Breaking Free from Fear: Smart Decisions for Park Success

Whether it be keeping employees who should have been gone long ago, catering to guests who are sub-standard and wreaking havoc on your park, or spending money that needs to be spent in order to increase revenue, we see fear based decisions not only keeping parks back, but often times running them and their revenue into the ground.

More than any other industry in which I have worked, the outdoor hospitality world runs off emotion. I think most of it comes from something that seems very endearing-the blurring of the lines between business relationships and familial ones.

Because the industry is so tight knit, guests tend to become like family, and many park owners are afraid to make business based decisions in fear of hurt feelings or broken relationships. This seems to be admirable, and it can be, but if it gets in the way of running a solid business or a successful park, park owners could end up struggling and unable to run what should be a profitable business.

The same holds true with employees. At AOS, we have been nothing short of amazed when owners have been reluctant to counsel or release employees who are doing real damage to the park. Sometimes, it is as bad as embezzlement, and yet, fear of damaging a relationship prevents them from wanting to move forward with removing the staff member.

Finally-not spending money that needs to be spent is one of the biggest fear based decisions we see owners make. The old saying, "You have to spend money to make money," is true. Subpar marketing, old and ineffective websites, bad photos, and a lack of attention to rate are just a few of the places where owners struggle to see the value in spending money. When you spend money on good, solid marketing, and pay attention to managing your revenue, the money spent is going to return several times over. In this digital age when everyone can and will shop online, these are funds you cannot ignore when developing a budget.

Cutting corners in today's market is going to cost you. There are too many savvy shoppers out there-and if you are not reaching them and making good decisions with your money, your guests, and your employees, it will come back to bite you.