Case Study: South Dakota Landowner Converts to Commercial Fair Chase Pheasant Hunting Business

A UGUIDE case study of a South Dakota landowner who partnered with UGUIDE as an outfitter: the challenge, the approach and the results. A UGUIDE case study for landowners considering becoming outfitters. Dates and figures are as stated in the original case study.

At a Glance

Client: Tom, a South Dakota landowner and business owner. A private landowner with acreage suitable for pheasant habitat, an existing pheasant population, and lodging accommodations for guest hunters. Solution: UGUIDE offers viable landowners the ability to launch a commercial fair-chase pheasant hunting business without the stress or financial burden of full-scale business development. Approach: Business startup consulting; advertising, marketing and sales; administrative and financial management. Results: Tom's annual pheasant hunting revenue doubled since 2011. UGUIDE's all-inclusive services gave Tom 10 months of time freedom to pursue other focuses, plus residual income.

The Challenge

Many South Dakota farmers and landowners are diversifying their income by providing lodging for pheasant hunters and granting exclusive access to their lands. People from all over the United States come to visit the Pheasant Hunting Capital of the World to experience fair-chase wild bird pheasant hunting. However, many are not willing or equipped to market their services effectively in order to consistently book clientele. This can pose a significant roadblock for farmers and landowners trying to create a sustainable income from their hunting reservations. "In order to be fully booked with guests for the upcoming hunting season requires year-round efforts," said Tom, a South Dakota landowner and now-partnered UGUIDE Outfitter. "Attempting to maintain a solid marketing presence requires a significant investment of time and money." Tom had been marketing and booking his own hunting reservations on his land since 2003, but found that reservation consistency was an issue. He was also seeing little return on the investment of his time and expenses.

The UGUIDE Solution

UGUIDE founded the original "Pheasant Camp Lodge", which is the success model for all other partnering pheasant camps. Having established, grown and maintained the original pheasant camp since 2002, UGUIDE has a significant database of high-quality hunting groups. "UGUIDE definitely attracts higher quality clientele," Tom noted. "Most of my previous guests have been replaced with UGUIDE-sourced guests." UGUIDE has since helped many other private landowners like Tom start and grow their own self-guided wild bird pheasant hunting businesses. On average, 66-100% of groups re-book within 14 days of the conclusion of the current year's hunt.

The Approach

UGUIDE offers an all-inclusive business partnership and consulting services to landowners with quality property and an abundant supply of pheasants. Partnering landowners that become outfitters receive consulting services and solutions specifically tailored to their individual needs in order to establish a lucrative pheasant hunting operation. Business startup consulting. UGUIDE has a proven system and business model based on the successful growth of its own 700 acre pheasant hunting operation in Charles Mix County, South Dakota. Advertising, sales and marketing. UGUIDE's full-time responsibility is to effectively and efficiently market the outfitter's property and meet their financial objectives. Having this strong marketing system assures outfitters a steady stream of hunters to make their pheasant business profitable and sustainable. This allows the outfitter to focus on their core farming operation or spend their efforts on other business ventures. "I no longer have to attend trade shows or pursue any of my previous marketing efforts," Tom revealed. "The amount of time and money I'm saving in a season is huge and allows me to focus on other things I would rather be pursuing." With one of the top pheasant hunting websites in the country, UGUIDE's website attracted 37,000 visitors and successfully booked over 450 pheasant hunters into South Dakota in 2009. In 2011, UGUIDE helped over 607 hunters from around the nation find quality land and habitat to hunt wild pheasants in South Dakota. Administration and financial management. UGUIDE also provides outfitters with administration services and financial management, which includes collecting payment, direct deposits, and monthly and quarterly statements; liability waivers and year-end reports; and state sales tax payment and gross receipts from hunters. Essentially, UGUIDE handles everything possible that is involved with getting hunters to their destination: the outfitter's doorstep.

The Results

The UGUIDE methodology provides Tom with a business partnership and customized consulting services, not only during the initial startup phase, but on a continuous basis as well. Sustainable year-round marketing yields a consistent source of high-quality hunting clientele and significantly reduces the amount of time, energy and hassle Tom previously experienced without UGUIDE. UGUIDE eliminates the complexity of administrative tasks such as finances and client management, which ultimately enables Tom to have a higher level of freedom to focus on other aspects of his business ventures. Since partnering with UGUIDE in 2011, Tom has doubled his annual pheasant hunting revenues. The overall consistency of growth and revenue has increased as well. UGUIDE's all-inclusive consulting, marketing and administrative services have replaced Tom's business development and management efforts totaling 10 months annually. Now, the primary effort required of Tom is roughly 2 months annually during the open hunting season. One of the key, but often overlooked, elements of the UGUIDE partnership is the aspect of residual income. That is, cash flow coming in without time and effort going out. Many business models seek this but few deliver results. Based on the level of success and consistency established with UGUIDE, Tom has maintained this business partnership for 8 years and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Want to know more about becoming a UGUIDE Outfitter? Learn more here.