For-Profit Marketing
I have been honored to provide branding, marketing and copywriting services to a number of industry leading organizations:
Holiday Inns
As a very young man, and also as National Advertising Director for the Holiday Inns System, I had the remarkable opportunity to play a lead role in rebranding and bringing a new marketing approach to this corporate turnaround initiative.
The chain was founded in 1952 and quickly became one of the most popular lodging brands in the United States. But, by the late 1970s, the hotels were outdated and the brand was no longer appealing to modern travelers. In response, Holiday Inns launched a major new product development and rebranding effort. The effort was a success and the repositioned and rebranded hotel chain once again became a favorite of both commercial and family travelers.
Our rebranding and marketing team revitalized the chain and make it more competitive. Our work set the stage for Holiday Inn’s continued success for more than two decades.
Radisson Hotels
As the first V.P Marketing for the young and rapidly emerging Radisson chain, I had an opportunity to create the brand from scratch.
While my experience at Holiday Inns had taught me that travelers want consistency and reliability from a hotel chain, fresh research provided some surprising insights.
Radisson’s research found that frequent business travelers were bored to tears with the severe sameness of every chain hotel room. What the typical Radisson guest wanted was spontaneity and variety in hotel design, decor, food service and entertainment.
Those findings shaped both development of the Radisson product and also the brand promise:
THE RADISSON HOTELS. A COLLECTION. NOT A CHAIN.
Read more about how we positioned the Radisson Collection to grow from 30 to more than 1,000 hotels.
Del Webb’s Lake Powell Resorts
As Vice President of Marketing for Del Webb Recreational Properties, I created a brand for Lake Powell resort operations. The challenge was to position Lake Powell as a unique luxury house boating and touring destination set in Northern Arizona’s pristine wilderness.
I branded Lake Powell as A Grand Canyon and a Great Lake and promoted it in Arizona and Southern California through an extensive television, radio and newspaper advertising program.
This for-profit marketing and business development campaign increased Del Webb’s Lake Powell business to the extent that the company sold the division for $77 million (a 400% profit).
The Grand Canyon Railway
My first experience in marketing historic preservation was sparked by restoration of the Grand Canyon Railway. The project started while I was writing my doctoral dissertation. The dissertation turned into a business plan and the business plan turned into an opportunity to develop and market the 1901 Grand Canyon on a daily basis.
Marketing the railway was a very exciting opportunity to take travelers back in time . . . through the old west . . . to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
The Grand Canyon Railway experience would be priceless. But, the cost of restoring the railway would be expensive, at about $18 million (which was real money at the end of the 20th Century!).
Read more about how we pivoted to develop and launch this originally nonprofit concept as a highly successful for-profit business driven by my passion for marketing historic preservation.
The Navajo Nation
Early in my nonprofit career I was engaged by Utah Navajo Industries (a privately owned Native American Corporation), and the Economic Development Office of the Navajo Nation, to create a brand and marketing program for the San Juan Marina on Lake Powell.
The marina, then under construction, was located in a remarkably beautiful and extremely remote area of the Navajo Nation. When placed into operation, the marina would be the sole source of employment for families in the area.
Challenged by a zero dollar marketing budget, I created a marketing marriage with Goulding’s Lodge in nearby Monument Valley.
We branded the marriage as A Great Vacation Adventure that offered lodging, dining and souvenir shopping in Monument Valley and Lake Powell houseboat vacations in a pristine wilderness area.
Read more about marketing tourism to the Navajo Nation.
The World’s Greatest Gold Camp
The city of Cripple Creek, Colorado is a treasure trove of historic buildings and gold mining history.
In response to extensive market research, I created a branding, special events and promotion program titled Cripple Creek – The World’s Greatest Gold Camp.
The program was driven by marketing marriages between the Cripple Creek city government and two dozen casinos and tourist attractions and centered on an extensive calendar of special events.
During the program’s first year, it increased tourism and casino patronage by more than 100,000 visitors and it increased historic preservation funding by more than $500,000.
Read more about marketing Gold Camp history.
