 Consolidators
are such an ncreasingly vital part or travel
agency operations that establishing a strong service
image with agents is a priority for any consolidator
that wants to stay competitive. SkyLink has managed
to do just that, as demonstrated by its No.1 status
with agents in the Agents' Choice survey.
"We're thrilled," says
Linda Khanna, national manager of marketing at
SkyLink. "Our goal has been to be No.1, and
we have worked hard to make it happen." She
said the company's own travel agents' survey from
January 2002 highlighted both strong and weak
aspects at SkyLink, and that efforts were immediately
made to rectify the negative points. "We
were very aggressive about making these changes,"
she says.
These included opening a new
call center in Vancouver, as well as substantially
increasing the staff complement at the Toronto
call centre. Ongoing automation upgrades allow
agents to view SkyLink fares on virtually any
booking platform -
|
|
"We
have 14 ways to see and book fares," she says.
And a touch-tone phone-based system gives agents
the ability to find fares even without a screen
in front of them. "We listened to needs of
the travel agents, and we responded to those",
she added.
Sonia Machadeo of KL Travel Choice
in Chatham, Ont., evidently agrees with that. She
voted SkyLink her favourite consolidator, saying,
"They're great. They really take the time to
help, and will check all the airlines to find the
space that I want." She says the SkyLink web
site is very well presented, but if seats can't
be found there, the call centre staff will "stay
on the phone for 45 minutes if needed." Machadeo
says sales through SkyLink are comparable to Network
and Jade Tours - two other well-regarded consolidators
- but that working with SkyLink is virtually "hassle-free."
Travel agent Donna Anderson of Masset Travel in
BC says she has done lots of business with SkyLink,
and they have consistently proven to be "easy
to deal with and fast on the phone." SkyLink
also scored points for having "lots of good
deals" on airfares.
©
2002 - Travel
Courier |
