Su-Jit Lin-DeSimone | July 30, 2015 2:30 PM ET
Paying It Forward With the Premium Class, Premium Service Promo

PHOTO: An exclusive — and hefty — 25 percent off premium seats on American Airlines plus a 10 percent commission. Courtesy Travel Impressions.
You hear us say all the time that we at Travel Impressions put agents first because we’re agents-only. We’ve been that way for over 40 years, making this dog too faithful and old for new parlor tricks. Which, unlike the adage usually implies, is a very good thing.
Now, the reason I parrot that statement with such pride, conviction, and confidence, is because I know it to be true, which leads to my inspiration for this post: the Premium Class, Premium Service promotion we just launched, an exclusive 25 percent discount on all American Airlines bulk fares in the premium cabin from any gateway in the U.S. and Canada to every single destination in Mexico and the Caribbean they fly to — with no blackout dates.
Whoa, right?
First of all, consumer discounts on air are pretty much unheard-of in today’s travel market. Secondly, that’s a BIG discount, especially when it comes to premium class flights. Finally, the freedom in this offer is a huge deal, with barely any restrictions and plenty of options, providing a rare opportunity to fly in high style. Honeymooners, take note! This deal is just screaming your names.
But I digress. That’s all well and good for the consumer, and all very exciting … but to me, that’s not even the most impressive part of this promotion. Don’t get me wrong — it’s a phenomenal offer, made even more special by being an exclusive available only to our family of brands. However, the part of this promotion that makes me the most proud to work for Travel Impressions is this: watching our integrity at work.
Some brands may opt to pass all the benefits on to the consumer. Others might consider pocketing more profit from it. Still others might sell this directly to the consumer. But not us. We chose to do something a little bit different.
Our leadership viewed this instead as a perfect opportunity to demonstrate how important our travel partners are to us, how much we value them, and how we will ALWAYS put them first. Jeff Clarke & Co. decided to put our money where our mouths are, and to support our agents by paying this promotion forward, an extension of our Agent AIRpreciation initiatives.
Enter a 10 percent commission for agents.
From a business standpoint, you might wonder why we would do such a thing. After all, we could have just rolled out the promotion at an even bigger discount and given our agents nothing. Even so, we didn’t have to offer a commission high enough that we don’t even benefit from the sales.
The answer is simple, though, just like Jeff Clarke says in this month’s Travel Insider (the Travel Impressions agent newsletter): “To ensure that we’re continuing to provide the ‘Best in Sales and Service’ you’ve grown accustomed to.”
This integrity is what makes me proud of this promotion, and of working for Travel Impressions. It’s the most wonderful thing that I can say it with confidence, conviction, with unwavering faith that my company will always do the right thing for its partners and its people, and THAT is what has always made the difference.
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