Your C.A.R.E. QuickConnects Newsletter

JANUARY 2020

Monthly News & Updates

Happy New Year Friends!

I hope your holidays brought you the best of everything your heart desired…rest, relaxation, travel, time with family, the gift you dreamt of all year and most of all precious memories!

It’s a new year…what shall we do with it? I’m not one for resolutions as I never seem to get them accomplished. When we feel led to do something…we should do it in the now, don’t wait for a new year. As a matter of fact,…don’t wait for tomorrow, next week or next month…just get it done! Now that I’m done preaching (to myself lol) let’s talk about what’s in store for C.A.R.E. in 2020.

You’ll see the industry’s 2020 “Coming Attractions” below and I’m happy to say I’ve got C.A.R.E. covered. I should be in attendance at all these events representing C.A.R.E. as your President. Which events will you be attending? I challenge you to find the time and resources to attend one of the events that you’ve never attended. We have some great industry resources and these events are a great way to expand our horizons.

Registration will open soon for our 2020 Conference in Philadelphia (more info below)…things are coming together for another fun and engaging event. We’ve signed two keynote speakers, scheduled our Sunday evening awards aboard the Spirit of Philadelphia Cruise, starting to work on panel discussions (let us know if you have ideas, and/or, want to participate) and looking for our Monday City Tour Networking plans. Guess what we don’t have solidified yet…SPONSORS!

We need more sponsors to make our event what you all expect it to be! Our transition to annual conferences has not been as beneficial as we had anticipated and we need all our members to support the association more than ever! Reach out to me or any board member to get more involved.

Your C.A.R.E. board is headed to Branson (February 7-8) for our annual Winter Board Meeting.

Big shout out and thanks to Brett Grabner of Leisure Getaways for hosting the board at the beautiful Branson Nantucket Resort . Have something you’d like to add to our agenda for consideration/discussion? Reach out to me or any board member. Let’s take on 2020 together…let me know what C.A.R.E. can do to help you succeed!

C.A.R.E.'S 68TH CONFERENCE & 35TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION.....WHY SHOULD YOU ATTEND!

Registration will open soon for C.A.R.E. 68th Conference at the Wyndham Philadelphia Historic District, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from April 4-April 7, 2020. If it's been awhile since you attended a conference or you've never attended a conference, pay special attention to insights offered from first-time conference attendees and industry trade partners to understand why your attendance is so important.

Conference attendance benefits everyone, so don't miss this great opportunity to promote and benefit your company, owners and members.

Why I C.A.R.E. and You Should Too!

By: Valerie Burke, Director Customer Experience & SEO

Sundance Vacations recently launched a new division to service our clients’ travel. While the company has over twenty-eight years’ experience in the travel industry, the actual fulfillment of the vacations was a new challenge for our business.

Were we perfect?

O f course not, but we were honest and approached every reservation with heart and our customers best interest in mind. We can offer global destinations via partnerships with industry leaders. However, we wanted additional inventory in destinations where our travelers love to go year-round. This led to attending our first ever C.A.R.E. conference in Indianapolis, Indiana last May 2019.

Was it what I expected?

It was better. What we discovered was a community of dedicated travel professionals that wanted to work together to improve their clients’ travel options. As first-time attendees, we were assigned a C.A.R.E. ambassador to help us make introductions and offer assistance with anything and everything during the conference.

T he conference was a manageable size which offered the benefit of networking on a scale not always possible at a larger trade show. The variety of attendees was also a surprise. I anticipated other travel providers; however, our company was able to meet industry leaders from all aspects of the field from loyalty program providers to marketing companies... all experts within the travel industry.

Should you attend?

If you are looking for great seminars, networking, and a dash of fun, the answer is yes. This conference included a tour of the RCI call center as well as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Everyone enjoyed the presenters on topics such as: Kiss Your Customer: 77 Reasons Why Sales & Services Are Just Like Dating & Relationships, as well as panel discussions on topics everyone needs to know more about for example: Compliance in the Year of Class Action Litigators. This was a panel discussion on big data and it could have gone on all day without even scratching the surface. In short, if your business is interested in improving the bottom line, this is a community that really cares .

Looking for more great reasons to attend? See what Resort Trades and CustomerCount ®

had to say by clicking the links below!

WHY SHOULD WE C.A.R.E.- RESORT TRADES

10 THINGS I LEARNED AT THE C.A.R.E. CONFERENCE- CUSTOMERCOUNT®

PHILADELPHIA IS ON NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC'S BEST TRIPS

LIST FOR 2020

National Geographic's global travel experts picked the 25 most exciting destinations for 2020 and Philadelphia is the ONLY city in the U.S. to make the cut and, along with the Grand Canyon, Philadelphia is one of only two American destinations to be selected.

Author Johnna Rizzo asserts that Philadelphia has “reignited its revolutionary spirit” and goes on to describe how Philadelphia “continues to blossom with countless clever and quirky impulses” and that the city has a lot of “glimmer” with vibrant mosaics and murals.

With plenty of pop-up gardens and parks across the city, an incredible art scene, and an amazing array of bars and restaurants, Philadelphia is “electric, eclectic and entirely its own city,” according to Rizzo, and a “city of ingenious makers. The evidence is everywhere.”

For the full article in National Geographic about the Best Trips for 2020, click here .