Campground Amenities vs lower prices
Spin off from price thread. Which do you prefer? Lower cg rates with just basic FHU and clean bath houses? Or are you willing to pay higher rates for amenities (and the accompanying insurance...
Forum Discussion
westernrvparkowner wrote:
While it might be nice to dream that there will someday be parks EXACTLY like you want, it is unrealistic. Each and every amenity a park has is there to attract a few more customers. True, not everyone needs cable TV, Wifi, Sewer connections at the site, a laundry facility, campground restrooms, electricity, playground, pool etc. But there are 256 different combinations of just those 8 amenities.
Adding amenities has a minimal impact on actual costs when spread over the life span of that amenity. Same with insurance, operating costs (with the exception of a pool) and the like. Amenities are most closely related to advertising, it is what is needed to get rigs into the site. Prices of RV sites, like almost all things, are directly related to supply and demand. If you can increase the demand by adding a mini golf course, you can increase price, not just on those who want mini golf, but across the board as long as you gain more people by having mini golf than you lose by increasing the price.
The park's I have were run down, had few amenities and low prices. I renovate them, increase the amenities and raise rates. I lose a lot of customers that chose the parks because the price was low, but gain many more who want what I offer. The margins go up and I make more money, which is the goal of owning a park.
With all respect to others, if you have ever owned a business, you know exactly what old western is doing and why he is doing it. If you have not you have a bit of a learning curve.
He like any business, is in business for one reason and one reason only, to make money.
He knows the surest way to go broke, and have a heart attack is to try and offer his service cheap, and cater to people how are only interested in price. Any business is just that, a business not a charity
Cheap people are by far the most difficult to deal with, and the only people they know are other cheap people.
As a small business, you compete on service, not price.
He does not want me as a customer, for instance. As I place no value on pools, wifi, playgrounds etc. I am a state park guy. And as a result, place no value, on what he has to offer, and am unwilling to pay for them.
He wants those people who value the services he offers, and will return year after year and spend money.
That is his target group, that is how he stays in business. And I say good for him. He has found his nitch
