Share your favorite winter getaway destination and you could win a $100 Visa® Gift Card and a chance to be featured on our top 5 list to the travel trade press!
Simply send us an email describing why the destination is your favorite for a quick winter getaway along with your contact information to contest@tripology.com by 12/31/10. Tripology will announce the winner in its January newsletter.
Jennifer Byrne
See what Tripology travel specialist Jennifer’s clients had to say about how she handled the rebooking of their vacation due to a hurricane in the Caribbean:
“Oh-h-h-h, I’d like to add our THANKS for the wonderful recommendation of Half Moon, the generous food tray and your “magical” effect on our stay!!!!!
You told “a friend” at Half Moon to “take care of us” and did they EVER!!! When Jennifer speaks the Half Moon listens! The Hibiscus Suites were BEAUTIFUL and you could have square danced in the bathroom - it was THAT spacious! We were SO THRILLED to have oceanfront views and CAN’T thank you ENOUGH for your professionalism and kindness during the hectic (switch from Windjammer to Half Moon)!!
You’ve been “spot on” on both recommendations….St. Lucia (Jalousie) and Jamaica (Half Moon), Jennifer!!! 2 for 2!
You’ve got our admiration, trust and you WILL be hearing from The Brody’s again in the future, Jennifer!! THANK YOU for everything!!!!!!”
Not seeing these kinds of results? Let us help you: 800-924-0722. Have great stories about your clients, please let us know: contact@tripology.com.
Happy selling,
Veronique
Smartphone-friendly Gloves:
Note the membrane on the finger.
Do you own an iPhone or other smartphone? Do you own a pair of gloves? Ever try to use both at the same time? Well, you can’t – until now.
Then I stumbled on 180’s gloves. They have these “TecTouch” membranes in the thumb and pointer-finger that allow you to use your touch-screen phone without taking off your gloves. I’m telling you, this is neat and a must-have if you’re in cold climates. I have two pair; one called the “Weekender” and one called “Enduro”. The “weekender” pair are made of a bit softer material. The “Enduro” versions are a bit tougher but include soft, external thumb material in case you need to wipe some snow off your face, eyes or glasses. These people thought of everything.
Another neat feature shared by both is the “Exhale” system. Think of it like a blow-hole you blow hot air into. No more taking off your gloves to blow hot air into your hands to warm them (which never worked anyway because the frozen air would instantly freeze your hands.)
So basically, 180s thought of two situations where you would normally have to take off your gloves and built a product that allows you to keep your gloves on. Imagine that; a glove manufacturer who figured out a way to let you keep your gloves on in the cold. Amazing how the best ideas are often the simplest ones.
180s Metro earwarmers w/ headphones
The other thing I do is wear earphones under my ear-warmers. Hey, I like listening to music on my iPhone, irrespective of the weather. The challenge is that I’m always misplacing my earphone buds. So, as I’m looking around the 180s website (to buy some more gloves) I see ear-warmers with INCLUDED speakers. Hello? This is another neat idea. Did you hear me? I said they make ear-warmers which have speakers in the ears. Now I can keep my ears warm and my eardrums happy at the same time. These earphones are very comfortable and they have a hidden jack into which you plug the earphones into your music source. You can remove the cord if you don’t want to use the ear-warmers earphones.
If you want to buy a pair of these gloves or the ear warmers with headphones, visit www.180s.com – they have men’s and women’s gloves, ear warmers, as well as other neat stuff you can use while you’re traveling this great country of ours….in the cold.
A small disclaimer, 180s is also owned by Patriarch Partners, the same company which owns Rand McNally and Tripology.com. But that’s not why I’m writing this or why my review is so positive. (Ok, I likely wouldn’t have written a bad review, I like my paycheck too much. I simply wouldn’t have written ANY review if I didn’t like these products. )
As I sat down to recap 2010 at Tripology, I realized just how much our team’s gone through, how much we’ve accomplished and how much more there is to do.
We started the year with the best January we’d ever had. In February we found ourselves, through no fault of our own, looking for a new investor. After some amazing scrambling, Rand McNally acquired Tripology.com in March.
We then began working with the Rand McNally team to change our branding a bit to include the “A Service of Rand McNally” not only on the Tripology portal but on our trade ads, emails and collateral materials.
Next came the ability to work with the Rand McNally development team to action key system enhancements on our technology wish list, including the prominent positioning of Tripology on www.randmcnally.com which enjoys over a million unique visitors per month.
We’re ending the year on a very positive note, with supportive consortia and host agency partners, Tripologists who are more successful than ever and an expanded team also committed to ensuring that Tripology continues to be the only lead generation company in the travel space that continues to be affordable, effective and generates a sufficient number of qualified leads to satisfy its members.
Here are some of our 2010 wins that we’re proud of:
· New suppliers we added to the Travel Industry Supporter Program:
1. Funjet Vacations
2. Pleasant Holidays
3. AMAWATERWAYS
4. Kuoni Tours
5. Tahiti Legends
6. Silversea Cruises
· New Tripologist tools:
1. Addition of social media icons on agent profiles – have you added yours yet?
2. New Skype communication button for easy video chatting with clients
3. Feedback request – you can now request client feedback right from your leads list
We are truly thankful for the support you’ve shown us this year and want you to know that we will continue to work diligently to provide you with the tools you need to be successful with our program.
Are you fans of Tripology on Facebook and Twitter? Are you following our Tripologist blog? Join the fun today and be first to know of our updates and get in on contests and promotions only available through social media!
We wish you happy holidays and a prosperous 2011 from the entire Rand McNally / Tripology!
Happy selling,
John
