ALEXANDRIA, VA (March 13, 2008) — Vacation.com® – North America’s leading travel services marketing organization – success in creating innovative and popular membership benefits is being attributed to the member agencies themselves, in particular the 15-member Vacation.com Advisory Board which met at Vacation.com’s Alexandria, VA headquarters last month to review and provide input on the latest programs and technologies being crafted for member agencies. The input from the Advisory Board of agents has resulted in Vacation.com members earning more revenue as well as saving money with more efficient agency operations.
“The Vacation.com Advisory Board has been instrumental in designing and honing the membership benefit program from the inception of the organization,” said Steve Tracas, president and CEO of Vacation.com. “Their ideas and suggestions have allowed us to create a wide variety of programs that maximize member agency profitability,” he added.
Eric Ardolino, A&S Travel Center, Wallingford, CT, a member of the current Vacation.com Advisory Board said: “When travel agents search for a consortium to meet their needs, they look towards organizations that will benefit their business with the ultimate goal of earning more money. Using an Advisory Board of individual agents who work directly in the industry and know exactly what agents need and want enables us to achieve greater results as if this were our own company – which as dues-paying members it is.”
The Vacation.com Advisory Board comes in all sizes and shapes from a diverse geographic area. “The intent is to reflect the needs of our diverse network of agency members,” Tracas said.
“The resulting success that we have had with our Engagement program and other marketing initiatives as well as the anticipated EZGuider platform have been honed by the working agents that enjoy the direct benefit of these programs,” Tracas added.
The recent Vacation.com Advisory Board meeting updated the member agents on several key initiatives including:
EZguider
The EZguider sales platform remains a top priority for Vacation.com in 2008. Released last December to members of the Advisory Board, the platform has been updated with a variety of functions based on their suggestions and comments.
Set to debut to the member agencies over the next few months, the EZguider Implementation team is taking a variety of steps to ensure each agency utilizes the program by providing on-site training, the inclusion of agencies in press releases with recognition and incentives for those agents who actively use the new booking tool.
Marketing Initiatives
Having tremendous success with their Engagement program since its inception, Vacation.com will continue to focus on those programs that bring travel deals, specials, and advice directly to the members’ clients. With nearly half of the membership currently “engaged,” these direct marketing pieces reach over six million households.
Recently, Vacation.com enhanced the personalized edition of Destination: Vacation magazine and introduced a new e-letter, Travel Tips Quarterly that Vacation.com distributes directly to member agency clients. Each product is personalized for the agency and keeps the focus on the member agency as the sole call to action. A new online Engagement ordering system is currently under construction which will allow members to access and order these valuable marketing tools.
Business Development
The “Power of the Partnership” has been instrumental in the success of both member agencies and the Vacation.com organization as a whole. The Vacation.com sales team, comprised of eight Business Development Managers and two Regional Sales Managers, seeks out those preferred suppliers that will offer the greatest overall support and profit opportunities. By offering exclusive incentives and rewards members are encouraged to sell these preferred suppliers and drive the earnings back to the membership.
In 2007, the sales team recruited over 200 new member agencies and crafted an inside sales team to reach an additional 400 accounts. In the year ahead, they will continue to build and grow both the membership and the engagement database as well as work closely with the EZ guider Implementation team to assist with a successful launch.
The Vacation.com Advisory Board Members are as follows: Eric Ardolino, A&S Travel Center, Wallingford, CT; Matt Cervone, Just Cruises, Clinton Township, MI; Gary Davis, Platinum Vacations, Inc., Mission, KS; Sherrie Funk, Just Cruisin’ Plus, Nashville, TN; Ken Gagliano, Travel Planners International, Inc., Maitland, FL; John Krieger, Admiral of the Fleet Cruises & Tour Ctr., Dallas, TX; Dennis Laliberte, Newwest Travel, Edmonton, AB; Michael Merrithew, Merit Travel Group, Toronto, ON; Roger Miller, Minnetonka Travel, Wayzata, MN; Kate Murphy, CTA, Uniglobe Wings Travel, Blue Bell, PA; Toby Nash, Cruise & Travel Masters, Salt Lake City, UT; Matt Olinski, PGL Travel, St. Catharine’s, ON; Michael Sloane, Cruise Connections, Winston Salem, NC; Jeff Sonenstein, Globe Travel Service, Bristol, CT; Kari Thomas, Will Travel, Langhorne, PA.
Vacation.com
Vacation.com is a travel services marketing organization currently serving more than 5,100 travel agency locations across the U.S. and Canada. Vacation.com facilitates "The Power of the Partnership" between a network of quality preferred suppliers and member agencies who earn higher profits from disciplined marketing, training, and booking tools. Focused on leisure travel distribution and - "Powered By Real Travel Agents" - Vacation.com is North America's largest vacation selling network.
Not already a Vacation.com member? Visit JoinVacation.com to learn why Vacation.com is the right choice for your agency.
Vacation.com is a subsidiary of Amadeus IT Group, SA, and maintains its headquarters in Alexandria, VA.
For further information, contact Vacation.com at 1650 King Street, Suite 450, Alexandria, VA 22314; tel: 800-843-0733.
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