Resort Development Marketing

It seems that resort developers are still clinging to the mantra, “build it and they will come”. You know how it goes. Find a nice piece of property, build out the infrastructure, secure a “luxury” hotel flag, develop a swanky resort with pool, have a well known golf course designer layout a golf course, maybe through in some tennis and voila'.

What's that sound? Oh, those are crickets. The land guys are still waiting for buyers to show up. Following this historic economic downturn, resort developers are finding themselves more and more behind the curve on what is going to entice investors and tourists to let go of their money. Selling the promise of a private getaway with golf and tennis is done. Get that, it's over. Time to step up your game.

I have meet so many resort community execs over the last year and a half to discuss how they should position themselves. It is easy I tell them. You have to offer more of an experience. Home owners, guests, tourists want excitement. They want a certain level of adventure and some of it serendipitous. Hum! They ask, how do we do that??? So, I lay out a rather creative approach to the types of activities they should offer and how to convey such an offering across multiple media platforms. Their eyes glaze over and they say, “we will get back to you”. Ultimately, they want to continue down the path they know so well. Oh, the status quo. This path that will eventually find them less and less competitive.

Today, buyers and guests are looking for something more to help with their decision making. Real estate developments and resort communities have to deliver on experience. To make it simple, people want to do stuff. They want to be entertained, engaged, challenged and maybe learn something new in the process. It is all about the adventure from the time your leave your house until you return. Those developers that can figure out what the right combination of activities to offer is and how to communicate to their target audience are going to mover well ahead of their contemporaries.

Be proactive! Get out ahead of the herd and start positioning yourself as the destination that has the ability to deliver rather than make empty less than fulfilling promises. More and more, families are vacationing and buying second homes where the whole family finds enjoyment. Think about sports, educational programs, events or experiences that appeal to the whole family. Build up the aspirations of your audience before they visit and over deliver once they are on the ground. If you can manage to create a sense of adventure, you will be helping to build memories that will be talked about for years to come. And that is what will bring more and more people back to your place.

The good news is that there are a few developers and related consultants that have figured out that marketing adventure and experience works. Let the stream of imaginative consciousness flow.

For more information, look me up....

Share the experience, sell the dream...Full Throttle Media! FTM Seth Horne

Fished to the Edge of Extinction

A new article in the New Yorker magazine is worth a read if you care at all about the health of ocean fisheries. LINK

As we have fished so many ocean species to the edge of extinction, we have to ask ourselves, is there a hopeful ending to this story? Are fisheries exhaustible? That was the question posed at the Great International Fisheries Exhibition in 1883. The answer then was, no. Even today, the answer still seems to be know despite all the evidence to the contrary. Cod, wolffish, halibut, haddock, swordfish, marlin, skate and the might bluefin tuna populations have been decimated. By any reasonable calculation, the stocks of large predatory fish have declined 90% since the 1950's. That is indeed a remarkable accomplishment. And to think, we have some of the most sophisticated technology to measure fish stocks and total catch, but still nothing is done. We have an organization in ICCAT, who is charged with managing the catch of bluefin tuna. "In 2008, ICCAT scientists recommended that the bluefin catch in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean be limited to between eighty-five hundred and fifteen thousand tons. ICCAT instead adopted a quota of twenty-two thousand tons. That same year, a panel of independent reviewers, hired by the commission to assess its performance, observed that ICCAT “is widely regarded as an international disgrace.” Carl Safina, the noted marine conservationist, has nicknamed the group the International Conspiracy to Catch All the Tunas.

Where does the madness end? In 1964, the annual global catch was 50 million tons. In 1967, the U.S. Interior Dept. estimated the catch could be increased to 2 billion tons. That is a 40 fold increase. The total world catch topped out at 85 million tons in the 80's. What planet do those charged with managing ocean species live on? In the past 20 years, we have seen global catch decline year after year. Estimates indicate we appear to be loosing 500,000 tons a year as less fish are caught. One day, your children will tell stories to their children about the stories you used to tell them about great fish being caught at sea. Now, you are probably thinking, BS, don't be so alarmist. The facts speak for themselves. Ask yourself this question, do you care or do you see it as someone else's problem? Be responsible fishermen and take a stand. We need to start now to rebuild fish stocks, so we can continue to enjoy the sport we all love so much. 

Share the experience, sell the dream...Full Throttle Media! FTM Seth Horne

Your Social Business Card - Poken

I am usually do not get real excited about the latest tech gadgets, but this super cool little device is worth a look. No more business cards or the need to gather cards or scribble contact info on scraps of paper. I am going to buy a few of these and pass them around to my friends. This is a brilliant idea. You just have to love ingenuity!

Your Social Business Card - Poken

Share the experience, sell the dream...Full Throttle Media! FTMSeth Horne

Parachuting donkey shocks Russian beach goers!

Parachuting donkey shocks Russian beachgoers - Yahoo! Singapore News

You just have to shake your head in amazement. It never ceases to amaze me how little creativity there is in the advertising world. Seriously, how does something like this even get past the first round of laughs in the conference room? If someone pitched this idea to me, you can be damn sure I would not waste another moment with their silly proposal. With that said, someone was pitched this idea and said, "Yes, what a brilliant concept. How much will it cost me?" To think someone paid for this. Sad, truly sad!

Share the experience, sell the dream...Full Throttle Media! FTMSeth Horne

Super Speedway

The art of high impact story telling is a craft Stephen Low has mastered. His films are some of the most intense real time journeys you have ever seen. You can really feel like you are in the moment. If you are in the business of film making or video production and have not had the chance to experience his work, please take the time. It will be so worth it. This trailer for the film "Super Speedway" is amazing. Although the film came out a while back, it is nonetheless stunning visually. The audio grit just draws you in. All of my auto enthusiasts friends were stunned by the camera work. Of course this a large format film shot with very expensive equipment. The footage that you really want to key in on is that of racing legend Mario Andretti and his son Michael as they race with cameras mounted on their cars. The raw speed and intensity of screaming down the track at well over 200 mph is gripping. This is a one off production that auto enthusiasts will not tire of watching. These are two different trailers. Both are equally brilliant. Watch the first one in 720p, amazing!

Share the experience, sell the dream...Full Throttle Media! FTM Seth Horne