Have you noticed headlines about timeshare ownership or vacation resort property that warn you, “Timeshare Owners Can’t Resell Timeshare,” but the next day claim, “Timeshare Sales and Timeshare Resales are Gaining”?

Or how about the news from some timeshare sales companies that business is in a major slump only to follow that news in a few days or a few weeks by news with the same timeshare sales company claiming its business is rebounding and it is opening new resorts?

Mixed messaging is confusing. And frankly, it is sometimes a red flag that a company doesn’t have a firm grasp on what is happening internally. After the year we’ve all been through economically, watching pillars and icons of business crumble and fall, corporate mixed messaging no longer fools anyone.

In today’s business climate, consumers value consistency. A business may not be the biggest, sell the most, or offer the most different types of services in its field, but if it is consistent in what it delivers and honest in the message it sends, then let’s face it; we feel a lot more comfortable spending our money there.

Everyone is tired of the rollercoaster ride. Now consumers are sending their own message: “If your business is good, tell us; and if it is mediocre or even poor, tell us that, too. We are all watching our dollars and cents and any corporation or company that does not shoot straight with us is not likely to earn our trust.”

The Consistent, Reliable Message of Sell My Timeshare NOW

Sell My Timeshare NOW has been telling you the same thing for nearly six years—our timeshare resale and timeshare rental advertising business is good and we are growing. As both the consumer economy and the state of the industry have changed, we’ve made changes too. But our press releases, our advertising, our quarterly financial synopses, and our blog have all delivered a message of timeshare sales, timeshare rentals, new services, new staff, growth, and an ever-increasing level of leadership and participation in shaping our industry. There is no mixed messaging here.

We are not the biggest company in America or even the biggest in the timeshare business. We are not the oldest, the one with the most offices, or with the flashiest advertising. Instead, we are Sell My Timeshare NOW, a fast-growing, forward thinking, reliable, and straight shooting company.

Here are the twelve most recent media announcements Sell My Timeshare NOW has released since January 2009. The headlines tell the story …

1. New Booking Service in Timeshare Rentals Means Huge Vacation Savings Paired With the Ease of Online Reservations
2. Timeshare Resales Offers up 56 Percent on HOT 100 List as Americans Seek Vacation Savings
3. Timeshare Sales Management Expansion Part of Sell My Timeshare NOW’s Critical Growth Plan
4. Sell My Timeshare NOW Reports 95 Percent Growth in Offers During the First Quarter 2009
5. Timeshare Resales Advertising Executive Takes on Role as Myth Buster
6. Timeshare Resales CEO Part of Speakers Panel for National Timeshare Owners Association
7. Timeshare Broker Company Continues Success in a Down Economy
8. Sell My Timeshare NOW CEO to Speak on Timeshare Resales Panel at TATOC Conference
9. Timeshare Resales Company, Sell My Timeshare NOW Announces Hiring of President and COO
10. National Timeshare Owners Association Endorses Sell My Timeshare NOW
11. Timeshare Sales Advertising Leader Hires Jay Bade to Head Business Development
12. Despite the Economy, Consumers Are Buying and Renting Timeshare Resales and Sell My Timeshare NOW Has the Numbers to Prove It

Ron Goldberg, the president of Wellington Financial has been invited to serve as a member of the Board of Directors of ARDA, the American Resort Development Association.

In serving as a member of the board, Goldberg brings a unique timeshare resort industry perspective, as Wellington is the exclusive resort finance-lending correspondent for Liberty Bank and has long been recognized as a specialist in lending money for the development of timeshare resorts, fractionals, and retail land.

Howard Nusbaum, president and CEO of ARDA says, “We are excited to have Ron Goldberg’s expertise on our resort developer association board. The present economic environment especially as it relates to the sluggish credit markets is a problem for any business which must access the capital markets for operational funds. Both Mr. Goldberg’s and Wellington’s expertise in this arena will add value to our Association dialogue as we work to secure more funding for timeshare.”

Ron Goldberg has been involved in finance related services for the timeshare industry for more than 28 years. His presence on the ARDA Board of Directors evidences ARDA’s commitment to supporting the needs and challenges of the timeshare industry with targeted sensitivity to special needs created by this economy.

The numbers are in and they look good! Sell My Timeshare NOW is continuing with strong growth trends during the first quarter of 2009 even in the face of the challenging economy. The number of offers to buy timeshare or rent timeshare increased by 95 percent over the same quarter in 2008. The total number of offers to buy timeshare resales in the first quarter of 2009 was 54,125.

Noteworthy Gains in Timeshare Rentals

Sell My Timeshare NOW has measured dramatic
gains in the number of offers to buy timeshare
resales or rent timeshare.

Dollar amounts of offers to buy timeshare or rent timeshare were also up. During the first quarter of 2009, the offers totaled $136,831,174. This is an increase of 51 percent above the amount of offers received during the same quarter last year.

While timeshare rental offers are included in the above stats, they are interesting to break out separately. Offers to rent timeshare show an increase of 146 percent in the number of offers as compared the first quarter of 2008. Sell My Timeshare NOW saw 34,425 offers for timeshare rental during the first quarter of 2009, at a total of $34,782,223, which is an increase of 125 percent over the amount of offers made during the same quarter of 2008.

To read the full press release on the Sell My Timeshare NOW Statistical Synopsis, click here.

And to download the report in full, follow this link: http://www.sellmytimesharenow.com/media/pdf/2009-smtn-1st-quarter-layout.pdf

It seems the people of Ko Olina just need a little reassurance. And who doesn’t after the economic down spiral we have witnessed in this country?

Last week WKHON2 in Ko Olina, Hawaii ran a news segment in which both Disney Vacation Club Timeshare vice president Djuan Rivers, and Kapolei Neighborhood Board chair Maeda Timson reassured residents that the Disney Vacation Club Timeshare project is still full steam ahead.

Timson said, “Its been real apparent that the Disney project is probably the most exciting project that’s happening right now…” Rivers adds, “It’s my time to let people know that we are here, we are proud members of the community and we’re excited about the project finally getting started.”

While Disney Vacation Club timeshare owners are no doubt anxious to learn more about the 20-plus acre hybrid resort that will feature 480 timeshare villas and 350 hotel rooms, area residents are interested in the timeshare resort as a resource for new jobs and employment opportunities.

The Disney Vacation Club timeshare certainly means a traditional range of positions will be available, such as desk clerks and hotel services. Rivers made a point of reminding people that there will also be career opportunities, adding “…people will be able to flourish”. Timson explains, “These are jobs that our folks can have careers … and it’s in our community.”

Hawaii timeshare has long been a positive for the economy of the islands and there is no doubt that the presence of Disney Vacation Club Timeshare couldn’t come at a better time or be more appreciated.

Watch this YouTube video of Disney’s groundbreaking and ground blessing at the Ko Olina resort:

It is hard to say which is the greater problem: the economy itself or consumer concerns about the economy. Either one gridlocks the flow of money as people spend less and worry more.

Both problems have worked against timeshare developers who must carry on despite there being fewer qualified timeshare buyers and greater reticence to part with their money by those who do have sufficient income to buy timeshare.

The gridlock stops being only a timeshare developer problem and takes on widespread economic impact in any state where timeshares represent a significant part of the hospitality industry and tax base. In Florida, home to more timeshare resorts than any other state in the US, the challenges that have faced the timeshare industry translate to a statewide problem that calls for legislators and the industry to work collaboratively on any measures that could potentially translate to relief.

Help for Florida Timeshares

Florida House Speaker-designate Dean Cannon, has been working with lobbyists for the timeshare industry on a plan that will permit Florida timeshare companies to sell debt cancellation policies as part of a timeshare mortgage. Functioning like insurance, such policies would provide a consumer who buys timeshare from the developer with debt forgiveness in the event he (or she) loses his income.

Jason Gamel, vice president of state government affairs for the American Resort Development Association, was quoted by the Orlando Sentinel as saying, “It’s another good product that would allow developers to facilitate sales of time shares, bring tourists to Central Florida and give people comfort about their purchase.” Gamel compared the timeshare mortgage forgiveness policies to a type of travel insurance.

Westgate timeshare is among the Florida timeshare companies lobbying for this legislation. Westgate timeshare already sells similar debt-forgiveness policies as an option with their Nevada timeshares and their California timeshares.

The caveats of the policies have yet to be worked out, but one assumes that they cover loss of income by the head of household due to job loss or death.

The legislation (HB 61) has passed the Florida House and has been sent to the Senate for discussion. With only a couple of weeks left in the 2009 legislative session, approval of the plan may go down to the wire.

I guess you could say, I am on a roll when it comes to challenging myths and misinformation about timeshares. Yesterday’s The Timeshare Authority tackled inaccuracies about the demand for timeshare resales. Sell My Timeshare NOW’s latest press release, distributed last night at midnight, looks at a couple of other important ‘timeshare un-truths.’

Consumers deserve fair and accurate information about timeshare so they can make informed decisions about how they spend their hard-earned money. When incorrect information impacts the decision to buy timeshare, it also impacts jobs either, within the timeshare industry itself, or within the many support services that serve the timeshare industry.

Yet some of the very sources consumers should be able to turn to for reliable facts about buying, selling or renting timeshare, are among those perpetuating myths like the one that says an appraisal is necessary in order to buy or sell timeshare. That’s just wrong.

When you buy timeshare from a developer, no appraisal is done. And no appraisal is necessary when you resell timeshare. The value of your timeshare resale is determined by what the market supports, not through an attempt to assess the value of a fraction of a piece of property during a week or weeks that may be fixed or floating in a calendar year.

Timeshare Owners Deserve the Facts

When I spoke last week at the National Timeshare Owners Association’s Baltimore educational conference, I talked about things like the appraisal myth and the myth that there is no market for timeshare resales. The timeshare owners I spoke to were all very receptive of the message. They understood what I meant when I told them that the keys to selling timeshare include marketing it to a vast, global audience and pricing it right. As I often tell timeshare owners, “It is hard to sell a one dollar bill for $20. But price it at 75 cents, and you can sell one dollar bills all day long.”

The picture on the left was taken at the NTOA meeting. Left to right, you will see Shep Altshuler, publisher of Timesharing Today magazine, Ed Hastry, who is the President of the National Timeshare Owners Association, and me. I certainly enjoyed the time in Baltimore, myth busting for a group of interested and enthusiastic timeshare owners. The picture on the left was taken at the NTOA meeting. Left to right, you will see Shep Altshuler, publisher of Timesharing Today magazine, Ed Hastry, who is the President of the National Timeshare Owners Association, and me. I certainly enjoyed the time in Baltimore, myth busting for a group of interested and enthusiastic timeshare owners.

And whether you read the straight talk here in The Timeshare Authority, read our press releases, or run into me on the street, ask me to tell you about timeshares. I am going to be out there, spreading the message and sharing the facts, because timeshare is simply too good a product to have misinformation following it around.

Follow this link to read: Timeshare Resales Advertising Executive Takes on Role as Myth Buster

I’ve heard it; you’ve heard it; you may even believe it. I am talking about the misconception that timeshares do not resell on the secondary market. Saying this is like claiming that no one ever buys a car that has been previously owned. It doesn’t make sense and it is simply NOT TRUE.

So as promised in yesterday’s The Timeshare Authority blog, I am going to show you proof that people are actively searching the internet in general, and the Sell My Timeshare NOW website in particular, for timeshare resales and timeshare rentals.

Proof that Consumers are Shopping the Internet for Timeshare Resales and Timeshare Rentals

Lately politicians have been using the word “transparency” to describe their practices and protocols, but, transparency in business is what Sell My Timeshare NOW has pledged to you since the first day we started, some five and a half years ago.

We publish – on our website – the real-time stats for traffic to the site. Timeshare owners who are considering advertising their timeshare resale or timeshare rental on Sell My Timeshare NOW can look at these stats and see for themselves how much traffic the website receives and what words people are typing into their search engines to get them to the site. And knowing what words or phrases people are searching for gives you a lot of insight about whether the visitors are buyers or sellers.

On the bottom right corner of the homepage for www.sellmytimesharenow.com you will see a symbol that looks like this:

When you click the symbol, you will find the Extreme Tracking results for Sell My Timeshare NOW’s website. Examine these results; they tell you everything from the operating system the website viewer has in their computer to the search engine they used to find the site, and so very much more.

Here is a screenshot from our website’s Extreme Tracking results that was taken today, April 23, 2009. This chart shows you the exact phrases or words that unique website visitors were using during a 6-minute window of time to reach the Sell My Timeshare NOW website. You will find names of different timeshare resorts, phrases like “timeshares for sale” and “time share resales” as well search terms about renting timeshare. You will see many different combinations, but an overwhelming number of the words verify a unique website visitor who had enough interest in buying or renting timeshare to be searching the internet for information and opportunities. Is there a market for timeshare resales and timeshare rentals? Clearly! And Sell My Timeshare has seen more than 54,000 offers to buy or rent timeshare in the first quarter of 2009 alone.

So the next time someone tells you how bad the timeshare resale market is, don’t believe it. Send them instead to Sell My Timeshare NOW’s website and let the numbers do the talking.

Retirees and Baby Boomers are redefining the opportunities of vacation ownership and timeshare sales. According to HotelsMagazine.com, approximately 78 million Baby Boomers will be retiring in the next 15 years, and as the article points out, with their retirement comes a new release of wealth by a strong and financially comfortable demographic.

With all the news about dwindling retirement accounts and a struggling, strangling economy, it is easy enough to forget that some segments of the population are still quite financially sound. John Cottrill, senior vice president for The Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences says, “Baby boomers have revolutionized the term ‘retirement’. Many work well into their golden years, while increasing leisure time and activities such as traveling, spending time with their families and seeking new and one-of-a-kind experiences. Their incomes and expectations lead them to seek the lifestyle and amenities that can only be offered by The Ritz-Carlton.”

Ritz-Carlton Club timeshares are among the many timeshare companies today that are aggressively marketing to the 50+ and soon to be 50+ segments of the population. As Hotels Magazine points out, “Once the economy turns around, hopefully in late 2009 or early 2010, companies will be salivating at the chance to pitch Boomers on the benefits of fractional ownership, as well as timeshare and vacation clubs.”

John Burlingame, executive vice president of Hyatt Vacation Ownership (Hyatt timeshare) Inc. explains, “The Baby Boomers are at the age where they’re thinking about how they’re going to spend quality time with extended family, and this product appeals to them because if they own something like a timeshare or a fractional, they’ll have a vacation opportunity that their children or grandchildren would want to experience.”

What do Baby Boomers Want from Timeshare Resorts?

At timeshare resorts, today’s Baby Boomer tends to seek hi-tech entertainment and communication; multi-generational amenities so they can enjoy traveling with their children and grandchildren; and cosmopolitan sophistication so they can enjoy traveling without them!

According to Franz Hanning, CEO of Wyndham Vacation Ownership, “People are telling us they love to go to the cities. They tell us when they go to these urban areas that they don’t necessarily need a two-bedroom, two-bath condo – they’re more interested in being connected and having high-end electronics.”

For both the economy as well as for the timeshare industry, this is all good news!

With all the stories in the news about layoffs at timeshare companies and the impact of the declining economy and tight credit market, it is important to remember that not every timeshare company is trending down. The UK timeshare company, Hapimag saw 5 percent growth in 2008, with an operating income of Euro 165.4 million (+5.1 percent).

Founded in 1963, Hapimag is one of the oldest names in timeshare. It is the leading UK timeshare company and today has approximately 140,000 timeshare owner/members. While Europe is the originator of the timesharing concept, and timeshare ownership has quadrupled there since the early 1990’s, European timeshare, as an industry, has previously not grown as fast as timesharing in some other parts of the world. This fact, combined with the down economy, makes Hapimag timeshare’s success in 2008 even more significant news.

Timeshare sales at Hapimag holiday resorts increased by Euro 5.1 million year-over-year for 2008, reaching Euro 64.2 million. The UK timeshare company recorded 3,068,000 overnight stays, or an occupancy rate of 78.5 percent at the 58 Hapimag timeshare resorts, which are located in 18 countries including Europe, Africa timeshare, and US timeshare.

Hapimag, which employees some 1700 people worldwide, spent Euro 4.3 million on maintenance and repair to its timeshare resorts and vacation ownership properties, while they spent Euro 39.0 million on renovations and expansion of timeshare properties. The timeshare company believes operating costs increased primarily because of the rising cost of energy, which means their 2008 profits were especially meaningful.

Congratulations Hapimag, this is good news for European timeshare and good news for the timeshare industry in general!

Disney Vacation Club Timeshare’s Jim Lewis to be the new Chairman of the American Resort Development Association Board of Directors.

The American Resort Development Association announced this week that Jim Lewis, president of Disney Vacation Club Timeshare, has been elected Chairman of ARDA. ARDA is the Washington, DC-based trade association that represents the timeshare and vacation ownership industries, and if you were reading recent postings on The Timeshare Authority, you know that ARDA just last week convened its annual convention and educational conference.

The Right Leader for ARDA Timeshare Association

Jim Lewis is CPA, and holds an MBA from Purdue University. A resident of Orlando, Florida, he is active in both civic and faith-based organizations. In 2007, the Orlando Business Journal named Lewis as one of the ten most influential businesspeople in Central Florida. He has served on the ARDA Board of Directors since 2004, as well as holding numerous committee and steering committee positions.

He sees his new appointment like this, “It is both an honor and a humbling responsibility to have been chosen by my peers to lead the Association at this unique time. I am confident that, together, we will work through the present economic obstacles and continue to provide the excellent family vacation experiences that millions of Americans want and deserve.”

Howard Nusbaum ARDA’s president and CEO says, “ARDA and the vacation ownership industry are fortunate to have Jim Lewis’ leadership during this particularly challenging time in our history. Jim’s passion for the product and in-depth knowledge of the industry puts ARDA in very capable hands at a time when the industry needs to work together. His personal integrity and commitment to industry excellence makes him the right leader at the right time.”

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the American Resort Development Association is a two year position. Jim Lewis replaces Jon Fredricks of Welk Resorts as chairman of the ARDA Board.