Note that unlike the normal search content module, you cannot choose which search fields to include. The Search box has different basic and advanced searches. Clicking the Advanced Search link shows the additional search options.  Clicking Basic Search takes you back to the regular view.

NexCite Cruise Search - Basic Search

NexCite Cruise Search - Advanced Search

 The search box allows your customers to use many of the more powerful features of the agent search, such as selecting a cruise line, ship, port, and more. 

Your customer can be as broad or as specific with date searches as desired.  They can select a month/year from the drop down, and then optionally choose a specific day.  If a specific day is selected, then a “Start Date Options” box appears that allows them to choose their flexibility options.  That way, they can say “I really want to leave on this day, but show me things that depart before or after that date by some number of days”.

To add the search box to one of your NexCite pages, simply complete the following steps:

• Edit the page you would like to place the Cruise Search Box on
• Click the sideways “Edit” button for the area of the page where you want to place the Cruise Search Box
• Click the “Insert Content Module” icon
• Choose “Cruise Search” from the Module Type dropdown list
• Enter your selections
• Click “Update“
• Save your page
• Publish your page

1. Similar Facebook and Twitter URLs/Names. If your twitter name is “ABC Travel”, don’t make your Facebook Business page be “Destinations of the World”, at first glance your customers might not realize that this is the same company.
2. Frequent updates. If you are only posting updates on Facebook and Twitter once a week, you are missing out on a lot of opportunities. Your customers have many friends, and are probably fans of many other Businesses, so if you are posting very infrequently they are likely not seeing your posts because they disappear off of their newsfeed too quickly.  At a minimum you should be sharing something once a day. These updates can be short and sweet.  Some quick ideas might be:
   1. Share a destination of the day and one fact about it.  For example, “Did you know that Waikiki Beach is the most popular Beach in the US? If you’ve been there, tell us what you think!”
   2. Share a photo from your most recent trip. Include a caption to entice your followers.  This could be a photo of anything from a really great restaurant, to a sculpture, to an amazing street market that you found tucked away.
   3. Mention a favorite cruise ship, hotel, or restaurant in a popular destination.  Even an unique train station.  Amtrak Vacations does a nice job of this:
      
3. Follow others. The whole concept of social media is to be social, so get out there and follow other people/brands you are interested in.  Your followers will notice this and appreciate the fact that you are active in engaging with others also. (Don’t suddenly follow hundreds of others over night, start small and aim to engage with those that you follow in a meaningful way).
4. Give people a reason to like you. How many times have you seen a product or store asking you to “like” them on Facebook.  Did you stop to wonder why you should? Tell your customers and potential fans exactly why they should! Let them know that you are providing exclusive information only on Facebook. DDB Worldwide’s Paris office found that one of the top reasons for following a brand on Facebook was to ”take advantage of promotional benefits” and “to access exclusive information about the brand”.  You can help give your fans a reason by something as simple as including: To access exclusive information “like” us on Facebook as your request.
5. When posting updates on your personal page, tag your business page in the status update. If you are talking about Travel, chances are some of these people might want to connect with your business page also and get even more information and updates.  This method is seen as much less “spammy” then using the “suggest to friends” option and allows people to “Like” your business page with less clicks.

One of the statements I found myself saying in many of the villages and cities I visited was “I could live here”. And it is so true of Salzburg. Even though the weather when we first arrived was rainy and a bit cold, it did not preclude us from walking to Old Town, as Salzburg is an easily manageable and walking city. Now also because of the weather, I consented to take the very touristy tour of the Making of the Sound of Music and I must admit, it was worth it. Not only did we see the fronts/backs and grounds of many of the places the movie was filmed, we also traveled to the lakes above Salzburg to the area the famous first scene was filmed and to the church where the wedding scene took place. On a rainy morning it was a wonderful way to see Salzburg and the surrounding countryside which sits in the heart of the Alps.  I admit… I highly recommend it.

The home of Mozart has an Old Town that is filled with narrow streets, large squares and Gothic churches. The great shopping street in the old town is Getreidegasse which bears a blend of baroque and Renaissance buildings which are adorned with wrought iron guild signs that hang above the doors. In earlier times, before most of the population could read, the signs indicated what goods the shop sold or the guild the shop owner belonged too. Salzburg is also a city of parks, surrounded by mountains, forests and hills with the river Salzac running through it. The restaurants are plentiful, affordable (mostly) and serving local cuisine in an elegant yet friendly way. Our favorite was Zum Fidelen Affen or The Flying Monkey. The atmosphere and staff were so friendly we returned 2 nights later for a late night glass of wine.  Our perfectly located Pension called the Hotel Trumer Stube is run by the Hirschbichler family. Marianne, the daughter (also the mother) speaks impeccable English and is a wealth of Salzburg knowledge.  The breakfast was a wonderful spread of local breads, cheeses, wonderful yogurts and meats. I just love the European breakfast.

Coming soon… Lofer, MariaZell, Vienna, The Danube and Budapest.

There are a lot of tools and resources out there to help you with your web site.  First is your friends or your customers.  Ask them to look at your web site and give you an honest opinion on how easy is it to navigate, find your phone number or and find your email address.  Does your site talk about you? What are you an expert in? Why should your customer book through you?  Have them tell you why they didn’t book with you.  Second is recourses on the internet…Feedback Roulette  is an easy and fun way to exchange feedback about websites. You review others’ websites and they review yours.

What makes Feedback Roulette unique?

1. It Endorses Quality Feedback: The system of ratings encourages participants to give quality feedback, so that they get useful feedback themselves.
2. Reviews are Anonymous: Since all the reviews on Feedback Roulette are anonymous, people can express themselves freely and be honest in their opinion. This also has a positive impact on feedback quality.
3. You Get Feedback from Peer Experts: Most users of Feedback Roulette are webmasters, designers, internet marketers and other people involved with Web.
4. It’s Guaranteed: You are guaranteed to receive feedback and you control the quantity of reviews you receive.
5. It’s Free: Feedback Roulette is free to use.
6. It’s Easy: Anyone can use Feedback Roulette. No special skills required. You can get started in a matter of seconds.
7. It’s Fun: You review others’ websites and receive Feedback Points for your reviews.

Have you used Feedback Roulette? Let us know your thoughts!

I can see where it would normally take a lot of time, not to mention the creativity to write an interesting article or tweet, however in only a few minutes I can go in and find a couple of tweets on travel topics, an interesting blog from a supplier and now a couple of hot deals and click to send to both my Facebook and Twitter followers. The beauty of the Share a Resort, Top Vacation Values and Supplier Guest Blogs is that they include links back to my website.

I did a Tweet a few days ago of a Funjet Vacation Value. It went to my Facebook and Twitter. If my followers were interested, they could click and view the entire promotion on my website. And, because I have the Funjet (GoFunjet) booking engine integrated into my NexCite, my clients could even proceed through the entire booking process online.

Now I can see using Social Media Marketing in several ways to sell travel. Using Agent Socialink enables me to keep sending interesting articles, blogs and even deals to my followers. I can also see adding special group promotions and working the viral marketing side of social media to market to friends of friends. The potential of social media is tremendous for travel agents, you just need to get started, build your followers and use Agent Socialink for your everyday Social Media Marketing. Get started today.

About 25 years ago I started a successful campaign at Choice Hotels we called “We Love Travel Agents”. We did this because travel agents delivered the highest rated business from all intermediaries. We wanted more. Fast forward to today. Travel agents (not to be confused with an OTA) deliver the highest rated business from all intermediary channels. Regardless of push back from Revenue Managers, Travel agents kick serious butt regardless of which channel they choose to book. And guess what; you only pay for what consumes. Today, reaching travel agents and their clients has changed. The principle strategy remains the same but the tactics are new. Few people realize that the database of agents’ clients is incredibly valuable. Here is a group of people who want to travel. What would you pay to reach this super pre-qualified list?

Secret Sauce – Sell from the inside out – not outside in.

Is there a secret sauce? A magical formula? A lost symbol? A missing link?

Well, yes. I know of only one company today, that has for several years been at the forefront of delivering supplier offers and promotions to travel agents and their clients electronically. Some providers just send email blasts, some only communicate to a niche group of agents, some provide interesting share data. Passport Online uniquely provides supplier content to the USA’s leading travel agents and their almost 3 million clients who love to travel.

They do this through a variety of delivery channels, building and populating agency internal and consumer facing websites, email to agents and their clients and social media programs utilizing Facebook and Tweets. All of these programs have real time customer dashboards that show activity right down to a wholesaler and agency level. The competitive edge is that Passport Online delivers this information to agents and their clients in the agents own environment. It is booking channel agnostic. No bias. It is not obtrusive, not a pop up when an agent is booking air, not an ad message thrown at an agent or client that doesn’t want it. It is an integrated part of the agents day to day bsiness. It is where agents go to look for offers and specials – either on their own internal sites or through opted in subscription. Bottom line – to win, you have to engage agents on the agents terms.

Social Media for Travel Agents and their Clients

A new initiative that Passport has introduced is Agent SociaLink. This creates a Facebook and Twitter platform for agents, from which they can share with their followers (clients), special offers and promotions provided by suppliers. This can be done speedily and continues to maintain the level of engagement and relevance between the supply side, agent and consumer. Facebook has continued to grow as a booking tool sometimes over TripAdvisor. Early adopters should investigate this leading edge program as it will only continue to grow.

ASTA Survey – 2010 Technology and Web Usage Report

To further showcase agents usage of electronic media ASTA this week released the results of its 2010 Technology and Web Usage Report, which looks at online booking revenue, Internet usage, Web 2.0 marketing and website development. The survey also looks at how agencies use the Web for supplier research and booking.

ASTA President Chris Russo said in a statement, “Rather than being pushed out of business by the Internet, as many had predicted, travel agents have embraced it and are leveraging its power to enhance their operations.”

The survey found that while 81% of agencies reported booking airline travel online, more than 70% of agencies that book air also assist customers with booking ancillary services online (42%) or by phone (30%). ASTA said this suggests that “the complex and often hidden nature of airlines’ ancillary fees adds additional work and time to the overall airline purchase transaction.”

Travel agencies are booking on suppliers’ websites less than ever: ASTA said that the percentage of total agency bookings made through supplier websites decreased in 2010 to 40%, from 45% in 2009.

52% of respondents said Facebook was their most used networking and marketing technique, citing its ease of use in connecting with current and potential customers.

Most agencies said they use their website to provide an e-mail link to their agency (90%) or to promote their areas of specialty (80%) and travel deals (75%). A majority of agencies (58%) use their own e-newsletters or e-mail promotions to promote their website. More than a quarter of travel agencies’ client requests come through their websites, representing 18% of all agency revenue.

Agents Power Grows

PhoCusWright recently stated that travel agents were in the ascendance in 2010. ARC reported significant increases in agency sales revenue 2010 over 2009. The Y partnership reported in Travel Weekly’s annual industry survey reported a considerable number of younger travelers using travel agents.

The new role travel agents play in the sales of supplier products has never been so critical. In the over information world we all live in, consumers need a balanced, honest, no spin recommendation on where to go and where to stay.

Become an Insider

The secret is to make sure you are playing in the same sandbox as travel agents. Make sure you are in their consideration zone. If you are not present when and where agents (and their clients) go to look for leisure offers how can you be booked. Get on their websites, internal and consumer facing, get engaged with email programs to agents and their clients, partner with their social media plans. If you follow some simple steps you will drive that higher rated business tour property (but don’t let the Revenue Managers know how you did it!)

-Bob Gilbert CTC, MInstM.  CEO Travika

You’ll find “Share Today’s Top Vacation Values” on your main Agent SociaLink page.  From there you will see a frew deals and you’ll be able to click to see all of the options.

NexCite users will find this group when you select to add a new section or feature on a page and choose Offer Group, then:  GOGO Deals of the Day (Global).  VacationPort users should contact support@passportonlineinc.com to request a link to the group that is properly coded for your website.   

We fully anticipate that other suppliers will move to this marketing practice and we will work with them to provide similar display options.  Let your clients know once you add these daily deals to your site.

The links to these hotels and resorts are automatically created for you, and refer back to your VacationPort or NexCite.  If you are signed up for Agent SociaLink, but aren’t using VacationPort or NexCite, we have good news for you too, Agent SociaLink will still build these links, and they will simply take your customer to an unbranded VacationPort site.

Let us know what you think of this new feature, and look for more enhancements coming soon.

1. Make sure I define where they want to go, when, how many people and any specific interests they have.
2. I make sure I have their current email address and ask them if it is okay if I email them some options to consider for their vacation.
3. As soon as I get back to my computer, I open AgentPort, search for 4-6 promotions that I believe they will like and I email those to them with a nice message.
4. I will then follow-up in 3-4 days to see if any of the promotions were of interest.  If one or two were, then we are on the trail to closing the sale.  If none were, then we are still on the trail to finding the right product for them.  

This is without a doubt the best sales tool I have ever used.  In the old days (before the Internet), I would usually write down what people wanted me to look into (usually on a cocktail napkin) and then try to find something they might like and call them.  It was a very poor way to follow-up.  People like to have options to view and be able to view them on their schedule.  Then they like to contact the agent and know that the agent is familiar with the product and can confidently book it for them at the best price.  With AgentPort, you have a record of your send (I will also often send the email to myself as well and file it in the client’s email folder) so it is easy to locate the promotion and find out how to book it with the supplier (Book It link in Agent Tools of the promotion). 
 
I encourage every agent to try this proven system to respond to your client’s and prospects requests.  It is fast and very simple, and it works!