Hotel and Motel Management recently ran a report on social media, a topic we feel strongly about at Sell My Timeshare NOW and The Timeshare Authority blog. (Apply marketing basics to social media to sell timeshare)

As they correctly observed, timeshares and social media are a logical match, with author Stephanie Ricca pointing out, “The timeshare industry is known for its marketing savvy, so it makes sense that this segment hit the ground running when it came to adopting social media strategies.”

Much of the report addresses what it defines as, “using social media outlets to strengthen the bond with the most critical mass—current timeshare owners.” This is a good observation and brings up the issue we made in a blog post this past Sunday (Social Media and the Timeshare Industry at the VOASA Conference)

Timeshares inherently have a special need for social media. Timeshare owners may buy timeshare from a developer who gives them plenty of attention, right up until they become a timeshare owner. After that, some timeshare owners feel they are “on their own” when it comes to gaining updates and general information about the opportunities of vacation ownership. This feeling of “aloneness” can be even greater for timeshare owners who bought timeshare as on the resale market. Who do they turn to with their questions? Where is their support system?

But as Howard Nusbaum, president and CEO of ARDA (the American Resort Development Association), explains, “We’re trying to educate our members that viral and word-of-mouth marketing now has a huge megaphone…This is an opportunity every day to ensure you’re igniting your fans and answering your detractors.”

Timeshare Owners Need a Voice…and a Listening Ear

Social media is often called “new media” for a reason. The old way the business world used to communicate with consumers has come to an end. No more one-sided conversations where advertising executives strategize the message, trying to shape the way consumers feel about the product.

Instead, social media has given consumers the voice they should have always had. Whether the product is timeshares, other travel and vacation products, or consumer goods and services, social media is providing the platforms for individuals to express and share their likes, dislikes, needs, and opinions. New media is one of the best directions business has taken in many years, even though it has left most industries—timeshare included—working hard to get up to steam with a presence in all the places its market wants to be heard.

The Timeshare Authority Blog and Sell My Timeshare NOW hope you will follow us on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jasontremblay_ and http://twitter.com/vacationhotdeal

At Sell My Timeshare NOW, we are excited about our acquisition of the clients and primary assets of the Canada timeshare website, Rapid Resale, Ltd. Their customer base is loyal; the website, established in September of 2004, has a proven track record of helping Canadian owners buy and sell timeshare in the secondary market. This move strengthens our position in the Canada timeshare market by expanding our brand and visibility. And as Jay Bade, Vice President, Business Development for Sell My Timeshare NOW, stated to the media, “We are honored that April Cummins entrusted her customers to Sell My Timeshare NOW and excited to be able to expand visibility, marketing, and timeshare sales services for her clients.”

Now if only the mainstream media will share this positive, timeshare industry business growth and development with its audience. Will the story be buried behind accounts of shady timeshare resellers and sluggish quarterly profit reports from timeshare developers and resort companies?

Perhaps the timeshare industry story that gets “buried” most of all is the simple and astounding fact that a high percentage (consistently year-in-and-year out greater than 80 percent) of timeshare owners report that they use and enjoy their timeshare and are satisfied with timeshare ownership. 23.5 percent of timeshare owners rank their ownership experience as excellent; 37.4 percent rank it as very good; and 23.9 percent rank it as good … which adds up to a whopping 84.8 percent ranking it good or better than good. (Source: Vacation Timeshare Owners Report, 2008 edition. Prepared by Synovate for AIF in a study that surveyed a national sample of 4009 current timeshare owners between May 30 and June 10, 2008.)

Timeshare really is a good news story, even though that is not always the message consumers hear. If you would like to read Sell My Timeshare NOW’s “good news” media release, click here: Sell My Timeshare NOW Acquires Top Canadian Timeshare Resales Website

“One of the ten best beaches in the world,” says Life Styles of the Rich and Famous

This week, Sell My Timeshare NOW announces that it has become the Authorized Reseller for The Crane Resort in Barbados. This is a great development, expanding timeshare resales opportunities for timeshare owners at The Crane Resort and market presence in the Caribbean for Sell My Timeshare NOW.

Kim Goddard, sales director at The Crane Resort explains, “We are excited to enhance our resale program by partnering with Vacation Property Solutions, the Resort Services Division of SellMyTimeshareNOW.com and Timeshare Broker Services, the company’s brokerage organization, to best represent the weeks that The Crane owners may desire to sell. SellMyTimeshareNOW.com is the only authorized resale company for The Crane Resort.”

The Caribbean Timeshare and Hotel Known as the First Resort

The Crane Resort is a very special place with spectacular ocean views and a pink shell beach on the Atlantic Ocean. Built in 1887, The Crane Resort is often described as the Caribbean’s “first resort”. Although fully updated, The Crane retains the original styling that is so much a part of its charm and elegance.

As Jay Bade, RRP (an ARDA recognized Registered Resort Professional) and VP of Business Development for SellMyTimeshareNOW.com says, “Although The Crane Resort has a successful resale program in place, affiliating with Sell My Timeshare NOW increases visibility for The Crane Resort resales, driving traffic and additional buyers through both www.sellmytimesharenow.com and www.thecrane.com. Sell My Timeshare NOW is thrilled to be recognized as an authorized reseller for The Crane Resort’s active resales program and to represent current owners at the resort when they want to sell vacation ownership and fractional weeks.”

Click here to read the full media release: Sell My Timeshare NOW Named as Authorized Reseller for Luxury Barbados Resort

If you are surprised to learn that 38 percent of women are already taking girlfriends-only vacations, (without their husband, boyfriend, significant other, or the kids) then you may be amazed to find out that 63 percent of the women surveyed plan on taking up the practice within the next two years.

According to research released by the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), the trend toward girls-only holidays and timeshare vacations is strong and growing. Women, especially those in the thirty-something to forty-something demographic, are choosing to vacation with other female friends and family members in increasing numbers.

Here are just five of the many reasons that more and more women plan girls-only vacations:

• Overworked and overstressed, women seek a break from their responsibilities as career women, wives and mothers.
• As a working woman, today’s woman has income she considers expendable and discretionary.
• Girls-only vacations afford women time for nurturing friendships.
• Girlfriend vacations are about rest and rejuvenation, not compromising holiday time doing what your children or your spouse wants to do.
• Research reinforces the message that although vacation time is important for everyone, it can play an especially critical role in women’s health and wellbeing.

Timeshare Vacations take the Stress Out of Vacation Planning

Timeshare vacations are the low-stress vacation choice. Staying in timeshares get you out of a cramped hotel room and into spacious accommodations with multiple bedrooms, a living area, and a kitchen. Timeshare exchange means that no matter where you own timeshare, you don’t have to travel cross-country to holiday. You can vacation close to home, yet enjoy the experience of feeling transported a million miles away from daily routines and responsibilities.

Timeshare resorts are typically safe places to relax. Frequented by vacationers rather than conventioneers or overnight travelers, timeshare resorts tend to be properties with limited ‘outsider’ traffic and many onsite activities and options.

As Howard Nusbaum, ARDA president and CEO says, “Making the Girlfriend Getaway special starts with selecting the right place. Timeshare provides spacious accommodations in fabulous locations and are a terrific option for these girls-only vacations.”

Click here to download ARDA’s newly released Guide to Girlfriend Getaways.

 

Topics: ARDA, Timeshare Blog, Timeshare News, Vacation

Sell My Timeshare NOW is excited to announce that we’ve selected Marge Lennon and Lennon Communications as our publicist. Lennon Communications is a Florida-based public relations, marketing, and advertising firm, with extensive experience in timeshares, timeshare resales, and timeshare rentals.

Marge has some thirty years experience in the timeshare industry-if you are in the business of timeshares, it’s likely you already know Marge. Even if you haven’t met Marge personally, or seen her on the dance floor of industry events, you’ve likely read her byline.

Marge writes frequently in Resort Management & Operations, where she is a Contributing Editor. She also blogs for several timeshare related blog sites and is the editor of the WIN e-newsletter for Women In the Industry. Marge is also a past board member of ARDA, the American Resort Development Association, and currently serves on the Board of Directors for Bluegreen Vacation Club.

So welcome, Marge, we are pleased to be your client and trust our message to Lennon Communications. There’s a great deal of exciting news at Sell My Timeshare NOW, so keep an eye on The Timeshare Authority blog, industry publications, and national and international news-you’ll be hearing a lot from us in weeks to come-and it’s all good news for timeshare owners and the future of timeshare sales and timeshare resales across the industry.

Click here to read the Sell My Timeshare NOW media release.

Following up on yesterday’s post on The Timeshare Authority, I want to share more with you about this past week’s ARDA New England Regional Meeting held in Providence, Rhode Island.

Howard Nusbaum, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Resort Development Association, was the keynote speaker, discussing ARDA’s key issues for 2010. Point one, along with my thoughts, appeared yesterday in The Timeshare Authority, so you will want to check out that post, if you missed it.

And now here’s a look at the next four important areas of focus for ARDA and the timeshare industry as a whole:

2. Working to foster growth in the secondary marketplace:
This point is part of an overriding and significant theme for the timeshare industry. Timeshare fraud is the exception, but to any degree, it cannot be tolerated. Laws must be adhered to and the timeshare industry on all levels, including timeshare sales and timeshare resales, must be able to show itself to the world with transparency and creditability.

3. Nurturing and supporting timeshare owners:
The timeshare industry is not, and never can be, solely about new timeshare sales and timeshare resale. Instead, we must all be about nurturing and supporting customers and honoring the dream that customers purchased in becoming timeshare owners. Timeshare ownership products must be maintained as strong, vibrant, and fulfilling products.

4. Utilizing social media technology:

It is no longer acceptable for any business or any industry to rely on drawing consumers into the store or onto a webpage. Instead, through the power of social media, the timeshare industry must reach out to timeshare owners, timeshare buyers, timeshare renters, and prospective clients, connecting with them in the online locations they already frequent. Embracing social media marketing is one of the most timely and relevant sales and marketing strategies for spreading the message of what a great product timeshares really are.

5. Changing business models:
ARDA is working to help the timeshare industry explore new business models and evolve old business models. Thought leaders of timesharing and vacation ownership are addressing how products can be revised to better suit consumer buying profiles and vacation patterns. One of many points in question is that of ownership in perpetuity, which may no longer have the desirability factor it once did. In response to that, new products that offer short-term ownership opportunities are being explored.

It’s all good, isn’t it? When the goal of any industry is to work together to make its products more consumer-focused and more desirable, under an umbrella of forthrightness and complete transparency, then only good things can come of that effort. Timeshares are a great product, getting better all the time, and frankly, I am proud to part of an industry that focuses on bringing affordable vacation opportunities to individuals and families in ways that are relevant, timely, and flexible.

This week I had the opportunity to be part of the 2010 ARDA New England Regional Meeting that was held at the Marriott Providence Downtown in Providence, Rhode Island.

First, let’s give well-deserved accolades to all of the sponsors of the event.

Presenting Sponsors: Interval International and RCI.

Event Sponsors: Customer Count, and Gallagher, Callahan and Gartrell.

National Sponsors: ARDA-ROC, Aspen National Collections, Concord Servicing Corporation, MasterCorp Inc., Ski and Sea International, and TimeShareWare.

Regional Sponsors: BiddingForGood, Inc., Centron Data Services, Inc., Colebrook Financial Company, LLC, Continental Central Credit, Inc., Cotapaxi Custom Design & Manufacturing, GScf Furnishings, Lodging Kit Company, Magna Timeshare Software, Meridian Financial Services, Reservation Services International (RSI), TRITON Timeshare Software and VisitNewEngland.com.

2010 Signature Sponsors: American Express, Equiant Financial Services, Holiday Inn Club Vacations, Holiday Systems International (HSI), International Cruise & Excursions, Inc., Interval International, RCI, RedWeek.com ResortCom International, Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., and VacationGuard, Inc.

The Timeshare Sales, Timeshare Resales, and Supporting Industries Work Together

The weather in Providence was spectacular (vacation weather!) and it is always great catching up with your colleagues who inevitably wind up becoming your friends. One of the very best parts of meetings and conferences when representatives of the timeshare industry get together is that you’d think it was a family reunion.

There’s a great deal of camaraderie in the business, which is part of the reason timeshares, as a vacation product, are constantly being improved—the industry works to together for change that is beneficial to timeshares and timeshare owners. Working together is a natural process that happens to be becoming a real business model for the timeshare industry—which leads into the points made by the event’s keynote speaker Howard Nusbaum, ARDA’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

Howard Nusbaum stressed five important directions that are the American Resort Development Association’s top priorities for 2010. In summary, here is key point number one:

1. Seeking solutions to help ‘unfreeze’ capital.

In 2008, timeshare sales reached $9.7 billion. In 2009, they slipped to $6.3 billion. Did people suddenly decide timeshares were not a desirable or affordable product? No. Far from it. If anything, consumers, realizing the potential for long-term vacation savings by buying timeshares and timeshare resales, had an increased interest to learn more. But because lenders were simply not lending, and access to capital for timeshare developers and timeshare financing was so locked up, new timeshare development and new timeshare sales took a hit.

Although it would be easy to assume that actual demand in timeshare sales declined, this just isn’t the real issue. Instead, there has been little to no access to capital by developers and limited money available for financing timeshare sales. And as with many aspects of economics, the problem fed other problems. As timeshare sales and development declined, so did the funds available within timeshare companies for maintaining and supporting sales and marketing. As outreach from the timeshare companies weakened, so did response, which led cyclically to smaller staffs that inevitably led back to decreased timeshare sales. The problem is now self-perpetuating, greatly in need of lenders to free up more growth and investment capital.

I’ll publish “ARDA Regional Meeting Emphasizes Timeshare Solutions and the Importance of Timeshare Resales (Part II)” in tomorrow’s edition of The Timeshare Authority. In it, I’ll be sharing ARDA’s Top 5 Priorities for 2010, numbers 2-4, as well as my thoughts and comments.

AIF has finalized the State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry: United States Study, 2010 Edition, releasing some very positive and reaffirming news about timeshares. The annual study, prepared by Ernst and Young, showed an average of 79.9 percent occupancy at US timeshare resorts in 2009 as compared to a 54.7 percent occupancy rate at US hotels. (Source: “STR Trend Report,” Smith Travel Research, April 2010)

Thirty-four percent of US timeshare resorts showed occupancy rates as high as 90 percent and higher, with another twenty percent ranking between 80 and 89 percent occupancy. Only twelve percent of US timeshare resorts had 60 percent or lower occupancy rates last year.

Occupancy Rate for Timeshare 2009 Attests to the Strength of Timesharing

Stats don’t lie. While there will always be timeshare owners who don’t use their timeshare or who feel buyer’s remorse and wish they had not purchased it, the majority of timeshare owners use and enjoy their vacation ownership property. In fact, many timeshare owners believe that in the tight economy of recent years, had they not owned timeshare, providing them pre-paid vacation accommodations, they would have never been able to work a much-needed vacation into their budgets. Timeshare owners frequently have found that they are at the beach or in the mountains enjoying a family holiday while many of their friends and neighbors were left at home, in the backyard on staycation.

Want to know which way the timeshare industry is going? Strategies and visions for the future? Interesting info about timeshare trends?

You don’t have to be an industrial spy to obtain this information; it’s available for you on ARDA’s website (American Resort Developers Association). Following this year’s ARDA Convention and Exhibition in Las Vegas, where the timeshare industry comes together to plan, share, and network, ARDA has posted handouts from many of its educational sessions.

The Timeshare Authority blog will be bringing you some of the highlights from ARDA’s educational handouts, but this wealth of data that is available for anyone to download, if you want to check it out for yourself.

For example, here’s a profile on European timeshares and European timeshare owners that is available in the reports.

European Timeshare, (all data based on 2007 findings)

Source: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY of “The European Timeshare Industry 2008″; Market Characteristics & Economic Impacts. Authors: The Christel DeHaan Tourism and Travel Research Institute, University of Nottingham, UK

1. 1.5 million European households own timeshare, with the UK and Ireland having the largest base of timeshare owners.
2. Most timeshare resorts are in Spain, with 26.3 percent of all resorts, 14.94 percent in Italy, and 11.05 percent in the UK and Ireland. The total number of European timeshares is 1,312.
3. European timeshare generates € 3.2 billion of expenditure.
4. European timeshare owners spent € 1.6 billion during their timeshare vacations.
5. European timeshare owners spent € 957 million to buy timeshare.
6. The average expenditure in 2007 per timeshare vacation was € 1,588.
7. 69,836 jobs are directly sustained by the European timeshare industry.
8. 86.6 percent of the European timeshare owners reported satisfaction with their timeshare holiday, while 55.6 percent say they were very satisfied!

Video from the ARDA (American Resort Development Association) Convention and Exhibition in Las Vegas, March 14-18, 2010.

I want to share with you an interview in which I gave some of my thoughts on the importance of regulating timeshare resales and the secondary market for timeshare sales.

I see such legislation as necessary and beneficial. The secondary timeshare market is growing; it’s undergoing change and now is the right time to put guidelines in place that will protect timeshare sellers and timeshare buyers, and will serve to strengthen and improve the entire industry.

Thank you to my interviewer, David Kerr, former COO of Trades Publishing, Inc.

Here are some of my thoughts on the subject: