I don’t share as much content as I used to and, even when I do, my posts are still the classic 400-500 words they’ve always been.

But in a year like 2022 when you’re got war and a pandemic and just life in general on the brain, it can be hard to sit down, focus your brain, and read a piece thoroughly enough to not miss all the good stuff.

So, to that end, let me highlight a few of my favorite quotes from SlopeFillers’ recent posts.

Tech vs Ski

From my interview with Slopes App creator, Curtis Herbert, when he discussed the balance between technology and the ski experience:

“You’re 100% right that we can’t let tech take over the ski experience. It is an easy trap to fall into: getting excited about what we can do, not if we should build it. Tech needs to support this sport we use to disconnect, not try to wedge its way into our lives and demand our “engagement” with it…I try really hard to take a back seat to the ski experience with Slopes, only being helpful when wanted, and that’s the path I want to keep taking. “

Designing Events

From Jon Slaughter’s piece about Diamond Peaks Last Tracks dug into how they’ve combined filling gaps in demand with amazing, one-of-a-kind experiences:

“The event would surely be successful if you just took the last chair up to the lodge and then you downloaded at the end. Diamond Peak could have stopped there and hosted a winning event series but instead, they include a couple of really smart additions…they use the event to drive a few additional sales during an off-peak period…and the grooming team at Diamond peak lays down fresh cord for your downhill run as one final treat to cap off an evening of fun. “

Ski-Specific Tech

When I dug into Wander Maps’ origins outside of ski and scope beyond ski, I shared my feeling on whether or not that was a good thing or a bad thing for adoption within the industry:

“She and her team have big plans and are building out a strong business to get there. Wander isn’t built specifically for ski like other products we’ve seen, but given the challenge of building depth and quality into your product when your market is as limited as our is? Well, that lack of ski-specific focus may not be a bad thing.”

Risk vs Risk

Greg Rossi from Spot Insurance had a succinct, insightful take on whether or not injury insurance made skiing look more dangerous than it would otherwise be:

“While there’s always a concern around injury, we believe that it’s better to acknowledge it and be honest that injuries happen. Surveys show that a majority of would-be skiers aren’t participating due to a fear of getting hurt, so sweeping this under the rug isn’t going to solve the problem.”

Lemonade from Lemons

Katherine Seleski showcased how Kimberley Alpine Resort made the most of a bad situation and rallied their skiers and uphill fans behind a fun, virtual contest based on a lift being vandalized:

“The day after opening up for the season, the top terminal of their Northstar Quad Chair was lit on fire, rendering the chair unusable for the season. Being the main lift that allows guests to access the other two chairlifts, this act of arson was nothing short of devastating…It would have been easy to just post updates on the website about the process for taking a cat to the base of the other lifts and keep posting the usual resort marketing photos online but Kimberley took it up a notch with their #HiketoTammy challenge.”

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.