See You in Seattle!

By Angela Criss

I want to wish you a happy and prosperous New Year!

With the start of 2005 we are all considering how we can jump start our sales this year. How can we grow our business? How can we learn more about suppliers and their products? How can we book more groups?

From my experience at past CRUISE-A-THONs, including the Travel Trade 21st Annual Leisure Travel Conference and Winter CRUISE-A-THON in Ft. Lauderdale held in December, I would say the answer to all these questions can be summed up in one exciting event: The 23rd Annual CRUISE-A-THON in Seattle June 4-7 — especially if you are home based! Make your first New Year’s resolution to sign up today!

With home based agents now in the majority at these events, many of the speakers and panels are geared toward the home based agency. Motivational speakers and featured speakers, including executives from the cruise lines and other organizations, offer creative measures to increasing sales. Panels also cover many issues facing the travel industry today, from government affairs to technology.

The trade show marketplace allows attendees to visit with suppliers at the exhibits and learn more about their products. One problem some home based agents deal with is isolation. Not all suppliers make visits to home based agents, and it is sometimes difficult to stay up-to-date with suppliers and industry news, so this is a good opportunity to meet with suppliers. It is also a great opportunity to collect new brochures and other collateral from the suppliers. Just remember to take an empty suitcase!

Breakfasts, lunches, and dinners and other events sponsored by cruise and vacation suppliers feature presentations to keep agents abreast of new products and changes. These C-A-T functions also give agents an opportunity to network with suppliers and other agents while enjoying delicious meals and entertainment.

Workshops offer practical methods of increasing sales — from setting up your business, to marketing strategies, to increasing group sales. Attendees choose from several available workshops to tailor their learning to fit their needs. Just picking up a few tips from each workshop sends me home with more work than I can keep up with!

One of the most valuable aspects of Travel Trade Conferences is the opportunity to tour several ships and even have lunch or dinner on board. It is much easier to sell a product that you have experienced and are familiar with. At most CRUISE-A-THONs, you have the opportunity to tour four or five ships or maybe more if you work at it! You can see the contrasts between the different cruise lines and come away with valuable information to help you sell the different ships.

But did I mention how fun the CRUISE-A-THONs are? Go ahead and tell your family and clients that you are signing up for a business conference, but you will certainly never feel like you are working, even when you are exhausted from touring the different ships! Seattle will welcome travel agents, and they already have exciting sightseeing planned so we can learn more about this port city.

So make your resolution now! Register today for Travel Trade’s 23rd Annual CRUISE-A-THON, on June 4-7 in Seattle at www.ttshows.com!

Angela Criss has a B.S. in communications with an emphasis in advertising and a minor in marketing. She has had a myriad of jobs, including marketing director for a manufacturing company, various newspaper jobs and taught English for 10 years. She now owns a home based travel agency, Criss Travel, in rural Salem, AR.