Marketing Lessons I Learned from My Family Vacation by Scott Bettinger

A few weeks back I had the privilege to take my wife and kids on a little road trip. We hadn’t taken a long trip together for quite some time, so we were all looking forward to this time together. The vacation plan was that we would travel to Kansas to meet up with my wife’s immediate and extended family for a family reunion and then head to spend a few days with just her immediate family in Branson. Somewhere along our journey from Ypsilanti, Michigan to Pratt, Kansas and on to Branson, Missouri, I realized that some very important marketing lessons can be gleaned from my experiences.

So I’ve decided to share these lessons I learned from my family vacation: (in chronological order)

SPEND A LITTLE, GET A LOT

We decided that since we were going to make this a road trip we would rent a vehicle instead of putting all those miles on our own vehicle. We were sort of on the fence with this one but I was really glad we decided to do it. I got to the car rental agency and it must have been rush hour in this place because I stood in line for a good hour before I even got to the counter. Now, it may seem all nice and dandy when reading this, but the truth is, I HATE standing in line. There’s not much more that perturbs me or makes me think I am completely wasting my time than standing in a long line. After the hour wait I finally got to the counter and went through the process and at the end I got my choice of vehicles. I got to choose a Ford Explorer, Ford Edge, or Chrysler Pacifica. I’ve always kind of wondered about the Pacifica and I thought it would give me better fuel efficiency than the others, so I chose that one. The moral of the story, and the marketing principle I got out of this situation, is that I could have used my vehicle and might have been okay, but the peace of mind that it brought to me to be in a brand new vehicle and if something went wrong they would have to take care of it, was well worth the money spent. 

For marketing, you can try to use resources that you have (and sometimes you have to for one reason or another), but sometimes spending a little can pay off much bigger and provide faster results. You have to make the decision for yourself and your organization when to try to do it ‘on your own’ and when to get professional assistance.

BRAINWASHING IS OKAY

Alright, so if you have kids or have been around kids for any length of time on a road trip you know that car DVD players are like the 8^th Wonder of the World. I have twin two year olds for those of you who don’t know. They’re awesome and absolutely breathe life into me. But they’re 2. This was going to be a 16 hour road trip. They’re 2, did I already mention that? So they watched movies and videos for most of the trip and it probably soaked into their heads and killed off some tiny little budding brains cells. I don’t care … it was worth it.

There’s not really a marketing lesson here, I just wanted to praise car DVD players. Well, I guess that is marketing … that’s word of mouth. Make your organization worth talking about!

NAMING IS IMPORTANT

During our drive, we’re passing through Indiana and I look up to see a water tower with the name of the city as big as it can possibly be. You see the picture to the side here … yes, the name of the town was Gas City, Indiana. There are quite a few pictures that conjure up in my mind when I think of the name of this town. What’s interesting is that when I got back home from my vacation I saw a news story on a national news broadcast that had a correspondent in, of all places, Gas City, Indiana. They were reporting how the town just passed an ordinance allowing go-karts to be driven on the city streets in the wake of rising fuel prices. Well, that’s one picture alright …

The marketing principle here is to be careful of unintended messages that names and titles can be perceived. A name or even image you think that might be appropriate may not seem so to the community you’re trying to reach.

WHEN THE POOL IS BROKE … MAKE LEMONADE

By the time we finally made it into a small town in Kansas called Pratt, we met up with our extended family and shared warm greetings. After dinner we decided we would go back to the hotel and let the kids swim in the hotel swimming pool. Did I mention that we had about 10 kids in my wife’s family alone? Yep, you guessed it from the title of this point … the pool was out of service. Someone had apparently broken some glass and it fell in the pool, so they had to drain the pool and clean it. The thing is, you can’t tell that many kids (and parents too) that they can’t go swimming especially when they’ve got their swimsuits and floaties on already (see pic). The hotel management decided it would be okay, though, that the kids could play in the large hot tub. Oh yeah, they definitely made lemonade out of that situation and they didn’t even tell the difference. They still had a blast.

In marketing, as in life, there are many times you can’t control situations that arise, but you can always control how you’re going to react to those situations. So even if your budget gets slashed, ideas get hammered, and others get brought in to “give their input,” choose your attitude and make lemonade out of the situation.

HOW FAR IS TOO FAR?

While we were in the little town of Pratt, Kansas, I looked up near the small community center where the family reunion was held and I saw not one but two water towers. One was labeled “HOT” and one was labeled “COLD;” as if all the hot water in the entire town comes from the one tower and all the cold water in town comes from the other tower.

There are probably one hundred marketing principles I could pull from this one example but I’ll just keep it to one. Every organization, and we know every municipality, has weak spots and areas that just don’t make sense. Try as best you can to not overly expose your weakest areas. Tear down the water towers in your organization and improve your brand.

IF IT’S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, IT DEFINITELY IS!

After our jaunt to Kansas for the family reunion, we decided to travel with Carrie’s immediate family and nephews and niece to Branson, Missouri for a few days. For those of you who have never been to Branson, the best way I could really describe Branson is that it’s the Vegas for those who aren’t comfortable going to Vegas. Shows, shopping, entertainment, and parks adore this great town and the scenery and surrounding lakes are inspiring. As we made our lodging plans for Branson, we found a great deal on a condo that would fit each of our tastes and would be a very relaxing stay. The only downside was that it was one of those deals that we had to sit through a 90 minute tour (aka sales pitch) to buy into the timeshare of these condos. Well, what we were promised for our accommodations turned out to be nothing more than a hotel room ala 1987. The short of the story is that we did not end up having to do the “tour” but it still didn’t change our room situation into one of the nice condos.

Here’s the deal with marketing and this is where you really need to find balance. You do this wrong and you come off as inauthentic. You do this right and you build relationships with your community. Here it is … don’t overhype and don’t underhype your organizations, event, or programs.

MARKETING IN A RELEVANT … 1880’s STYLE

During our Branson trip, we decided to spend a couple of days at a little amusement park called Silver Dollar City. This is a great amusement park that is a complete throwback to life as it was in the 1880’s. At Silver Dollar City, you experience festivals, cloggers, street shops, train rides and the simplicity of life back then. They do have some rides that are more contemporary and updated, but for the most part it’s a time warp. On our first day at the park I noticed something very interesting. They apparently implored some pretty creative marketing techniques to get their message heard back in the 1880’s. (see pic … of course, I didn’t know that GAC was around back then)

The marketing lesson learned here is that no matter where you are or what your environment and culture, do marketing that fits you. Be authentic and tell stories that represent you. Many times, the medium is the message … even if it’s chalk on a street.

So there it is, my vacation in a nutshell … with some marketing lessons learned along the way. Be inspired by your world and your experiences.

Into the Wild by Carl Johnson

This is quite a powerful movie experience. One that you won’t soon forget. Masterfully directed by Sean Penn, it’s a story about Chris McCandless – a kid who graduates from college in 1990, hitchhikes across the country, meets interesting characters, and ventures to Alaska to live off the land. It tackles the heart of what it means to live a simple yet purposeful life. I won’t give too much more away. It is brimming with passion, beauty, freedom, danger and soul. I recommend it.

 

 

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