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Located in the picturesque Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts, Ski Butternut has been a family-owned, family-oriented ski destination for more than 50 years. The resort includes 22 trails for downhill skiing and snowboarding, two terrain parks for riding, and a dedicated area for snow tubing. Although Ski Butternut hosts some non-ski events during summer and fall, its business goes into high gear when snowy weather arrives, bringing skiers and riders from across Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey.
Matt Sawyer, Ski Butternut’s director of marketing, says the primary target market has always been families with young children who are seeking affordable skiing. Everything from the snack-bar menus to the ski-shop merchandise is presented with families in mind. So that parents can have fun in the snow without worry, the resort has a Children’s Center for children who are too young to ski or have no interest. Fifth-graders are invited to ski for free when accompanied by an adult who buys an adult lift ticket. The resort also created two terrain parks for young snowboarders who were clamoring for a more exciting riding experience. Without the terrain parks, Sawyer says, these boarders would have asked their parents to take them to competing mountains in Vermont.
Ski Butternut’s research shows that first-timers are a particularly important segment, because they tend to have a strong allegiance to the resort where they learn to ski. First-timers typically visit the resort seven times before seeking out more challenging mountains. As a result, Ski Butternut has made teaching first-timers to ski or snowboard one of its specialties. For this market, the resort bundles ski or board rentals, lift tickets, and also offers a wide range of individual and group lessons for all ages and abilities at a value price. Because Ski Butternut has trails for different skill levels, beginners can challenge themselves by changing trails within the resort once they feel confident.
Ski Butternut also targets seniors and college students. Knowing that weekends are the busiest period, the resort offers special midweek prices to attract seniors who have free time to ski on weekdays. College students are particularly value-conscious, and they often travel to ski resorts as a group. As a result, Ski Butternut offers weekend and holiday discounts to bring in large numbers of students who would otherwise ski elsewhere. Thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and other social media, students quickly spread the word about special pricing, which enhances Ski Butternut’s ability to reach this key segment. In addition, the resort highlights discount pricing for families when targeting specific segments, such as scout troops, military personnel, emergency services personnel, and members of local ski clubs.
Another segment Ski Butternut has selected for marketing attention is ski racers. The resort features professional coaching, lessons, and programs for ski racers in the age group of 8 to 20. Sawyer notes that these ski racers are extremely dedicated to training, which means they’re on the slopes as often as possible, a positive for the resort’s attendance and revenue. To stay in touch with racers, Ski Butternut has a special website and a dedicated Facebook page.
Sawyer conducts up to 1,200 customer surveys every year to better understand who his customers are and what they need. He also compares the results with skiers who visit mountains of a similar size in other areas. Digging deeper, he analyzes data drawn from the ski shop’s rental business to build a detailed picture of customers’ demographics, abilities, and preferences. Based on this research, he knows that the typical family at Ski Butternut consists of two children under age 18 who ski or ride, and at least one parent who skis.
Because they can obtain so much information from and about their customers, Sawyer and his team are able to make better decisions about the marketing mix for each segment. By better matching the media with the audience, they get a better response from advertising, e-mail messages, and other marketing communications. As one example, they found that 15 percent of the visitors to Ski Butternut’s website were using a smartphone to access the site. Sawyer has now created a special version of the site specifically for mobile use and created a text-message contest to engage skiers who have smartphones.16
Of the four categories of variables, which one seems to be the most central to Ski Butternut’s segmentation strategy, and why?
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MARKETING 2018
- Located in the picturesque Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts, Ski Butternut has been a family-owned, family-oriented ski destination for more than 50 years. The resort includes 22 trails for downhill skiing and snowboarding, two terrain parks for riding, and a dedicated area for snow tubing. Although Ski Butternut hosts some non-ski events during summer and fall, its business goes into high gear when snowy weather arrives, bringing skiers and riders from across Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey. Matt Sawyer, Ski Butternuts director of marketing, says the primary target market has always been families with young children who are seeking affordable skiing. Everything from the snack-bar menus to the ski-shop merchandise is presented with families in mind. So that parents can have fun in the snow without worry, the resort has a Childrens Center for children who are too young to ski or have no interest. Fifth-graders are invited to ski for free when accompanied by an adult who buys an adult lift ticket. The resort also created two terrain parks for young snowboarders who were clamoring for a more exciting riding experience. Without the terrain parks, Sawyer says, these boarders would have asked their parents to take them to competing mountains in Vermont. Ski Butternuts research shows that first-timers are a particularly important segment, because they tend to have a strong allegiance to the resort where they learn to ski. First-timers typically visit the resort seven times before seeking out more challenging mountains. As a result, Ski Butternut has made teaching first-timers to ski or snowboard one of its specialties. For this market, the resort bundles ski or board rentals, lift tickets, and also offers a wide range of individual and group lessons for all ages and abilities at a value price. Because Ski Butternut has trails for different skill levels, beginners can challenge themselves by changing trails within the resort once they feel confident. Ski Butternut also targets seniors and college students. Knowing that weekends are the busiest period, the resort offers special midweek prices to attract seniors who have free time to ski on weekdays. College students are particularly value-conscious, and they often travel to ski resorts as a group. As a result, Ski Butternut offers weekend and holiday discounts to bring in large numbers of students who would otherwise ski elsewhere. Thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and other social media, students quickly spread the word about special pricing, which enhances Ski Butternuts ability to reach this key segment. In addition, the resort highlights discount pricing for families when targeting specific segments, such as scout troops, military personnel, emergency services personnel, and members of local ski clubs. Another segment Ski Butternut has selected for marketing attention is ski racers. The resort features professional coaching, lessons, and programs for ski racers in the age group of 8 to 20. Sawyer notes that these ski racers are extremely dedicated to training, which means theyre on the slopes as often as possible, a positive for the resorts attendance and revenue. To stay in touch with racers, Ski Butternut has a special website and a dedicated Facebook page. Sawyer conducts up to 1,200 customer surveys every year to better understand who his customers are and what they need. He also compares the results with skiers who visit mountains of a similar size in other areas. Digging deeper, he analyzes data drawn from the ski shops rental business to build a detailed picture of customers demographics, abilities, and preferences. Based on this research, he knows that the typical family at Ski Butternut consists of two children under age 18 who ski or ride, and at least one parent who skis. Because they can obtain so much information from and about their customers, Sawyer and his team are able to make better decisions about the marketing mix for each segment. By better matching the media with the audience, they get a better response from advertising, e-mail messages, and other marketing communications. As one example, they found that 15 percent of the visitors to Ski Butternuts website were using a smartphone to access the site. Sawyer has now created a special version of the site specifically for mobile use and created a text-message contest to engage skiers who have smartphones.16 What role do geographic variables play in Ski Butternuts segmentation and targeting?arrow_forwardLocated in the picturesque Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts, Ski Butternut has been a family-owned, family-oriented ski destination for more than 50 years. The resort includes 22 trails for downhill skiing and snowboarding, two terrain parks for riding, and a dedicated area for snow tubing. Although Ski Butternut hosts some non-ski events during summer and fall, its business goes into high gear when snowy weather arrives, bringing skiers and riders from across Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey. Matt Sawyer, Ski Butternuts director of marketing, says the primary target market has always been families with young children who are seeking affordable skiing. Everything from the snack-bar menus to the ski-shop merchandise is presented with families in mind. So that parents can have fun in the snow without worry, the resort has a Childrens Center for children who are too young to ski or have no interest. Fifth-graders are invited to ski for free when accompanied by an adult who buys an adult lift ticket. The resort also created two terrain parks for young snowboarders who were clamoring for a more exciting riding experience. Without the terrain parks, Sawyer says, these boarders would have asked their parents to take them to competing mountains in Vermont. Ski Butternuts research shows that first-timers are a particularly important segment, because they tend to have a strong allegiance to the resort where they learn to ski. First-timers typically visit the resort seven times before seeking out more challenging mountains. As a result, Ski Butternut has made teaching first-timers to ski or snowboard one of its specialties. For this market, the resort bundles ski or board rentals, lift tickets, and also offers a wide range of individual and group lessons for all ages and abilities at a value price. Because Ski Butternut has trails for different skill levels, beginners can challenge themselves by changing trails within the resort once they feel confident. Ski Butternut also targets seniors and college students. Knowing that weekends are the busiest period, the resort offers special midweek prices to attract seniors who have free time to ski on weekdays. College students are particularly value-conscious, and they often travel to ski resorts as a group. As a result, Ski Butternut offers weekend and holiday discounts to bring in large numbers of students who would otherwise ski elsewhere. Thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and other social media, students quickly spread the word about special pricing, which enhances Ski Butternuts ability to reach this key segment. In addition, the resort highlights discount pricing for families when targeting specific segments, such as scout troops, military personnel, emergency services personnel, and members of local ski clubs. Another segment Ski Butternut has selected for marketing attention is ski racers. The resort features professional coaching, lessons, and programs for ski racers in the age group of 8 to 20. Sawyer notes that these ski racers are extremely dedicated to training, which means theyre on the slopes as often as possible, a positive for the resorts attendance and revenue. To stay in touch with racers, Ski Butternut has a special website and a dedicated Facebook page. Sawyer conducts up to 1,200 customer surveys every year to better understand who his customers are and what they need. He also compares the results with skiers who visit mountains of a similar size in other areas. Digging deeper, he analyzes data drawn from the ski shops rental business to build a detailed picture of customers demographics, abilities, and preferences. Based on this research, he knows that the typical family at Ski Butternut consists of two children under age 18 who ski or ride, and at least one parent who skis. Because they can obtain so much information from and about their customers, Sawyer and his team are able to make better decisions about the marketing mix for each segment. By better matching the media with the audience, they get a better response from advertising, e-mail messages, and other marketing communications. As one example, they found that 15 percent of the visitors to Ski Butternuts website were using a smartphone to access the site. Sawyer has now created a special version of the site specifically for mobile use and created a text-message contest to engage skiers who have smartphones.16 How is Ski Butternut applying behavioristic variables in its segmentation strategy? Explain your answer.arrow_forwardKlein Chemicals, Inc., produces a special oil-based material that is currently in short supply. Four of Klein's customers have already placed orders that together exceed the combined capacity of Klein's two plants. Klein's management faces the problem of deciding how many units it should supply to each customer. Because the four customers are in different industries, different prices can be charged because of the various industry pricing structures. However, slightly different production costs at the two plants and varying transportation costs between the plants and customers make a "sell to the highest bidder" strategy unacceptable. After considering price, production costs, and transportation costs, Klein established the following profit per unit for each plant-customer alternative. Plant Customer D1 1 D2 2 D3 3 D4 4 Clifton Springs 1 $32 $34 $32 $40 Danville 2 $34 $30 $28 $38 The plant capacities and customer orders are as follows. Plant Capacity…arrow_forward
- Klein Chemicals, Inc’, produces a special oil-based material that is currently in short supply. Four of Klein’s customers have already placed orders that together exceed the combined capacity of Klein’s two plants. Klein’s management faces the problem of deciding how many units it should supply to each customer. Because the four customers are in different industries, different prices can be charged because of the various industry pricing structures. However, slightly different production costs at the two plants and varying transportation costs between the plants and customers make a “sell to the highest bidder” strategy unacceptable. After considering price, production costs, Klein established the following profit per unit for each plant-customer alternative: Customer Plant D1 D2 D3 D4 Clifton Springs $32 $34 $32 $40 Danville $34…arrow_forwardCutey Barber Salon Cutey Barber Salon is a trendy barber salon that is located in a densely populated city called Maple.Demand for the services offered by the salon is fairly high. It offers services such as haircuts, hairstyling, scalp massaging and conditioning treatment, straight razor and wet shave, beard sculpting,facials and hair colouring. In addition to these services provided, the salon sells premium hair productsto customers. The salon has the ability to produce a maximum of 20,000 haircuts and hairstyling peryear. Demand for haircuts and hairstyling over the last five years can be seen in the following table:- Year Demand for haircuts and hairstyling2017 11,5002018 12,2002019 13,4002020 14,0002021 14,500 Although the business does not have a written vision and mission statement, it is clear in the minds ofmanagement what they want to achieve and what they would like to be in the future. Currently, customers can walk in at any time…arrow_forwardNyame Bekyere Wholesale Supply and Distribution Company sells parts, equipment, and supplies for recreational activities like plastic slides, bouncy castles, swings and electronic trains. In addition, NBWSDC has a service department for the repair and service of the recreational items. The owner, Mr. Osei Nyame Bekyere, bought the company five years ago from its original owner. The organization is set up in three divisions: service, retail parts and supplies, and wholesale. The owner and president, has a vice president for each operating division, for example the warehouse has three groups: receiving (checking orders for completeness, returning defective merchandise, stocking the shelves, filling orders), service parts, and order filling for distribution to customers. The warehouse group is responsible for all activities related to parts and supplies receiving, storage, and distribution. The retail sales division includes all functions related to selling of parts and supplies at the…arrow_forward
Practical Management ScienceOperations ManagementISBN:9781337406659Author:WINSTON, Wayne L.Publisher:Cengage,