The Advantage Travel Partnership has adapted its regular turn-of-year marketing campaign into four sections as is promotes the Rise of the Travel Agent.
Consortium members will have offers and themed content which can be adapted for their businesses.
Advantage is urging members to think more commercially than ever before, and has factored earning potential and suppliers that have been supportive to the trade over the last nine months into building the campaign.
Each of the four mini-campaigns have been designed to be cost-effective, quick to market, shareable online and adaptable. Advantage said this was due to members wanting to save on costs and the potential for restrictions to change quickly.
Assets have been designed to drive engagement and enquiries, with some offer-led.
David Forder, head of marketing, said: “The customer research we carried out this year indicated that there was a renewed appetite from consumers to book with a travel agent, and the results demonstrated that this is due to the trust, expertise and personal service.
“During times of continued uncertainty, the ‘Rise of the Travel Agent’ campaign will offer our members a wide range of content that will help them inspire, inform and reassure their customers, and demonstrate why there is no-one better to book a holiday with than a local independent travel agent. We are also really pleased with the support that has been shown from our tour operator and tourist board partners who are involved in the campaign.’”
The first campaign, Promotional Content, is aligned with traditional turn of year marketing activity and aims to draw in customers with competitive offers for 2021. Content will be personalised to members and their customers and members can segment it to mass market and more high-end clients with regional pricing. Members will have access to Advantage’s Hot Offers, solus emails promoting key partners and destinations, and a digital Family Travel Magazine they can personalise with their own branding and calls to action before sending to clients. A new Silver Traveller magazine tailored to the over 50s market has been produced in partnership with Silver Travel Advisor.
The second campaign, Count on Us, will offer assets that help agents reassure customers and highlight the trust and service elements of booking with an agent. Assets include social media banners.
Say Hello Again To… is a destination-focused campaign targeting the pent-up demand from travellers and to re-introduce them with familiar destinations. Assets will include social media banners, aspirational images and Q&A videos from suppliers, plus members will have access to a ‘build your own email’ toolkit for using Mail Chimp and can win places on fam trips with suppliers.
The fourth campaign piece is aimed at the cruise sector. Back on the Water includes assets to help educate members on cruise lines’ Covid safety and protocols, Q&A webinars with suppliers, solus emails to their ‘Cruise Champs’ and social assets.