NEW TIMES DEMAND NEW IDEAS

By Bud Surles

Most of us can fondly remember the housing bubble of the first decade. It seems that all you had to do was "build it and they would come." Billions were invested in well thought out and not so well thought out housing developments, sub-divisions, and second home resort complexes. Each one seemed to build upon the success of the other. Of course, all that came to a terrifying close in 2008, and today the landscape is littered with evidence of the failure of overdevelopment. People were millionaires one day and bankrupt the next. Individuals were secure in an ARM one day and facing foreclosure the next. Good jobs were lost and economics were drastically turned upside down across our land.

Today, many well-conceived housing developments of a few years ago lay dormant on the landscapes of lakes, rivers, mountain areas, and beaches. Lots cannot sell and developers are hanging on waiting for better times to return. However, economic indicators give little hope for that to happen within the staying power of many. But there is good news. It requires a change of vision, but there are opportunitities to convert the investment in planning, roads, and infrastructure into a meaningful and profitable cash flow. It is time developers who are in the position of "hanging on" to re-think their investments and look to converting their developments into RV and Resort properties.

The development to date could lend itself to making Joint Venture arrangements very attractive to forward thinking resort developers. Most resort development is hamstrung by the high cost of the public process and infrastructure development. However, when there are opportunities to begin development on the shoulders of those who have born those costs already, real win/win opportunities exist. It is a win for the resort development because onerous costs are significantly reduced, and it is a win for the housing developer that is facing substantial losses to convert their prior investments in real estate into meaningful cash flow.

The RV market (particularly the high end RV market) is on the rebound. Hardly a month goes by that new positive news is not posted on the internet and other media. Manufacutring is up, retail is up, and use of existing units is increasing. Interestingly, part of the growth is in high-end facilities and services, which re-constituted housing development lends itself to. Now may be a very opportune time to think about converting unsuccessful housing developments into high quality resorts.

If you have invested in the development of real estate properties and want to turn that stagnant investment into a meaningful cash flow, there could not be a better time than now to explore converting your investment into resort property. This may be the perfect time to avail yourself, your investors, and your property of a bold new future. Take time to investigate the conversion. It may be the perfect idea for this new time.

SURVEY: WI-FI A KEY FACTOR FOR 68% OF CAMPERS

February 2, 2011

By Woodall's Campground Management

Woodall's Editor's Note: The following story comes from the current issue of the CalARVC News, a publication of the California Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (CalARVC).

A recent survey conducted at www.Camp-California.com ^[1] took a look at the impact of Wi-Fi on a camper's decision-making process.

Participants responded to the question, "With other factors equal, do you choose a campground based on whether they have Wi-Fi?" There were 354 campers who participated from Nov. 2 to Dec. 28, 2010.

Survey results:

• 156: Yes, only if it is free.
• 85: Yes - Always.
• 35: Sometimes - when I have to do business.
• 34: Rarely.
• 32: No - I don't travel with my computer.
• 12: No - I don't ever use Wi-Fi.

A significant majority (241 respondents or 68.1%) said they did choose a campground based on whether Wi-Fi was available. An additional 19.5% said they sometimes or rarely used Wi-Fi - indicating it was not a significant part of their decision making process.

Only 12.4% said "No." They indicated they either didn't ever use Wi-Fi or didn't travel with their computer.

Campers seeking information about Wi-Fi (either for free or with a fee) will find it easy to find at Camp-California.com. They simply click on the "Add Amenities and Lifestlyle Options" link and select Wi-Fi from the Amenity List. This returns a list of parks that offer Wi-Fi.

If appropriate, each park's listing includes information about Wi-Fi. If it is offered at no charge, that information is stated in the park's description.

TEXAS PARKS SITE FOCUSES ON SPECIAL EVENTS 

January 19, 2011

By RV Business

The Texas Association of Campground Owners (TACO) has launched a new website they say "helps RV enthusiasts pinpoint campgrounds that are located near Dallas Cowbow Stadium and other popular special event venues" just in time for the Super Bowl, WOAI-TV, San Antonio, reported.

"Our visitor traffic has already tripled since we launched the website last fall," said Brian Schaeffer, executive director and CEO of the statewide campground association, which is best known for its TexasCampgrounds.com and TexasCabinRentals.net websites.

There's still some space at area campground and RV parks for SuperBowl weekend. Bud don't wait too long. Park operators expect campsites to book up quickly once thie final teams are selected for the SuperBowl.

In addition to Dallas Cowboy Stadium, the website includes calendar information about a wide range of special events and links to American Airlines Center, the State Fairgrounds in Dallas; The Ballpark  in Arlington; Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie; Fort Worth Stockyards and Texas Motor Speedway.

RVIA'S MEDIA BUZZ TRACKS GREAT START TO 2011 

February 2, 2011

By RV Business

ARVC PLANS CONFERENCE MARKETING OVERHAUL 

February 7, 2011

By RV Business

The National Association of RV Parks and Campground (ARVC) is overhauling the marketing and pricing of its annual convention and expo in an effort to significantly increase park operator participation in the events, according to a news release.

This year's event, to be held Nov. 28 to Dec. 2 in Savannah, Ga., is being rebranded as the 2011 Outdoor Hospitality Conference and Expo in an effort to attract participation from vendors who have an active interest in the outdoor hospitality industry, but haven't previously been involved in ARVC events, said Paul Bambei, ARVC's newly hired president and CEO.

"We will invite interested parties to register and attend who can make our industry stronger through their alliance, and we will do this without losing the homespun, friendly spirit of the conference that has welcomed so many of our members in years past."

Conference fees will also be restructured to attract much greater participation, particularly from owners and operators of small- and medium-size parks who haven't previously attended ARVC conventions.

"I've personally learned from recent discussions with small park owners that our registration fees went far beyond the small park owner's affordability threshold, as evidenced by the fact that only 3% of 2010 conference attendance was represented by parks with 100 sites or less," Babei said.
Even larger parks, those with 101 to 250 sites, accounted for only 6% of attendance."

"As a result," Bambei said, "I am putting the entire conference rate structure under the microscope to determine what we can reasonably do to attract every park owner who truly wants to come, as well as incent those couples and multi-generational family members who want to come together."

A new rate structure for the conference will be announced during the second half of February.

The 2011 Outdoor Hospitality Conference and Expo will take place at the Westin Savannah Harbor Resort & Spa.

"Regardless of the new rate structure, one thing's for sure," said Bambei. "Anyone even remotely thinking about coming to the conference should register before the pre-registration deadline of Aug. 31 to take advantage of the best, most deeply discounted rates. We will be marketing the new rate structure like never before, including a fun contest you'll be hearing about shortly that encourages state associations to register as many new and renewal members as possible."

For more information, please visit www.arvc.org. 

THE VIRTUAL OUTDOOR HOSPITALITY EXPO RETURNS

February 4, 2011

By RV Business

2011 event set for Nov. 11

The Virtual Outdoor Hospitality Expo producers have announced the final tallies for attendance at the 2010 version of their trade show and conference, held entirely on the Internet through Jan. 31.

According to a news release, campground attendance shattered records for physical shows at any regional or state association in the history of the industry: 279 distinctive RV parks had representatives visit the site during the three-day live event and the additional 90 day "on-demand" period. All in all, nearly 500 unique attendees visited the event.

"According to some of our more experienced vendors, some of the expo's attendees had never visited a national show in the industry," Art Lieberman, show co-producer, stated in the release.

"We're pretty proud of the results," he continued, "although the software used to produce the event was highly criticized by sponsors, exhibitors and attendees alike. Since the live portion of the expo closed, Deanne (co-producer Deanne Bower) and I have been examining a half dozen reputable alternative software companies that produce virtual expos, and we have found three with whom we are further negotiations."

Bower said she believes that any of that trio will create a software environment that is more user-friendly than the one used last year. "And", she states, "we believe that we've chosen an opening date that nobody will forget: Nov. 11th of this year: 11/11/11." In addition, at the advice of several exhibitors, Campground Expo is also preparing another expo for the spring of 2012.

"I read somewhere in an e-mail that the year 2011 has produced some interesting dates and numbers," she cotninued. "There was 1/1/11, 1/11/11, and, of course, our target date for the Expo, 11/11/11. Strangely, there is another number that is significant. If you add the last two digits of the year you were born (in the 20th century) to the age you will be in 2011, you always get 111. I bet this year is going to be the year of the campground!"

The producers have already had a bit of luck. They have added three people to the advisory committee of the expo who bring their own expertise to the event:

• Tracie Fisher, of Campground Manager Today, earned her invitation to the board by voluntarily assisting exhibitors in setting up their booths at last year's event. Fisher also simultaneously worked in three different booths last year: the National School of RV Park and Campground Management, the Michigan Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds and her own company's exhibit.
• Also joining the board is well-known RV cooking expert, writer and owner of Roadabode Productions, Evanne Schmarder. Evanne took an early interest in the first Expo, conducted her cooking show live and volunteering to host an open forum.
• Finally, the producers were able to persuade Norman Boucher, owner of LCN Outdoors and president of the ARVC Supplier Council, to join the board. Norm's expertise in the outdoor hospitality industry cannot be matched and, as a supplier of hard goods to campgrounds, his input is a necessity for a successful virtual event.