Meet the RV Industry – Lovechild of Auto and Tourism
In 1910 the automobile industry and tourism got friendly with each other and gave birth to recreational vehicles. For the last few months I have been getting up to speed on the current state and marketing needs of this sector. We are now one month into our monthslong working RV relocation back to New England. It’s been successful and enlightening.
If you want to provide services of any kind to a class of business, there’s no better/faster way than to thrust yourself into it as a customer. Research it before making purchasing decisions, engage with staff, try all the search terms, compare prices, read reviews, talk to fellow customers and see how their online and over the phone customer service functions. In our month on the road, we have stayed at four RV parks from Napa to San Diego and consulted (tried to sell) with over a dozen different parks. Each has different objectives and viewpoints on their marketplace. Some keep top level decision makers on site, others have to contact the county, state or federal office, and still others are run by folks who have never spent a night in an RV.
Our current stop is our first that is a part of a national camping chain. It’s a KOA. The first three were individually operated parks. Napa was a small park on the local fairgrounds, operated by the fairgrounds, who are generally outside of the RV industry. The second was the premiere park in the tourist spot of Pismo Beach, which clearly knew about it’s competitive standing, is owned by RVing shareholders and was a well oiled machine. The third was in Malibu. That one capitalizes on it’s lack of local competition and has absentee ownership. It’s led to an environment of negative online reviews, which is a common challenge in all business without an empowered staff. Having learned about these three has made the KOA here in San Diego very interesting. There’s 470+ KOA’s in North America. The San Diego location has been owned and operated by the Bell Family for generations and clearly benefits from the consistency and family care.
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| KOA Photo |
The largest difference that a marketing based mind notices here is the merchandising. Everything is on message and working to get folks to lengthen their stay or visit a KOA at their next stop. The fonts are consistent, the colors are all yellow and there is high quality supporting collateral. Everything is spelled with a K, which is nice when your business cards say MediawithAK. While most other parks have wanted to show off their amenities, this KOA is more focused on capitalizing on the regional attractions to speak to destination guests. That is likely in part due to the market perception of KOA – they do not need to assure folks that they have proper hookups or a pool. It is granted.
KOA is different than Good Sam, which is one of the other primary national brands in RVing. Good Sam is owned by Affinity Group which also owns many other RV media outlets and brands. Good Sam parks only have to agree to offer a discount to be included, while KOA parks are truly agreeing to be part of a team experience and offer a consistent camping experience. This is only a small glimpse into the RV industry, which also has a national association and congressional lobby. As I work to deliver tailored marketing content throughout our trip I’m getting quickly up to speed on this large and economically significant industry.
Of course this is limited to RV parks/travel – I’ll talk more about manufacturing/sales later on the trip – still learning up on that side of the coin.
The sun is forecast to return by Tuesday, so stay tuned for completion of my first KOA project by the end of this week. We’re here through February 16. Arizona will be next.
