Dear RV Industry Association Members:
As 2018 comes to a close, it is nothing short of remarkable to see how our industry continues to perform at such an impressive clip. While we may be seeing a bit of softening compared to the past two years of record-breaking shipments, the growth climb we’ve experienced is the envy of many discretionary industries that we complement and compete with every day. Looking ahead, the RV industry has so much to be excited about. One primary area is market development and how we use consumer marketing to expand retail business by attracting new consumers to the RV lifestyle.
Early this year, the Board of Directors of the RV Industry Association, of which I now serve as Chairman, voted to move forward with a completely redesigned national event, RVX. RVX is unlike anything our industry has had before, a national platform where a $50 billion industry can truly shine. At the event we’ll be unveiling the latest and most popular RVs, celebrating innovative new products and components, providing inspiration and vital education to RV dealers, and generating media and consumer interest around the RV lifestyle like never before.
As members and leaders of the RV Industry Association, it is critical that we take advantage of the platform RVX provides – and that together we do everything we can to encourage our dealers and retail partners to attend this event.
RVDA is fully supporting RVX. They will be hosting their Board Meeting at the event and are bringing their best dealer sales and operations education to Salt Lake. This partnership is foundational to uniting the industry behind market expansion and consumer market development.
Go RVing is also all in on RVX. Using the national platform RVX provides, Go RVing has committed to a multimillion-dollar advertising and PR push around the “Kickoff to Camping Season”. Over the years, Go RVing has proven it can move the needle with consumers, and in launching the “Kickoff to Camping Season” during this Spring timeline, you can be sure the media and consumers nationwide will be paying attention to the RV industry like never before.
This is a call to action for all our RV Industry Association members. Floor space is all but sold out, so we recognize and appreciate your support of RVX financially. But in order for RVX to be the success we know it can be, we need our retail partners at the event. It is incumbent upon all of us to encourage our dealers to be there – to see all that is new, to take advantage of the increased media spotlight on the RV lifestyle, and to learn about emerging trends in the consumer space and how to best engage the customer of the future.
To help you promote your participation in RVX to your dealer partners, we recently launched a customer invite platform for all exhibitors. It features customized digital assets, including emails and social media graphics that are extremely easy to use to drive traffic to your booths. This is in addition to a vast multi-channel marketing strategy that’s reaching dealers daily with the reasons they need to attend the event.
This is our chance to focus on the future of the RV industry and arm our dealers with the products, tools and tactics to gain the competitive edge in this market. This is our chance to make RVX the event that propels the industry toward future and lasting success.
As chairman of the RV Industry Association, and a fellow stakeholder in the success of RVX, here is my ask of you:
Draft a personal invite to your dealer partners asking them to register for RVX – and to do so by Jan. 15, 2019.
Use the RVX customer invite tools the RVIA events team has created to promote your booth and products on your social media channels and to your email lists.
Be sure to copy RVX@rvia.org on your outreach, so the RVIA events team can be available to answer any questions or provide concierge service.
Join me in leading the charge to drive dealer attendance at RVX. See you all in Salt Lake City.
Sincerely,
Garry Enyart
