Over and over again we see conversations and events and situations that highlight the role a ski resort plays in a community.

To use an imperfect analogy, the resort isn’t a sibling to the shops it town, it’s their parent. As tax forms love to say, they’re dependents.

And just like a parent, that position can be abused…or not.

Super Bowl
The lineup of Super Bowl ads this year left much to be desired.

But there was one that, for whatever reason, caught my eye. And, interestingly enough, the ad wasn’t about the brand footing the bill.

QuickBooks gave away a SuperBowl ad to one of their users.

But there’s a principle behind the scenes that makes this idea so simple but also so powerful.

QuickBooks did something for a small business they would never be able to do for themselves.

That’s it. That’s the nugget.

And that’s why any resort can take advantage of it.

All in That Position
Nearly every ski resort plays a role similar to QuickBooks relative to their community. They have resources that the small guys could never dream of.

And specifically, germane to this conversation, resorts have reach these guys could never dream of. Which is exactly what Jay Peak did during the end of 2015.

“We’ll be using Facebook to highlight a special business each day of the week headed into the holiday periods… Obviously, we feel the mountain does a pretty good job of offering all sorts of things, but if you miss the opportunity to expand your sights, then you’ll miss a good portion of what we think makes a Jay Peak vacation special. The Jay Way may start at the mountain, but it winds through all of us here in the community.”

Jay simply fill their content pipeline with something that their community simply couldn’t achieve on their own.

That thing, again, being reach.

Endless Possibilities
This is the pattern behind not just marketing, but things like Make-a-Wish, the lottery, or even just sweepstakes with big enough prize.

So look beyond social reach when you consider this concept.

• Sweepstakes (i.e., ski trip of a lifetime)
• Experiences (i.e., drive a snow cat)
• Products (i.e., brand new skis for an entire family)
• Moments (i.e., to-the-9s wedding package)
• Marketing (i.e., a spread in SKI)

When you do something for someone they could never do for themselves, you win huge bonus points with them, huge bonus points with their community, and huge bonus points with everyone that realizes you’re behind the scenes.

Jay Peak did it, QuickBooks did it, and because of the role you likely play in your community, you can do it to.

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.