A new social media platform - THE HUB - is designed to bring the travel industry together to find ways in which to thrive in the age of the coronavirus, said Tom Brussow, owner and president of Sunsational Beach Vacations, who co-founded the platform with Pat Miller, a broadcasting professional and marketing consultant for small businesses.
"As a practicing agent, I'm worried about the position the travel industry is in and where we will all be in 12 months," he said. "I quickly saw the need for a place to connect and combine forces with other agents and suppliers - knowing that we would be stronger together in this very challenging time. While there is a lot out there for agents, I couldn't find the community that provided all of the information I wanted under one roof. I thought other agents might be feeling the same way, so we took the leap and launched THE HUB."
In effect, THE HUB enables travel advisors, suppliers, tourism boards and DMCs to work together to create a shared vision with specific action plans and strategies to help the industry "return to prosperity in the weeks and months ahead," he said.
During weekly Path to Prosperity Travel Think Tank sessions, "the ideas and opportunities the group identifies will be added to the plan and prioritized according to impact, resources needed and the timeline for implementation," he said.
Added Miller, "We truly believe that this is a vital part of the recipe for how we get back to a much better place. We are also in a very unique position to lead on this initiative because we are a world-wide platform not affiliated or beholding to any consortia, supplier, host or association and our membership reflects that. As a result, we can address and serve the needs of the entire industry in a very effective and affordable way."
Among many other things, THE HUB is creating destination communities for advisors, which will arm them with all the tools and information they need to promote and sell those destinations.
It will also unveil the Manifest, which will consolidate industry events and deals in one place.
Membership for individual travel advisors and suppliers is $19.99 per month. Discounted rates for organizations with multiple members are also available.
Prospective members can take advantage of a complimentary 14-day trial.
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