C.A.R.E. Hosts Spring Conference in Virginia Beach

Harrisonburg, VA –June 2017 C.A.R.E. (Cooperative Association of Resort Exchangers) recently hosted their 64th Conference at the Wyndham Virginia Beach Oceanfront Resort, Virginia Beach, VA from May 6-9.

Attendees enjoyed C.A.R.E.’s oceanfront venue as well as a fully packed agenda with plenty of education, networking, and fun events!  The conference began with C.A.R.E.’s Silent/Live Auction that raised more than $10,000.  These funds will help offset future marketing costs for C.A.R.E. and as a not-for-profit association, C.A.R.E. is appreciative of all the donors and bidders!  

The conference agenda kicked off on Sunday, May 7th with a representative from the Virginia Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau sharing touristic, destination and historical information for all of our travel professionals in attendance.  C.A.R.E. then turned the stage over to Randy Dean, MBA – The E-mail Sanity Expert® who presented a keynote address on “Finding an Extra Hour Every Day: Key Strategies for Time, E-Mail, Clutter and Distraction Management”.  Dean says, “The average adult receives 5,000-10,000 or more “inputs” per day – which isn’t surprising when you consider everything possibly hitting you:  e-mail, voice mail, text messages, documents, e-documents, phone calls, in-person interruptions, faxes, social media feeds, “bling’s” from the apps on your phone and traditional media/24-7-365 news feeds and advertisements.”   Dean called this the “Squirrel Syndrome” – having so many inputs, interruptions, distractions and e-distractions that you feel like you are just chasing squirrels and never getting anything done.  He shared numerous smart strategies with C.A.R.E. attendees that will hopefully help them regain focus and productivity.

Nauticus, a maritime-themed science center and museum located on the downtown waterfront of Norfolk, was the venue for C.A.R.E.’s Evening of Recognition.  Conference sponsors were recognized as well as several participants in C.A.R.E.’s accreditation programs.  C.A.R.E. also presented three prestigious awards to Joe Nahman (RMC Management) Pinnacle Award, Paul Williams (MB Resort Vacations, LLC) Richard Gallardo Award and Douglas Murray (Resort Management Services) Rookie of the Year Award.

Monday’s agenda offered attendees industry updates from association partners ARDA (Katelyn Reitz) and AMDETUR (Carlos Trujillo Balmaseda) and further industry insights from industry veteran Sharon Scott, RRP with Resort Trades (a C.A.R.E. Media Sponsor).  Jennifer Horan of Your Travel Services moderated a panel discussion that provided valuable tips and tricks on achieving successful Customer Management and Retention.

Bonnie Kosco, C.A.R.E.’s Administrator, conducted a hands-on training session featuring C.A.R.E.’s newly launched Supplier Search System which is included as a valuable member benefit to those in good standing.  It’s an easy to use platform developed to assist C.A.R.E. members match inventory needs with inventory suppliers!  It’s not for interval-level loading of inventory but a simple concept based on destination areas only.

C.A.R.E. welcomed Jeff Ingram (ARC Resorts) back to the Board of Directors by appointment as a Vice President and Jesus Michael Martinez (JMM Sales & Consulting, LTD) and Brandy West (RSI Vacations) were duly elected as Vice Presidents by the membership.  Special thanks and recognition are extended to Spence Witten (Pied-a-terre) and Jim Kwock (Timeshare Kahuna) who respectfully retired from their board positions.

Registration for C.A.R.E.’s 65th Conference in Anaheim, CA (October 14-17, 2017) will open in July, so save the date now!  C.A.R.E. recently announced its migration to an annual conference platform in 2018 after 32 years of providing semi-annual conferences around the world.  Austin, Texas (April 7-10, 2018) will be the host city of this historical, first ever, annual C.A.R.E. conference, you might want to save that date too!

About C.A.R.E.

Established in 1985, (C.A.R.E.) the Cooperative Association of Resort Exchangers, is one of the industry’s leading associations in ethical standards and value propositions.  Its internationally diverse member base includes Resort Developers, Management and Exchange Companies, HOA’s, Travel Clubs and Wholesalers as well as many respected industry suppliers bringing value-added revenue enhancement opportunities.  Members that possess rentable inventory or seek inventory for fulfillment of rental requests set the foundation of C.A.R.E. with a multitude of scenarios for securing client vacations, increased inventory utilization and heightened yield management.  C.A.R.E. members have the ability to share inventory via week-to-week exchanges, weekly wholesale rentals, guaranteed and free-sale blocks as well as year round and seasonal leases all over the world.

C.A.R.E. members must comply with a strict Code of Standards and Ethics and will undoubtedly gain professional and personal development by attending C.A.R.E. Conferences.  With nominal annual membership fees and some of the industry’s lowest conference registration rates, C.A.R.E. can prove an undeniable value and return.  

Contact:

President Linda Mayhugh / lmayhugh@care-online.org

800-636-5646, extension 700

www.care-online.org