Travel Planners International (TPI) reported double-digit sales growth in 2013 compared to 2012, attributing the robust numbers to a series of expanded training initiatives and partnerships, a training-focused annual conference and Ensemble membership.
"We know that selling preferreds makes good business sense, so we've really focused on giving our agents compelling reasons why and how to support them," said TPI president and co-founder Ken Gagliano. "TPI agents have totally embraced this strategy and are seeing the results in their bottom line, especially in the last year or two."
Gagliano said TPI has broken ground on a new headquarters building just north of downtown Orlando, which is twice the size of its current facility and will double the number of employees. "It's a true sign of TPI's success," he said, adding that the building will be completed late this this year.
The 11,000-square-foot building will accommodate 52 employees working in senior management, general support, accounting, training, marketing, and business development.
A video production staff and studio will also be incorporated into the design.
"We'll be able to produce personalized footage for agents that can then be incorporated into their respective websites to showcase their expertise and specialties," said Tony Gagliano Jr., COO/executive vice president. "Plus, the new studio and a 40-seat training room will allow us to really ramp up our supplier training, also giving us the ability to stream content directly to our members."
The larger office building will also house support staff for TPI's newest training initiative, "T.E.A.M," which is an acronym for training, education, ambassador, meetings. The initiative, which debuted in January, creates TPI ambassadors nationwide who must apply for, and are selected to attend, TPI and advanced supplier training events on a more localized level.
"The program was driven by the lack of opportunity to locally network with other home-based agents," said Ken Gagliano. "Suppliers want a better way to connect with agents as well, so this is a win-win for everyone. The response among our membership has been outstanding, with nearly 20 TPI ambassadors registered in just two months and 60 plus planned in the first year."
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