5 Important Concepts for the Next 5 Years of the Summer Camp Industry

A CampHacker's Vision of Important Camp Ideas for the Near Future

There can be no arguing that summer camp is on the edge of massive change (or, at least, that those who change their marketing massively have the greatest chance of survival).  

The Midwest Association of Independent Camps asked me to speak at their luncheon at the Mid-States Conference in April 2014.  I decided to think about what I consider to be 5 essential skills of a modern camp director.

5 Summer Camp Concepts for the Next 5 Years from Travis Allison

I think you need to be considering:

1. It's all about the VISUALS (any piece of communication that you begin to write... you should figure out who to say it visually).
2. Get comfortable with TECHNOLOGY. Even if, like me, you believe that campers need a break from Technology, you still need to have a basic knowledge of and comfort level with technology in order to keep doing your job.
3. Learn to RELAX.  Take up meditation, go for walks, play games with the campers - anything you can do to relax during every day will be essential to manage the stresses of managing a camp business.
4. Make your marketing ABOUT THEM. Stop talking about you on your camp marketing; start talking about them and what they get out of camp.
5. Make BOLD STATEMENTS. Be prepared to clearly state the WHY of your camp... and to find more of the right families because of that!

My Bold Statement for 2014

I want to help the summer camp industry be so good that you feel like you fail as a parent if your kids don't go to camp.

What bold statement are you making at your camp?  
Leave it in the comments below this post.

A "HINT" About Camp Rituals from Joanna Warren Smith

The Best Times at Summer Camp

According to campers, these memorable moments are when silence pervades, all eyes are focused and a song or a chant emerges.  These are the times at resident and day camps when everyone belongs to the family and the collective 'doing' validates each individual. 

These are the RITUALS of camp which bring campers back year after year ... but they must be tended to and treated with reverence by ALL campers, counsellors and staff or they quickly become perfunctory and meaningless.

TAKE ACTION NOW!

Identify your signature rituals.  Evaluate each, eliminate those that miss the mark and commit to those that further your mission, strengthen community connections and increase camper outcomes. Confirm that each session contains ritual content. 

What happens in a four-week session is likely to be more intense than rituals for a shorter session; however, rituals should be included in all sessions. Script out the 'perfect' scenario for each ritual. 

Don't go to the place of how staff have been executing the event, focus on how you want it done and maximize the impact with timing, props, specific language and songs. Teach rituals during orientation.  Establish the model, help counsellors see the value of the ritual and set expectations for performance. Monitor performance for compliance.  

After each ritual, take time to mentor those who performed and establish expectations for the next team.

When you tend to your rituals, you give campers emotional connections that will make them tell their parents that they 'must' come back to camp.

Joanna

Want some other great camp marketing ideas?  Give me a call at 310-451-1876 or email campconsulting@verizon.net

(Note from Travis:   Camp consultant Joanna Warren Smith nails it every time with her HINTS!  If you don't already, you should sign up to receive theses HINTS in your email - in the right-hand column of Joanna's website: http://camp-consulting.com/)

Introductory SALE: Summer Camp Social Media Marketing Calendar

Make Your Camp Marketing Manageable 

Seth Houser, Director at Camp Arrowwood

“Tired of reading Mashable, Social Media Today and other sites only to be left asking yourself? “How do I apply this to my Summer Camp?” Travis has put together a great resource that is made by a Camp Professional for Your Camp.

If your social media strategy consists of the occasional “Sign-up Today” “Tell your friends about Camp” and “Early-Discount Ends Tomorrow” you are missing the boat. I’m thankful to Travis for the life-giving resource.”

— Seth Houser, Camp Arrowwood (TN)

We are please to offer, from now until December 13th, 50% off our new Summer Camp Marketing Calendar!

Click to Buy the SUMMER CAMP MARKETING CALENDAR now

Summer Camp Social Media Marketing Calendar from CampHacker.TV

The marketing calendar is a spreadsheet that will make your online marketing more effective and efficient.

Last week we asked our newsletter followers to outline their biggest question about camp marketing and there were 2 strong trends: How can I be the most effective in the least amount of time? and What social networks will have the biggest effect on increasing our camper numbers?

Both are questions that we answer with the Summer Camp Marketing Calendar.    

“Prior to the webinar last Thursday, I was feeling overwhelmed where to begin with our social media marketing.  On Friday, feeling bold, I sat down and began plotting my 5 week strategy to get our camps back on track.  In order to keep it manageable for us, I’ve decided to focus on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.  I believe what you do should be done well and to jump in & try to cover everything, even if it’s once per week, would be too overwhelming and we run the risk of abandoning the plan before we truly get started.

While it did take a couple of hours, I’m happy to report I am confident that I have a plan that is beneficial and easy to follow.  ”

— Mary Camuso

As you can see from Mary's review, we are going to offer a one hour webinar (or video recording) to every buyer.   In this webinar you will learn how to use the Calendar, how to set up a simple social media posting strategy and how to make creating content that sells camp as easy as possible.

Click to Buy the SUMMER CAMP MARKETING CALENDAR now

There is a no-questions-asked return policy for 30 days.  Watch the Webinar then try it out for your camp.  If you are not happy, email me directly (travis@socialcatalyst.ca) for your refund.

If you are ready to make your camp marketing life easier: buy the calendar.

A "HINT" to Increase Retaining Campers - Joanna Warren Smith

Training Your Summer Camp Staff to Help You Keep Campers Coming Back

(Note from Travis:   We are so thrilled to be posting the always brilliant HINTS from camp consultant Joanna Warren Smith!  If you don't already you should sign up to receive theses HINTS in your email - in the right-hand column of Joanna's website: http://camp-consulting.com/)

​hint for retaining summer campers from Joanna Warren Smith.

Imagine if you will ...

A camper is walking down a path with a favorite counselor.  They are laughing, talking and bonding in such a special way that when you see them, you smile because these relationships are what camp is all about.

The lively, engaging conversation continues; the camper looks up fondly at the best role model in the world and eagerly asks, "Are you coming back to camp next summer?"  And the counselor quickly responds "No, I'm going to grad school."

Please know that the camper who asked the question will likely not be back because in that response, the counselor took away a "personal" reason for the child to return.

Now, I don't advocate lying to campers but we must encourage counselors to realize their impact on children.  It's essential for them to see how the ramifications of a response to a tough question can be mitigated.

TAKE ACTION NOW!

• RUN A SHORT INTERACTIVE SESSION FOR ALL STAFF.  Act out the above scenario and let counselors come to their own conclusions about the impact on the camper.  If they see it, rather than get lectured about it, they are more likely to understand your intention.
• PROVIDE EASY RESPONSES.   Encourage counselors to anticipate the question and be ready with authentic responses like "I love camp so much, I want to come back every year."  Or "Camp is the best place, I always want to be here, don't you?" And remind counselors that if they do have negative reactions about camp, they should be shared with leadership ... not with campers or their parents.
• FOCUS BACK ON THE CAMPER.  Guide the counselor to move the child to thinking about what can be accomplished in the next summer.  "You'll be a Pathfinder next year ... I bet you're looking forward to that canoe trip!" Or "You'll get your third year pin next year, right?"
• PRACTICE.  Give leadership and staff the opportunity to role play a number of times to let everyone become comfortable with the question and their responses.

Retention can be increased with this one simple focus.  Give it a try!

Want some other last-minute retention techniques?

Give Joanna a call at  310-451-1876  or email campconsulting@verizon.net