CLIA Slates Marketing Push, Upgraded Agent Training

CLIA reaffirmed its support of the travel trade, announcing plans to launch a marketing campaign promoting CLIA-certified agents and an overhaul of its agent training program.

President and CEO Christine Duffy spotlighted the agent initiatives during her opening address at CLIA’s cruise3sixty conference in Vancouver last week.

“CLIA’s commitment, and our member lines’ commitment, to agents has not changed,” Duffy told the 1,700 travel professionals in the audience.

Duffy also addressed heightened concerns about cruise safety as well as travel agents’ advisory role for consumers, topics that were also taken up by an opening panel of cruise and agency executives.

Next-generation training
CLIA will launch redesigned training in 2014 for all 38 of the courses it currently offers, Duffy said. The agent training will be available both online and in-person.

“We aim to make CLIA certification a globally recognized credential. You will be part of a global community,” Duffy told agents.

The organization will begin a marketing campaign to publicize CLIA-certified agents in the near future, Duffy said. She did not provide details.

Cruise safety
In the wake of the year’s string of cruise incidents, Duffy sought to assure agents that safety remains core to the cruise industry. “Safety is the industry’s highest priority,” said Duffy.

Repeat cruisers “know the level of care and commitment that the cruise industry is committed to. We need to get that message out to those who haven’t cruised before,” Duffy said.

For its part, Carnival leadership copped to mismanagement in its handling of the safety problems that its ships suffered earlier this year.

Carnival missteps
“The Carnival Triumph incident was very challenging for us,” said Joni Rein, vice president of worldwide sales for Carnival Cruises. “We had poor call service handling; we were inundated with emails.”

Rein said the travel agent community was vital to Carnival’s ability to weather the safety incidents that hampered its ships. “Throughout, [travel agents] were all so supportive of us.”

With the media casting doubt on the safety of cruising, agents can use their knowledge and experience to counteract negative press, said Nicole Mazza, chief marketing office of TRAVELSAVERS.

“Show the passion that you have for cruising, and it will overcome the fear [your clients] have.”

Building relationships
Speakers also discussed opportunities for agents to grow their business.

“Home-based agents have the advantage because they are in those small cities and towns,” said Cruise Planners CEO and co-founder Michelle Fee. “They are creating relationships with people.” Fee was inducted into the CLIA Hall of Fame the following evening.

Groups were touted as a major area of potential growth for agents.

“Affinity groups are a huge way to connect on an interest,” said Jan Swartz, executive vice president of sales, marketing and customer service for Princess Cruise Lines. “If you can find groups you can network into, that is how you capture many first-time cruisers.”

Use your tools
Cruise executives implored agents to use all of the resources at their disposal to build relationships with potential customers.

Social media was seen as especially promising.

“There’s a whole new opportunity today to effectively engage [your clients] in more ways,” said Andy Stuart, executive vice president of global sales and passenger services for Norwegian Cruise Line. “Build a personal approach for your customers to know you better today than they did yesterday.”

Agents are needed
Duffy told agents to embrace their role as advisors, despite the countless other options today’s consumers have for booking their trips.

“I am more convinced than ever that people need a professional travel agent or advisor,” said Duffy. “The successful agents of the future will be responsible to interpret this overwhelming amount of information [that] consumers have.”