The Timeshare’s Industry’s Most Effective Marketing Secrets You Need to Know About

 

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The Local Marketing Tactics

The moment you decide to attend a timeshare presentation, there is a 20 percent chance that you will buy—that day! There are timeshare marketing secrets that you’re not supposed to know about. If you are adamant and say to the sales or marketing rep, “No matter what, I am not going to buy anything, no matter how good the deal is,” your chances of buying are even higher.

In the comfort of your home, you might receive a phone call or an invitation in the mail from a timeshare marketing company. They will introduce themselves in a friendly manner and offer you attractive gifts. Their objective is to entice you to take a ninety-minute sales presentation in your area or a few hours away. They can call you for years, aiming to convince you to attend a presentation if your number is on their list. Some ignore the do-not-call list; report those who do. Of course, the objective is to convince you to take a timeshare sales presentation or “to tour their resort.” 

Remember, marketing reps speak to people constantly, facing numerous rejections. It’s a high-pressure job demanding extensive training and meeting quotas. Failing to meet numbers can result in job loss, typical in sales-oriented positions. Consequently, they do everything in their power to lure you into a sales presentation.

Some will offer a discounted rate at their resort or another resort in exchange for your time. For families that do not usually vacation, this could be a great option for a weekend getaway. Often, there is a multitude of amenities to enjoy, particularly for families. Children can spend all day in the pool while their parents attend a timeshare sales presentation.

 

Timeshare Marketing in Foreign Destinations

Foreign destinations such as Mexico and the Caribbean Islands might offer a minivacation (minivac) to get you to a timeshares sales presentation. This would normally include a discounted stay at their hotel and  airfare. 

When you arrive on your “discounted holiday,” you must attend the timeshare sales presentation. The demographic of foreign vacationers results in a high closing percentage for the developers. Therefore, motivated sales reps will do all they can for an opportunity to pitch to this group. This is where timeshare marketing and sales becomes an art.

 

The Vacation Marketing Tactics

 

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When you’re on vacation, an OPC (off property contact) is the person who may greet you usually at the airport disguised as “transportation specialists.” Their only job is to convince you to attend a timeshare sales presentation. They have one of the most visible and fun positions within the vacation club industry. Their primary function is simply to bring in guests. They get paid just for bringing in “qualified” guests and paid again when a sale is made. OPCs work with the marketing managers. They work strange hours and sometimes in strange places. They must possess a strong sense of rapid rapport, creativity, and tenacity.

Achieving a successful marketing campaign often involves employing assertive and sometimes aggressive strategies. Typically, potential guests are enticed with attractive gifts like cash, free activities, or discounts on expensive excursions or entertainment in exchange for attending a sales presentation. In Orlando, one can expect free tickets to one of the theme parks. What do you think is the most popular theme park in Orlando? You guessed it—Disney. The OPC has a budget for each couple for timeshare marketing.

 

Timeshare Resort Marketing

There are OPCs who stand by the front door of the resorts to approach guests as they attempt to leave for the day and bribe them with attractive gifts. Some gifts are small, but in some places, you can walk away with $300 or more in cash. A new resort in the Mayan Riviera of Mexico was recently offering $1,000 for attending a timeshare sales presentation. Beware! Some resorts in that region will not let you out of the salesroom unless you agree to buy something. Remember, you are in their country, and you’re on your own.

Most actively selling vacation club resorts employ OPCs, often disguised as concierges or hostesses, who reveal their true intent after connecting with a guest. If guests refuse to take a sales presentation, they will continue to make attempts, even if it requires multiple phone calls to their rooms.

Some OPCs demand a refundable cash deposit from the guests to ensure they will show up at the sales presentation at the agreed time and location. If they don’t show up, the OPC gets to keep the deposit. 

 

Airport Location Marketing

In certain regions, especially in the Caribbean and Mexico, they position themselves at airports, disguising as transportation, excursions, car rental agents, concierges, or other visible roles. They know all the flight schedules for each airline and know when to be at the right place at the right time. When travelers get off the planes and away from customs and immigration, guess who is there to assist them with transportation and excursions? You guessed it.

I have even discovered OPCs doubling as taxi drivers!

Once you agree to attend a presentation, the OPC will immediately become your best friend and help you with excursions and anything else to gain your trust. They are friendly, kind, and seem genuine. This is their job. This is the essence of timeshare marketing.

For them to get paid, you MUST show up. They will usually provide transportation for you to get to the resort. Once you have completed the presentation, they get paid. If you purchase, they get paid a commission with bonuses.

 

Target Marketing

The qualified guests must meet certain “target market” requirements or criteria, i.e., age, sex, marital status, race, religion, income, and the quality of their accommodations. If you tell them you are staying at a hostel or a Motel 6-style property, you will usually not be invited. Historically, single men are usually not qualified guests, as they do not represent the typical profile of a timeshare buyer.

Each resort has its own qualifications determined by its sales track records. This industry spends lots of money to get you to a presentation. Therefore, they must keep track of who is and who is not buying. The quality or number of gifts offered will depend on the qualifications. For many resorts, certain races, nationalities, and religious sects are discouraged. It’s not because of their identify, but rather that historically, “they are not buyers.”

 

Targeting Military Personnel

 

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According to Irene Parker, a timeshare volunteer advocate, military personnel is being targeted by timeshare and vacation club resorts within the U.S. with a sales pitch that they have a special deal for active military. They do not. They might go as far as stating that the resort developers want to show their appreciation for their service to our country by offering a special deal for military families. These “special deals” will come with a price.

I have obtained information that those military members who default on their timeshare obligations within the U.S. are being disciplined by their superiors and affecting their credit.

 

Targeting RCI and I.I. Exchangers

Resorts actively target timeshare owners who exchange for another resort, contacting them upon check-in to schedule a sales presentation appointment with the marketing staff. The marketing staff will lure them with attractive gifts in exchange for a one-hour sales presentation on what this resort offers compared to their own timeshare. The resort will often offer them an opportunity to either add to their existing timeshare portfolio or trade in their timeshare for a new one. This is the biggest “internal” scam in the timeshare industry because the resorts will simply present a very high price and pretend to offer a substantial discount in exchange for their current timeshare. 

Timeshare exchanges represent one of the highest closing percentages for the industry, which is why many resorts will designate their most experienced timeshare sales reps (closers) to sell them.

 

The Hilton Vacation Club and Diamond Resorts Merger and Marketing Tactics

Recently, Hilton Grand Vacations acquired Diamond Resorts, becoming the largest upscale and luxury timeshare operator in a stock-based transaction. Hilton now boasts 710,000 owners, forty-eight sales centers, and twenty new markets.

Former Diamond members (380,000) can now use Hilton Grand Vacations properties and vice versa but with a catch.

From my experience in the timeshare and vacation club industry, there will always be marketing and sales strategies to generate more profit for the company, and this acquisition will be no different. One former Diamond member mentioned these tactics on a Facebook group page. She stated that they tried to encourage her to upgrade her membership to gain access to all of Hilton’s properties for more money of course.

Both former Diamond members and Hilton Grand Vacations members will be requested to attend “owner updates.” This is quite common for the industry, as 50 percent of the profits from the timeshare and vacation club industry are from owner upgrades. The sales strategy will probably be an opportunity for former Diamond members to use Hilton Grand Vacations properties if they upgrade their membership. Likewise, Hilton Grand Vacations members will also be requested to attend the same updates to have full access to the former Diamond Resorts properties.

I advise readers to be careful and skeptical, as the resort’s sales team will surely make attempts to upgrade their membership for a hefty price. They will probably use every trick in the book to generate more profits for the resorts by offering tempting “deals” to spend more money, including free stays, and upgraded rooms. Most often, if members have access to more properties, the maintenance fees might reflect this upgraded membership.

Referral Conversions Are Very High

 

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Another tactic that most resorts use is referral programs, where they offer an incentive to owners if they refer their friends and family to attend a sales presentation. Many of the resorts where I worked had very successful referral programs that often resulted in very high closing percentages. Some referral programs offer friends and families similar gifts that they offer the public.

Royal Resorts in Cancun, Mexico, has a very satisfied customer base and members always refer friends and family. In fact, they accompany their friends and family to the sales presentation, encouraging them to buy. Of course, they prep them, tell them what to expect, and share with them the price they paid. Unlike most resorts, Royal Resorts owners all pay the same price. There was little room for negotiations. Royal Resorts was, by far, the most honest resort that I worked for. They guaranteed the same suite the same week for thirty years. Then, you get all your money back after thirty years.

The resort treated their owners so well that many would come back and buy more weeks. I recently met a couple that had three Royal Resorts weeks and owned another nine at other resorts.

The timeshare marketing process is a science that has been mastered by many timeshare developers. Millions of dollars of timeshare products are sold daily.