Despite all the successes resort marketers along I-70 have had in recent years, one goal remains elusive: turning Sunday skiers into Sunday lodgers.

Resorts have tried a lot of creative things to make it happen, but Vail’s latest concept keeps it simple by simply organizing a series of perks under one branded umbrella.

They’re calling it “Sunday Sleepover.”

The Email
The marketing I’ve seen around this concept started with a clean, well-designed email.

Notice how they use a text link above that hero image? Smart move when you consider what some inboxes (like Gmail on the iPhone) will show as preview text.

So far, nothing too major in terms of effort. And the actual page you’re sent to is more of the same, built with what appears to be a stardard template within the site intro’ed with a paragraph of simple copy.

It’s Sunday evening and the weekend is about to come to a close. But it doesn’t have to — extend your weekend and join us for a Sunday Sleepover. Skip the Sunday night traffic and instead enjoy the Vail Farmers’ Market and Ar Show, Vail Jazz and other great Sunday night events. With great deals on lodging, dining specials, retail discounts and special activity offerings, there’s no better time to get away to Vail this summer. Start your week off right with a Sunday night getaway!

From there it’s a simple list of deals:

• 25% off at Tavern on the Square
• $30/hr lanes at Bol
• 4-6pm Happy Hour at Vail Chophouse
• 25% off any non-sale item at Vail Sports

As you read through the list, you almost get the feeling that some of these existed already. If they did, kudos to Vail’s marketing team for recognizing the combined value of putting all of these deals in one place.

If not, you can see that working with shops in your village to offer some sort of discount on a typically slow night wouldn’t be that tall of an order.

Whatever the case, I love the simple experimentation. This planting of a marketing seed.

Start simple, see if it grows. Maybe it will and you can move it into a bigger pot. Maybe it won’t and you can toss it out. But as I often say, there’s only one way to find out. And if you can find out with very little effort? Even better.

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.