There are two things you hear a lot in the world of marketing:

1. Right message, right person, right time.
2. Consistency is key.

The first is often used to push the idea of dynamic content and personalization. The second is the first rule of branding. Both sound great, but if you think about it for a minute, the two ideas don’t really work together.

How can …

Denver, Colo., July 18, 2019—After nearly seven years of consistent year-over-year growth, aggregated lodging results among 18 mountain communities in six western states is starting to experience small but measurable declines. The DestiMetrics’* monthly Market Briefing released yesterday by Inntopia, revealed that modest declines that started appearing more than a year ago are emerging as a slight, but consistent, negative trend.

For the month of …

DENVER, COLO., June 18, 2019— With four of the six summer months (March through August) already “in the bank” or on-the-books, Southeast destination resorts in five states are on a solid path to surpass last summer’s occupancy, room rate, and revenue figures. All six summer months are pacing ahead of last year according to the most recent DestiMetrics* Market Briefing released yesterday by Inntopia with …

Almost a decade ago during the first few months of SlopeFillers, I made a list of all the 2-for-1s I could find. I stopped at 28, but the list could have gone on and on. Likewise, there are dozens of perks offered by resorts in an effort to push season pass sales through the spring and summer. For example:

• Ski free in the spring
• Free

I want you to imagine two scenarios.

The first is getting invited to speak at a big university in a town you’ve never been to. “Just meet us at the back entrance of the Ray Bowen building at 6:00pm for a quick rehearsal” they say. The second is that same invitation but at your alma mater.

Picture in your mind being a few blocks away …

Guess what? This July 15 – 16, your guests are going to be primed to make a purchase. Yes, it’s a bit corny, but it’s true.

In just over two weeks, there’s an online shopping bonanza coming called Amazon Prime Day. Except this year, it’s actually two days. Your guests and prospects will likely have their wallets out, ready to pounce on a deal on …

Denver, Colo., March 19, 2019—A winter season that began on a downward trend in the wake of last year’s disappointing snow conditions, is now moving towards new records for occupancy and revenue, thanks to a strong economy and generous snowfall across most of North America. Inntopia released their monthly DestiMetrics* Market Briefing for the West yesterday and as of Feb. 28, actual occupancy for the …

Are you losing revenue and booking share to OTAs?

Believe it or not, a full 52% of people who book lodging via OTAs actually visit the property’s website before booking.

Why don’t all those people end up booking directly with the property? Sometimes it’s about wanting to bundle their lodging with other things, sometimes it comes down to ease of use, and sometimes it’s just …

Nothing like a strong wave of mid-November snowfall from the Sierras to the Rockies to give winter bookings a boost for the upcoming ski and snowboard season at western mountain resorts. According to DestiMetrics* monthly Market Briefing released yesterday by Inntopia, as of Nov. 30, aggregated bookings made during the month of November for arrivals from November through April are up 12.8 percent compared to …

A few weeks ago we recapped how marketing during the holidays can be feast or famine when it comes to open and click rates on resort email campaigns.

The piece we didn’t cover then was what happened to bookings during those same days and weeks.

Two Big Holidays

To find our answer, we averaged the last two years of booking volume by day across hundreds …

Daily rates and revenues also post slight seasonal gains

Good weather and a strong economy are being credited with giving participating Southeast destinations a new summer occupancy record—albeit a small one, according to Inntopia in their DestiMetrics Monthly Market Briefing released last week. As of Aug. 31, participating Southeast destinations in five states were up an aggregated 2.2 percent occupancy over last summer for the …

Although wildfires and smoke plagued many western states in July and August, as of Aug. 31, there has been very little negative impact on western mountain destinations. The most recent data released by Inntopia in their monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing showed that aggregated occupancy for the summer season from May through October is up 2.9 percent compared to last summer as of this same time …

Moderate and gradual increases in occupancy, room rate, and revenue have positioned Southeast destination lodging properties on pace for a new, though modest summer record. This positive summary was released yesterday by Inntopia in their DestiMetrics* Monthly Market Briefing to participating destination communities. This month’s analysis includes additional destinations in Virginia, South Carolina, and Florida for a total of nearly 100 properties in nine resort …

As of July 31, the midpoint of the summer season for western mountain destinations, variations in lodging performance among different regions and properties throughout the seven participating states and 290 properties is more apparent than in previous months. However, aggregated data released last week by Inntopia in their monthly DestiMetrics* Market Briefing revealed that while occupancy growth is slowing slightly as the year progresses, overall …

In the most recent lodging data for the Southeast released last week by Vermont-based Inntopia in their DestiMetrics Monthly Market Briefing, participating destination communities at seven resorts in four southeastern states including South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, and Alabama are maintaining consistent occupancy and revenues for both the month of June and the full summer season. As of June 30, aggregated results for the month of …

We’ve all heard about bots and spam on Twitter, but when Twitter detects suspicious behavior (even if it’s not a bot) they will “lock” those accounts until they can confirm everything is a-okay. Locked accounts haven’t been much of a talking point thus far, but on July 11, 2018 Twitter announced:

This week, we’ll be removing these locked accounts from follower counts across profiles

Although subtle shifts in economic metrics suggest the potential of a slowing in bookings at western mountain destinations in the months ahead, thus far, aggregated data from participating properties show no signs of change from the strong pattern of the past few months, putting lodging on an early record pace again this summer. As of June 30, occupancy for the summer months of May through …

Occupancy, room rate, and aggregated revenues all ticked up during the month of May at Southeast destinations, despite potentially damaging economic news and the tropical depression Alberto that disrupted Memorial Day weekend at some resorts. As of May 31, marking the mid-point of the summer season (March through August), aggregated occupancy is up 2.9 percent and the Average Daily Rate (ADR) is up 1.8 percent …

DENVER, CO – Even with the threat of wildfires and a nebulous economic outlook, western mountain destinations are coming off a strong spring and are on pace for yet another record-setting season of lodging performance according to Inntopia in its monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing. Compared to 2017, occupancy was up 8.7 percent in May with revenue up 10.4 percent. Looking forward, the outlook is equally …

Southeast destinations in four states managed a strong rally during the month of April following a sluggish performance last month for summer bookings. According to the most recent data released by Vermont-based Inntopia in their monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing, as of April 30, aggregated occupancy among participating destinations for the full summer season from March through August is up 3.3 percent with revenues edging up …