RCI Timeshare Exchange has announced the launch of the “RCI Going Green Award” for its affiliate resorts in the Pacific.

Focusing on timeshare resort operations, the RCI Green awards will include recognition at the Gold, Silver, and Bronze levels for the top three ‘green’ timeshare resorts.

Working in conjunction with Griffith University, RCI Timeshare Exchange’s Going Green Award will include a two-phase assessment. First, timeshare resorts will be asked to assess the green or environmentally conscious practices they have in place, supporting these efforts with documentation when possible. The second phase will be an on-site inspection. Timeshare resorts that scored well in the phase one self-assessment will be visited by an expert in sustainable tourism and evaluated on their ‘green’ efforts.

Griffith University’s Dr. David Weaver, a professor of Tourism Research, will be participating with RCI Timeshare Exchange in both phases of the evaluation and award assessment.

Dr. Weaver was quoted by Hotel Interactive as saying, “I am absolutely delighted to be working on this initiative with RCI. I expect an award program such as this will really raise awareness of and participation in environmentally-friendly best practices within the sector.”

RCI Timeshare Exchange, Recognizing the Efforts of Timeshare Resorts

RCI Timeshare Exchange plans to announce the winners of the first-ever Gold, Silver and Bronze RCI Going Green Awards at the Australian Timeshare and Holiday Ownership Council annual conference in Christchurch in September 2010.

RCI Timeshare Exchange is working to promote and encourage the sharing of environmental sustainability best practices and green ideas with its associates and affiliates through a Green Council, under the support of its parent company (Wyndham Worldwide and Wyndham Timeshare) which has launched the WyndhamGreen sustainability initiative.

This week the American Resort Development Association Conference (ARDA) is convening their 2009 Fall Conference in Washington D.C. As many timeshare owners know, ARDA, is the trade association that represents the timeshare, vacation ownership, and resort development industries. ARDA functions to protect the welfare of both the industry and the consumer, helping to effect the growth, legislation, and beneficial change that makes the timeshare industry stronger and better for all who are a part of it on any level and in any capacity.

A significant aspect of this week’s conference will be the release of two, carefully researched advisories designed to aid consumers and timeshare owners looking to buy, rent, or sell timeshare on the secondary market. This directives look at both the role of the timeshare industry “good guys,” like Sell My Timeshare NOW, and the problem of those companies that prey on timeshare owners who seek to sell timeshare they no longer use or perhaps can no longer afford.

Sell My Timeshare NOW has been actively involved in the development of these advisories since the project first began. As ARDA President and CEO, Howard Nusbaum explains, “This is not an indictment of our reputable resale company members, but rather a problem faced by everyone who loves this industry (and doesn’t love the industry) being painted with the same ‘timeshare scam’ brush.

We deliver so much timeshare news and current events here on The Timeshare Authority, it becomes easy to forget that many of the people who are interested in buying timeshare or a timeshare rental are new to the world of timesharing. They may not “speak the language” that the rest of us have all grown accustomed to understanding.

So let’s use today’s blog and talk about some of the industry jargon that is understandably confusing to people who haven’t encountered it before:

• Fixed Week: These are seven-day increments of timeshare that you own at a home resort. Your fixed week of timeshare ownership is usually identified by a number, such as, “Week 10”. When you own a fixed week of timeshare, you are guaranteed that vacation week every year. But you are not required to stick with it; you can still typically use it as a timeshare exchange.
• Floating Week: A floating week gives you the right to one week of timeshare that usually falls within a season of a specified value. RCI (Resort Condominiums International) for example, uses color coded seasons of red, white, and blue with red representing the highest demand season. Use of a floating week is always based on availability and you must go through the steps required by your resort or exchange company to use it as a timeshare exchange. Points based timeshare is always floating timeshare ownership.
• Space banking: When you save or ‘bank’ your timeshare into a collective of other available timeshare weeks or units, you are space banking it for future use.
• Lock-out: A lock out or lock off timeshare unit is one that can be subdivided and each section rented separately.
• Gold Crown Resort: A Gold Crown timeshare resort is a connotation applied by RCI to identify timeshare properties of the highest standards.

Buying, renting, or selling timeshare is not a complicated process (at least it shouldn’t be) and enjoying timeshare is certainly not hard to do. But the industry has developed some specific terminology and you will be better prepared to make decisions and make plans if you understand the language.

To learn more about the no doubletalk approach to timeshares, check out the Sell My Timeshare NOW Timeshare Glossary.

Hard to believe it’s already November and time for the American Resort Development Association Conference in Washington DC. Registration begins tomorrow, with the opening night reception hosted by Interval International.

The Fall ARDA Conference, which runs from November 4-6, is hosted at the Fairmont Washington, DC. Former Senator John Sununu of New Hampshire will be leading off the sessions as keynote speaker.

As always, it is expected to be a significant week of information exchange, interaction, and engagement by representatives of the timeshare industry, vacation ownership, timeshare resales, and timeshare brokerage.

It’s going to be a busy week and in the upcoming days I will be sharing news with you from the ARDA Fall Conference.

Sell My Timeshare NOW in the news:

• Previous Senator John Sununu Honored By Sell My Timeshare NOW

Disney Vacation Club (Disney timeshare) is adjusting its salary and bonus strategy to try to incentivize members of its timeshare sales staff and increase sales of Disney timeshare units in the process.

In changes that were announced to Disney timeshare sales staff last month, the company will be reducing base pay to its front line timeshare sales team by about ten percent, yet increasing bonus amounts for employees who reach certain timeshare sales objectives.

Disney Vacation Club spokesperson, Rena Langley says, “We have made changes to the pay structure among our advance sales associates to allow us to provide more reward and recognition to top performers.”

Advance sales associates (also called ASAs) for Disney timeshare sales are the people who work in the Vacation Club sales kiosks that you find throughout the Disney parks and hotels. If Disney’s plan is doable, its timeshare sales workers will have the opportunity to earn larger paychecks. But among the approximately 100 ASA’s affected by the salary reductions, concern looms over whether they will be able to “make back” the salary amounts lost. Entry-level pay for ASAs prior to this pay reduction was around $11 per hour.

Not Even Disney Vacation Club Timeshare can Escape the Challenge of This Economy

With consumer credit lines for buying timeshare drying up, along with many people simply tightening their belts, timeshare sales at Disney have dropped. Yet Disney timeshare is still faced with four new timeshare properties to sell, on top of any existing inventory at the Disney Vacation Club resorts they still had.

Now add to this the increasing number of people who are buying timeshare resales on the secondary market because they have recognized the enormous savings it can mean, and you have a tough hill to climb by any worker who is trying to sell new timeshares on primarily a commission or incentive basis.

Opportunities in Disney Timeshare Resales:

• Disney’s Vero Beach Resort Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Old Key West Resort Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Boardwalk Villas Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Beach Club Villas Timeshare Resales

Other recent Disney Vacation Club News:

• Plan a Disney Timeshare Vacation in their New California Timeshares
• New Disney Timeshares are first California Timeshares for the Mouse
• Finding Disney Vacation Club Magic at the Mall

College football fans live for this time of year when the season is at its peak and almost everybody’s dreams of a bowl bid are still alive.

This year is no exception. The Florida Gators are chomping down on opponents, right and left. ‘Bama Tide is rolling through the south while the Longhorns have the Big 12 Conference under control. Seven of the top ten teams on this week’s BCS are undefeated (clearly they haven’t been playing each other) while the other three teams have only one loss apiece.

What are some of the must-watch college football games this weekend?

• Number 3 Texas takes on number 14 Oklahoma State in Stillwater. The Longhorns dominate this rivalry, but the Oklahoma State Cowboys have come close in the past and this could be their year to pull an upset.
• Number 22 South Carolina takes on a weaker than usual University of Tennessee, but the game’s being played in Knoxville, so anything could happen.
• And any other team you care about, follow, or that makes you stand on your sofa and shout, “Go-Go-Go!” when one of their players tucks that football—point into his bicep, fingers wide, covering as much of the ball as possible, locked against his chest—and starts to run. And from someplace deep within him, he finds the capability to weave, dodge, and accelerate on instinct, each step driving him closer and closer until you can throw your arms up in the air and scream, “Touchdown!”

And while standing on your couch is a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon, perhaps what you really need is a spacious, comfy timeshare rental and tickets to the game:

• Florida timeshare rentals
• Texas timeshare rentals
• Oklahoma timeshare resales
• South Carolina timeshare rentals
• Wyndham Smoky Mountain timeshare rentals
• Westgate Smoky Mountain timeshare rentals
• Tennessee timeshare rentals
• Sell My Timeshare NOW’s large inventory of timeshare rentals

…A happy, safe, and slightly scary Halloween to all; and for all you football fans, “Go Team!”

According to The Nielsen Company, which has now expanded beyond television ratings and teamed up with Facebook, Americans have almost tripled the amount of time they spend involved in social networking and blog sites compared to a year ago.

“This growth suggests a wholesale change in the way the Internet is used. While video and text content remain central to the Web experience—the desire of online consumers to connect, communicate, and share is increasingly driving the medium’s growth,” says Jon Gibs, vice president, media and agency insights, Nielsen’s online division.

And to better understand how this growth impacts marketing outreach to, and for, timeshare owners, timeshare sales, and timeshare rentals, look at these statistics that relate specifically to advertising dollars spent on social sites related to the topics of entertainment and of travel:

The timeshare industry, along with hoteliers, restaurants, travel services and other areas related to entertainment and hospitality has clearly decided to acknowledge the impact of social media and its functionality to engage and build relationships with clients.

Look around on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, in the blogs—you’ll see the timeshare industry well represented on social media sites. And while they are using social media in many ways, here’s three strategies that are being used a lot…

3 Important Ways the Timeshare and Hospitality Industry Is Putting Social Media to Work

1. Timeshare and hospitality jobs are announced and updated via Twitter and other social media sites. Visit @timesharestaff on Twitter for one example of this technique in action.
2. Photo sharing gives consumers and future clients an inside look at what a brand has to offer. Example: “22 photos on Facebook in the album “Bonnet Creek Opens!”: http://bit.ly/14CVmQ” This tweet is from @BonnetCreek, Twitter home for news about Orlando’s new Waldorf=Astoria and Hilton Resort.
3. Blogs, Facebook, YouTube and other social media platforms make it easy for timeshare sales companies, timeshare resellers, resorts, and any business related to the industry to educate their followers and virally communicate information that consumers want to know. VacationBetter.org has numerous videos on YouTube, like the one below, that offering helpful facts and improved understand of the resort and hospitality industries, their services, and the roles they play in people’s lives.

Resource: The Nielsen Wire http://blog.nielsen.com

Last week, ARDA’s vacation website, www.vacationbetter.org announced the winners of this year’s “Bring Your Vacation to Life Contest.”

Each year this photo, essay, and video competition is announced in conjunction with the National Travel and Tourism Week in May. Entrants are asked to share a memory of a timeshare vacation that contributed to their enjoyment of life or impacted their family or their health.

This year’s winners received an American Express gift card.

• Sally Lessig received first place for her photo, “Al Relaxing” and the accompanying story, “Thru the Years.”
• Alexis MacDonald received second place for her photo, “Lexie & Dan Love Myrtle Beach.”
• Tracy Dunn received second place for her photo, “For My Next Act.”

Follow this link to read Sally’s story about a lifetime of timeshare vacations at the Beach House Golf and Racket Club in Myrtle Beach.

And remember, you aren’t limited to just reading about the great timeshare vacations other people enjoy. The competitive prices of timeshare resales and timeshare rentals make affordable vacations an option even for travelers on a limited budget.

Sunday, November 1, 2009 in Venice, Florida, the National Timeshare Owners Association will hold their last Owners Seminar of the year.

This is your chance to get important tips on buying or selling timeshare. Learn how to avoid timeshare scams with straight talk from a panel of industry experts on hand to answer all your timeshare questions.

The National Timeshare Owners Association (NTOA) was founded to educate timeshare owners, answering the questions and offering the solutions that are often hard to find. You know what it is like; when you want to buy timeshare, everyone wants to be your friend, with developers and timeshare sales companies bombarding you through calls, mailers, and timeshare sales presentations. But once the ink is dry (or even before), these people often seem to disappear leaving you to scramble for answers to your questions.

Here are some of the timeshare industry experts who will be on hand in Venice, Florida to answer your questions:

• Bill Southworth from Interval International
• Keith Trowbridge from Executive Quest Inc.
• Brian Rogers from Timeshare Users Group

The National Timeshare Owners Association explains the value of attending one of their “Members-Only” educational events:

“You’ll experience all the best features of NTOA membership in those few hours: straightforward answers, ethical guidance, exclusive discounts, and the priceless tips, alerts, hard-won experience, and support of other timeshare owners. With the information you gather in one of these conferences, you’ll recoup your low membership fee many times over.”

To attend a NTOA conference and enjoy all the many timeshare owner benefits of NTOA, click here. For more information, call the office: (410) 536-0064 or email info@nationaltimeshareownersassoc.com

We love to check out the advice real estate guru Barbara Corcoran has to offer for buying or selling a home or vacation property. Besides the fact that Corcoran took a $1000 loan and turned it into a five billion dollar real estate business, she is also the expert who told viewers of The Today Show to turn to online timeshare advertising—and specifically named Sell My Timeshare NOW – as the recommended way to resell timeshare.

Here’s what Barbara Corcoran’s advice about selling your home that’s equally meaningful for anyone who wants to resell timeshare.

• Remember that the most enticing homes on the market are the newest to the listings and the lowest priced.
• Stay ahead of the pricing curve in a down market.
• Be prepared to price your house 15 percent below comparable homes on the market.
• If you have to make a price reduction to get your property sold, don’t make it a tiny one that just causes your property to languish on the market even longer and eventually results in you making a second, third, or even more price drops.

In a good real estate (or timeshare sales and timeshare resales market), price your property aggressively in order to get the sale, pricing it as low as competitive properties. And in a difficult market—if you really want to sell your timeshare or your home—be the most competitively priced property in your market.

More about Barbara Corcoran from The Timeshare Authority:

• The Today Show Recommends SellMyTimeshareNOW.com for Timeshare Resales
• The Today Show’s Real Estate Expert Who Suggests Sell My Timeshare NOW, a Star on Shark Tank

And just for the fun of it, see if you can catch reruns of Barbara Corcoran wheeling and dealing during this season’s Shark Tank on ABC.