Date of Publication

Spring 4-25-2018

Document Type

Undergraduate Project

Professor's Name

Dr. Katherine Burakowski

Abstract

The purpose of this paper was to examine what products ski resorts offered and to what degree they were marketed. The ski resort industry, as a whole, has been strongly affected by climate change (Dyer & Mote, 2006). Snow coverage has significantly decreased, especially in areas such as the Rocky Mountains and Midwest United States (Pickering, 2006). Resorts have been forced to adapt to the changing landscape of the industry by product diversification. Increases in summer activities lessened the risk of winter months failing (Sorensen, 2016). Understanding how resorts have been adapting to these changes is important for the health of the multi-billion dollar industry. Stratified random sampling was used to select 50 ski resort websites to examine what products were offered and to what degree they were marketed. After the sampling, the resorts were categorized in two groups, resorts with a base elevation <3,500 feet and >3,500 feet. Resorts with a base elevation <3,500 feet offered far more products and services than resorts with higher elevations. It was also found that resorts in both categories were similarly efficient with website marketing. Ski resorts with a base elevation >3,500 focused primarily on winter activities due to longer ski seasons than lower based elevations. The findings of this research was important because it has offered insight on how the skiing industry has been marketing their products on an important marketing platform. Product diversification reduces the issue of potential shortened winter months so, it is important that consumers affectively understand what ski resorts offer.

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