What Is An Ambassador?

[ClassB4Me]

At this stage of our journey, having lots more room for personal space, more storage, a separate work area, a "real" dedicated shower and comfortable, permanent beds with a mattress are among the items topping our needs list. After we left Roadtrek, we had an opportunity to partner with several different RV manufacturers but we have admired the LTV models from afar for years and jumped when offered the opportunity to become their brand ambassadors.

No less than three months ago when they took delivery of their latest Roadtrek they gushed over how great it was and all the customizing they were doing to their new home.

I get it, they are not only ambassadors but are selling a product by which they receive compensation. As a professional I feel they should acknowledge their compensation each and every time they do something with their loaned RV otherwise I see it as deceptive advertising.

To each his own... Their style must resonate with a certain demographic however I find their artifice hard to watch. Other popular ambassadors with RVs on the Promaster chassis seem much more authentic and transparent.

I wish LTV the best....

[ponti33602]

Originally Posted by ClassB4Me

At this stage of our journey, having lots more room for personal space, more storage, a separate work area, a "real" dedicated shower and comfortable, permanent beds with a mattress are among the items topping our needs list. After we left Roadtrek, we had an opportunity to partner with several different RV manufacturers but we have admired the LTV models from afar for years and jumped when offered the opportunity to become their brand ambassadors.

No less than three months ago when they took delivery of their latest Roadtrek they gushed over how great it was and all the customizing they were doing to their new home.

I get it, they are not only ambassadors but are selling a product by which they receive compensation. As a professional I feel they should acknowledge their compensation each and every time they do something with their loaned RV otherwise I see it as deceptive advertising.

To each his own... Their style must resonate with a certain demographic however I find their artifice hard to watch. Other popular ambassadors with RVs on the Promaster chassis seem much more authentic and transparent.

I wish LTV the best....

+1 Agree on the ProMaster Ambassadors

[gregmchugh]

There are 20,000 members in his Facebook group so I am not surprised he did have several opportunities for a new brand ambassador gig. I am glad he went with a high quality company where he can honestly say he is driving a great product. If he went with a company where he had to glamorize a poor product I would have been less enthusiastic about his relationship.

[gregmchugh]

In any case, the more Mike videos there are with Dean in the show the better they will be...

[Bud]

Originally Posted by gregmchugh

In any case, the more Mike videos there are with Dean in the show the better they will be...

Not sure Dean will be. Disappointing, LTV's decision.

Hopefully, LTV's ethics, etc. won't half to be questioned going forward.

Bud

[markopolo]

I don't know if the link to Roadtrek's Ambassador program was previously posted: Roadtrek

I qualified as helping cause one sale well over a decade ago and got a check (cheque) and two golf shirts.

The Class B Market share topic - http://www.classbforum.com/forums/f9...ents-2385.html - started in 2013, some time after Roadtrek and Mike's Facebook efforts began. Roadtrek finished at 36.3% market share in 2012. Hymer/Roadtrek finished 2018 with 28.8% share. https://www.rvbusiness.com/blog/ssi-...3-in-2018.html

Does that type of marketing help or hurt .... who knows? Best wishes for LTV.

[wincrasher]

This is all very hilarious.

I don't know who's more fake - Dean, or the Wendlands? Seems like a good fit though.

I'm just glad they have moved on from the Class B game!

Will their fanboys now say Class B van are junk and start buying LTV class C's? We can only hope!

[wincrasher]

Originally Posted by gregmchugh

There are 20,000 members in his Facebook group so I am not surprised he did have several opportunities for a new brand ambassador gig. I am glad he went with a high quality company where he can honestly say he is driving a great product. If he went with a company where he had to glamorize a poor product I would have been less enthusiastic about his relationship.

If that's all it takes to get a free van, what can I get for my 11,000 members?

[gregmchugh]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

If that's all it takes to get a free van, what can I get for my 11,000 members?

I am not sure I can respond to that without breaking the forum rules on civil discourse...

[markopolo]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

If that's all it takes to get a free van, what can I get for my 11,000 members?

That should qualify you for a Port Authority Black Full Length Apron with Pockets - https://shop.leisurevans.com/product...n-with-pockets

Next comes the Cooking with Wincrasher channel on YouTube. The sky is the limit after that!

[bwolfsohn]

Originally Posted by gregmchugh

My impression from the video last night is that the quick ending of the RT contract and having to return the van they just got 2 months ago was definitely not a happy ending. Feels free now to mention in public the shortcomings of the RT vans he had.

I read some of his posts about the new unit.. He didn't directly hit the "shortcomings" of a roadtrek, but he DID extoll the "virtues" of his new units, all of which said virtues are things that RT doesn't have..

I kept thinking as i went down the list: "Why weren't you unhappy with this item 9 months ago ?"

[gregmchugh]

Originally Posted by bwolfsohn

I read some of his posts about the new unit.. He didn't directly hit the "shortcomings" of a roadtrek, but he DID extoll the "virtues" of his new units, all of which said virtues are things that RT doesn't have..

I kept thinking as i went down the list: "Why weren't you unhappy with this item 9 months ago ?"

In the Q&A video last night he mentioned some things about his RT vans that were shortcomings compared to the units he has is seeing in production at other locations. The two that come to mind are the lack of insulation and the issues he has had with the lithium battery systems.

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

If that's all it takes to get a free van, what can I get for my 11,000 members?

I have a 24,000 member Facebook group focusing on one obscure sandwich mostly served in the Midwest and I have only got comped once in a restaurant so I gave a $20 tip.

[wincrasher]

Originally Posted by markopolo

That should qualify you for a Port Authority Black Full Length Apron with Pockets - https://shop.leisurevans.com/product...n-with-pockets

Next comes the Cooking with Wincrasher channel on YouTube. The sky is the limit after that!

SWEET!

Although I like "Vegan Dinner Party" better as a channel name...

[gregmchugh]

I have gotten past any issues I had in the past with Mike Wendland mostly related to the heavy handed moderation of his group. He is running a seemingly successful business built around RV travel and has sponsors who he does PR for in exchange for some major perks. He works lots of hours producing content for the website, podcasts, videos, etc. Most of his product reviews are positive since he mostly reviews stuff that they have found to be useful in the RV. I never expect him to have many negative reviews since he promotes a positive attitude on all his various activities.

Many people like what he does and some can’t stand him but he is pretty clear these days about what he is doing in terms of his close relationship with various companies which wasn’t always clear.

[ponti33602]

I guess I just never thought they "weren't" getting use of a van for free or at least a very reasonable contribution.

Guess many folks mad because it wasn't more transparent but I kind of think it was implied. They wouldn't have done all of that fro free.....I wouldn't. Honestly if they are skilled enough to get these companies to give to them to use over 1000 other folks I say good to them. It might even be a fairly reasonable way to spend an RV Manufacturers advertising $$. Then both parties win.

What I find that is a bit odd/sad are the folks on that site (I was never thrown off) on how they are publicly very/over complimentary to he and Jim. I am not angry at either but I still find that site a bit "off" and sounds like everyone is going to buy a "C".......lol

[gregmchugh]

Originally Posted by ponti33602

I guess I just never thought they "weren't" getting use of a van for free or at least a very reasonable contribution.

Guess many folks mad because it wasn't more transparent but I kind of think it was implied. They wouldn't have done all of that fro free.....I wouldn't. Honestly if they are skilled enough to get these companies to give to them to use over 1000 other folks I say good to them. It might even be a fairly reasonable way to spend an RV Manufacturers advertising $$. Then both parties win.

What I find that is a bit odd/sad are the folks on that site (I was never thrown off) on how they are publicly very/over complimentary to he and Jim. I am not angry at either but I still find that site a bit "off" and sounds like everyone is going to buy a "C".......lol

They mostly saw the good side of Jim Hammill, helping owners and promoting the brand. Once you own something you have a tendency to view everything about it in a positive way, justifies your investment it seems. A lot of owners have a long history of having Roadtrek vans and he supported them with availability of parts for older vans. They did not get much exposure to the other side of Jim which could be pretty confrontational...

[Fuschiagirl]

Personally I think Mike has had a very good run with Roadtrek. He has been supplied with new Roadtreks for several years. The Roadtrek connection has allowed him to build up his site to the extent it is now a selling point for him to get new sponsors. One of his recent posts was virtually an appeal for a new sponsor as he gave the impression they could not afford a new RV as he had parted Company with Roadtrek.

[bobojay]

Problem with Mike and Jennifer to us is they have zero believability about anything they endorse after the Roadtrek fiasco being that they were and still are with other things, paid endorsers.
We felt they misled new to the RV world folks terribly with the RT deal they had. And them saying that wasn't their intention? Well that's awfully naive of them then....
I thought better of Leisure Travel than to tie into something like this.

The FitRV folks were mentioned earlier. They are not paid any $$ by Winnebago. They do get compensated by the equipment manufacturers involved in their "upgrades" to the Travato that have been done along the way along with I'm sure paid travel to all the shows and events they attend

[Fuschiagirl]

I agree completely with the previous poster - they have lost all credibility. They have turned into merchandise sellers on the back of Roadtrek. Mike’s comment about the similarity of his title ‘Roadtreking’ to the name of his principal sponsor’s company being a coincidence is laughable! Pull the other one Mike! Any of their recommendations should be treated with great care and a healthy dose of cynicism!