White Eagle Resort is a 115 year old resort operating on the shores of beautiful Lake Vermilion in Minnesota. I interviewed Co-Owner Steph Lantry, and we talked about how they use an Interact quiz to automate sales for the resort, both in the immediate sense, converting website visitors into customers, and in the longer term sense, by segmenting leads collected through their quiz for increased ongoing sales.
But what stood out the most, is how Steph and White Eagle Resort keep a uniquely genuine connection with their customers, sharing their story, and letting customers become part of the story themselves, by using the interactivity and personalization of the quiz to create an experience that draws people in while remaining true to their roots as a business.
From a practical standpoint, the quiz begins on the White Eagle Resort website, where it remains in the header throughout the entire site. The quiz also pops up if you visit the cabins page. The quiz is titled “Which Cabin Should I Book?” which makes perfect sense, since it is helping you choose the right cabin.
From a logistics perspective, White Eagle Resort hosts their website on Showit and Integrates with Flodesk for email collection and segmentation. Most of their traffic comes from Google Search.
At White Eagle Resort, they offer a huge variety of cabins, from two bedrooms all the way up to a private island, so there are a lot to choose from. They also offer 13 unique cabins and there is a wide variety between them.
When you start taking the quiz, questions filter based on the size of the cabin that you want, and the activities you would like to enjoy while staying at the White Eagle Resort. The quiz uses branching logic to ensure exact accuracy for people based on their preferences.
“I used branching logic, which was super intuitive and user friendly. I’m not super techie, but it didn’t feel intimidating at all—it was actually fun to set up because I could segment my audience into specific cabins and even ask a few extra questions to better understand who was taking the quiz.”
Steph Lantry, Co-Owner at White Eagle Resort
At the end of the quiz, you can put in your email address to see your recommended cabin. This email form integrates with Flodesk so you can automatically add the new subscribers to your email list and segment them based on which cabin they are being recommended. Steph told me that she tags the people who subscribe inside of Flodesk based on which cabin they are recommended, and when that cabin becomes available she is then able to automatically email just the people who were recommended that particular cabin letting them know that there is new availability.
Right after you put in your email address, you are redirected to a page that features the cabin you are recommended, with information about why this is the right cabin for you based on the answers you provided in the quiz. It’s a very nice way to provide a conversational experience, since it’s showing active listening and repeating back to you what you just said in the context of what it is recommending.
You can also book right on the page, so if you love your recommendation and want to lock it in, you have the option to do so.
“When we get a reservation, I can type in their email and see if they took our quiz—and most of the time they are booking the exact cabin they were recommended. It’s pretty fun to see people using the results to guide their choice.”
Steph Lantry, Co-Owner at White Eagle Resort
Right after you take the quiz, you are greeted in your inbox by a warm welcome email from Tom and Steph, the husband and wife team who own White Eagle Resort. It’s a nice connection between the quiz you just took and getting the same level of attentiveness in your inbox.
In the welcome email, Steph introduces the family to people who have taken the quiz, completing the loop on creating a human connection. Most people finding the White Eagle Resort website and taking the quiz are coming from Google, they are clicking on the website to check it out. The unique and very cool story that Tom and Steph have is a real differentiator, and adds to the experience of staying a The White Eagle Resort over any other generic option for a cabin in the area.
“The quiz revealed something that surprised me—so many people were looking for two-bedroom cabins. That insight actually influenced our renovation plans and what we’ll build in the future.”
Steph Lantry, Co-Owner at White Eagle Resort
Thank you to Steph Lantry and to White Eagle Resort for creating such a cool quiz that both automates sales and builds real genuine customer connection at the same time. It’s really a great example of how to scale marketing without losing your humanity, and something to aspire to.
“We’re capturing people we might not have reached before, especially those not ready to call. The quiz feels like a no-pressure next step, and it gives me the chance to show up in their inbox in a warm, genuine way that still feels personal, even though it’s automated.”
Steph Lantry, Co-Owner at White Eagle Resort