With a team of 100-plus professionals and 19 locations across Australia, itravel is a force among independent travel franchises and mobile travel agent networks. And that force is felt far beyond Australia: We’re highlighting itravel in this month’s Southern Successes because of the impact they’ve made in our corner of the world.
In May, an integrated itravel/Vacaay Program campaign began targeting 50,000 qualified potential travelers. The campaign is running for six to eight weeks based on impressions, and is driven by a multi-faceted strategy:
Talking to Annalee, it’s clear she’s a fan of the Southern USA. Of the 2021 Travel South International Showcase, she recollects, “That was my first international trip in over two years, so I was already inspired getting on an airplane! Then getting to New Orleans and getting to meet the suppliers – it was a very special trip.” While she longs to return to the Southern USA, she expresses similar enthusiasm around returning home to Australia in order to share her findings with the itravel network.
Interesting, too, is Annalee’s take on how well-suited Australians are for travel to the Southern USA, now more so than ever. She explains, “Australians like to travel and we like to travel for a longer period of time because it takes us so long to [reach destinations].” Couple this traditional travel behavior with current trends – the opening of Australia’s long-closed borders and a global increase in flight prices – and, Annalee reports, “We’re seeing this absolute surge for bookings and longer periods of stay. What was normally two weeks’ is now four weeks’ [vacation]. Traveler spend is higher – they have more disposable income because they haven’t traveled – and they want to make travel more memorable.”
Annalee and her team believe the Southern USA is just the place. As she says, “The destinations have so much to offer an Australian traveler in particular, who wants to go off the beaten track: hire a car and be able to stop and experience on a deeper level what all these states have to offer. It isn’t about rushing; it’s about getting an authentic experience and there’s something for everybody, whether that’s music, bourbon, history or something else. This is something itravel can sell and something Australian travelers will love and be able to come back time and time again since there’s only so much you can fit in one holiday.”
In May, an integrated itravel/Vacaay Program campaign began targeting 50,000 qualified potential travelers. The campaign is running for six to eight weeks based on impressions, and is driven by a multi-faceted strategy:
- Targeting itravel’s customer base to the Southern USA via inspirational blog content focused on 10 cities (one for each state), plus five multistate road trip ideas for independent travelers (Bourbon Bluegrass and Horse Country; Civil Rights History Trail; Coast and Mountains of the South; Musical Roots of the South; Rhythms of the River). Developed with The Travel Junction, all content is evergreen and available for repurpose, providing a depth of content for travelers and Travel South member states.
- Driving Vacaay Program users who engaged in this content to the itravel product, while driving new customers to itravel’s Travel South specialist agents
- Promoting touring in the Southern USA with companies such as Intrepid, Globus, Cosmo and Collette Tours
- Increase inspiration and drive conversions leveraging the Travel South/Vacaay partnership with a qualified travel partner
- Cover all Travel South member states in the Australian Global Partner Program
Talking to Annalee, it’s clear she’s a fan of the Southern USA. Of the 2021 Travel South International Showcase, she recollects, “That was my first international trip in over two years, so I was already inspired getting on an airplane! Then getting to New Orleans and getting to meet the suppliers – it was a very special trip.” While she longs to return to the Southern USA, she expresses similar enthusiasm around returning home to Australia in order to share her findings with the itravel network.
Interesting, too, is Annalee’s take on how well-suited Australians are for travel to the Southern USA, now more so than ever. She explains, “Australians like to travel and we like to travel for a longer period of time because it takes us so long to [reach destinations].” Couple this traditional travel behavior with current trends – the opening of Australia’s long-closed borders and a global increase in flight prices – and, Annalee reports, “We’re seeing this absolute surge for bookings and longer periods of stay. What was normally two weeks’ is now four weeks’ [vacation]. Traveler spend is higher – they have more disposable income because they haven’t traveled – and they want to make travel more memorable.”
Annalee and her team believe the Southern USA is just the place. As she says, “The destinations have so much to offer an Australian traveler in particular, who wants to go off the beaten track: hire a car and be able to stop and experience on a deeper level what all these states have to offer. It isn’t about rushing; it’s about getting an authentic experience and there’s something for everybody, whether that’s music, bourbon, history or something else. This is something itravel can sell and something Australian travelers will love and be able to come back time and time again since there’s only so much you can fit in one holiday.”