THE ASSOCIATION of Independent Tour Operators is to employ a marketing expert to set up a loyalty scheme for its members.
Chairman Paul Chandler said he hoped a firm proposal would be put before the association’s annual general meeting on June 30.
Ideas from the AITO council meeting last week included setting up an AITO travel club for customers.
“This will not be a crude loyalty scheme but something a little more sophisticated,” said Chandler. “We are looking to bring someone in, perhaps from the travel industry, to help us set it up. We do not have the staff or expertise to do it alone.”
The scheme will help promote AITO and raise public awareness of the association. A survey carried out by ABTA revealed only 7% of the public currently recognise the AITO name.
“We want to increase the recognition rate with our target market. A loyalty scheme is one way of achieving that,” said Chandler.