Newmar’s ‘RV Resorts Guide’ a Trusted Resource for RVers

Newmar Corp. published its first “RV Resorts Guide” in 2017 and highlighted 30 of North America’s finest RV parks and campgrounds. These would be considered the best of the best resorts and especially accommodating for the more discerning owners of Class A motorhomes.

Since then, the Guide has grown to not only include more resorts – there are over 50 listings in the 2023 edition – but it has become a valuable resource used by thousands to plan their RV trips and destinations. In fact, over its lifetime, the digital publication has generated 41 million impressions, downloaded over 140,000 times, and introduced over 123,000 unique people to the Newmar brand.

But the positive marketing is only a side effect of the Guide’s primary motive of being a trusted resource for RVers, officials told RVBusiness. In fact, there are no advertisements in this year’s 32-page Guide and save for being mentioned on the front and back covers, you’d never know it was published by Newmar.

“I wanted this piece to be very clean and very user friendly for the customer. And by ‘clean,’ I did not want it crowded with advertising,” said Shannon Stover, Marketing manager for Newmar. “I just think it would turn it into something else. We want this to be solely for the customers.

Shannon Stover

“As soon as this comes out, we have – and still do to this day – the RV resorts around the country call us left and right wanting to advertise in it,” she said. “I can understand that, but I did not want to do that. I wanted a piece that would be trusted and utilized by our customers and other customers. In the end, by not having it heavily branded, we want to invite other customers to the Newmar family. Hopefully this is just a little bit of the value that Newmar can bring to them by providing this for them.”

As mentioned, there are over 50 resorts included in this year’s edition. Each listing features a photo of the resort along with a snapshot of its location, important details, amenities and other information.

Resorts are selected based on customer recommendations, Stover explained, and then vetted by Stover and her staff as well as Element 3, an Indianapolis-based marketing agency that has partnered with Newmar for 13 years. Element 3 is then charged with developing the digital publication in an attractive, easy-to-use design.

It’s the same formula used since the first edition, Stover noted, and there are no intentions on changing – although Calvin Gunther of Element 3 told RVBusiness that, in answer to consumer requests, they intend on making the Guide available in an app format.

“We were looking for some ideas on how to interact with customers – current customers and other customers outside of the Newmar family – and we wanted something unique,” said Stover of the Guide’s origins. “Now, it’s not unique in the sense that this isn’t done. You have KOA, you have other sites that display RV resorts. But I wanted something that would be utilized by our Newmar family, as well as other brand Class A enthusiasts, and contain only those resorts that were recommended by customers.

“I sent out surveys, asking our customers as well as others, their results after they went to a certain RV resort or campground. What were their thoughts? How was the cleanliness? Was it kid friendly, animal friendly – all those sorts of things. So, we sent out surveys, and these were the top resorts that came back.”

While Stover doesn’t deny the good publicity the Guide brings Newmar, she said the most rewarding aspect is when both the resorts and consumers reach out with positive feedback.

“We’ve gotten lots of compliments, ‘Thank you for your help. It was just as stated on the resorts guide. We wouldn’t have found it if not,’” she said. “And then we also get comments where, ‘Hey, did you know about this one too?’”

Source: https://rvbusiness.com/newmars-rv-resorts-guide-a-trusted-resource-for-rvers/