CLIA Launches Free E-mail for Agents

The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) has teamed with MarketEaseOnline (MEO) to create a new suite of electronic marketing tools for CLIA’s 16,000 member travel agencies and cruise lines. The partnership features free customized “WhereToCruiseNext” e-mails delivered to a growing database of cruise consumers. The e-mails will offer cruise promotions from only CLIA member lines, with the call to action directly back to the recipient’s participating CLIA member agency. MEO also includes e-mail tools for agents to create and send their own cruise e-mail campaigns.

“We are dedicated to providing resources to help our travel agency members grow their cruise business,” said Bob Sharak, executive vice president of marketing and distribution for CLIA.  “We know consumers are looking for value in today’s marketplace and with this new product, we can help our member agencies and member lines deliver the best cruise values directly to consumers.”

Through this new arrangement, CLIA and MEO will enable agents to create agency-branded cruise e-mail campaigns, delivered on behalf of the agency directly to the client. Content and websites for customized e-mail campaigns will be provided through the VacationPort product of Passport Online Inc. A link to a suite of e-mail tools will be available to all CLIA member agencies at the Travel Agent Center section of the CLIA website, www.cruising.org. This will allow for effective and efficient marketing communications while safeguarding the confidentiality of participating CLIA members’ client databases.

“We have seen excellent results with our recent expansion of the WhereToNext and TravAlert consumer e-mail programs,” said Darla Graber, MEO founder. “It was a natural expansion to take this program to the cruise marketplace. The agency community is embracing e-mail marketing more every day and their consumers are responding. This new arrangement with CLIA will allow the delivery of cruise offers to agency consumers in a professional, timely electronic format and deliver new business back to the travel agents.”

MEO adds easy-to-use e-mail marketing tools that will transform an existing client database into a true marketing vehicle, CLIA says. Supplier content can be customized and sent to a single client or a group of potential travelers with four simple click and point steps.

MEO is a web-based CRM- and e-mail marketing tool that allows agents to create and send e-mail campaigns to their clients at any time, as long as an Internet connection is available. The program enables agents to create and store a client database that includes individual client profiles, with over 100 preset marketing criteria and 25 customizable fields. Cruise lines must be CLIA members to participate.

To take advantage of this new “WhereToCruiseNext” initiative, agents are requested to check out the CLIA preferred member benefits section of CLIA’s website or simply click on www.MarketEaseOnline.com/CLIA.