GOGO Vacations reports it is launching a new support program structured solely around assisting travel agents in the growth of their business. The new unit, GOGO Travel Partner Solutions (TPS), will be launched September 1 forming a membership-based community of agents with a common mission: to expand their current client base.
GOGO says TPS will provide resources that agents might not have access to individually. Included will be a combination of sales and marketing support, business training, coaching, mentoring and more, GOGO says, allowing travel professionals to see increased opportunities, revenue and clients.
GOGO Vacations has named Jim Tedesco as the managing director for GOGO TPS. Tedesco, formerly GOGO’s marketing director, has assumed his new role effective immediately.
“This is something we have been trying to develop for some time now. We recognized that we have much more, above and beyond coop programs for our agents, to assist them in growing their business,” said Tedesco.
“As a brand that is part of a larger global entity we have access to support that our agents can’t find anywhere else. As a company that sells exclusively to travel agents, we are always looking at new ways and support structures to help keep their business thriving,” he added.
Each membership delivers over $7,500 of value including monthly mailers and marketing support, quarterly subscriptions to GOGO’s travel magazine, On The Go, access to monthly webinars focused on product training, strategies to increase lead generation, sales tips, access to GOGO’s Gateway system (training modules to become product specialists) and more.
In addition, agents will have access to à la carte items outside of their membership inclusions such as participation in GOGO’s in-house Leadership Academy and Global Sales Academy.
Membership into this new community of agents will be tiered, offering agency level opportunities that will allow every member of the team to join, and individual memberships designed to give home-based agents and small store-front agencies a more affordable way to participate, GOGO says.
Agency memberships are $495 per year, with individual memberships priced at $200 annually. If members choose to join without the printed marketing opportunities, and solely take advantage of the education and training benefits, it will lower the price to $249 per year for an agency, $100 for an individual, GOGO says.
“Over the last year we have rolled out many new initiatives to our own GOGO consultants that we are now seeing the benefits of. All these initiatives that have proven successful are being applied to GOGO TPS,” said GOGO Vacations President Margaret Mulholland.
“It only makes sense that if we have seen positive, proven results, and can roll out the similar programs to our travel agent partners to help them increase their knowledge base, hit their sales targets, assist in developing visions and goals and increase their brand awareness and the like, that we extend those benefits to our extended agent community,” Mulholland said.
GOGO was acquired by Australian-based Flight Centre Limited in 2008. Tedesco has been with the Flight Centre Organization for over six years, holding sales and marketing positions in the retail and wholesale brands under the FC USA portfolio. He was named a “Rising Star in Travel” by Travel Agent magazine.
For more information about GOGO Travel Partner Solutions agents can email [email protected]. All memberships accepted prior to Sept 1 will receive 5 percent off the annual fee, GOGO says. Visit www.gogoworldwidevacations.com