For all you frequent flyers out there, how many times have you seen the safety video?  Really, on any airline you fly regularly, you could recite it, word for word, couldn’t you?  However, while we all know how important it is, I just wish they weren’t so boring!

Air New Zealand saves the day!  The cure for bored folks who snooze during the ever-important safety videos?  Put naked people in the video, then people will watch.  You bet they will.  Don’t believe me?  Not flying Air New Zealand soon.  No worries, click here and see for yourself.  (No, this isn’t spam.) http://bit.ly/ftGDE

I’m meeting more and more people who are still in travel, but they no longer book travel.  I find stories of people morphing from one profession into another fascinating. 

If you were once a travel agent and are now doing something else related to the travel industry, drop me a line.  I’m compiling some stories to post here.  Send an email to contact “at” tripology.com and tell me all about it (I’ve deleted the @ sign so we don’t get spammed but you know how to send an email.

In your email, feel free to give me a little history, but not War & Peace quantity. More important, tell me what you’re doing now and how being an agent helped you be successful.

Best,

JOHN

I just (literally) got off the red-eye, returning from Vegas where I attended Vacation.com’s annual conference.

There were over 1,100 people there and while I know Vacation.com may not be your consortium, I wanted to point out some things I observed.

LAS VEGAS IN GENERAL

First, a note about Las Vegas in general; unfortunately, Las Vegas still had a very small, if any, taxi line.  This is always my first litmus test as to how things are going in Las Vegas.  Long line = more people = business is good.  Short line = less people = business is off.  What’s the good news here? It seemed better than last month when I was there and considerably better than the month before that. So, as far as trends go, I’ve seen an uptick in travel to Las Vegas and this is great for everyone.  I can’t claim to know what they paid for their rooms, but I can tell you my acceptable accommodations at Caesar’s were relatively inexpensive but not dirt-cheap either.  I didn’t go clubbing but I can tell you the gaming tables were busy from what I could see.  This makes me happy as I like to see people traveling.

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE

Now, about the conference, given the economy, the suppliers were THRILLED to see 1,100 people at the conference.  Since many of us are friends, we don’t mince words about the quality of a conference.  I know I speak for quite a few suppliers when I say “Congratulations VCOM, well done!

TRIPOLOGISTS STOPPED BY TO SAY HI

I want to thank all of the Tripologists that came to see us at our booth to tell us about their successes with Tripology, especially Maryjo from Hudson Travel who came to tell me she closed two out of the five free leads she got when she joined Tripology a couple of months ago! Then she told me her close ratio so far is about 7 out of 40 (17.5%)!  Maryjo went on to tell me about her initial email process and how she gets back to leads within minutes. Bravo Maryjo, keep up the good work!

Catherine DeMichiel, CTA, with John T. Peters of Tripology, shows off her Peek device.

Thanks as well to all the other Tripologists who came by to ask questions, ask for help or simply introduce themselves.  What a wonderful Tripology family that has formed! This family too, has new members; specifically, I want to thank our Travel Industry Supporter Program participants.  These suppliers (more being added weekly) have committed to paying for Tripology leads to assist travel specialists in these difficult times. Thanks to you all.  To see the details of the program, go to www.tripology.com/supplierprogram.  

This trip to Vegas was short; less than 48 hours but it was a great experience for all. 

I know conferences take time and money and I know many are forgoing these days, but just a word of advice… these conferences and trade shows are important.  Attending one should inspire you, educate you and give you wonderful exposure.  If you can’t attend as many as you would like, be sure to at least attend a few.  Getting regular updates on the industry, as well as on products and services is critical for all travel professionals.  If you sit at home or at the office all the time, you’ll miss out on a lot of very valuable information and opportunities.

Happy selling,

John

Every travel professional is wondering how to get more leads lately and this is why they come to Tripology. 
 
However, after you purchase a lead, you can be sure the potential customer is going to check out your website. What does yours look like?  Does it look like a grammar-school student threw it together? More important, it is built correctly? Is it indexed for SEO? Is it working for you?  Is it helping you drive more leads of your own?  For most, this is all sounds rather complicated, but the folks at 2Go Media may have found a way to make it easier for you.
 
They have developed a product specifically for travel professionals, which include a customizable website with a built‐in online marketing program that requires no technical knowledge at all to manage. Once you set it up, you only need 15 minutes or so a day to update your travel deals, which are then automatically broadcast to a variety of online channels though their Pro Marketing Wizard(SM) and Deal Feeder.
 
Some of you are probably saying, “But I already have a website!” You may already have a website, but how much business does that website bring you? (And how much money are you paying to maintain it?) Are you getting calls from people that found you online during a Google search? Or from the travel RSS feed they’ve subscribed to? That’s where 2Go Media comes in. As soon as you enter deals on your website, they put those deals directly on the phone and computer screens of exactly the people who are searching for them. Its targeted marketing at its most precise, and the best part is most of it is completely automatic.
 
2Go Media has its roots in the travel industry ‐ company CEO is Mike Egan, former CEO of Alamo Rent A Car, which makes them uniquely familiar with the specific needs of travel professionals. Their product offers targeted marketing 24/7/365, and at just $499 a year ($399 if you already own a domain) it’s a virtual bargain compared to other forms of advertising. Learn more at www.2GoMedia.travel.

Dear Tripologists,

By now, you’ve probably seen our emails and press release about the new Travel Industry Supporter Program, but I thought I’d reiterate how this new tool can be a significant new source of securing free leads for you.

The concept is simple:

1.       Buy a lead through the typical buying process

2.       Book the travelers using a product offered by a participating Travel Industry Supporter

3.       Get reimbursed by the Travel Industry Supporter for the cost of the lead

Current Tripologists can go to their Dashboard at www.tripology.com/agent  and access the “Free Leads from Travel Supporters” section for complete details.

We’ll compile a list of your requests for reimbursements at the end of each month and have each participating supporter verify booking status.  We then commit to have the funds credited to your account by the 15^th of the month, so if you request reimbursement for a June booking, we’ll have your funds credited in your account by July 15^th.

We’re excited to offer you this new tool and will continue to bring you new programs that enhance your Tripology experience.

For additional details on the program and to view participating Travel Industry Supporters, go to your Dashboard or access www.tripology.com/supplierprogram. Note that we will continuously add new supporters, so stay tuned!

If you have any questions regarding this new and exciting program, email us at contact@tripology.com or call us at 800-924-0722.

Thank you for your continued support!

Veronique