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Tourism Brokers who specialize in marketing normally come into their own as a vitally necessary part of the equation for patrons, who know very little about what the tourism market or tourism destination market is about.

Through listening to the requests of patrons while they make enquiries, and answering their questions in our offices, as Tourism Brokers, we have noticed that many of patrons who do find us are:

geographically unaware,
destination unaware,
product unaware.

We as Tourism Brokers try to profile our potential patrons into categories when patrons make enquiries. We study the following in an effort to meet our patrons’ needs :

Tilla - Tour Group Consultant

demographics,
psychographics,
budget range,
interests,
available dates
season (high, medium, low.)
available period,
party size,
type of accommodation (camping, self-catering, bed & breakfast, room only etc.) .
age mix of patrons,
residential locality origin,
cultural preferences.

Once these ingredients have been factored into the situation, we can gauge where patrons would be happy to stay. Many resorts are actually a destination product in themselves, which is very important, especially to visitors who have families with children, who need to be entertained, and who have a low boredom threshold.

Furthermore GPS gadgets are rendered useless in the country areas because of the side roads and tracks that have not been featured into the gadget systems.

We have noticed that apart from first time enquirers that do find us, many venue booking clerks, travel agents, and tour operators who obviously do not specialize in destination marketing, are ignorant of the various inherent destination intricacies.

Jolandie - Tourism Consultant

A necessary part of our destination expertise is knowledge of what our destination’s towns have to offer, from a shopping, entertainment, and cuisine point of view, and especially, which class the accommodation venues fall into.

For example; if the mountains are cloud covered along the Panorama Route, a GPS gadget is useless to patrons who are ignorant about local conditions. Fancy gadget solutions to a getaway have only a limited application, because at the end of the day the hands on Dream Merchant at the coalface can, through immediate personal contact with the patrons, inform them about the prevalent situation “ïn sutu”.

JohnT - Marketing and Sales Director and Tours Specialist

The 20 % yearly average increase in visits to our websites to date, also confirms that patrons still seek assistance in deciding on their getaway destination. By virtue of the fact that we are destination experts, we can educate and inform patrons about :

distances between towns,
broadly and specifically what destinations have to offer,
what routes should be taken to reach destinations,
how to make contact with venues,
other operators,
towns that can offer them what they may actually be looking for,
what attractions and products a broader destination provides,
how and where the destination is situated, what it consists of,
what climate to expect there,
the best time of the year to be there,
condition of roads to the destination, and other options if necessary,
which part of the destination, product or venue will suit their specific needs,
alternative options at quality venues that are not that well known, especially when all the well known venues are already full during high season periods.

Other reasons that patrons ought to use the services of a Tourism Broker are:

that Tourism Brokers know where there are gaps (if any) over busy periods that Tourism Brokers are able to collect funds (through the payment of a deposit, or the full amount), thereby making settlement transactions so much more convenient. If per chance, a patron is dissatisfied with the accommodation option offered on arrival, through whatever circumstance, the Tourism Broker who has collected the payment on behalf of the venue, can intervene on the patron’s behalf, when it comes down to refunds, and is able to make immediate alternative arrangements without the hassle of problem refunds, or other inconveniences.

that Tourism Brokers, who are destination wise, have so many more options available to the patron.

that Tourism Brokers can assist in providing information to the patron about whatever products are generally available at a destination, and then actually instruct the patron on the best way to enjoy and appreciate those products, and why.

how to tour the Bushveld and KNP
when to tour KNP,
how to enjoy KNP to the full,
when to tour the Panorama,
how to enjoy the Panorama,
best kept secrets,
optional ideas,
etc.

Willie - Business Management Director and Webmaster

Tourism Brokers can help to compile tours that provide the patrons with optimum experiences during the time available, at the best prices, without unnecessary touring stress, which in turn guarantees them real value for their money.

Patrons who are interested in specialty tours ought to use the services of destination-wise brokers, who will place them on suitable tours lead by fully qualified fully endorsed specialty guides.

They will then have a far more satisfying cost effective experience than if they were to try to tackle these kinds of tours as unknowledgeable, (FIT’s) Fully Independent Travelers.

Tourism Brokers can monitor the quality of product offerings on a daily basis more accurately through their continual and on-going contact with other patrons and tour guides, as well as first hand information that they are able to glean as they deal at close quarters with product suppliers.

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Call us at TRIPS ZA for exciting History, Wildlife, Scenic, and other General Interest tours throughout the Panorama, Kruger, Loweld regions and beyond on
013 764 1177

Email us at johnt@tripsza.com