MVC VERY pushy about attending the presentation this year

[dougp26364]

Not since 2000 when we made the mistake of staying at an Orlando Westgate resort have I seen a sales dept be so pushy about attending an owners update. So far I've turned them down no less than three times. Once from home pre-trip and twice from our unit. Fortunately we're not late sleepers because the calls have been around 9:30 AM.

Granted MVC hasn't resorted to threats of additional fees like Westgate did (billed their sales presentation as a unit maintenance update) but, it's the first time with MVC I've realized I now need to disconnect the phone lines in out unit.
Sure I could refuse to answer but I figured they'd just keep calling so, I answered and politely told them thanks but no thanks. Who'd have thought MVC would keep calling? For that matter, who'd have thought MVC would be so desperate as to want to keep throwing good money after bad by continually upping their offer to a couple who have told them previously we'll never buy timeshare at retail prices again!

I will say I always use to get a chuckle when the salesman told us they'd NEVER offer us an update with incentives ever again since we weren't buyers. That's a lot like telling telemarketers you're on the Do-Not-Call list and asking them to remove your name.

What a PIA MVC has become when I'm on vacation. Really, all I want to do is relax.

 

[TUGBrian]

I was pleasantly surprised at my recent stay to not only never even have the presentation mentioned at check in...nor did we receive any phone calls the entire week of our stay related to scheduling an update!

 

[SueDonJ]

Where are you, Doug? We haven't noticed a difference during visits this year from years past. Some sales staff have always been more difficult than others; I hope that's what you're facing now rather than a new directive throughout.

 

[dougp26364]

Where are you, Doug? We haven't noticed a difference during visits this year from years past. Some sales staff have always been more difficult than others; I hope that's what you're facing now rather than a new directive throughout.

Ocean Pointe.

 

[dougp26364]

I was pleasantly surprised at my recent stay to not only never even have the presentation mentioned at check in...nor did we receive any phone calls the entire week of our stay related to scheduling an update!

Some MVC resorts have no sales staff or very few onsite. Mountain Valley Lodge and the MVC resort in Branson would be examples. We've seen aggressive sales staff in the past at Newport Coast and, once,at Barony Beach in HHIA they actually came to our unit and knocked on the door. This is the first time they've called repeatedly and not taken no for an answer.

 

[SueDonJ]

Some MVC resorts have no sales staff or very few onsite. Mountain Valley Lodge and the MVC resort in Branson would be examples. We've seen aggressive sales staff in the past at Newport Coast and, once,at Barony Beach in HHIA they actually came to our unit and knocked on the door. This is the first time they've called repeatedly and not taken no for an answer.

Wow! At Barony we've NEVER come up against anything like that! Usually it's one call at home when I say "no thanks" then if I have to go to the "concierge" desk at check-in for something else I say "no thanks" again. We haven't gotten follow-up calls to the unit or had uninvited reps show up at the door.

I understand why they push for sales presentations so don't mind them asking but honestly, I say "no thanks" all the time without any problems. This includes during our many visits to SurfWatch which has had a large sales office the entire time we've been owners (although it's closing sometime during 2016 when the new one on Hilton Head opens across the street from Grande Ocean.) We haven't ever been "lucky enough" to be accosted by reps who cross a line to where they're genuinely aggravating - if/when that day comes I'll make a point of contacting exec level reps to be compensated for the aggravation.

 

[bazzap]

In Europe where there seems to have been a trend recently for not offering incentives, we decided not to attend further sales presentations unless or until there are any further changes in the system we want to find out more about.
They asked us to sign a form confirming this, so that they would not call us.
I wasn't sure this should be necessary or that I really wanted to do so, but I did and we have not been troubled by any calls or approaches since doing so.

 

[dioxide45]

When you are a career tour taker (like us), you may welcome them chasing you down They may have caught me at a bad time when I said no the first time.

 

[dougp26364]

Wow! At Barony we've NEVER come up against anything like that! Usually it's one call at home when I say "no thanks" then if I have to go to the "concierge" desk at check-in for something else I say "no thanks" again. We haven't gotten follow-up calls to the unit or had uninvited reps show up at the door.

I understand why they push for sales presentations so don't mind them asking but honestly, I say "no thanks" all the time without any problems. This includes during our many visits to SurfWatch which has had a large sales office the entire time we've been owners (although it's closing sometime during 2016 when the new one on Hilton Head opens across the street from Grande Ocean.) We haven't ever been "lucky enough" to be accosted by reps who cross a line to where they're genuinely aggravating - if/when that day comes I'll make a point of contacting exec level reps to be compensated for the aggravation.

The e experience at Barony was in 2008. We happened to have guests staying with us in that trip. They were impressed (sarcasm) when the "concierge" came to our door.

 

[davidvel]

I was pleasantly surprised at my recent stay to not only never even have the presentation mentioned at check in...nor did we receive any phone calls the entire week of our stay related to scheduling an update!

It doesn't count when you're wearing your TUG t-shirt at check-in. :whoopie:

 

[TUGBrian]

Some MVC resorts have no sales staff or very few onsite. Mountain Valley Lodge and the MVC resort in Branson would be examples. We've seen aggressive sales staff in the past at Newport Coast and, once,at Barony Beach in HHIA they actually came to our unit and knocked on the door. This is the first time they've called repeatedly and not taken no for an answer.

frenchmans cove certainly did...as I spoke to a good number of folks I met at the pool who attended them that week!

 

[TUGBrian]

It doesn't count when you're wearing your TUG t-shirt at check-in. :whoopie:

I only wore it at the pool!

 

[Colt Seavers]

Differences I noticed

Our last trip was to Mountainside in Park City and we got the usual phone message from the concierge and were stopped once on the way past the desk. I told them we had attended a presentation two months before (which I only went to because it was local from our home and not during our vacation) but they said that was no problem. There also is a new MVCI sales office in the main Park City Mountain plaza so it does seem they are increasing their sales presence/efforts.

 

[normab]

We are also at Ocean Pointe this week. We decided to do a presentation when we got the call prior to our arrival from the concierge, because the $175 gift card was making the presentation worth its while. And, mind you, we had not been to a presentation in probably three or four years.

So at the start of the presentation we let the salesman know that we were just looking to get a better understanding of the chairmanship level, and he told us that he's a salaried employee so he doesn't need to sell me properties. Despite this disclaimer, however, he did a fairly hard sell trying to make the point for us to buy trust points, basically telling us that there would be a shortage of points nights available for the enrolled owners to actually reserve properties in properties that were mostly trust points.

We were there for almost 2 hours when I finally told him We had another appointment we had to go to. It was pretty hard sell.

One thing is abundantly clear, they want everybody to buy some trust points. The way of convincing you to do so is to let you know that you are exchanging into trust point properties when you are enrolled owner versus people who own trust points, reserve at those properties.

He said that they acquire weeks properties, whether through buybacks or people giving them back or unsold weeks, they become trust points for that property. Eventually as they acquire properties and keep upping the number of points in the trust for those properties, it will slowly get harder and harder for enrolled owners to exchange into the trust points for properties within the DC point system.

Perhaps this is not news to others on this board, but it was to us.

And DH was feeling pressured to buy points, although I am the one who does most of the planning, and feel we are still doing OK using both exchanges in interval, as well as DC points.

 

[dougp26364]

Don't worry. The salesman was telling the same old BS lie told by TS salesmen everywhere. The really sad part is that MVC has begun resorting to the hard sell scare tactic. Calling us at home, then calling our unit twice after we'd said no is NOT a good sign of things to come. I'll just start unplugging the phone when we get there. No one other than the resort would call us on that line anyway.

We bought out first TS in 1998 and bought out first MVC resort in 2001. I've seen the game many times, which is why it's not worth any incentive they offer us to go. We're on vacation to relax, not add knots to our rope because some jerk of a TS salesman wants to scare us into spending thousands more.

FWIW, our ability to reserve and exchange has pretty much remained the same regardless of all the changes made since 1998. None of the doomsday scenarios the salesmen have lied about over the years have been accurate. Some years exchanges are easier than others but there's always been an ebb and flow. I'm still getting good exchanged using weeks and I've had no problems reserving what I want using deeded weeks converted to points. NEVER by on fear perpetuated by a TS salesman. It's ALL lies.

 

[jimf41]

I only wore it at the pool!

Brian,

Curious as to your take on how many tuggers you met at MFC. I've been going there for 8 years now and only about 10% of the owners I've met have ever heard of TUG and not all of them use it. In contrast I'd say about a third of the folks I meet at Ocean Pointe know about TUG.

As far as the presentations go I find Ocean Pointe has always been pushy since Oceana Palms started up. MFC not so much. If you don't want to be bothered I would suggest telling the "concierge" to make an appointment at the end of your stay and the cancel it in the morning of the appointment.

We attend every year at MFC but not until they raise the MRPs they give. Last year we held out for 20k but I'm going to up the threshold a little this year.

 

[dougp26364]

Brian,

Curious as to your take on how many tuggers you met at MFC. I've been going there for 8 years now and only about 10% of the owners I've met have ever heard of TUG and not all of them use it. In contrast I'd say about a third of the folks I meet at Ocean Pointe know about TUG.

As far as the presentations go I find Ocean Pointe has always been pushy since Oceana Palms started up. MFC not so much. If you don't want to be bothered I would suggest telling the "concierge" to make an appointment at the end of your stay and the cancel it in the morning of the appointment.

We attend every year at MFC but not until they raise the MRPs they give. Last year we held out for 20k but I'm going to up the threshold a little this year.

They were offering 22,500 at Ocean Pointe if that halls you leverage at MFC.