Travel Counsellors will announce a host of new developments to its in-house dynamic packaging system, Phenix, at the Travel Counsellors Ireland conference this weekend. These will make Phenix even more efficient and quicker for agents to use, as well as incorporating direct feedback from them within accommodation and destination searches.
Following the launch of the company’s new back office system across all of its agents, Phenix has now been taken to a whole new level. The integration of the customer contact centre enables the company’s Travel Counsellors to easily convert enquiries into bookings using one system, saving them time and resources, and avoiding the risk of customer duplication. It also enables customers’ preferences and booking history to be displayed at the time of enquiry, as well as other saved information such as passport numbers.
Simon Ward, from the company’s commercial team in the UK, will show the conference delegates a host of new and exciting developments for the system. These include more search options such as a map and streetview facility to locate the hotels and filter using the location.
Agents and their customers are also asked to submit rating reviews of properties after travel and this is another search option available within the system. The search also highlights other Travel Counsellors who have stayed at the property and whether they are available to communicate with via the company’s office communicator system, which allows agents to instant message or directly webcam each other.
Personal and Reliable
Cathy Burke comments: “We are very excited about these latest developments within the system. They make the whole search process more efficient and content rich, plus we wanted to make it more relevant and personal to the TCs and their customers.
“With so much confusion and controversy surrounding online review sites such as Tripadvisor, we felt it was important for our agents to have a reliable source of information and recommendation, so what better source than their fellow TC colleagues and customers? They can even speak to other agents who have visited the properties, which is particularly relevant given our global presence and knowledge across the seven countries in which we now operate.
“The new search options also give the agent much more extensive and varied information about the property and the destination, including online destination guides, plus weather and climate information. With these new developments TCs really won’t have to go anywhere else to research, saving them a lot of time.
Setting Margins
All Irish Travel Counsellors use Phenix and for 75% of them it represents over 40% of their entire sales for the past 12 months, with the system allowing agents to set their own margin and greatly increase their earning potential.
Cork-based Gold Travel Counsellor Sarah McCarthy, who was awarded ‘Best Irish Travel Counsellor’ at the company’s international conference in November 2011, does two-thirds of her business through Phenix. She comments: “Phenix really is a one stop shop, in which I can book all flights, accommodation, transfers and car hire components in one easy system. It means that I can decide what margin I make on a booking and this has been the most powerful tool in helping my business to be a success and grow from year to year.”
Cathy adds: “These are all exciting developments that greatly increase our Travel Counsellors’ selling power and enable them to take control of their margin and build flourishing travel businesses.”
