Whistler/Blackcomb just launched North America’s first, real competitor to EpicMix, and it’s a beaut.

With all the usual suspects you’d expect from this sort of platform – tracking, leaderboards, badgets, stats, friends, groups, etc. – there was one number within the WB+ platform that got me more excited than all of them.

And it starts with a stat I pulled for The Stash back in 2012.

The context behind those vertical, orange bars is simply this: they represent the return rate of a guest once they’ve visited X years in a row.

For example, if I have come to your resort every year for five years, there’s about a 75% chance I’ll be back next year.

Streak Power
Streaks are interesting things. Us humans can’t help but be interested by them.

It’s why the Golden Stat Warrior’s streak ending was just as newsworthy as it growing.

For the first time in 186 days, the Warriors have lost! Bucks upset the defending champs, 108-95. pic.twitter.com/575CXgWeQp

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) December 13, 2015

It’s also the reason sports media outlets searched for another streak to piggyback on even though they had to add a couple asterisks by the title.

The @warriors 33 consecutive regular season home game winning streak is on the line now on @NBATV! #DENatGSW pic.twitter.com/TpXgQ4qk8s

— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 3, 2016

So, we like streaks.

But even more, we don’t like to break them. It’s part of the reason why the chart I shared above shows such a strong, upward trend. Every year that extends a streak only increases the chances it will be extended again.

Here’s the rub, though. Even if I’ve skied 20 days in a row, if I am not aware of that fact, there is no power encouraging me to make it 21.

WB+ Dashboard
In that context, see if you can find the element on this dashboard that got me excited.

Source: WB+ Welcome

Painfully obvious by this point, it’s the word “STREAK” halfway down on the right side.

The fact that this is on their radar, to me, is huge.

By why stop there? We don’t have to go to sport commentator lengths – “Utah State has won 9 consective games when leading by more than 9 points with 3:15 left in the game” – to find a streak that virtually all of our guests can work toward.

• Weekly streaks for the locals
• Monthly streaks for the loyal travelers or homeowners
• Seasonal streaks for normal travelers
• Streaks for riding days with 4″+ of new snow for powder hounds

The list could go on, but I think you get where I’m going with this. Streaks can drive behavior. Streaks already exist but few realize they’ve started one.

Connecting those dots can be a powerful, powerful thing.

Summarizing the Stoke
So, yes, I am totally stoked that WB+ is finally here and we can start watching it develop (I’ll write about it more as more features are released).

But I’m especially stoked that streaks have officially landed in the ski industry.

I may be thinking twice about skiing this weekend, but if I know I’ll be breaking a streak of 10 consecutive weekends? Well, that’s when things could get really, really interesting.

About Gregg & SlopeFillers
I've had more first-time visitors lately, so adding a quick "about" section. I started SlopeFillers in 2010 with the simple goal of sharing great resort marketing strategies. Today I run marketing for resort ecommerce and CRM provider Inntopia, my home mountain is the lovely Nordic Valley, and my favorite marketing campaign remains the Ski Utah TV show that sold me on skiing as a kid in the 90s.