It’s not too soon to remind you of the upcoming 2010 Vacation Ownership Investment Conference. Although many outside the timeshare industry blame its recent slump in sales on an economically challenged consumer market, most people inside the timeshare industry would lay the blame more specifically on the tight credit market.

The VOIC is scheduled for October 4-6, 2010, at the Peabody Hotel in Orlando, Florida. This important timeshare and vacation ownership industry event primarily targets three groups:

1. Lenders who want to learn more about opportunities in vacation ownership financing and lenders interested in meeting new and current timeshare developers.
2. Timeshare resort developers who are developing a vacation ownership property or are considering developing such a property or product.
3. Anyone in the industry seeking capital or development opportunities.

This year’s keynote speakers will include Marci Rossell, PhD, a former economist for the Federal Reserve and past CNBC chief economist. Rossell reminds us that all financial crises follow a pattern and the current conditions in the US are no exception. Recognizing this, we, as Americans, could learn and benefit by studying the pattern and the successes and failures of past responses to the pattern.

Other Important Info to Be Gained at the 2010 Vacation Ownership Investment Conference

When you attend the VOIC, you’ll hear from experts on current performance statistics about the US timeshare and vacation ownership industry along with learning about relevant research on the industry. These key facts not only tell the tale on what’s happening today but serve as important indicators about what to expect in the future.

You will gain insider insights from lenders about the capital challenges facing today’s economy and learn what facts you will need to present if your timeshare related business or business venture is seeking investment or growth funding.

For all who are affiliated with the timeshares and vacation ownership industry, the VOIC is a critical event always packed with insights and information. To find out more, contact [email protected] or call toll-free 877.700.1153 or 305.668.3495.

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

With the Fractional Summit USA underway in Miami today, it is great time to also mention a new book by David Disick: Fractional Vacation Homes: Marketing and Sales in Challenging Times.

David Disick’s book is designed to help timeshare and fractional developers, marketers, and sales agents attract more buyers to the fractional market, while closing more sales and generating more profits. Launching early this month, you’ll find 14+ testimonials from industry leaders—people who know when they are getting straight talk about the fractional and timeshare sales process.

Disick is a former Wall Street attorney with Davis & Cox, and is highly experienced in raising capital and financial structuring. He developed the first private residence club in American, the Franz Klammer Lodge in Telluride, Colorado, with a business and sales model that paved the way for much of the private residence and fractional market in the US today.

Disick is a former Wall Street attorney with Davis & Cox, and is highly experienced in raising capital and financial structuring. He developed the first private residence club in American, the Franz Klammer Lodge in Telluride, Colorado, with a business and sales model that paved the way for much of the private residence and fractional market in the US today.

To learn more about the book, you can contact David Disick at [email protected] or by calling (001) 435-657-9722. To hear Dave Thackeray’s interview with David Disick for Fractional Focus and RCI Ventures (podcast) click here: Play in new window

Your Boston timeshare resale or Boston timeshare rental is a great place to spend the Labor Day Weekend holiday, enjoying the 26th Annual Gloucester Schooner Festival. Celebrated some 30 miles from Boston, in the charming nautical town of Gloucester, this event commemorates historic contributions of the fishing schooner and the seamen who sail them.

Gloucester is the oldest fishing port on the North American Atlantic coastline and its historic harbor will be filled with the billowing sails of more than fifty authentic schooners. There will be three sailing events (Traditional Small Craft Races; Parade of Sail; and the) Mayor’s Race) as well as a host of activities, good fun, and good food.

Go for the Friday night block party, featuring music, dancing, and cinema under the stars. Take the Saturday Walking Tour of Gloucester’s Working Waterfront, tour the US Coast Guard Station, and visit the Gloucester Maritime Heritage Center. Saturday night features the Parade of Lights and fireworks over the harbor. Sunday, you’ll want to witness the Parade of Sail, where all of the participating schooners hoist their sails and take to the harbor with fanfare and pageantry you’ll never forget.

Boston Timeshare or Massachusetts Timeshare Vacation, Leave Your Daily Demands Behind

Experiencing old New England at the 26th Annual Gloucester Schooner Festival provides you and your family a chance to step back in time, leave behind the demands of your daily schedule, and live a page out of America’s colorful past. With all the options available to rent Massachusetts timeshare or exchange timeshare you already own, you don’t have to miss out on special New England getaways and relaxing holidays that offer you the fun and the relaxation you both deserve and crave.