8d • General discussion
The 3 Systems That Took Me From “Putting Out Fires” to Actually Running the Campground
This is mainly for owners and managers who feel like they’re doing 100 things a day but nothing ever really changes.
When I looked at where my time actually went, it was mostly:
- Answering the same questions over and over
- Fixing the same problems in slightly different flavors
- Trying to remember “what we said last time” so I stayed consistent
The turning point was treating the campground less like a series of events and more like a set of systems.
These are the three I’d rebuild first if you took everything else away from me:
1. A “This Is How We Do It Here” Guest Onboarding
Not a novel. Not a 10‑page PDF no one reads.
Just a one‑page, plain‑language message guests get before they arrive that covers:
- How check‑in actually works (time, where to go, what to do if they’re early/late)
- The 3–5 rules that matter most (noise, speed, extra vehicles/guests, pets)
- What they can count on from you (“We’ll be around,” “Call/text this number if XYZ”)
When I started sending this:
- We got fewer “I didn’t know” arguments.
- Late arrivals were less chaotic because they had the process.
- Reviews got better because expectations were set realistically.
If you don’t have this written down, your staff all make it up differently. Guests hear five versions. That’s how “special cases” explode.
2. A Staff Playbook for the Top 10 Situations
Most stress for owners/managers comes from decisions, not the work itself.
My fix was a simple “playbook” for the top 10 things that keep happening, written so any reasonable adult could follow it:
Examples:
- Noise complaint after quiet hours
- Extra people/vehicles at a site
- Someone speeding
- Dog off leash / barking non‑stop
- Site trash left behind
- Late checkout / refusal to leave
- Guest seems intoxicated and causing problems
- Maintenance issue that can’t be fixed same‑day
- Weather event (storm, fire smoke, etc.)
- Medical emergency / 911 call on property
For each one:
1–2 sentences on what to say,
1–2 on what to do,
And when to call you.
Result:
- Staff stopped “waiting for the manager” for everything.
- I stopped getting phone calls about stuff they could clearly handle.
- Enforcement became consistent, which guests feel, even if they can’t name it.
3. A Weekly Owner/Manager “Checkpoint”
This one sounds obvious, but most of us don’t do it consistently:
Once a week (same day, same time), I walk the park as if I’m a new guest and ask:
- What would confuse me?
- What looks neglected?
- What rules are we clearly not enforcing?
- Where are we bleeding time or money?
I make a short list of 3:
- 1 thing to fix this week (small, doable)
- 1 thing to improve this month (system, not band‑aid)
- 1 thing to watch (not yet a fire, but getting warm)
That list gets more of my brain than whatever random fire pops up in the moment.
Over time, this:
- Reduced “surprise” problems (because I’d seen the signs weeks earlier)
- Helped me decide which projects actually matter Vs. busywork
- Made me feel like I was running the campground instead of the campground running me
Questions for Other Owners/Managers Here
If you’re willing to share:
- Do you have a pre‑arrival guest message that sets expectations, or are you reinventing it every time someone books?
- Do your staff have a written playbook for the top problems, or is it all in your head?
- Do you have a regular checkpoint walk where you look at the park like a guest, not like someone who’s just trying to survive the day?
If you’ve implemented anything like this, what changed for you?
And if you haven’t yet, which of the three would make the biggest difference at your campground right now?
Owners and managers have a ton of lived experience here. If you’ve got a system that saved your sanity—or a mistake you wouldn’t repeat—drop it in. The rest of us can probably use it.
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The 3 Systems That Took Me From “Putting Out Fires” to Actually Running the Campground
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