Truckee’s October 2011 Historical Haunted Tour raised more than $9,000: $4,640 was donated to the Truckee Donner Historical Society and $4,640 to Trails & Vistas. This was possible based on record ticket sales and proceeds from a prize packed raffle that took place at Moody’s Bistro, the tour’s host sponsor.

Photo by Scott Thompson

The Historical Haunted Tour is an entertaining fundraising event that celebrates town history with a fun and spooky twist. During the walking tour, residents and visitors are guided to interesting sites where they hear engaging tales performed by talented singers and performers. The tour, scripted by the event beneficiaries (Trails and Vistas and the Truckee Donner Historical Society) skillfully weaves together previously untold stories from the past with dramatic and funny twists.

“The Historical Haunted Walking Tour has been successful in bringing
together two organizations with completely different missions and
molding their goals and philosophies into a wonderfully entertaining
program that brings Truckee’s sensational historical headlines
together with arts and culture to create an event that has people
coming back year-after-year,” explains Chelsea Walterscheid, President
of the Truckee Donner Historical Society. She adds, “The money raised
helps with our on-going preservation efforts.”

Trails and Vistas founder Nancy Tieken Lopez echoes Walterscheid’s
sentiment, “The tour offers a creative peek into Truckee’s rich
historical past. Proceeds support our mission to create the region’s
only art-hike, an exquisite experience that takes places in nature
every September.”

The Historical Haunted Tour began as a three-year experiment by
Sunshine Tahoe to build support for the two nonprofit organizations as
well as provide an economic boost to historic Truckee. In 2009, 70
tickets were available. The tour sold out three weeks in advance. One
hundred and forty tickets were offered the next year, and once again
the tour sold out weeks in advance. In 2011, all hands were on deck,
every resource was stretched to the max, and more than 290 tickets
were sold and there was a 60 person waitlist. More than $6,000 in
donated raffle items from The Richardson House, River Street Inn, Squeeze
In, KidZone Museum, The Pour House, Mark McLaughlin – The Storm King,
Scraps Truckee, Dorinda’s Cafe and Johnstone Studios significantly
contributed to the 2011 fundraising effort and provided exposure for
local businesses.

Stefanie Olivieri, owner of Cabona’s, the oldest retail store in
historic downtown Truckee, said, “It was a great experience personally
and a good opportunity for our business. Lots of people came in after
the tour and told us how much they enjoyed learning the history of our
business.” Olivieri confirmed that the event brought shoppers to her
business. Additional sites included Tourist Club, International Order
of Odd Fellows and Masonic Hall, Train Depot and Art Obsessions at
Truckee Mercantile.

Over 60 community volunteers make the tour possible. “Even our most
gracious thanks would not be enough to show them our appreciation to
help promote the dying art of oral history to help promote historic
preservation, local arts, dance and land stewardship,” explained
Walterscheid.

Event organizer Christina Stoever-Young of Sunshine Tahoe attributes
much of the tour’s success to the collaborating nonprofit
organizations and incredible talent and dedication offered by all of
the volunteers including performers and tour leaders. “We captivate a
crowd and tell them stories in a way they can hardly forget,” she
says.

Photo by Scott Thompson

Attendee Mary Taitano, a Reno resident, shares, “I’ve never thought of
Truckee as a historical exclamation point. However, the tour was
enlightening, engaging and entertaining. Who knew Truckee had as
sordid a past as the rest of us!? This quaint little town harbors
stories and family histories that would widen even the most unenthused
eyes.”

Volunteers, donors and attendees are encouraged to save the dates for
the next tour: Thursday, October 18 and Friday, 19, 2012. Tickets will
go on sale in August.

“The more you explain it, the more I don’t understand it.” – Mark Twain

Staying on point and communicating key messages can become quite challenging in today’s world of information overload. When contemplating your strategy please remember humor, it can offer a new angle to a tired message. The following is a quick overview of a recent challenge faced by The Richardson House.

The Challenge:

The Richardson House was a B&B prior to becoming a luxury vacation rental. The Truckee / Tahoe community-at-large has continued to assume the house is operating as a B&B, despite dozens of efforts to reintroduce the home as a vacation rental through multiple mediums from print and radio to special events and public speaking engagements – to name a few.

The Risk:

To send a humorous and “out of the box” media release to our favorite local editors without causing offense to current and prospective guests.

The Result:

A fun and informative, well-received local history piece from the president of the Truckee Donner Historical Society.

Business Briefs
Submit yours to editor@moonshineink.com.

Editor’s Note: Despite being a vacation rental for over five years, the Richardson House has found it hard to get the word out that it is not a bed and breakfast. So the vacation rental’s staff put together this friendly, and hilarious, reminder that drives home the message by hitting us right in the funny bone.

You Know You Are a Truckee Local If…

1.  Snow in June is an inconvenience but not a surprise.

2.  You know the Richardson House is now a six-bedroom luxury VACATION HOME.

3.  You know the large, white cross next to Truckee Elementary is a historic landmark, not a religious symbol holding up “the finger” at the separation of church and state.

4.  You know the Richardson House does not serve breakfast because it is NOT a B&B, unless you slip Chelsea a crisp Benjamin, then she’ll serve up whatever you like.

5.  You know where Hooligan Rock is and what its original purpose was; you don’t just blindly drive by it on your way to fight the crowds at Safeway.

6.  You know the Richardson House is available to rent (yes — the entire house, folks), and is perfect for family/friend gatherings, small weddings, and corporate retreats.

7.  You know that the little cemetery on the road to the current cemetery is a Catholic cemetery. It was developed the same year as the one on the top of the hill, making it neither “older” nor “newer” than the other and shouldn’t be referred to as the “Old Cemetery.”

8.  You know the Richardson House kicks back discounts for locals and their friends, contact chelsea@therichardsonhouse.com.

9.  You know that the abandoned, postwar rooms on the corner of Jibboom and Bridge streets were built as a highway hotel and were never “cat houses,” no matter what your Uncle Jimmy told you.

10.  You know the Richardson House has not been a B&B for over FIVE years; no, really, it is NOT a B&B!! Info: therichardsonhouse.com.

Moonshine Inc.

A perfect place for happy hour - The Richardson House

• Position the 2010 Historical Haunted Waking Tour as one of the season’s most talked about events by providing a unique and engaging experience.
• Create public awareness and promote preservation of Truckee’s historical gems.
• Produce a 2^nd annual sell-out event.  (We hosted over 190 individuals.)
• Capture additional funding opportunities by hosting a raffle the evening(s) of the event. (We raised $1,300!)
• Continue to create a solid foundation for long-term growth through this unique and thoughtful partnership.

Our media efforts surpassed our expectations that generated exposure for the tour within a variety of high-exposure outlets including:

Print – Sierra Sun, Oct. 29 / The Weekly, Oct. 27 – Nov. 3 Issue / Reno Gazette Journal, Oct. 17 / Sacramento Bee, Oct. 17 / Los Angeles Times, Oct. 3 / The Squeeze In Newsletter Oct. / The Union, Sept. 30 / Sierra Sun, Sept. 20 / Moonshine Ink, Sept. 15 / Moonshine Ink Rocking Stone Calendar

Web – Examiner.com / TahoeTopia.com / Haunted-Places.net / MSN.com / Upi.com / Zvents.com / Allvoices.com / Truckeeguide.com / Topix.com / Sunshinetahoe.com / SierraNevadaGeoTourism.com / Trailsandvistas.org / TheRichardsonHouse.com / Truckeehistory.org / websites and online calendars affiliated with publications listed in “print” section

In addition, we were able to obtain a great deal of research on our attendees by interviewing 85% – yes, 85%!  Over 160 individuals filled out the form; in large part due to the incredibly generous $10 gift certificate provided by the Squeeze In for all research participants.  Here’s what we learned:

• 70% of our attendees were Truckee or Tahoe residents, 30% were visiting from as far as Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Florida to closer locals such as the Bay Area and greater Los Angeles region.  (Not bad for shoulder season.)
• Of the out-of-town visitors, almost 70% said they’d be interested in a Tour Package (room, meals and other special inclusions), to boot 40% of our locals said they’d be interested in the same.
• 8% of our attendees were between the ages of 21-30, 24% between 31-40, 21% from 41-50, 18% between 51-60 and 27% 61+, a fairly even distribution across the board.
• Almost 90% indicated they would return next year, with notes from those stating otherwise mainly due to travel / date conflicts.

We received a variety of incredible comments from our attendees; I wanted to share a few:

“Enjoyed every stop and entertainer!  A great event, please keep it up – you’re pulling a lot of our town’s history together.” – John, Local

“Truckee Regulators were tall drinks of water; seemed very authentic.” – Jennifer, Oklahoma

“Costumes were fantastic!” – Lisa, Local

“Very engaging…” – Anna, Local

“Thank you for sharing local history and a chance to get together with fun and charismatic people.” – Jennifer, Reno

“The tour gets better each year.  We can’t wait until next year!” – Cathee, Local

“Great fun – girls night out!” – Pam, San Louis Obispo

“Keep up the wonderful work.” – Jill, Auburn

To my fellow marketers, are you remembering to obtain this type of information?  If so, are you sharing what you’ve learned with those involved?  Before moving on to the next task at hand, revisit your goals and communicate their status – people want to share in your success.  In addition, this type of recap will serve as a launch for your next project and further help refine your marketing efforts.

We hosted a “HHWT Thank You” reception last week in an effort to show our incredible volunteers just how much we appreciate them.  Instead of serving as a hostess, I quickly turned into a student.  I was blown away their individual experiences during the tour as well as the many additional talents each and every volunteer would like to bring to the table for the 2011 event.  The docents, guides, Truckee Regulators spent countless hours researching Truckee history as well as attending formal rehearsals and in several cases, hand sewing their costumes.  Our host sites enduring our rehearsals and opened their doors to almost 200 tour attendees over the course of two days.  The locations included our host sponsor Moody’s Bistro & Lounge and site hosts The Truckee Hotel, The River Street Inn, Truckee Book and Bean, Squeeze In, The Richardson House and The Old Jail Museum.  The Pour House also deserves a shout-out, the cat calls from their “women of the night” were a great addition to what used to be Truckee’s Red Light District.

Our greatest efforts were realized by Chelsea Walterscheid, Nancy Lopez, Cesar Lopez and Billie Cornell – a dynamic, talented and driven team.

Always a good idea to keep an eye on Truckee's infamous Regulators.

Our contract:

Dear Richardson House Guest,

Please enjoy all the beautiful gifts nature has to offer. Our neighborhood hosts beautiful birds, chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits, raccoons, deer, coyotes, and one of our favorite creatures – “Ben,” the black bear.

Ben, like all of our area bears, established our neighborhood as his stomping ground many years ago.  As Ben is quite shy, he likes to roam around at night, when all is quiet and calm.  He is, however, a sly one and can sense as much as a stick of gum in your car.  In an effort to look after our valued guests – and our neighborhood bear –we ask that you practice “Bear Aware” rules of conduct while in our home:

• Prior to retiring in the evening, please be sure all outdoor spaces are free of food and garbage (porch, yard, and driveway).  In addition, make sure all windows on the first floor are closed and locked.
• All garbage needs to be placed in the bear box garbage (raccoons also love a late night snack and tend to make quite a mess).   To ensure a proper closure, make sure you hear the latch lock.
• Turn gas BBQ to high for five minutes to burn all food particles after use.
• Maintain a “food free” vehicle when parked anywhere in the Sierra Nevada area.

Since Ben does not rely on The Richardson House (due to your good practices and those before and after you), we have no reason to fear his presence.  To ensure community safety, The Richardson House imposes a $250 fine on any guests not adhering to “Bear Aware” practices.  This fee will be immediately charged on your account if our house manager, caretaker, owner, or neighbors witness such errors.

If you hear Ben sneaking around in the wee hours of the evening, and if you feel, for any reason, uncomfortable or uncertain about his presence, The BEAR League is available to you 24-hours a day: 530-525-7297.  In addition, your house caretaker resides in the carriage house behind you and will be quick to assist with ANY issue or concern you may have.

If you encounter any bear while in our area, do not be afraid or submissive.  Let him know you are there; make eye contact but do not stare; pick-up small children and keep them calm; and most importantly, appreciate the experience and move on with respect and self confidence.

Thank you for being our guest and a great neighbor while enjoying The Richardson House.

Sincerely,

Chelsea Walterscheid
House Manager
chelsea@therichardsonhouse.com

I must admit, he’s right.  LED screens are everywhere, selling products and promoting restaurants.  Even the local museums display dark booths that once held cashiers, only to be replaced by computer kiosks.   The technology is so vast that you need a user’s manual to navigate the toilet (no joke).

Now, according to a recent CNN Japan story, “Ads that Watch You” advertising is on the move – once again.  Imagine stopping to take a look at an advertisement, all the while the advertisement is looking at you.  The following is from a CNN Japan transcript:

“Here is how this works. When you walk up to the ad, a camera captures your image. The computer figures out if you are a man or a woman and your age. Meanwhile, an age and gender-specific ad rolls. This shows that I’m in my 30s and I like seasonal pasta. The computer then determines how interested you are, how long you stay. That data is then recorded for the company. NEC engineer Junko Amagai says the facial recognition technology is accurate to within 10 years of your actual age, and the next-gen system they are testing out is even more age accurate.”  CNN Business 360

It sounds as though we can expect testing to begin in the United States this spring.  As a marketer, I suspect this new technology will continue to reinvent modern media.  As an individual, I can only hope Christian Dior will not ‘guess’ my age to be older.  Hopefully the techie’s behind the beta’s will remember the old saying, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”

By Scott Thompson, Truckee Times

What a weekend!  Trails and Vistas 2009 proved to be yet another enchanted weekend for over 700 individuals.  Our talented, dedicated and eclectic artists put on a seemingly effortless performance in a variety of elements – ensuring a great time for all.  If you weren’t able to join us this year, don’t worry, September 11-12, 2010 is right around the corner.

From a planning perspective, we’re proud to report that we exceeded the majority of our goals.  Those included:

• A sell-out event, third year in a row.
• Enhanced communications to both confirmed attendees and prospective attendees, utilizing social media as an added marketing tool.
• Tactical and responsive planning by our new “working” Board of Directors.
• The addition of an email based research component to ensure successful planning and marketing for 2010.
• A merchandising program for our artists the weekend of the event, to help promote and sell their merchandise / CD’s.
• An increase in practice hikes for trail leaders, to help accentuate attendee experiences.
• Successful private donor development, to help offset decrease in grants.
  

  Photo by Scott Thompson

The Reno Gazette Journal published a great story today, enjoy.