Timeshare's new Bait and Switch
The timeshare market isn't what it used to be. The lure of cheap tickets from small stands littered throughout the city has led Wyndham to experiment with a new strategy .
Unlike the traditional time-share booths with full color glossy show ads and posters for Branson shows, the Blue Tango walls are lined with a mix of golf-wear and urban hipster apparel.
A sale rack outside the store lures "looky-lous" for an employee to invite Branson tourists to the sales racks in the back of the store. His fashionable dress and soft invitations don't reveal his purpose in the store.
The customers wonder deeper into the store while a young employee guides them though the assortment of brands such as Ralph Lauren and Liz Claiborne. The timeshare pitchman observes the tourists behavior as they look at the clothing.
Their reaction to an $80 shirt is part of the qualifying process.
Branson's top attraction is the plethora of musical talent and themed shows which provide good bartering fodder for Off Property Contacts (OPC's) to begin negotiation.
In Blue Tango, the close is different.
As the customer pulls out cash to purchase new clothing - the OPC offers a discount or free clothing for a 1.5 hour tour of a Wyndham resort.
Clothing is the frame - timeshare sells - the game.