SCHOOL SPOTLIGHT
IRINA BOUROVA KILLINGTON RESORT WINS
ermont’s Killington Resort is the winner of the National Ski Area Association’s 2015 Conversion Cup Challenge. The announcement came at NSAA’s National Convention and Tradeshow,
V
held in May in San Francisco, California. Te Challenge, sponsored by HEAD
Wintersports, recognizes resorts across the country that have developed outstanding programs to convert new skiers and snowboarders
into lifelong enthusiasts.
NSAA launched the initiative in 2010 as a way to pique competition among member ski areas and recognize those who make significant strides in boosting conversion rates. Te winner of the Conversion Cup is chosen based upon proven results, creative ideas, consistent execution, and long-term commitment to the conversion effort. Several key conversion metrics are used in the judging process, including beginner lesson volumes, quantifiable success of beginner lesson packages, season-to-date sales and repeat sales data collection, and marketing ingenuity and use of new media. Killington was selected among a strong field of ski areas from across the United States. Te other two finalists were Bromley in Peru, Vermont, and Hunter Mountain in Hunter, New York. Killington pioneered a new “learn-to”
initiative in 2013-14 season – the 4-Day Elan Discovery Program – which offered a unique incentive to the first 400 students to complete the four-day series: their own
94 | 32 DEGREES • FALL 2015
pair of skis, free of charge. Working closely with Elan Skis and Burton Snowboards, Killington expanded the program for the 2014-15 season to include 500 adult ski packages, 200 snowboard packages, and 200 Burton youth ski packages. In addition to launching this innovative
approach to incentivizing new skiers and riders to stick with the learning process, Killington also embraced Terrain Based Learning™(TBL), offering a ¾-mile stretch of TBL features across three locations. In addition, the resort has a Max 5 policy stipulating that children’s learn-to-ski/ride classes are not to exceed five to a group, further raising the bar on the beginner experience. Every employee of the resort receives
two free learn-to lesson packages, which they are encouraged to give to friends or family. “By activating and empowering our employees as evangelists of the sport and resort, we have added to our trial and retention figures,” said Rob Megnin, Killington’s director of sales, reservations, and marketing.
and the overall
Te success of the Discovery Program results of
Killington’s
conversion efforts are impressive. A total of 98 percent of participants have completed
From left, Killington Resort’s Rob Megnin, Dave Beckwith, and Mike Solimano accept NSAA’s Conversion Cup Challenge trophy on behalf of the resort.
NSAA’S CONVERSION CUP WITH INNOVATIVE LEARNING PROGRAMS By Earl Saline
the program so far, and 96 percent say they are likely to continue to ski or ride. Some 71 percent of participants have returned
for additional days, and 94
percent purchased equipment, clothing, or accessories. Equally impressive is Killington’s commitment to tracking and measuring the success of these programs and following up with the participants as they move into other ticket products and lesson programs. For six years in a row, Killington has seen an increase both in the number of participants in its beginner programs and in the return percentage. All of these efforts take resources. “Te commitment from Killington’s management in support of these major programs and the introduction of Terrain Based Learning™ has been game changing for our first timers,” said Megnin. “We are offering an unprecedented learn-to experience that is truly building lifelong skiers and riders.” Te Conversion Cup Award, a large
silver trophy based on a Stanley Cup prototype, is a traveling award. Killington claims ownership of the Cup for one year, until the next winner is announced at the 2016 NSAA National Convention, scheduled
for May 18–21, 2016, in Nashville, Tennessee.
Earl Saline is the director of education programming for the National Ski Areas Association.
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