Luxury Travel Advisor - October 2008 - (Page Cover2)

ADVERTISEMENT Signature Spotlight High Tech Meets High Touch Everyone knows strong customer relationships are a retail travel company’s most valuable asset. But how does one put that mantra to practice—keep existing clients while gaining new ones? Signature Travel Network’s technology provides members with sophisticated tools to manage client relationships, market eﬀectively, and transact business more eﬃciently. Relevant Communications Particularly in today’s challenging business environment it is vital to communicate to clients in a relevant and highly personalized manner. ClientConnection is a proprietary system which provides a single view of the client, including their purchasing patterns, travel history, destination and supplier preferences, psychographic and demographic statistics. Signature members can ensure vacation products are sent to the right client at the right time. More Innovations Closing the Loop –Making the Sale Clients expect travel professionals to be Signature employs an integrated approach knowledgeable and responsive to inquiries. to marketing. A client may ﬁnd a glorious Two key components–availability and price– cruise to the South Paciﬁc featured in the are at the top of the list. Signature recently Travel Magazine, an email, or a direct introduced direct access to live pricing for mail campaign. Every customer’s proﬁle Princess and is annotated with Holland America. applicable marketing “Signature’s online tools have enabled us to initiatives so when maximize our potential in Internet sales. We’ve What’s the beneﬁt to the Signature that client calls, the grown from less than a million dollars in member? Within agent simply clicks on leisure sales to over twenty in the last five seconds they can the customer’s proﬁle years.” email all relevant to access details on the Eric Maryanov, A LL -TRAVEL information with oﬀer and complete the most up-to-thebooking instructions! minute pricing. A dynamic highly e ability for a travel consultant to take an customized e-mail marketing program inquiry and convert it to a sale provides members with the opportunity to is often dependent upon being communicate more personally and regularly, able to give credible, relevant notifying customers about exclusive oﬀers information… instantly. and promotions based on their particular interests. COMING SOON: Signature’s technology enhancements will soon include social networking, allowing clients to share travel knowledge and experience with their friends and family. Meet Tom Baker Condé Nast’s Cruise Specialist Tom Baker, President of CruiseCenter, was recently appointed by Condé Nast Traveler as its World’s “Large Ship Specialist for 2008.” itinerary and ship that will meet their needs. Bottom line, repeat and referral business is the mainstay of our industry. match the right passenger Why do you think Condé to the right 2008”? Q“Large Ship Specialist forNast named you QHow do youcruise experience? paramount to being a successful My industry in the cruise AThis isvacationlifestyle. Determine what cruise planner. Ask questions Asegment mayexperience from many is not di er other about your client’s travel professionals; however, the truth “ships” are my passion. I have personally experienced more than 150 cruises and have inspected more than 200+ ships. You walk the decks, see staterooms, and inquire about refurbishments and enhancements. You gauge the attitude of the sta , sample cuisine and sense the “vibe” of the ship. As a professional, I believe one must know these individual characteristics. they like to do while they are on vacation. The interview process is crucial. At CruiseCenter, we may ﬁnd that a prospective client called after seeing an ad for a 7-day Caribbean cruise for $499—but once we spend time speaking with them, that individual may arrange a family reunion cruise to Alaska for $1099 per person instead. Based on the client’s preferences, we can select the QHow do you market to today’s sophisticated traveler? today is to integrate technology AThe key sales process. E ective, relevant into the communication to customers is vital and maintaining a highly detailed customer proﬁle is a must. I personally use Signature’s web content and e-marketing program daily. Signature’s specially negotiated cruise vacations deliver great value added specials with extra travel perks for my clients. The links from these electronic o ers lead to detailed content including ship details, deck plans, client reviews, and so much more. Signature’s “turn-key” marketing makes the job a lot easier!

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Luxury Travel Advisor - October 2008

Luxury Travel Advisor - October 2008 Contents Publisher's Letter Editor's Letter Glasgow Greece & Cyprus Private Islands Park Hotel Weggis Mexico Private Yachts MS Europa Coastline Travel Awards of Excellence The Pulse Just Back Luxury Travel Expo Sightings Source List

Luxury Travel Advisor - October 2008

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