolfer]

3 hours ago, skrupa15 said:

 If your friend is buying clubs solely based on YouTube reviews, I wouldn't call them stupid, just ill-informed and impulsive.  Mark has always said, "go get lesson, go get fit" when it comes to equipment purchases.

Just putting this out there, but the 4 best performing clubs I use are the Driver (TM M2), hybrid (Titleist 910 19*), 4w (Callaway steelhead) and putter (Yes Tracey 11). All bought because the reviews by Joe public were good and I liked the look of them.

Caveat is, there are also many clubs bought this way that didnt work out at all. Likewise a PGA pro 'fitted' Cobra F9 was probably the worst purchase I've ever done, alonside a PGA pro fitted set of Titleist AP2's- go figure!

[FrogginBullfish]

I'm rather surprised he ended up with Cleveland/Srixon/XXIO. I kind of thought if he was going to move on from Titleist, it would be to partner with Ping.

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[Penn07]

On 1/1/2020 at 7:45 PM, Shankster said:

Well that is different. Hope it works out for him.

Not that different just branding.

[Paul M]

Interesting, Peter Finch, another utuber in the uk, has 230000 followers, has just left a club sponsorship deal, one reason was to ensure independence of his reviews.

PaulM