October 24, 2013
[Editor's Note: Burning Pier has paddled over to @TropiBlueHawaii.]
Scott Valor created and developed BurningPier.com. He's a semi-retired lawyer who surfs and travels at least 3-6 months of the year outside California and surfs almost daily in California when he is home.
He originally wrote a book, "
The Surfer's Guide to Mainland Mexico" in 2006 sharing over 20 years of local knowledge about Mexican surf and culture and the response was so positive that he eventually created BurningPier.com to share that knowledge with a wider audience.
Q&A with Scott Valor
What do people really dig about your product/services?:
BurningPier.com offers first-hand knowledge of the surf in certain regions of the world. We also have information about the local culture, help travelers with local contacts, and other travel hints to make their surf travel experience a better one. We only focus on areas where we have traveled, but they are really diverse: the Hawaiian Islands (primarily Kauai and Oahu), the Caribbean (primarily Barbados, with some of the best surf in the Caribbean), Mainland Mexico's pacific side, and the California coast.
Why/How do you use stickers as a marketing or outreach tactic?:
Website traffic volume is the key to getting the word out. Unlike business cards which find their way on a cluttered desk, or pop-up ads on the Internet which are ignored or blocked, a
sticker that finds it way to a
car bumper, a
surfboard, a
guitar case, or wherever someone puts it has lasting power. With the website URL clearly on it, people will take note and actually look it up, especially if the
sticker graphic is bright and appealing.
What advice would you give to a company thinking about using stickers as a marketing tactic to wow their fans. What has worked for you, what hasn’t, etc?:
Keep the graphics simple and bright. Be sure any lettering is large enough to read. My first stickers had too many words and the lettering was too small. My most popular sticker has simple bright colors and just the website URL. It is also the most requested sticker. Also, try to use your own art and designs. That way you have a story to tell and can take more pride in your stickers.
List some ways that fans can support your brand to encourage growth apart from buying your product or service?:
Information and feedback! If your experience is based on information from our website, we want to hear from you. Any changes in the place you visited? Anything special you would like to pass on to fellow surf travelers? Any locals you would recommend connecting with because they were friendly/helpful?
While we do sell some Mexico maps and charts, what we want to pass along is the aloha spirit of the Hawaiian Islands anywhere you travel and surf. Your input will help us do that!
