NEW YORK -- The Cruise Lines International Association will roll
out a membership program for independent and home-based travel
agents in January.
Called the Travel Agent Associate, the membership category will
"enable CLIA to communicate more efficiently with an important
cruise distribution segment that, up to this point, has been
difficult to recognize and reach," the association said.
According to Bob Sharak, CLIA's executive director, Travel Agent
Associates must be affiliated with a CLIA agency and pay a $99
annual fee.
The program does not involve the issuance of a CLIA
identification number.
Benefits of the program include a cruise prospect referral
listing in the Cruise Expert Locator on CLIA's Web site;
educational opportunities such as access to a free CLIA online
training program, and promotional messages from CLIA and its member
cruise lines sent directly to the independent agent member.
Enrollment applications will be available online soon at the
Travel Agent Center on www.cruising.org, or through CLIA's Fax-by-Phone
service at (800)372-CLIA.
In other CLIA developments, its Web site will be getting an
upgrade that's expected to launch before the end of the year.
The Destination Group Digital, with an office in Pompano Beach,
Fla., will be handling the site enhancements, as well as
overhauling CLIA's master database.
The database work will involve customer relationship management,
enabling agents to fine-tune promotions based on clients' preferred
cruise type, price, region or ports of call.