In this hyper-connected digital age, travel loyalty programs may seem like they are a dime a dozen. Almost every airline and hotel chain has one. Many merchants, like American Express and the American Automobile Association have one too. So, the question must be asked. Is starting a travel club for your customers or employees worth it? In many instances, the answer is a resounding “YES!”
The Growing Travel Club Trend
It’s easy to see why the digital boom ushered people into subscription-based loyalty programs and clubs that offer personalized experiences. As the trend and capabilities grew, these clubs have surged in popularity to offer high-value rewards that traditional loyalty programs fail to provide. Unlike the historical model of ‘earn and burn’ loyalty programs, They offer a broad collection of customized travel club benefits to their members. As a loyalty-building program, these rewards and services are aimed to encourage customers into continual engagement with the club and the company.
The allure of travel clubs can also be attributed to their demand among frugal travelers who are keen on receiving high returns for their membership fee. On the surface, there seems to be just the small subscription or membership fee, which most customers are willing to pay to reap the high-value benefits in the form of exclusive offerings and elevated customer experience. Customers are naturally drawn to this type of promise. However, these frugal travelers pay close attention to the value they receive and work to optimize their personal gains from the relationship.
The Covid Shift
The travel club landscape has undergone a tectonic shift following the covid-19 pandemic. The new paradigm seems lucrative to many different kinds of customers who are keen on enjoying new travel and experiences further away from home. As a result, savvy companies have started capitalizing on these emerging changes in customer preferences. However, established travel brands have started making changes too. Consider famous travel brands like Hilton and Marriott, for instance. They have been recently been enhancing their exclusive perks and services to their customers via their loyalty programs (marketed as ‘clubs’). In addition, large financial companies have been entering this arena (e.g., Chase and Citi).
In highly fragmented marketplaces, brands are now creating their own travel clubs as a means of both acquiring new customers and boosting loyalty. This creates an economic loop that makes customers keep coming for more while making it hard for them to switch to other brands as well. Additionally, the perceived range of benefits often outweighs the membership fee. Starting a travel club is becoming a sure way to demonstrate your brand value and woo your customers at every touch point.
The Loyalty Shift
At this point, you must be wondering how travel club benefits give customers all the right reasons to stay. Well, the answer lies in going beyond the transactional relationship and emphasizing customer retention using member-only access, discounts, and rewards. They can utilize customer data to offer personalized rewards and premium benefits that incentivize customers to stick around for the long term. When a brand aligns itself with customer values and interests, it forges an emotional bond with its customers. It helps the brand achieve this by leveraging strategic partnerships with travel and lifestyle brands to entice customers. Its advantage is further enhanced because members do not have to pay (often hefty) travel agent service fees whenever they book a trip.
The Service Shift
Another prominent travel club benefit is the exceptional customer support provided to the members before and during their trip. These personalized privileges further enhance the customer experience and promote loyalty. Such high value benefits nudge them into loyalty year after year. Value added services and personalized experiences are key drivers for customers to sign-up and sustain their memberships. The experience-led loyalty program is critical to retain customers in the first year and thereafter.
Everyday discounts on travel and lifestyle products ensure that your brand maintains top of mind awareness while enhancing the club’s value. With the right tools and technology, clubs can unlock rewards that create a personalized experience for their members while offering a sense of exclusivity.
The Revenue Shift
For any existing or new brand, a travel club is a fitting extension for generating long-term recurring revenue. Now, more than ever, customers are on the lookout for programs or clubs that offer unparalleled value and/or economical benefits more than traditional retail channels. By properly connecting with prospects and customers through it, your brand can achieve sustained loyalty and maximum profits in the long run.
The Perception Shift
Travel clubs have their own privileges, but many people ask if setting them up is worth the time and expense? A short answer to this question is, once again, a resounding YES! Here’s why. They have emerged to fulfill the varying needs of all kinds of travelers and folks who come across promotional messages about such clubs. There’s lots of room for highly specialized clubs that cater to their own specific community.
The first question that pops up in everyone’s head is – What do clubs need to offer? Well, They can offer a wide variety of features and services through their membership plan. As an owner, you add the programs that entitle your members to certain travel club benefits that they desire the most.
Every club has a certain membership format which is based on two entities – time and cost. To find the right balance, clubs must do thorough research into their target audience’s habits before making a definite membership plan. You need to conduct that basic homework before launching your club.
The Future Shift
Travel Clubs have developed a positive reputation in the travel industry, so customers are naturally drawn to them. Most luxury travelers just can’t do without one. So if you know you’ve got such consumers, a membership is easy to pitch.
Travel club membership can be equated with that of real estate. It is like owning something for a specific period of time. Most clubs offer flexible membership options with a variety of membership tiers that cater to the needs of a variety of travelers. For instance, they may offer resort getaways or villas for a specific interval. The interval can be a week, a month, or more. The best thing about club membership is that they are not location-specific. Members can change their vacation location or trade for a longer interval depending upon their vacation plans.
These also offer “inside the club rewards” for making purchases, which can then be redeemed or exchanged for other club services. This helps members get their money’s worth in due time from their membership. For instance, if a typical membership plan costs around $300 for a year, the member might be offered flight and hotel deals, car rental services, cruise trips, medical services, and more during their membership cycle. If they were to use any travel agent to book their airfare or hotel, they would have to pay the agent various service fees. It wouldn’t be long before the service fees exceed the cost of the club. In addition, it offers discounts and perks that a travel agent cannot provide and which individuals cannot get on their own.
Ultimately, however, the best travel club feature is the customer support members receive during their vacation. Great customer service gives clubs a great selling point. Great customer service also moves your company into hero status. Your customers appreciate you because you give them something that they cannot get anywhere else on their own.
The Employment Shift
There’s also one new travel club arena that has been developing in recent years; providing employees, professional association members, and even trade union members with access to it. Just as loyalty programs work with customers, clubs can serve to boost loyalty and appreciation among the employees and group members who can enjoy a better life because of the club they have received.
The Technology Shift
In today’s world, you don’t need to do all the heavy lifting anymore. With just a small investment, you can have a fully functioning travel club – which has been custom-designed for your preferred audience – with just a few weeks. Custom Travel Solutions has developed the world’s best travel club platform and partnered with key providers in the travel industry to provide the best deals on travel to your members. Our innovative and powerful technology provides the best rewards, benefits, and savings to your audience. We make it easy for your members to save on travel so that they can take the vacations that matter.
People also read: Think Beyond Points – Leveling Up Your Travel Loyalty Program Game With Creative Rewards
How To Quickly And Easily Add A Travel Club Benefit
If you would like to see how to add a travel-based rewards and loyalty program, then book a live demo with us, and we will further explain the process and guide you through the selection of benefits that you can offer. Adding travel rewards is now one of the smartest tactics that your brand can use to recruit and retain the right people for your organization.
