Apple Leisure Group Vacations Proclaims 2021 the ‘Year of the Travel Advisor’

“Welcome to your year.” 

Apple Leisure Group (ALG) is proclaiming 2021 the Year of the Travel Advisor (YOTA). After one of the toughest years ever for the profession in 2020, ALG this week is committing to doing everything it can to stand by its travel partners during the COVID-19 rebound as part of its YOTA celebration. 

“Most of us know that this last year proved to the world the importance of the travel advisor,” Jacki Marks, executive vice president of ALG, said. “We watched tens of thousands of travelers fend for themselves” and some to disastrous results, she added.

The promotion is ALG’s “latest and most aggressive push to put the spotlight on…the hardest working people in travel, the travel advisor,” Snisky said. It includes several promotions that will not only help drive recognition to advisors but also put some prizes in their hands.

The year will include a March Madness that has nothing to do with College Basketball and instead will give advisors the chance to win daily prizes—those who make a booking in March will be entered to win one of the daily prizes, with a double chance to win during “Travel Tuesday” each week. Every booking yields an automatic entry to win business-building prizes such as Apple Watches, iPads, vlogging kits, cameras, and more.

It is not just about prizes. The promotion is also about giving advisors the material they need to succeed during the 2021 travel boom.

ALGV is upping its game with marketing material as well, using its partners to gauge how the travel recovery is going and distributing “meaning, important, and relevant” content through its YouTube channel and its advisor distribution platforms. The group has put together an elite panel of agents to commit to a series of surveys, polls, and quizzes to ensure that the "future we’re shaping is the one you want," it said. 

“This year is all about you, you earned it, you deserved it,” Snisky said. “Everything we do is going to have you at the forefront. We’re going to go it together and we’re going to bring clients their vacation dreams and make lifelong memories.” 

ALGV has already published some advisor testimonials from last week’s Super FAM at Dreams Natura Resort & Spa in Cancun.

It is also opening an online merchandise shop for advisors to broadcast their participation in the Year of the Travel Advisor that includes shirts, clings, water bottles, and more.