MarketingMinute New-Age Exposure
For camps to attract new families, they must fully understand how today’s kids and parents are gathering information
By Nancy Shenker
Five New Realities • The consumer is in charge. The power of the Internet enables every individual to seek out and research virtually unlimited options. Web search techniques can help camp directors ensure their programs can be easily found online.
• Price and value are important to parents. Make sure to communicate your pro- gram’s benefits in a way that your “buy- ers” will understand the long-term impact your summer program can have on their children’s lives.
T
he camping industry, like so many others, is rich with history and tra- ditions. So how do “traditional” businesses continue to evolve and thrive as the world around them changes, with lightning speed?
Social media and Internet communica- tions mean the average consumer — child and parent alike — is entrenched in stimuli, messages and activities from multiple sources 24/7. Facebook is now the third largest “country” in the world and American kids spend, on average, a whop- ping 53 hours a week watching TV, using computers or playing video games. The recession has had an impact on every family’s definition of leisure activities and have indeed changed spending pat- terns. The good news is that parents’ spending on their children only dropped one per cent last year. Another bright spot seems to be a phenomenon termed “the grounded consumer,” with economic reali- ties forcing families to focus more on basic
values and less on material goods. On the flip side, high unemployment and competition for jobs sometimes influences parents to select programs that have a pur- pose beyond “having fun” and “building great values.”
Many camp directors are struggling with the impact of change, spending and values on their businesses. They miss the way things used to be, but fear those days are gone forever. They know they need to change, but are not sure where to start. Great brands survive through the eras because they see the changes that are going on around them, know what makes them unique and great — the “old” things they should hold on to — understand at a deep level what cus- tomers are looking for, and then evolve their offerings, messages, and delivery to meet changing consumers’ needs. Combine tradition with knowledge and innovation and you will have a winning marketing strategy for 2011 and beyond.
• Social media is here to stay. Your kids are online, and their parents are online. You need to make sure you are engaged in the millions of “conversations” about camps that happen in the virtual world each year, especially as they relate to your own camp or program. Stay open to how other industries are marketing to kids and adopt the effective elements of their techniques.
• Public relations has changed. As local newspapers shrink and parents look to online news media, blogs and social media sites for information and advice, you need to influence online content providers to feature your unique fea- tures. Sending a press release to the newspaper is simply no longer enough to ensure positive buzz.
• Web video (the shorter the better!) and mobile marketing are starting to play a broader role in the marketing mix. Stay on top of trends and techniques in both these areas.
Five Timeless Truths • Every camp needs to know its “cus- tomers.” What makes your program truly different and better? The basics of branding are more important than ever before. Who is an ideal camper for your particular program? Do enough of these kids still exist to keep your camp thriv- ing? And, if not, where can you seek out other kids like them? Consider changing your programming to appeal to new seg- ments and make sure you communicate those changes clearly and in a com- pelling way.
• Face-to-face communication and experiences still have value. No mat- ter how effective your web strategy is, human connection and continuous
8 Canada Camps Winter 2011
Photo: Camp Cherith - Ontario
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