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MOTORCOACH OFFER DAILY DEALS Another successful strategy VIP employed to reach new customers, many of whom are seniors, was partnering with DealChicken, a daily deal program, to promote one of its casino runs with a discount on tickets, advertising it on television, email, and through social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Te coupons sold out in two days. VIP ofered 110 of its casino day trip packages as "two for the price of one." Te vouchers had the potential to bring the operator 220 new customers, since each package was good for two people. Since VIP received a list of everyone who bought the vouchers, they also found that they were getting new customers, Penfold says. Penfold also advises operators looking for different ways to market to seniors groups to utilize email marketing and social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, in addition to advertising in local magazines for seniors and senior groups. Te sites are good for following up with customers and staying in contact with them. "It's really benefcial, especially as the economy and markets change," Penfold says. COUPON 1 25 8 7 43 2 1 5 APPLY OLD SCHOOL METHODS Still, while operators need to keep evolving their marketing methods to stay current, Wilson says, they shouldn't cast aside more old-school methods, such as the Yellow Pages, newspaper ads and direct mail for people who aren't on social media. "Tey have not disappeared as much as people might want to think that they have," Wilson says. "Operators are still fnding success with them." "It's interesting that we think everybody's online. Tat is not the case," she adds. "Tere is research to show that baby boomers and [the] senior market spend a lot of time online, but it's certainly not the only form of marketing [to] embrace." Dave Charles, director of sales and marketing at Wallington, N.J.'s Saddle River Tours, agrees. He says that Saddle River still favors direct mail over email for its charter business and group tours, especially for the senior market, since that still proves to be more efective. "It's harder to tear up a piece of paper [and throw it] in the garbage than to just click and delete something," he says. Saving You Fuel and Money. Voith SensoTop Whether your bus is going uphill or downhill, fully loaded or empty: SensoTop delivers optimum driving performance and reduced emissions while providing fuel savings of up to 5 %. Ask Voith how SensoTop's innovative shift management can help you start saving today! For more information: brian.sharp@ voith.com www.usa.voithturbo.com 58 < mETRO mAGAZINE MAY 2013 metro-magazine.com