October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 1

October

Renewing Associate Members

Adventure Designs

America 4 You

Corriente Saddle Company

Deneen Pottery

Gilchrist & Soames

Ranch Jewelry

Salon Sheets

Spear-O-Wigwam

ThinkReservations

Travel Adventures Marketing

Contents

90th Anniversary

Convention 2

Board Meeting 4

Fall Survey 4

Marketing 5

Must Reads 6

Educational Trust 7

Alliance Partnership 8

Dude Ranch Life 9

Employment Ads 10

Convention

Registration 11

Ranch Ramblings Ranch Ramblings Ranch Ramblings

90 Years of Dude Ranching Greetings to you all! I hope that your summer season was a good one, full of

guests and great memories. As the ritualistic fall shut down has begun across the

northern ranching industry the first signs of winter are upon us. We had fresh

snow – quite a bit higher than the ranch – but it has begun. With the coming of

winter also brings the Dude Ranchers’ Association Annual Convention!!!!!

For those of you who are new to the Association, (we look forward to welcoming

you), and for those who do not avidly read the DRA newsletter which comes out

monthly, we are going to be celebrating quite a milestone; 90 years….tip your

hats back and smile! This is quite an accomplishment for any group, let alone a

hospitality trade organization. Why should you attend this Convention? I

rephrase with another question – Why Wouldn’t You? For years, 90, to be

exact, your Board and Directors have worked very hard to create a viable, credi-

ble, recognized, authentic, cooperative and progressive Association. The camara-

derie and sharing of wisdom, mistakes and years of life knowledge are there at

every convention.

How many other Associations can say that they willingly share their secrets to

success? A few examples come to mind of how willing we really are to help each

other. Have you ever asked an award winning Chef for his recipe- they share

some of it, but a few key secret ingredients may be left out – proprietary knowl-

edge. Same as any major candy company you see on the food network shows.

They always have to hold back a “secret ingredient.” The difference I see at each

convention is the open and willingness to share the “secret ingredient.” And those

ingredients may be mistakes they made in the past and are willing to share them

so the next ranch doesn’t go through the same. And those secrets may be the next

best website or social media outlet that can make or break your season. We all

only have one chance to make the season the best we can, the small little “secrets”

may be the make or break for you.

Colleen, Leah and Rita Cote have worked very hard to create a great 90th Con-

vention. There will be a 50’s 60’s Sock Hop – prizes for best dressed. Employee

development workshop – this will be my personal favorite - Horse Safety & Adap-

tive First Aid, Dancing at the Historic Irma Hotel, a new event – Old Timers Q &

A, Fodder Update, Round Tables, Buffalo Bill Center of the West Museum and of

course the DRA Auction. So these are just a few of the highlights. Please show

your support for your Association and register to attend the Convention Celebrat-

ing 90 Years of the Original Western Vacation!!! Regards, Doug Hare, President

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 2

90th Anniversary Convention

By Rita Cote, Convention Chairman

Tanque Verde Guest Ranch, District IV

Hi Everyone!!!

Just spent three days in Cody, helping Colleen and Leah with the planning of the 90th Anni-

versary Convention coming up in January!

Stayed at the Holiday Inn and was pleasantly surprised by the upgrades in their rooms. My

bathroom and room was very lovely...nicely appointed and done well. Granite counters in the bathroom with a

walk in shower… no tub. Looked great. The room and bathroom were very clean! Nice large desk area and

large flat screen TV.

By the way, had the best Spanish Omelet I have had in long time!!!

So, please come and join in celebrating the 90th Anniversary of The Dude Ranchers' Association at our conven-

tion on January 20-23, 2016 in Cody.

Great speakers, great venues and a chance to learn from one another! See you in January!

Convention Welcome

Front Walk of the Holiday Inn Newly Remodeled Room

Register for your Thursday night dinner at Buffalo Bill’s Historical Irma Hotel & the

President’s Banquet Saturday night at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West Museum!

Keep a look out for that poodle skirt and bowling shoes!

Dinner on Wednesday night will be the special Sock Hop Dance!

And you want to win one of the prizes for the best dressed… Just sayin’

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 3

Don’t forget about the

Clock Tower Inn in

Billings!

Members receive a

discount.

90th Anniversary Convention 90th Anniversary Convention

Convention Sponsorships Thank you, Thank you, Thank you

Thank you everyone who is sponsoring an item or an event for the 90th Anniversary!

Cactus & Companies, CBIZ Sattler Insurance, Austin Cotton,

Deneen Pottery, Stein Buss Wolf Wilson, & First National Bank of Cody

Additional Sponsorships Available

Name Tags, Vendor Guide, Coffee Breaks, Convention Program, & Speakers

Our special 90th commissioned gift to the ranchers has been sponsored by

CBIZ Sattler Insurance, an extra thank you for your sponsorship!

Sign up for the convention today to secure yours!

DRA Auction

Remember this is the first year that all the proceeds from the Auction will go to supplement the DRA Marketing

program, so of course the better the auction the more money we will have to spend on marketing for you. You are

welcome to ship your items directly to the office in advance this year! Let’s make this the best auction ever!!!!!

Last year the auction raised over $23,000 so let’s shoot for $28,000.

I think that saying “GO BIG OR GO HOME” works here don’t you?

Horse Safety Certifications

In September we mailed out certification reminders to the currently expired ranches

and the ranches who will expire in 2016. If you received this notification please sign

up for this year’s convention! We are offering two classes with our top-notch

instructors at the convention.

With this class your ranch will be certified for the next 3 years with the

best course offered nationally!

Additional classes and wrangler certifications will be offered in the spring. More

information to follow soon.

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 4

Adventure Designs ~ Agape Naturals

America 4 You ~ Austin Cotton

Cactus Companies ~ CBIZ Sattler Insurance

Coolworks.com ~ Deneen Pottery

Dude Ranch Partnership ~ Escalante Rugs

Gilchrist and Soames ~ Insurance Associates

K Bar J Leather

Leavitt Recreation & Hospitality Insurance

Lodge-ical ~ Philadelphia Insurance

Ranch Jewelry ~ Ranchbookings.com

Salon Sheets ~ Save the Cowboy

ThinkReservations

Travel Adventures Marketing

Waiver Sign

90th Anniversary Convention

Vendors

Are you going to the NFR or Cowboy Are you going to the NFR or Cowboy Are you going to the NFR or Cowboy

Christmas in Vegas?? Check out this deal!!Christmas in Vegas?? Check out this deal!!Christmas in Vegas?? Check out this deal!!

October 13 - 14, 2015 The DRA fall Board Meeting will be October 13th

and 14th . Your district rep will be contacting you with

some questions so please take a minute and respond to

them.

Your responses are so important and help the board

and the committees make sure we are discussing the

things that concern you, our members. As always you

can contact me with any suggestions or concerns.

Thanks, Colleen

Register Today!!

Deadline is November 1st to register for your

accommodations at the Holiday Inn!!

Call 307.587.5555

Register for your Thursday night dinner and

the Saturday President’s Banquet with the

DRA office. All other meals are going to be at

the Holiday Inn.

Board Meeting

Fall Survey

Free Co-op! To show our appreciation for the time taken to com-

plete the questionnaire, all participating ranches will

be entered into a drawing for a free Co-op Marketing

Opportunity! The Drawing will be held at the conven-

tion.

The deadline is Monday! Fill it out today! PLEASE!

Keep an eye out for the Horse Safety Survey coming

next week!

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 5

Marketing

Marketing Opportunities

Co-op Ads

P’Zazz ~ Chicago based, full

page

American Journal ~ German

Based Magazine, full page

Geo Targeted E-mail Blast ~

goes to one million opt in

travel enthusiast.

Cowgirl Magazine

As you can see some pretty heavy hitters for last month!

Examiner.com ~ Averill's Flathead Lake Lodge Creating More Than Just A

Ranch Experience. Also included a link to the DRA. Examiner.com receives

15M unique visitors per month!

RedbookMag.com ~ 25 Best Ever Family Adventures for Summer

USATravel.About.com ~ 5 Family Vacation Ideas for Summer

FoxNews.com ~ Most Luxurious Dude Ranches

Editorial

13,700 Likes

1,000 Avg. Total Reach Per Day

Social Media Analytics

Sessions

Page Views

Average Time

Pages / Session

WWW.DUDERANCH.ORG

1,917 Avg. Daily Impressions

1,457 Avg. Daily Viewers

469 Followers

40 Likes on Top Post

BLOG For A Holiday Wrapped in Western Hospitality, Make

Your Dude Ranch Reservation Today!

Bring Your Own Horse to these Dramatic Dude Ranch

Spaces

Relax in the Spa at these Dude Ranch Locations

7 Things You May Not Know About Dude Ranches

Sessions: 2,834 ~ Average Time 4:07

August

30,942

103,505

4:02

3.35

“Living the Country Life” 15 minute Radio interview on a National Radio Program called “Living the Country Life.” It is the largest network

in the nation, and airs twice daily on over 300 stations in 39 states from coast – to – coast. Talked about Dude

Ranch Vacations.

Wrangler & Sears Sweepstakes The DRA teamed up with Wrangler and Sears for a sweepstakes. The winner won a

trip for 4 to a dude ranch of their choice. Sears pays for the entire trip. YEA! There

were over 89,000 entries. The winners chose Triple R Ranch in South Dakota.

Co-op Ads

September

26,916

92,858

4:12

3.45

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 6

Must Reads

A collection of our favorite articles for the month

Is Blogging Really A Way For Women To Earn A Living?

Larissa Faw, Forbes.com

In between folding laundry and cleaning up after her children, a mom receives $5,000 to blog about an iPhone ap-

plication for seven days. Another woman earns twice as much as her husband’s $35,000 annual salary by hosting

several one-hour “Twitter parties” each week. Yet another female blogger has received, over the past year, all-

expense paid vacations to Hawaii, Aruba, and Florida, as well as four new cameras, a camcorder, computer, and so

many DVDs, food and cleaning products that she lost count.

Are these female bloggers the minority or the status quo? It’s nearly impossible to know.

There are 18.9 million women who write blogs, according to the Pew Research Center, and while these women chat

openly about their lives online, discussions regarding how much merchandise or money they generate from these

blogs remain noticeably unaddressed. Bloggers must legally tell their readers that they received a free toaster in

exchange for a product review, per FTC government regulations, but they don’t have to disclose how much they

charge for the banner ad, or how many views they need in order to attract that banner advertiser. As a result,

women bloggers zealously guard this information from readers and other bloggers. … Continue Reading here.

Think First, Share Second: How to Optimize Facebook Posts

Rachel Brougham, Brandpoint.com

There’s the girl you graduated high school with who loves to talk about her new baby, so she posts something

about him on Facebook nearly every time he takes a breath. Your uncle posts links to about 10 conspiracy stories a

day: articles that come from unreliable sources. And while your

favorite restaurant has its own Facebook page, posts on the page

are few and far between — sometimes weeks can go by without

updates.

So how do you make sure your business’s Facebook posts are

getting the attention they deserve? Here are five tips to make

sure you don’t become one of the stereotypical Facebook posting

and sharing offenders. ...Continue Reading here.

Design Psychology: How To Combine

Neuroscience and Design To Engage

Your Audience

Andrew Tate, Canva.com

If you look back at the websites of some of the biggest companies

over the last decade you’ll be amazed at how they have changed.

In the early days of the web, people crammed as much informa-

tion as possible on to the screen. Now, websites are highly re-

searched, thoroughly-planned pieces of design, engineered to

grab your attention at just the right point, at just the right time.

More and more companies are turning to advanced neuroscien-

tific and psychological research to turn what used to be an art

into a science. ...Continue reading here.

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 7

Educational Trust Vacation Raffle

Return Your Stubs With many of you closing up shop for the sea-

son we want to remind you about the Dude

Ranch Raffle Tickets. If you have sold all the

tickets you plan to sell, please send in your

ticket stubs and money. If you are planning

on selling them via e-mail or social media

that is great!!

Call for More! If you need more tickets just let us know and

we are happy to send them to you. Now that

all the proceeds from the convention auction

go to the DRA, the Educational Trust really

appreciates your efforts in raising money for

the scholarship program!!!!!!

Scholarship Recipient Joshua Ziolkowski

Reminder

The application is

available at

duderanchhistory.com

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 8

Alliance Partnership

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 9

What dude ranchers do for fun!

Dude Ranch Life

The Trues

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 10

Employment Ads

Annie Amelia Woody, Aaron Lange

920.421.4516

Positions Desired: Server, Bartender, Housekeeping

We are an efficient working team consisting of a 23 year old male and a 20 year

old female. We can supply excellent references. We were raised in the Midwest and

have the superb work ethic Midwesterners are known for. Highly experienced

server, bartender and housekeeper. We are the team you need! We also have craft

wine and beer knowledge. We are talented at social media and can help your busi-

ness gain popularity and media through these skills as well as our photography.

Contact us!

Availability: October 2015 - Until

www.duderanch.org/employment.php

is a great resource for employee recruitment

Please call us if you have trouble uploading your available jobs!

Erica Reynolds

817.709.7639 ~ eareynolds@mc.edu

Position Desired: Wrangler

Experience

Riding and competing in the Hunter/Jumpers for over 10 years

Competed in the 2015 National Championships in equitation over fences

for the International Horse Show Association

Experience working with and training green horses

Experience giving riding lessons to adolescents

Two years of barrel racing experience

Basic Western riding knowledge

Availability: End of May 2016 - Until

Rachel Turner

+44 7920140688 rachelmturner92@gmail.com

Position Desired: Wrangler

Experience: I am a vet student from the UK so I have a lot of experience with all

animals. Most of this summer was spent on a dairy farm where I assisted in milk-

ing, moving cattle, vaccinating, disbudding calves as well as assisting with some

calvings and vet clinics. I have also helped on my families small suckler herd when

they were moving cattle, vaccinating etc.

I also worked at a riding school for about a month where I assisted in preparing

horses for their lessons, cleaning out the stables and leading young riders around

the school. I have ridden horses since I was about 5 years old (English style).

Availability: July- September 2016

Danielle Meintzer

970.631.6169 ~ daniellemeintzer@gmail.com

Position Desired: Housekeeping, Wait Staff

I am an outgoing, friendly, goal oriented individual. I love to learn and am always

up for a challenge. I have strong love for Colorado and the outdoors. I have always

been a lover of animals and I think that this would be a great opportunity and a

great experience for me. Ideally like to apply for a housekeeping, waitress, or ranch

hand position. However, I am willing to consider other options.

Availability: Immediately

October 2015 Ranch Ramblings 11