ATLANTA -- Side-by-side comparisons of travel insurance products
used to involve a stack of brochures, a highlighter, a few yellow
sticky notes and a calculator.
Not anymore.
TravelAgencies.com, which provides support services to the
travel industry, has introduced an online product that enables
agencies and tour operators to do side-by-side benefit and price
comparisons before making a travel insurance purchase for
clients.
By linking this insurance info to their Web sites, travel
professionals can enable customers to conduct the same kinds of
comparisons for themselves, the vendor said.
The company said it offers the new capability in a business
alliance with GoOneGlobal, an insurance consolidator in San Jose,
Calif.
Urbano Venero, TravelAgencies.com's director of business
development, said agents do not have to obtain licenses to sell the
insurance because the company holds the necessary licenses.
He said agency remuneration can equal up to 30% of the premium
and is paid by GoOneGlobal.
There is no charge to agencies when linking the insurance module
to their Web sites.
Also, the sponsoring agency or tour operator is credited with
and paid for the sale if the customer buys the insurance on
line.
Besides offering a selection of products for U.S.-based
travelers, TravelAgencies.com said its service enables the U.S.
trade to sell travel insurance to inbound travelers, as well.
Director of operations Ed Arias reported that more than 100
agencies have signed up for this service so far.
One is Bonnie Lee, owner of Travel Quest in Monticello, Minn.,
who said she signed on to link the service to her Web site because
it is "so convenient," while her income is protected.
Since Lee is "not an insurance expert," she would provide
clients with a range of insurance brochures so they could make
their own choices "because they know their lives better than I
do."
By putting the TravelAgencies.com insurance shopper on her Web
site, she aimed to provide clients with more low-key help, she
said.
On a worldwide basis, TravelAgencies.com counts more than 4,500
members, providing them with a number of services, including
marketing support, Web-site development and booking engines and
travel leads.
In addition, tour operators can use the site to promote their
offers.
Arias said the firm added the insurance component in response to
member needs.
Venero added that 5-year-old TravelAgencies.com, particularly in
the last year, has focused on offering support services for small
retailers and tour operators.
He said it looks for "opportunities for smaller companies to
provide additional services that are competitive with those of
large companies -- and to generate revenues."