Who would have predicted this? I got to tell you, right now the travel industry has more twist and turns and is moving faster then the Kingda Ka rollercoaster these days. It’s making MY head spin.

If you recall, Lisa Bauer, then Sr. Vice President of Sales with Royal Caribbean sent out 4 letters to Travel Agencies terminating their agreement in October. Lisa then moved to Vice President of Hotel Operations just a few short weeks later in early December.

Today we find that none other than Carnivals Vick Freed has filled the void left by Lisa to take over Sr. Vice President of Sales for Royal Caribbean.

Royal Caribbean International today named cruise industry veteran Vicki Freed as the company’s senior vice president, sales.

Freed joins the company after 29 years with Carnival Cruise Lines, where she spent the last 15 years as senior vice president of sales and marketing. Prior to that, Freed served in a variety of sales management positions within the cruise line.

From 1998 to 2000, Freed also served as the first, and only, female chairman of the Cruise Line International Association, the marketing and travel agent training arm of the North American cruise industry.

“Vicki has an outstanding and proven background within our industry and we are very pleased to have her join our team,” said Adam Goldstein, president and chief executive officer, Royal Caribbean International. “Vicki’s passionate support of travel agents has been well chronicled and recognized. She will be a great asset to our brand as we continue to grow.”

In her new role, Freed will take charge of the company’s 345-person sales force, the largest sales team in the cruise industry. She will also manage the company’s Trade Support and Services division, which includes Reservations, Group Sales, Customer Service, and Loyalty Programs. Freed will report to Goldstein.

Freed earned a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Colorado, and holds a Certified Travel Counselor designation. She also serves as a trustee of the United Way of Miami-Dade County.

Vicki has always been a great supporter and team member to YTB and I wish her well. She understands our model and recognizes how our large numbers of small producers can create impressive sales for a cruise line. She was present during the Funshine show in Orlando awarding YTB it’s third Pinnacle Award, and attended one of the largest, (if not THE largest) crowd for a single CLIA training on record. It will be interesting to see if we have lost a true ally in this industry, or if this ally can knock some sense into a very stubborn cruise line.

I don’t know Vicki personally, but what I do know of her, is she is a very warm and decent person. She could also hold her own with the Travel Agents who ridiculed her when she publicly supported YTB and the MLM model.

Makes me wonder if she could do the same with RCCL?

Hmmmm.

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I thought that might get your attention… ;-p

I’ve got a couple of questions.

I’m wondering if Carnival has a chance in the next couple days to get the word out about their new sales requirements for FAM’s to those of us in YTB? I’m also wondering what most of YTB will think of Carnival for making this move after our Top Producers enjoy a cruise with them for free. I couldn’t tell you if this has ever been done before, and I imagine that it probably has, but I’m wondering how often Carnival or any other cruise line reserves and entire ship for one company?

Wow…I have a lot of questions today, don’t I?

I spend a lot of time reading comments and posts on forums, message boards, and blogs and I find some of the positioning about what Carnival announced on Wednesday about their new requirements concerning FAM trips. For some reason, everyone who opposes the YTB business model thinks (in general terms) that Carnival is “putting the screws” to YTB for making this move, “turning up the heat” if you will.

Chaaa…right!

What Carnival is doing is trying to let the rest of the travel industry know they hear and understand the issues that Traditional Travel Agents have. For good reason too, Vicki Freed was hammered so bad on her Blog that she had to remove all comments from irate Travel Agents who condemned Carnival for supporting YTB and other Travel MLM’s. The problem is that Carnival knows exactly who and what YTB is. Not only has Carnival awarded their Pinnacle Award to YTB for the last three years in a row, but Carnival was also the company who came to YTB’s aid back in November to help prove to the rest of the industry that YTB sells travel.

Guys, they threw Travel Agents a bone, and they can chew on it all they want. Like I said in my last post, Carnival figured out a way to have their cake and eat it too. The issues are not either/or, and there is a way to have both.

I have to wonder when some will wake up and smell the coffee. They need to open their eyes and look at what just transpired. Can they not only see support Carnival gives YTB or the supporting documentation Travel Weekly and Modern Agent have provided with quotes about MLM’s producing impressive numbers for suppliers? Even long time opposition to YTB Travel Trade now understands the impact of YTB and our growing sales numbers.

Some also believe this is the beginning of the end of the impressive recruiting numbers that YTB has been producing, more than doubling our sales force from 60K to over 135K in 2007 alone. Little do they know, (or simply ignore) that YTB has been laying the ground work for what’s currently going on for months.

Back in August, at the National Convention, the Coach’s Birthday Bash was announced. While the contest does reward our top Power Team Builders, that’s only HALF of the ship. The other half of the ship this weekend are top Travel Sellers with our company. Winners of Travel sales were based on the number of bookings (double occupancy) for all cruises, tours, and vacation packages booked. Air, car, and hotel were ONLY included in the total if all three are booked together. No other combinations of air, car, and hotel applied.

Other Travel related programs introduced back in August included:

- In addition to our Directors who build teams, now any RTA who earns $25,000 in travel commissions in a 12-month period will qualify for fully paid health insurance with Blue Cross Blue Shield. Commission level must be maintained to continue to receive this benefit.

- Effective January 1, 2008, new requirements were placed in order to qualify for a YTB Referring Travel Agent credential card. RTAs joining as of January 1, 2008 must sell a minimum of $1,500 in travel before applying for the RTA credential card. ($2,500 for CLIA requirements)

- Fun & Travel Magazine was introduced as a twice annual publication all about TRAVEL! (And ONLY Travel) This magazine discusses travel trends, features preferred vendors, and reviews the hottest travel destinations.

- RTAs were also introduced a new opportunity to sell a one-year subscription in a Two Fly Free program for a $300 fee. This will allow for free airfare from select cities when purchased in conjunction with a 7-10 night hotel stay (intern
ational destinations are also available).

Many also don’t realize that YTB already had it’s own requirements in place for FAM’s. Any RTA who wanted a FAM trip with Carnival, or any other cruise line, needed to abide and follow the following company requirements.

“Book only two cruises (two cabins) at regular fare for your customers and you’ll be qualified to take another discounted cruise.

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Over the last few days, I’ve had some very productive dialog with John Frenaye (at least for me) and I have a much better understanding of the complaints and concerns our group of Retail Travel Agents are having. I have to hand it to John, he’s at least looking closer at our model. Part of problem I see with skeptics and cynics is that there are a lot of pre-conceived notions about what Network Marketing is. While John has certainly not changed his position towards Network Marketing, he has verified that maybe terminating vendor relationships may not be the best alternative.

We shall see.

You like me may have noticed that no other supplier has come up to bat for these Retail Agents. From all the talk and news a few weeks ago you would have thought the sky was falling with what was circling around the internet. It’s been three weeks now and next Saturday will be a month since “The Letter” was sent out to just 3 Agencies terminating their vendor agreement without cause or reason. What’s even more intriguing to me at this point in time is that we only know the location of two of the three letters. The third to this date is still shrouded in secrecy. Seems to be a very smart move on the part of our third recipient at this point.

About the only news of interest to anyone this week concerning any news about Royal Caribbean’s decision is a Travel Weekly article naming PATH and Peter Stilphen as partners in this attempt to separate themselves from Travel MLM’s. For those of use who have been following this story with me, that’s old news however.

While we keep on waiting for the other shoe to drop, we just keep waiting. Why?

A while ago I found an excellent article from Arnie Weissmann who not only understands our business model, but brought up a number of key points. I’ve been meaning to compliment Arnie for his work, and actually did personally, but have not really given his piece the credit it deserves here.

The timing of the Royal Caribbean termination announcement was directly after YTB’s Funshine Trade Show in Orlando, Florida. I’ve personally attended these Trade Shows and find them to be an excellent source to not only meet our suppliers personally, but become better educated in who they are, what they offer, and how to promote their particular product or service. Like me, Arnie picked up on how hungry everyone is for knowledge of our industry and how receptive our suppliers are in working with us. The fact of the matter is, YTB and other models like us do a considerable amount of business with them. A little here, and a little there certainly adds up.

Just this morning I found this gem from Vicki Freed, and in this published article “Freed said she attended YTB’s conference in early October and saw more than 1,000 attendees in each educational forum. “The desire to learn about the travel business was evident even after I spoke to the general session (over 6,000 attendees) when the CLIA instructor followed me on stage and taught niche marketing,” Freed wrote. “No one left the room, and in fact, the overflow ballroom with big screens set up was packed as well. These folks paid for the conference, and there were no free meals or give-aways.”

It is “rumored” that this CLIA training in Orlando with YTB was the largest single group ever to be trained at one time by this Association.

And while CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association) was quoted in Modern Agent this morning, that its Oct. 17 World’s Largest Cruise Night (WLCN) is expected to generate 17,852 bookings, which translate into an estimated $22.3 million in sales and more than $3 million in travel agency commissions it makes one wonder what a single company like YTB could do in one day.

The entire industry generated 17,852 bookings in one day.

Why only 17,852 for the entire industry? Because these Retail Agents are too busy slamming Vicki on her Blog instead of focusing on making money. I called out our own agents here in my last post for being unprofessional. I feel it’s only fair after reading the threats and the down right harassment towards Vicki that someone needs to tell these Retailers.

“KNOCK IT OFF!”

As an entrepreneur, I’ve always been one who looks at solutions, not problems. Vicki clearly gave these agents an opportunity to make money with her, but chose instead to focus on the Travel MLM problem.

Good Grief.

While the tide certainly hasn’t turned by any stretch at this point, it certainly looks like it’s lost any momentum it had a few weeks ago.

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