Avis Budget Group has created a booking portal for both its brands and is offering agents’ commission of up to 15% and price parity with direct channels.
Beep, an online booking portal, will allow agents to access rental cars for their customers from 3,400 locations in more than 120 countries from today.
It comes as Budget car rental becomes available through the trade for the first time.
Jeanette Harper, Avis Budget Group’s recently appointed director of travel and partnerships, said: “Putting both brands under one umbrella on Beep will make the booking process simple, efficient and rewarding for our valuable trade partners.”
The customer will pay the same price whether they book through the agent via Beep or direct.
Beep, which took 18 months to develop, will offer concessionary rates for travel agents.
There will also be incentives and giveaways for making bookings and completing online training, including the chance to win an Amazon Echo each month.
Teams from Avis Budget Group will promote the launch of Beep at upcoming trade events such as the ITT and Abta conferences, and will visit 400 travel agencies across the country.
“The more we educate agents, the more confidence they will have to sell our products,” added Harper.
Beep has so far launched only in the UK, but Harper said it would “scale quickly” and suggested Asia could be its next market.
A mascot, Buddy the Budget Dog, has been created to facilitate the launch of Beep, and cuddly‑toy Buddys will be sent to trade partners.
Harper told Travel Weekly the brands had seen strong growth in popular destinations for the UK market, including Spain and the US.