Winner of the Travvy Award for "Best Travel Agency Consortia or Group"
Without question, Vacation.com is the largest consortium or marketing network to the leisure distribution channel, serving more than 5,500 independent retail travel agencies throughout North America. It is a position that the company has held since 1998, when it was formed following the acquisition of 10 travel agency consortia and marketing networks, including GEM, GEM Canada, Cruiselink, SPACE, ACTION 6, TIME, Consolidated Travel Services, Crown Travel Group, The Consortium, and AURA.
As such, the company has never sacrificed quality for quantity. "What distinguishes Vacation.com from the competition and why more members join our organization is because of our best-in-class, end-to-end business solutions," said John Lovell, CTC, Vacation.com's president. "This includes enhanced commission programs with over 180 supplier partners, exclusive booking systems, unique vacation products, and proprietary technology that are all designed to increase member productivity and profitability."
On the subject of technology, Lovell noted that Vacation.com's programs and platforms are decidedly cutting-edge. "Some of our most notable programs and technologies include our exclusive, easy-to-use Web-based CruisePRO booking tool," he said. "CruisePRO helps member agencies more easily search, sell, book, and manage cruise vacations - all in one system." Currently, its members can book 13 cruise lines through CruisePRO, while also being able to search and compare departures for another five cruise lines.
Its Engagement Direct Marketing program, meanwhile, sends targeted direct mail and email promotions to our members' clients, using an advanced segmentation system. Throughout 2015, Vacation.com members can participate in 258 direct mail and email promotions, totaling over 100 million supplier-funded touch points. Both CruisePRO and Engagement are available to Vacation.com members at no additional cost as part of their Vacation.com membership.
Members are also able to reap the benefits of being affiliated with Vacation.com's parent company, Travel Leaders Group, America's largest travel agency company comprising more than 30 percent of all agencies in North America. "That gives us an extremely strong position in the industry, particularly when negotiating with supplier partners, which benefits all of our business units, including Vacation.com," said Lovell. "In addition, we are able to leverage products, services, and best practices across our sister companies in order to maximize our agents' growth and earnings potential."
The end result of these benefits is to provide agents' clients with exceptional vacation experiences. "Vacation.com operates under a deeply-rooted philosophy of encouraging our clients to 'Belong, Inspire and Grow,'" Lovell said. "We also want our members to feel a sense of belonging among a true community and network of professionals."
An illustration of Lovell's respect for the professionalism of its members is the fact that he refers to Vacation.com as a business solutions provider rather than a consortium. "For me, the word 'consortium' is somewhat limiting in terms of its traditional definition," he said. "Vacation.com is so much more than a 'commission club' that offers training and technology. We truly believe our greatest asset is our members, and take immense pride in significantly improving their business operations in order for them to be more successful."
Going forward, Lovell is confident that the future holds great things for the company. "Vacation.com will continue to evolve just as it always have," he said. "We are focused on growth, and not just in terms of growing the number of member agencies, but also in increasing the number of quality leads our members receive and assisting them in growing their individual businesses."
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