CruiseOne, Cruises Inc. and Dream Vacations rolled out a lineup of new programs at the 2016 National Conference onboard the Carnival Vista.
General Manager of Network Engagement & Performance Drew Daly unveiled a new logo for Cruises Inc., which will officially launch next year. Daly said that the updated logo includes vibrant colors along with resort and tour imagery to reflect that Cruises Inc. travel agents sell more than cruises, they sell experiences. Resort vacation sales continue to increase at a double-digit volume.
Vice President of Operations Joelle Delva announced the launch of a new Groups Concierge service whereby agents will have direct access to a team of Groups Specialists who will assist them in identifying, securing and growing group business. Available at no additional cost, this new turn-key service handles all of the complex details that go into servicing and executing a successful group, including but not limited to contract negotiation, data entry, building groups, closing sales and more. The Groups Concierge service complements additional tools that enhance group sales, such as the award-winning online Groups Registration websites, which has resulted in a 27 percent sales growth for individual franchise owners who have used this asset.
Vice President of Sales & Marketing Rosemarie Reed and Director of Marketing Kim Faiello discussed new initiatives aimed at producing more revenue per agent. This includes a new structure that combines sales and marketing into one department, a promotional calendar to guide the network through the hundreds of promotions, and loyalty and referral programs. These new initiatives aim to encourage more engagement among agents to further drive sales. Reed noted that this past year’s marketing participation reached an all-time high with more than 80 percent of agents taking advantage of the marketing tools and resources provided; this is a 22 percent increase from last year.
Vice President of Information Technology Sandi Szalay shared that the ongoing multimillion dollar investment in technology has enabled all new technology tools and upgrades to be usable on all browsers and devices. The company recently released the new Cruise Fare Watch tool. With more than 8,000 active watches, this tool creates further efficiencies for agents and has monitored more than $2 million worth of price drops since launching six weeks ago. She also provided a preview of the new modernized cruise booking path release which will be launched this month.
Visit www.DreamVacationsFranchise.com and www.SellCruises.com