January 2010 Developments - 14

Around the Industry NEWS Global Discovery Vacations, Inc., Launches Members-Only Site Global Connections, Inc. (GCI), has launched its new Global Discovery Vacations (GDV) members-only Web site to serve the needs of more than 150,000 members. The newly enhanced site allows members to make on-line reservations and to escape, explore, and discover all the possibilities and beneﬁts available with their Global Discovery Vacations membership. Created by Global Connections, the GDV club product offers a membership based on Star Credits (similar to timeshare’s pointsbased programs), designed to allow GDV members to select a program to ﬁt their lifestyle and budget. Global Connections provides total fulﬁllment of each member’s request from lodging to airline to cruises and ensures that members’ vacations are a rewarding experience. the water cannon concept, and it projects the rider 23 feet through the air and into a swimming pool. Tom Goetschius Develops Program: “Sales Training for New Economy” travel trends of the top eight percent of U.S. households deﬁned by current income, the results were introduced at the 11th Annual Vacation Ownership Investment Conference in Orlando, Florida, this past September. The Registry Collection Unveils First-Ever Portfolio of Six Resorts in Thailand with the Absolute World Group The Registry Collection® has afﬁliated Absolute Developments into its program, adding six new resorts to its global network of luxury properties. Analysts report that investment in Asian real estate has increased by more than 40 percent this year, with wealthy buyers returning to Asia raising levels of cross-border activity. Buyers are following global trends of looking for increased value in their spend, which indicates the strength of the product. And the Grand Prize Goes to… RCI, a global leader in vacation exchange and one of the Wyndham Worldwide family of companies (NYSE: WYN), announced the grand prize winner of “RCI’s Envision Your Success Sweepstakes!” resort salesperson incentive program during a special event last night in Las Vegas. Of the 13 qualifying ﬁnalists, Melody Stevenson from Shell Vacation Club was randomly selected as the grand prize winner and received a cash prize of $10,000. From April through September, “RCI’s Envision Your Success Sweepstakes!” program rewarded resort sales staff for their efforts and recognized the important contribution they make to the vacation ownership industry. This past year, Tom Goetschius saw a need in the industry: the serious challenges sales professionals are facing, which are forcing them to review and re-examine traditional practices in light of a new economy. His new sales training program, “Sales Training For the New Economy,” re-establishes not only the validity of relationship-selling but also goes beyond—applying the principles of focusing on the customer, involving him/her in the sales process, and inﬂuencing the sale rather than selling through persuasion. SPI Orange Systems Offers Usage Rules Engine Capability Systems Products International (SPI) Orange Systems, the timeshare software leader, announced the development of a “Rules Engine” that enables resort operators to add an unlimited number of exceptions to the way their systems manage owner usage. The Rules Engine can be programmed by a resort’s information technology staff or by SPI, providing resorts with extra ﬂexibility to adapt to changing usage rules. Findings from Interval International’s Owner Study Afﬂuent leisure travelers interested in resort real estate strongly believe in the value of their vacations, as nearly nine in ten report that vacationing is important to their wellbeing and to the health of their personal relationships. They appreciate leisure travel experiences and activities, such as spending time with family and friends, exploring unique and interesting destinations, taking part in new experiences, and setting aside time for rest and relaxation—all components that support their commitment to the concept of vacationing. These are some of the ﬁndings from The Afﬂuent Shared Ownership Buyer: A Market Proﬁle, a study produced exclusively for Interval International, to provide insights about the travel habits and resort real estate preferences of the most afﬂuent U.S. households interested in acquiring some form of resort real estate. Developed from the Ypartnership 2008 Portrait of Afﬂuent TravelersSM, a comprehensive analysis of high-end lifestyles, social values, and ResortCom Elite Announces Private Residence Club in Lake Tahoe ResortCom Elite, a joint-venture with LaTour Signature Group that provides management services for fractional market properties meeting 3.5 to 4 Diamond or Star status, was selected to manage Tonopalo, a l9-unit luxury private residence club in North Lake Tahoe. The club opened in 2003 and quickly sold out with 1/7th chapter fractional ownerships purchased from $350,000 to $850,000. (Some resales are now available.) Set in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Tonopalo is a beautifully appointed property located on a private 270-foot stretch of white sand beach. Each of the three- and fourbedroom, 1,700 to 3,000 square foot homes are fully furnished and accessorized with ﬁreplaces, double master bedrooms, gourmet SCS Cannonball Hits the North American Market SCS Interactive’s newest interactive product, the Cannonball, is now available in the North American market. Through a strategic partnership, SCS Interactive is leveraging its strong sales and marketing capabilities to introduce and sell this Weigand Maelzerpatented product. This unique waterplay feature is a great way to add interest and excitement to a pre-existing pool or include it in a new pool design to ensure a facility has the latest and greatest in waterplay interactivity. The Cannonball is based on Developments January 2010
January 2010 Developments

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2010 Developments
