VIRTUOSO® SYMPOSIUM BRINGS TOGETHER INDUSTRY LEADERS TO ASSESS THE CURRENT TRAVEL LANDSCAPE

Virtuoso Presents Consumer Engagement as the Path to Future Success

NEW YORK (April 24, 2012) – Leading luxury travel agency network, Virtuoso®, hosted its annual International Symposium April 19-23 aboard Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ Seven Seas Mariner, sailing from Rome to Monte Carlo. Before an audience of more than 350 attendees, Virtuoso invited industry leaders to describe the current travel landscape from their perspective. During the event’s General Session, which addressed industry issues and presented a pathway toward a solution by fostering open communication, Virtuoso CEO and Chairman, Matthew D. Upchurch, and Virtuoso President and COO, Kristi Jones, were joined by Steve Krauss, Chief Insight Officer of Ipsos Mendelsohn; Susan Helstab, Executive Vice President of Marketing for Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts; Mark Conroy, President of Regent Seven Seas Cruises; and Dan Mahar, CEO of Tauck.
Steve Kraus presented an optimistic outlook on today’s affluent consumer; however, he noted that price is still a factor in decision-making. While 89 percent of consumers will go out of their way to find the best price, 62 percent will pay for comfort and service. The best news came from a data point Kraus shared from their findings: affluent consumers who use a travel advisor spend 97 percent more on their vacations than those who book online. This research was affirmed by Virtuoso’s own preferred suppliers who, when recently surveyed, ranked Virtuoso Member Agencies as the sales channel responsible for generating the highest Average Daily Rate (ADR); second in terms of producing the highest Net Value per booking, and tied for first (along with the supplier’s own web site) for fostering Client Loyalty.
Next, Susan Helstab discussed Four Seasons’ decision to spend 50 percent of its marketing budget on interactive media and the company’s web sites. Helstab shared the corporate goal of extending engagement with their guests on a personal level, from the pre-planning and research phase, through the hotel stay and into post-stay review. She spoke of the company’s 300,000 Facebook fans, its 250,000 Twitter followers and its location-based mobile and web services. Through the use of integrated media, Four Seasons attains multiple client touch points and business intelligence to better tailor the guests’ experience. Helstab noted, “Save wealthy consumers time or deliver a memorable experience and you will have a customer for life,” and then went on to say that affluent consumers are used to relying on personal advisors to achieve these dual goals of conserving time and enjoying memorable experiences. In fact, clients who book through advisors average a 75 percent higher ADR.
While strong supporters of travel advisors, both Mark Conroy and Dan Mahar spoke about their practices of engaging in direct dialogue with clients and prospects, citing the need to fill inventory, lower the cost of sale and to generate repeat business. For Regent, past passengers make up 57 percent of its business. Tauck follows closely behind with past guests filling 55 percent of its inventory. Both spoke of the need to reactivate past guests, either through their travel advisor or directly.
Kristi Jones summed up the outlook for the Virtuoso network and its travel agency members by drawing three major conclusions. First, she noted that travel advisors are the only sales channel to engage in an ongoing dialogue with the consumer; online travel agencies (OTAs), social media, web sites and mobile technologies cannot replicate the relationship a client forms with its advisor or with the suppliers that leave a lasting impression. Jones stated, “It is our job to engage with our clients across their travel choices, lifestyle and cycles. It is the depth and the breath of our client relationships that keep us valuable in the sales equation.”
Jones also noted that travel advisors outperform in channel cost and effectiveness, citing an HSMAI 2012 study that revealed the $2.7 billion loss hotels suffered through the OTA merchant model. Lastly, Jones noted that the role of a travel advisor has shifted from transactions and sales-oriented, to one that is relationship-based with both clients and suppliers. Jones concluded, “We need to engage our clients where they are and in the manner and medium they prefer, and we must invite them into our process. Our future depends on our ability to enhance and scale our client and supplier relationships.”
Virtuoso went on to say that its technology infrastructure was built for the specific purpose of making travel more accessible and more interactive for consumers. The rollout of its newest technology initiative, ‘Compare & Share,’ combines traditional travel planning with the east of social media.
Matthew Upchurch commented, “Bringing the client into the conversation – first with the advisor, then extending it through Compare & Share to include friends and family, and finally adding in the supplier – that’s how we build a community of like-minded travelers. Inviting customers to actively engage in the network is the path to our collective future; one with increased profitability for Virtuoso members and preferred suppliers alike, as well as increased loyalty and satisfaction for luxury leisure travelers.”
Virtuoso stated that more elements of this strategy will unfold at its annual Virtuoso Travel Week conference in August. For more information on Virtuoso, visit www.virtuoso.com .

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About Virtuoso
Virtuoso® is the industry’s leading luxury travel network. This by-invitation-only organization comprises over 330 agencies with more than 7,200 elite travel specialists in 20 countries in North and South America, the Caribbean, Australia and New Zealand, as well as over 1,250 of the world’s best travel providers and premier destinations. The network’s member agencies generate over $9.6 billion annually in travel sales, making the group the most powerful in the luxury travel segment. Their relationships with the finest travel companies provide the network’s affluent clientele with exclusive amenities, rare experiences and privileged access. Visit www.virtuoso.com, or view Virtuoso’s latest videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/VirtuosoTraveler.

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