You don't have a teaching problem. You have a reason to watch problem.
More and more, a golfer's first look at you is online. They see your face, your voice or one of your videos, and decide whether you're worth a second look. Most instructors were never shown how to give someone a reason to stop and watch, and "just post swing tips" mostly ends at 200 views. That isn't your fault.
It is fixable, and it starts with something you already do in every lesson: take something complicated and make it simple for the person in front of you. This guide shows you how to do that on camera, in a way the algorithm rewards and a golfer actually wants to watch.
Get the guide, $27One-time payment. Instant access. No subscription.
If it isn't worth it to you, email me and I'll send your money back. No questions asked.
My own Instagram, straight from the app. The pinned videos: 1.3M, 1M and 4.4M views.
Your Instagram is your business card
I think of Instagram as a business card. It's your credibility. Today's student wants to see who you are as a person before they ever book, whether or not they've seen your name around town.
I can't tell you how many students book in-person lessons with me and say, "I found you because I saw your content online." Sometimes it was the training aids video. Sometimes it was just a swing tip. Either way, they wanted to get an idea of my personality as an instructor. There's more to being a good coach than the coaching, and that's what they want to see.
Whether you realize it or not, it helps them decide whether to take a lesson from you or someone else.
How I got here
I'm Colin, a PGA Professional on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. My first viral video happened by accident. I was sitting in my PGA Level 1 seminar a few years ago (sorry, PGA) with the Masters on in the background. I saw Jon Rahm chip a ball at Augusta that looked like it should have stopped, and it just kept going.
I used my iPhone to record a replay of the TV coverage, added a voiceover and said, "The average golfer could start on the green at the Masters and still not make the cut." Then I narrated why those greens are so hard. The whole thing took about a minute, it was about as low quality as it gets, and it got 4.4 million views on Instagram and 1 million on TikTok.
That video taught me more about attention than anything I'd studied. The concept is why people watched, not the production. Since then I've learned that a tip is only half of it. How you package it decides whether anyone sticks around to hear it.
Same kind of tip, packaged so people want to hear it. Several of these have comments like "I tried it and it worked."
When I post a driving distance challenge video, I typically book about 5 to 6 online swing reviews with new clients, and a good portion of those students stay on for online coaching. People watch me coach someone through a result and picture themselves in the student's seat.
What I care about most is helping people share their own story. It's different for every person, and getting it across takes some digging. This guide is what I'd tell you if we were sitting across a table from each other.
What's inside
- Five things you've been told that are wrong. You don't have to post all the time. Going viral isn't the goal. Not every post has to be golf instruction.
- Teaching and content are the same skill. And why being specific is what makes a tip land.
- The algorithm is the prettiest person in the room. Why the first few seconds matter, and why attention spans aren't short.
- The content is for the viewer, not for you. How to package a tip so people want to take it in.
- The lesson-tee voice. How to talk to the camera like the student next to you, and be yourself.
- Concepts. Why people won't watch a bad one, with real examples of ideas that worked.
- Show the transformation. The kind of video that brings in lesson inquiries, step by step.
- What the algorithm wants, what to measure, and how often to post.
- Reading retention graphs, with a real before and after of the same video.
- A checklist for every post, a weekly checklist and a 30-day starter plan.
It's written to be read on your phone, with a short exercise at the end of each section.
Who it's for
This is for you if
- You're a golf instructor who wants more of the right students, whether that's a fuller lesson book, monthly packages or online coaching.
- You're willing to try things, look at what happened and adjust.
This isn't for you if
- You only want a list of formats to copy.
- You want to keep doing things exactly the way you've always done them.
Think of it like teaching a golf student how to make a swing change, instead of handing them a swing tip. I'm not telling you what to teach or what to say. I want to teach you how to think about this, so you can be yourself and create engaging content that feels authentic to you. It isn't a formula and it isn't a promise of results. Every instructor's story is different, and what works for you will look different from what works for the next pro.
No theory. These are my own accounts, straight from the app: the same kinds of concepts, repeated, with a structure that gives people a reason to watch and follow.
Instagram: @colinlockeygolf
TikTok: @Colinplaysgolf
One concept, turned into a series: 399K views.
When a concept works, you don't have to find a new one. You can keep reshooting it with a new twist and let each version teach you something. The guide shows you how.
The Golf Instructor's Guide to Social Media
One-time payment. Instant access.
Get the guideIf it isn't worth it, you get your money back.
Email me at colinlockey@gmail.com and I'll send your money back. No questions asked.
Questions
Who is it for?
Any golf instructor, at any size of lesson book. If you're an assistant pro or work in the shop and want to build a personal brand, the same ideas apply. The examples are golf-based, but the principles work for anyone trying to get strangers to care about what they teach.
Do I need a big following?
No. The algorithm shows your videos to people who have never heard of you, and many of your own followers won't see a given post. That's the whole point of the guide.
I'm not a natural on camera. Is this still for me?
Most people aren't, at first. If you're a grumpy golf pro who's tired of seeing the same swings, be that person. If you like to show stats, do that. Just show the viewer how it's relevant to them. Nobody gets forced into a box.
Do I have to post every day?
No. Daily posting without knowing why people watch just repeats your mistakes. The guide shows you how to make fewer videos that work harder.
Does every post have to be golf instruction?
No. People want to relate to you as a golfer and as a professional, not only as a coach. The guide covers how those posts build the trust that makes your instruction land.
Will it get me students?
I can't promise results, and the guide doesn't. What I can say is that students tell me they booked because they saw my content, and the guide walks through the kinds of videos that have worked for me.
How do I get it?
Right after checkout you land on a download page with the guide as a PDF, in a phone-sized version and a print version. There's no account to make.
How much time does it take?
Plan on about an hour a week on top of filming. You can read it in an evening and do the exercises as you go.
Is it a course or a subscription?
No. It's a one-time $27 guide. There are optional extras if you'd like help afterwards, like a $50 account audit and a one-hour 1:1 session for $150. There's no pressure to do any of it.
What if it isn't for me?
Email me at colinlockey@gmail.com and I'll send your money back. No questions asked.
Give it a read
If you've been posting swing tips into the void, or putting it off because it doesn't feel like you, this is a better way to do it.
Get the guide, $27One-time payment. Instant access. Money back if it isn't worth it.