I’m afraid that there isn’t much good news as the media keeps hammering how bad everything is and customers and companies alike pull farther back to wait and see what will happen.

But, I have some good news of a different nature. Last February I posted that I had added a online travel business www.resortindustrytravel.com  to my consulting and training company. I have used the online booking engine to book airfares, hotels and rental cars and have been very happy with the ease and service and in many cases the fares were less expensive than Travelocity or Orbitz.

A new business has grown out of the franchise called ZamZuu. It is an online shopping service. It still has the same travel booking engine but also hosts scores of big box stores like Target, Gap, Bass Pro and a lot of very unique and interesting boutique shops and services. The good part is that when one makes a purchase through my ZamZuu account  www.ZamZuu.com/ritravel  you get “Cash Back” on every purchase…anywhere from .5% to 4% or 5%. My favorite has been using Restaurant.com where periodically I get $25 restaurant certificates for restaurants, in my home area or anywhere I go in the country, for $2. My relatives and friends have taken advantage of this many times without any problems.  Using ZamZuu is fun and getting “Cash Back” is great, but here is the GOOD NEWS….

While I had to purchase my ZamZuu franchise business with an initial upfront and ongoing monthly cost, I have just been authorized to offer an online ZamZuu business to anyone I choose with absolutely no cost. It’s FREE. No initial cost..No monthly cost. Anyone referred by me can set up there own online ZamZuu business and get “Cash Back” on everything they purchase from airline tickets to hotels , rental cars, and more online stores than one could possibly patronize…AND….get a commission on everything purchased by anyone who uses your ZamZuu account.

At my direction, I can have the parent company send designated persons an e-mail that provides further information, and a link to a demo ZamZuu site (or you can check out ZamZuu using my account www.zamzuu.com/ritravel ). You will truly be amazed at what is offered. The e-mail will also include a link to register your own ZamZuu business,. That’s it and you’re in business.

No Cost…No Risk…No Down Side That I Can See. In the midst of a dark time that seems to linger, here is something positive for people to embrace.

If you would like to investigate having your own ZamZuu business…absolutely FREE…drop me an e-mail and ask me to refer you to the parent compay and they will send you an invitation or give me a call at 407.342.0178.

Until next time,

Tom

Just when the phone was starting to ring with developers ready to enter the Fractional space after “watching from the  wings” (theatre analogy) for the last 18 months, the media has done it again. Nothing but doom and gloom over the airways, two dozen times a day. I WISH THEY WOULD STOP SAYING THAT. Yes, I know there are segments that are really hurting, including many colleagues from the Resort Development Industry, but the effect of this relentless barrage of bad news causes otherwise smart and savvy lifestyle consumers to once again take a hunker down, wait and see, attitude. Many timeshare developers have managed to put together financing and David Disick has piloted an interesting idea for Fractional end loan financing without putting the real estate up as collateral, but instead using a “Securities Based Funding” idea. www.sbffunding.com. It might not be appropriate for every project but is worth looking into.

The point is, we…The Shared Ownership Industry (Timeshare and Fractionals)…are ready to go, to continue fulfilling the American Dream of a second vacation home, at a fraction of the cost of a conventional whole ownership purchase. Confidence is what we need…all of us…. a belief that America will be OK…that we’ll solve our problems and move forward. There probably has never been a better time in the history of our industry to buy a Fractional vacation home. Developers are dealing, interest rates are low and Real Estate values, in general, have readjusted to levels not seen since maybe the 70’s.

I know I’m preaching to the choir here since my blog data base is exclusively industry folks. What can we collectively or individually do to inspire confidence in a nation that seems to relish relying on media to frame their attitude? How do we get the word out that vacations should be among top priority for good physical and mental health? How do we let people know that we’re open for business and it is perfectly OK to seize the opportunity?

It is my hope that we can find answers to these pressing questions. We have to……. don’t we?

Until next time,

Tom

The last 18 months, in terms of business, was like a dark hole into which everyone had fallen and out of which we have been trying to crawl. That pretty much explains why there has been little to post on this blog for a number of months. Unlike so many people, however, affected by the state of the industry, my personal life has been quite grand. While I was concerned and apprehensive as to what the future might hold, I rather enjoyed time to complete overlooked home projects as well as make plans for an anticipated economic recovery. I wouldn’t say that the Fractional/PRC arena has fully recovered to its 2007 peak, but in the last four months, the phone has been ringing. I have evaluated a number of proposed projects and am currently in the setup stages of two promising Fractional offerings. The Alexandra Residence Club in Turks and Caicos www.alexandraresort.com is going to offer owners an extraordinary two consecutive weeks experience in each of three designated seasons. The True Blue Bay Resort in Grenada www.truebluebay.com  is offering the first Fractional in that country, two waterfront villas (more to come) for a month in each of two seasons. I recently provided my “Sales Training For The New Economy” for a beautiful project in Colorado, http://www.riversideatriograndeclub.com/ and am looking forward to an ongoing relationship with them.

While there is still a dearth of construction financing for new projects, developers with standing inventory in the right “A+” or “A” location, who have been on the sidelines, apparently think that the time is right to make a move into the Fractional space. I agree. Caution is advised, however. While the A+ or A location is vitally important, there are a few additional factors that should be in alignment before entering the space.

1. With an overall 30-40% devaluation of real estate in many locations, the ratio of indebtedness to market driven share price and resultant  yield has to be right.

2. With that same devaluation consideration, the ratio of share price to area de-valued alternative whole ownership is an important factor.

3. With end loan financing, for all practical purposes, not available, it would be important if the developer could carry some paper.

4. While there are positive signs that we may be slowly recovering, developers must have patience. A quick sales cycle is unlikely, although I and some of my colleagues are anticipating a pretty good fourth quarter of this year and on into 2011.

With the right product in the right location and under the right circumstances (see “Ten Criteria For A Successful Fractional Offering” archived on this blog), Fractional Ownership is looking like the best and maybe the only choice developers have.

It’s good to be back working and I am enthusiastic about the coming years. “Fractional Ownership Is An Idea Whose Time Has Come” (Google my name and you’l find that article on over 100 web sites around the world). It went away for awhile and is now, even more, it is an idea whose time has come.

Leave your thoughts or comments here or send them to me directly at tomgoetschius@aol.com OR give me a call if you are contemplating a Fractional Offering…407.342.0178

In September I reported on my subsidiary franchise company, Resort Industry Travel, a service for my industry colleagues and clients that includes a travel booking engine and access to car rentals, hotels, and cruises. A feature provided by the franchisor was “Shop YTB”. That feature has now evolved into an additional subsidiary company, an online shopping service called “ZamZuu”.  It is a significant upgrade to the previous online service. You can shop at 100’s of recognizable big box stores as well as some specialty stores only available on ZamZuu. There is even an airline booking engine. Membership is FREE and every time you shop, you get cash back. This is the main reason that I added Resort Industry Travel to my core company, Tom Goetschius Associates. ZamZuu is add on value for a fractional buyer and  a way for colleagues to save some money. Periodic discounts at Restaurant.com, for example, are avaialble where you can purchase $25 gift certificates to restaurants in your area for as little as $2. Please take a look at www.ZamZuu.com/ritravel . You can browse the stores or the booking engine before signing up.

ARDA is coming up in about 6 weeks. I’m sure everyone is eager to get some perspective on the state of the industry. I’ll be a “Table Leader” at the Fractional And Private Residence Club Forum on Monday morning and I will also be on a Fractional Ownership panel “Consequences Of Lowering Prices“, with Jim Beckham, moderating, and Dale Goodman from GoodManagement and Chris Payne from Ballard Spahr, LLP accompanying me. From the convention program…. “This session is designed for those developers that have their project in the sales process and are trying to continue selling in a stagnant environment. Are there additional benefits with perceived value that will allow the developer to maintain current pricing without significantly raising costs?”

Of course there are consequences in lowering prices like reduced revenue and we will be taking a look at those, but what we think attendees will be looking for are specific alternatives to reducing prices in order to stimulate sales. Early information coming to me from several sources is that incentives and other strategies have not been successful since the session topic was developed last July and that reducing prices has been the only way to get a few sales. Maybe, last July, alternatives to lowering prices may have seemed like a good idea. In practice, however, in the months following, there appears that there has not been much success pursuing that strategy….OR Has There?

Here is where my colleagues and I on the panel could use your help. HAVE YOU BEEN SUCCESSFUL WITH ANY PROGRAMS, INCENTIVES, OR STRATEGIES, OTHER THAN LOWERING PRICES, TO STIMULATE SALES?

Would you please respond directly to me at tomgoetschius@aol.com

If you’ve tried incentives or other alternatives and found them to be unsuccessful, we’d like to know that too. Additionally, if you have reduced prices, may we ask, “How much?”….”Any negative consequences?”

In short, we’d like to hear any thoughts you have on this topic. May we say, “Thank you” in advance and we look forward to seeing you at the convention.

I guess it was inevitable, with the burgeoning of online business, to add a travel component to the services I provide. It’s a logical addition to Tom Goetschius Associates, to add travel and a host of additional services and provide them to my colleagues in the Resort Development Industry. I am pleased to be able to offer RESORT INDUSTRY TRAVEL. It is my online travel company using the same platform as Travelocity. You can book your flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises and a whole lot more. There are special deals, late booking deals, special tours, group rates and too many other things to mention. Why use Travelocity or Orbitz when we now have a network for we in the Resort Industry?

Can I ask you to take a look at the website and, moreover, try it. Go to www.ytbtravel.com/ritravel

You’ll be amazed. While there, take a look at all the other benefits of using the service. One of the best benefits is an online shopping service called “Shop YTB”. You can shop online at hundreds of stores and every time you do, you’ll receive a check for 3% to as much as 20% of the purchase. There is a restaurant section where you can purchase restaurant certificates for restaurants anywhere in the US for a fraction of face value. A $25 certificate, for example, can be purchased for anywhere from $2 to $10. Sign up is free. Click on the rotating banner when “Shop YTB” comes up.

But there is more….As part of the network you can also use the following services:

www.ytbgolf.com/ritravel

www.ytbflowers.com/ritravel

www.ytboutdoors.com/ritravel

I’ve put together this company to provide everything you might want as a resort development professional or a subscriber to my website. BUT,… you don’t have to be in the Resort Industry to use it. Anyone can use it and take advantage of all the benefits.

Use it yourself or ask me how you can set up your own travel company for your clients, colleagues and friends.

Thanks for reading.

I’ll be at the Vacation Ownership Investment Conference in Orlando next week.

For information about my new training program, give me a call and arrange a meeting. 407.342.0178 cell

There is more substantiation that it will not be business as usual as we transition out of this recession. Insight for this posting comes from Reshma Kapadia, writing for Smart Money magazine, August 2009. He says, ” It’s hard to ignore signs of improvement in the economy, however tentative. Consumer confidence has rebounded, stocks have moved off their lows, and even the battered financial industry is regaining some of its old swagger. But not everything will return to normal. The economic crisis has already led to significant shifts in both consumer and corporate behavior that will create headaches for many firms - but opportunities for a handful of others.”

He continues to say “that even as the economy recovers, a new kind of thriftiness will rule the day.”  He reports that “the national savings rate has already risen to 5.7%, from zero a year ago“.

In the same article, Ravi Dhar, Director of Yale’s Center For Consumer Insights says, “…shoppers are hunting for values and ’stayvacations’ are on the rise.”

It is evident that marketing and sales people need to gear up and be ready for this much more conservative, thrifty, bargain hunter. I think it is also appropriate to surmise that as the customers return they are going to be less swayed by overly emotional appeals. They will have to see the economic sense in their purchase and a compelling value proposition. Their tendancy is going to be toward staying home or very close to home as an integral part of their leisure lifestyle. When you take into consideration economic sense, high value proposition and close to home, Fractional Ownership fits the bill. The most successful Fractional projects are within 3 hours drive time of home. There may be tremendous opportunity for  Fractional Ownership, priced right and in the right location, to lead out of the recession.

In the new economy, the timeshare buyer may hold the same notion about staying close to home in order to save money. A generation ago in the timeshare industry, an importance was placed on buying a timeshare at a resort that one really liked and where the primary motivation was to return each year. Even RCI advised that such should be the case and that the exchange opportunity was to be considered an add-on value. That idea prety much went by the wayside in the 80’s when the exchange became the primary reason for buying. In terms of economic sense and value proposition, timeshare salespeople in some areas are going to face challenges. In Orlando, Las Vegas and maybe elsewhere, where hotel rooms are available for as little as $59 a night, the value proposition of timeshare at well over $100 a night is going to be hard to sell in a truly economic sense. The value in timeshare has not been economic, in most areas, for many years. The value is in lifestyle and the decision is based on priorites.

The point of this is to emphasize that if we market and sell our products the same way we did as little as two years ago, we’ll not be resonating with old buyers with a new mindset in a dramatically new economy. The answer is to re-think, re-invent and re-train. We are going to have to think outside the box, with new products and new ways of enjoying a high value yet frugal leisure lifestyle. As a consultant I’d like to be in on developing new ideas and new products, but as a trainer I have a more immediate approach. I have developed a sales training program called “Sales In The New Economy” targeting consumers who are more savvy, more thrifty, more conservative, less trusting, and with new vacation patterns. Who really knows what the future holds? We are in uncharted waters, but to continue to do things the way in which we have become comfortable is not the answer.

Chime in.  Leave a comment. How do you see it?

Until next time,

Tom

I started my blog a number of months ago and just a couple of days ago I received the first set of statistics as to how many hits and visits have been recorded. I was amazed to learned that actual visits to the blog range from 500 to 1,000 a month. That’s, on average, 25-30 every day. I was surprised because while there are a lot of people visiting the blog, hardly anyone is leaving a comment. So…I’m going to take my blog in a slightly different direction. Instead of publishing only about once a month, I’m going to post entries much more frequently to share thoughts and insights and news of the industry that I’m hearing from my colleagues.

SO…here’s the first bit of news. Hart Rist at Bald Head Island, a friend and colleague, reported to me yesterday that he sold 5 fractions this past week!!! CONGRATULATIONS HART. I guess people are beginning to come out of the shadows and back to maximizing their leisure lifestyle.

I received several calls this week in regard to developers wanting to place their projects into the fractional arena. One of the calls was very interesting. A 24 unit project has been taken over by a bank and they, realizing that Fractional Ownership is the highest and best use of the property, has asked for a proposal.

I can see light at the end of this very long tunnel. How about you?

If you have news, please share it here. If you have comments, please post them here. If you just want to get something off your chest, then please do it here. With so many people visiting this blog site, it is my hope that it can become a valuable channel of communication for all of us.

I’ll be back…Promoting The Best In The Resort Development Industry

Tom

P.S. Nothing to do with business, but talking about blogs, My wife and I went to see Julie & Julia last night. Meryl Streep was amazing. You must see this film.

It’s not business as usual anymore…….I have been contemplating the subject of this blog posting for several months, as I have watched the economy and particularly our industry go through wrenching changes and re-adjustments. What I have witnessed over the last year has been the most dramatic economic upheaval of my life. It appears that many old axioms upon which we relied no longer apply. What we thought were wise and correct actions turned out to be flawed. Some of the things that we were told turned out to be deceptive and sometimes outright fraudulent. Many were lulled into a sense that there was no end to prosperity and that the practice of borrow and spend was a valid sustainable philosophy as long as income continued to increase. Well, it is quite obvious that the tremendous growth and prosperity that we enjoyed over the last ten years was not sustainable and the bubble burst with repercussions around the globe.

 

As many economists forecast that we will probably be seeing the transition out of recession by the fourth quarter of this year or early in 2010, it is obvious to me that America has changed or maybe it is more accurate to say that Americans have changed and, most importantly, to we in the resort industry, that our customers have changed. By that I don’t mean that we have new or different customers but, rather, that our customers have a new attitude and set of practices that will guide their actions and decisions in the marketplace.

 

As our customers shake off the effects of this historic economic readjustment and return to the marketplace, they will be more savvy, more cautious, and less trusting. What that means to many sales professionals is nothing less than a seismic shift in the way they engage prospects and apply new sales practices.

 

CONSUMER PROFILE:   More Savvy

 

Some of the inner workings of the financial sector have been exposed, resulting in consumers becoming better educated as to how the economy can, through greed and deception, be manipulated for personal gain. They have seen property values and  portfolios decrease by as much as 40-50%, bringing a painful awareness of volatility as the new axiom. They have seen the advent of social networks and the increased effectiveness of search engines like Google,  Ask.com, and Bing.com bring information, on anything, immediately and in real time.

 

The already sophisticated second home buyer emerges from this economic meltdown even more sophisticated, with an increased understanding of how things are different than before. As a result, they are less likely to take anything at face value, especially anything that a salesperson has to say. Indeed, their reliance on a salesperson, at all, has undoubtedly diminished.

 

While retail institutions like Sharper Image and Circuit City have closed their doors, and others struggle to hang on, the online marketplace, Amazon.com, has posted their best selling year ever.

 

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dec. 26, 2008–Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) today announced the 2008 holiday season finished as its best ever, with over 6.3 million items ordered worldwide on the peak day, Dec. 15, which is a record-breaking 72.9 items per second.

 

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Apr. 23, 2009– Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) today announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2009. Operating cash flow was $1.76 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $1.04 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2008. Free cash flow increased 82% to $1.43 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $0.79 billion for the trailing twelve months … 

 

WHO NEEDS A SALESPERSON? Apparently, consumers have more faith in the faceless electronic marketplace than in the motives or experience of a storefront salesperson.

 

SALES APPLICATION:

 

1) Be a resource rather than a pitchman. What your customer is looking for is a trusted resource who can sort through the confusion in the marketplace and make good recommendations.

 

2) Be well versed and succinct at presenting information and, more importantly…

 

3) Document everything you say. Don’t ask your customer to take your word for anything.

 

CONSUMER PROFILE:    More Cautious

 

One of the most profound lessons learned from our shared national experience is that doing things right, doing the right thing and playing by the rules does not, in and of themselves, always yield just or fair results. Millions of consumers are asking, “What happened? I did everything right. I did what I was supposed to do”. As consumers confront the new economy it might be predictable that two old adages take on renewed importance and “cautious conservatism” becomes the mantra for a new economy.

 

“If it is too good to be true then it probably isn’t.”

 

“If it seems good today then it will be good tomorrow…sleep on it.”

 

SALES APPLICATION:

 

1) Don’t oversell! Don’t exaggerate or make outlandish claims. Instead, be a consultant, a counselor, and advise as to how best use the product, while pointing out any deficiency or what the product will not do.

 

Joseph O’Connor and Robin Prior in their landmark book, Successful Selling ( with NLP) The Way Forward In The New Bazaar, offer this wise advice;

 

“If someone tries to sell you something, you automatically think that

it is no good, otherwise they would not be trying to persuade you to buy it.”

 

2) Concentrate on the value proposition. Good and honest logical value many times will trump an overly cautious attitude.

 

3) Don’t focus on getting the sale, but rather on understanding your customer and meeting their needs, understanding that they are more cautious about making important decisions than ever before.

 

CONSUMER PROFILE:  Less Trusting

 

“Stock Market Plunges”…..”General Motors Files Bankruptcy”…..”Bernie Madoff Sentenced To 150 Years For Biggest Financial Scam In History”……”3 million credit card holders’ information stolen”….”Internet and Television Scams On The Rise”

 

There is little doubt that people, in general, are less trusting. The failure of long trusted institutions, phony financial schemes and too good to be true sales claims have made consumers more skeptical than ever. While it has always been true that “trust” is the foundation upon which successful sales is based, the concept takes on crucial significance as we engage the new more skeptical consumer.

 

SALES APPLICATION:

 

1. Once again we turn to O’Connor and Prior, “Sales In The New Bazaar”….”The problem I see with most sales training is all the stress it puts on closing the sale. Instead I believe the stress should be on opening the relationship”.

 

At the core of the any relationship is the concept of trust. We only trust those with whom we have a relationship. Salespeople will need, then, to focus on developing a relationship with their customers rather than focusing on the sales techniques that they spent so much time mastering.

 

Instead of the traditional methodology approach to sales, we need to embrace a “Principle Based Relationship Approach” to sales. Emerson said it best with…

 

If you will learn only methods, you will forever

be tied to to your methods…But if you will learn

the principles behind the methods, you can develop

your own techniques and be successful in any environment.

 

We see a new environment emerging and a less trusting consumer. The sales principles that “open a relationship” and build trust are…

 

Focus On The Customer

            Concentrate on customer’s point of view and state of mind.

            Concentrate on the customer’s buying cycle rather than your agenda.

            Ask yourself, “What’s in it for the customer?”

            Make sure that everything you say or do is of value to the customer.

 

 

 

Earn The Right To Advance

            Deal with each of your customer’s concerns and questions before advancing.

            Be a facilitator and problem solver and a consultant and resource, not a peddler.

            Ask permission to move on or make another point.

 

Influence Through Involvement

            Talk less and listen more.

            Realize that objections and disagreements are a sign that customer is involved.

            Encourage customer to participate in determining their needs and aspirations.

            They must tell you what they think and how they would use the product.

 

By applying these principles, the sales professional becomes a trusted resource, consultant and counselor. We are not going back to the old ways of doing business. It’s not enough to spend huge amount of marketing dollars to get prospects in the door and rely on a certain percentage to buy, regardless of what we do or don’t do. Sales professionals need an understanding of the consumer coming out of this troubling and  transformational period and need the training to effectively deal with a customer that is more savvy, more cautious and less trusting.

 

The highest priority that managers and sales directors have is to make sure that their salespeople don’t miss the first round of buyers coming out of this recession and that means to make sure that they receive training in “Sales In The New Economy”.

 

Until next time,

 

Tom