NEW YORK -- With clients increasingly concerned with the threat of
war, travel agents and agency consortia are adjusting to the
slowdown in bookings and the late-booking trend with a variety of
tactics that include intensified marketing and outreach efforts as
well as adjustments to their business plans.
"It's tempting at a time like this to say, 'Business is slow,
we'd better cut down our marketing," said Jack Mannix, president of
Giants. "But if anything, it's time to accelerate and really hit
hard our marketing."
John Kosta, owner of Huron Valley Travel of Ann Arbor, Mich.,
summed up the dilemma this way: "I don't know how you are going to
inspire people to travel if they are scared to death. You can try
not to spend a lot on marketing, but if you don't spend it, they
are not going to come in."
Faced with that choice, Sho Dozono, president and CEO of Azumano
Travel American Express in Portland, Ore., decided to spend. He
said his agency responded to the business slowdown by starting its
first TV advertising campaign in January.
"We had a tremendous response in the first two weeks, then
everyone got uneasy," Dozono said.
When things slowed down, Dozono ratcheted up his marketing. "Our
marketing strategy has become more aggressive. We are constantly in
touch with customers. We send them e-mails. We let them know there
are good deals in travel today."
Dozono also pushed Azumano Travel's consumer nights, festive
"extravaganzas" during which clients get out among people and away
from TV news for awhile. The clients' change in perspective is a
good stimulant to business, Dozono said.
As a group, the Virtuoso consortium has intensified its efforts
with more aggressive marketing, initiating "the strongest branding
and sales initiative we have ever done as a network," a spokesman
said. It is breaking in the March issues of Conde Nast Traveler,
Travel & Leisure and Entre, a publication sent to Neiman Marcus
customers.
"It's an eight-page insert, with 19 offers available only
through Virtuoso."
The consortium also is maintaining close communications with its
member agencies, informing them of any pertinent changes in the
marketplace.
The consortium released a new Freedom Statement, a follow-up to
the Freedom Statement it released after 9/11. It will accompany all
the consortium's collateral material.
The spokesman described the statement as "a commitment to the
consumer in times of uncertainty. We aren't referring to anything
specifically. We are just saying that the days of clear skies and
knowing what's ahead seem to be gone for now, but we are pledging
to be there to take care of the consumer."
Carlson gets proactive
Another agency group that says it has taken a proactive stance
in the face of an uncertain economy and a looming Middle East
conflict is Carlson Leisure Group in Minneapolis, which counts more
than 1,600 agency locations.
Carlson Wagonlit Travel executive vice president Roger Block
provided agency members with "talking points" to use with anxious
customers when discussing travel implications of a war with
Iraq.
Titled "Should I Travel? Dealing With Customer Concerns as
Threat of War Looms Large," the talking points addressed such
topics as the increased security in the aftermath of 9/11 and
travel advice from the U.S. State Department.
Block said, "It is absolutely critical for each of us in the
industry to not allow the hype and hysteria to sweep us away, too.
While none of us can make absolute safety guarantees, we can offer
our customers a voice of reason."
Different versions of the talking points were provided to
Carlson's Results Travel franchisees and Cruise Holidays store
owners. According to a company spokesman, Carlson Wagonlit agencies
discussed steps they might take to prepare for the consequences of
war during regional meetings in four cities last month.
Among other things, the agencies discussed ways to tap the local
drive market and sell destinations like Mexico and the Caribbean
that are closer to home; opportunities for cross-selling between
leisure and corporate agencies; and reducing costs by shortening
work weeks and transitioning from salaried to commission workers in
lieu of layoffs.
But the agencies also discussed the business opportunities that
could result from a Middle East war, including the potential to
acquire agencies that succumb to a travel slump and are forced to
shut down.
"At any crisis time, our agencies are probably better positioned
than many others to merge with or acquire other agencies," the
spokesman said.
He said Carlson's advertising reflects the current world
picture. A Carlson Wagonlit promotion with Holland America in USA
Today, for example, touches upon cruising programs in Europe but
stresses cruises to the Caribbean and Alaska, destinations that are
closer to home.
In addition, an ad campaign scheduled for the March 7 issue of
USA Today will spotlight 10 family-friendly destinations, five
domestic and five international. All of the international
destinations are in the Caribbean and Mexico.
Carlson also is preparing an advertising campaign for its top 12
domestic markets aimed at potential customers who might be wary of
traveling.
'People need vacations'
One California agent is working on the assumption that the
increased anxiety of the time intensifies the need for people to
take vacations.
Brad Anderson, co-president of Anderson Travel & Cruises in
Escondido, said, "We don't wait for people to come visit us. If
they aren't calling us, we're calling them.
"I believe that people in this country not only like to have
vacations, they need them. Chances are, if our past customers are
fixated in front of CNN, they would probably appreciate a call from
their travel professional.
"A lot of the general public is having trouble taking that first
step. But if we help them, they thank us."
Other agents agree that people need their services more than
ever. "
You can only watch CNN so long without becoming a basket case,"
said Warren Buckner, president of Gayety Travel, a Giants agency in
Brooklyn, N.Y.
"Travel is no longer a luxury, it's a necessity."
Joseph Goodman, owner of International Tours & Cruises of
Philadelphia and of 1st Class Travel and Tourism Academy, does
affinity groups, he said, because the social experience with
like-minded travelers helps to reduce fear.
Goodman said he believes that taking advantage of new product
offerings is especially important when business is slow.
"There are a lot of cruise ships out of Philadelphia that just
started this year. I've been pushing that. I blocked space on one.
People don't have to fly. They like that idea," he said.
Goodman also believes in diversification. His agency started
selling travel accessories, such as luggage tags, alarm clocks and
passport pictures.
"These things help pay the rent, and they bring people in,"
Goodman said.