Travel Planners International Adds Cruise Group Analyst

Travel Planners International has hired long-time travel industry veteran Marni Becker for the new role of Cruise Group Analyst. She will help TPI and its members to grow their group cruise business.

Working between the cruise lines and advisors, Becker will use analytics and TPI’s new AI back-office tools powered by Tern to help strengthen group and signature cruise business.  She will look at trends and data to give advisors tools to better serve their clients.  She will also host training sessions and help advisors build their cruise group business while also providing data to cruise lines to help them broaden their group offerings.

Becker will also help TPI expand its “Share Cruise Group” initiative that allows advisors to market their specialty group space to the entire TPI and Vacation Planners Franchise network, a group of more than 6,000 advisors.

“Creating this new position and bringing in an industry veteran like Marni is just another example of how TPI is helping to support our advisors,” said Jenn Lee, TPI president and CMO.  “We know that tapping into the price advantage space that TPI takes out at the headquarters level is one of the ways advisors can compete with the OTA’s and net better pricing. By using analytics and AI to help understand pricing, trends and market conditions, we support the back-end and provide our advisors with the marketing and research tools so that they can do what they do best – sell travel.”

Becker brings more than 30 years of cruise expertise, leadership, product strategy, and revenue growth to the role, including spending 24 years at Global Travel Collection (GTC0 and its legacy brands. She started as a travel advisor then shifted to cruise sales and eventually became a senior director overseeing sales. Prior to GTC, Becker began her career in travel as a cruise specialist for a few New Jersey-based travel agencies. 

“I am thrilled to be joining TPI at a time of growth and at such a pivotal point in our industry,” Becker said. “With the advent of AI, there are so many tools at advisors’ disposals to better focus and expand their business and I look forward to helping our advisor members do that in the group cruise sector. We want to be able to provide member advisors with the best opportunities and pricing while also growing our group partnerships with the cruise lines, so TPI is their go to source for bookings.”