Are print ads being replaced by social media? One of the nation’s largest ski resorts seems to think so.
Vail Resorts, operator of five major ski resorts in Colorado and owner of 20 hotels withheld nearly 80% of their print advertising budget this year, instead focusing their efforts on social media.
“A lot of our ad budget had gone into long lead print magazines” CEO Rob Katz explained, “We couldn’t do business the way they had historically done business and the reason was very simple...[the magazines] required us to commit to an ad four to six months in advance”
As customers make decisions more rapidly, the ability to adjust marketing messages quickly is crucial. Social media makes this possible. Consider, however, that social media isn’t a solution in and of itself. Vail Resorts utilized existing public relations, marketing, and design teams to work together on this effort. In other words, they probably didn’t just throw up a Facebook page, expecting people to flock to it.
Without a strong community to spread your message, it may not be delivered. Think of your social media community as a mailing list. The strength of your list has a drastic impact on the success of your advertising campaign. Social media is no exception. Subscribers will opt out if they feel they are no longer being delivered compelling content.
Katz explains the challenge of social media. “It has really compressed the executive decision time needed to try and mobilize your message.”
If you don’t have the resources to make fast decisions and produce exciting content, you might evaluate whether you need to hire help to launch your social media campaign. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Can we realistically serve our customers through that avenue?
- What would we replace in favor of social media?
- What value would we be providing to our customers?
Vail Resorts utilized media sharing features of the internet to provide users engaging and interactive material.
“Video sells our product incredibly well.” Katz said. “Now video is easily deliverable over the web, through an e-mail, on social sites and all of a sudden we can actually advertise our product with...a ton of...video”
They were able to find what worked for them. What medium best sells your content? Is it something that transfers well online? If so, social media may be the answer.
Social Media Upends Ski Resorts via Advertising Age